[Federal Register Volume 85, Number 16 (Friday, January 24, 2020)]
[Notices]
[Pages 4338-4339]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2020-01178]
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DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR
Bureau of Land Management
[(LLCAD01000.L13400000.DO0000.20X) MO#4500140922]
Notice of Availability of the Final Environmental Impact
Statement for the Haiwee Geothermal Leasing Area, California, and the
Proposed Amendment to the California Desert Conservation Area Plan
AGENCY: Bureau of Land Management, Interior.
ACTION: Notice of availability.
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SUMMARY: In accordance with the National Environmental Policy Act of
1969, as amended (NEPA), and the Federal Land Policy and Management Act
of 1976, as amended (FLPMA), the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) has
prepared a Final Amendment to the California Desert Conservation Area
(CDCA) Plan and a Final Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) for the
Haiwee Geothermal Leasing Area (HGLA), Inyo County, California, and by
this notice is announcing its availability. The proposed action is to
amend the CDCA Plan to allow for geothermal leasing within
approximately 22,805 acres. The proposed action also responds to three
geothermal lease applications for 4,460 acres of public lands within
the HGLA.
DATES: BLM planning regulations state that any person who meets the
conditions as described in the regulations may protest the BLM's
Proposed Land Use Plan Amendment and Final EIS. A person who meets the
conditions and files a protest must file the protest within 30 days of
the date that the Environmental Protection Agency publishes its Notice
of Availability in the Federal Register.
ADDRESSES: The Final EIS and Proposed Land Use Plan Amendment is
available on the internet at https://go.usa.gov/xEnvy. Hard copies of
the Final EIS and Proposed Land Use Plan Amendment are available for
public inspection at the BLM-Ridgecrest Field Office at 300 South
Richmond Road, Ridgecrest, CA 93555, and at the California Desert
District Office, 22835 Calle San Juan De Los Lagos, Moreno Valley, CA
92553. Hard copies of the Final EIS and Proposed Land Use Plan
Amendment have been sent to affected Federal, State, local, and tribal
government agencies and to other stakeholders. All protests must be in
writing and filed with the BLM Director, either as a hard copy or
electronically via the BLM's ePlanning project website listed
previously. To submit a protest electronically, go to the ePlanning
project website and follow the protest instructions highlighted at the
top of the home page. If submitting a protest in hard copy, it must be
mailed to one of the following addresses:
Regular Mail: BLM Director (210), Attention: Protest Coordinator,
P.O. Box 71383, Washington, DC 20024-1383.
Overnight Delivery: BLM Director (210), Attention: Protest
Coordinator, 20 M Street SE, Room 2134LM, Washington, DC 20003.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Greg Miller, Assistant District
Manager--Resources, telephone: 951-697-5216; address: 22835 Calle San
Juan De Los Lagos, Moreno Valley, CA 92553; email:
[[Page 4339]]
[email protected]. Persons who use a telecommunications device for the
deaf (TDD) may call the Federal Relay Service (FRS) at 1-800-877-8339
to contact Mr. Miller during normal business hours. FRS is available 24
hours a day, 7 days a week, to leave a message or question. You will
receive a reply during normal business hours.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The HGLA Draft EIS and Draft Proposed
Amendment to the CDCA published in May 2012 and public meetings were
held in June 2012. An Administrative Draft Final EIS was prepared in
December 2013 that included public comments and responses to comments,
updates to the alternatives descriptions, and internal review comments.
As a result of the review of the comments, the BLM conducted a more
detailed study to address projected water use by geothermal facilities
should they be allowed in the HGLA. Argonne National Laboratories
conducted the study and provided BLM a report in January 2016.
Additionally, new land use designations approved with the Desert
Renewable Energy Conservation Plan amendment to the CDCA Plan in
September of 2016 required analysis of a new alternative that
considered the new land use designations. Based on these two
developments, the BLM has prepared a CDCA Plan Amendment and Draft
Supplemental EIS for the project. The Draft Supplemental EIS published
on April 19, 2019, for a 90-day public comment period. The Draft
Supplemental EIS analyzed the Proposed Action and two action
alternatives, in addition to the No Action Alternative.
The BLM received three geothermal lease applications for 4,460
acres of public lands within the HGLA in 2002. In addition, the BLM
identified approximately 18,345 acres of public lands, also within the
Haiwee Proposed Project Area and adjacent to the three geothermal lease
applications, which will be considered for competitive geothermal
leasing under 43 CFR 3203.10(e). The proposed action is to amend the
CDCA Plan to allow project area lands to be leased under the authority
of the Geothermal Steam Act of 1970, as amended (30 U.S.C. 1001 et
seq.). The leasing of public lands for geothermal resources will
require an amendment to the CDCA Plan, which is authorized by FLPMA
Section 202 (43 U.S.C. 1712) and 43 CFR 1610.5-5. Total acreage being
considered for geothermal leasing is approximately 22,805 acres.
The Draft Supplemental EIS/EIR and Draft Land Use Plan Amendment
was available for a 90-day public comment period. The BLM received
seven comment letters during the comment period. The BLM considered and
incorporated, as appropriate, public comments on the Draft EIS, Draft
Supplemental EIS, and Draft Land Use Plan Amendment and internal agency
review into the proposed plan amendment. Public comments resulted in
the addition of clarifying text but did not significantly change
proposed land use plan decisions. A response to substantive comments is
included as an appendix to the Final EIS and Proposed Land Use Plan
Amendment. The BLM has selected Alternative A, Allow Geothermal Leasing
in the Entire HGLA, as the Agency Proposed Alternative in the Final EIS
and Proposed Land Use Plan Amendment. Instructions for filing a protest
with the Director of the BLM regarding the Final EIS and Proposed Land
Use Plan Amendment may be found online at https://www.blm.gov/programs/planning-and-nepa/public-participation/filing-a-plan-protest and at 43
CFR 1610.5-2. All protests must be made in writing and mailed to the
appropriate address, as set forth in the ADDRESSES section listed
earlier or submitted electronically through the BLM ePlanning project
website as described earlier. Protests submitted electronically by any
means other than through the ePlanning project website protest section
will be invalid unless a protest is also submitted in hard copy.
Protests submitted by fax will also be invalid unless also submitted
either through the ePlanning project website protest section or in hard
copy.
Before including your phone number, email address, or other
personal identifying information in your protest, you should be aware
that your entire protest--including your personal identifying
information--may be made publicly available at any time. While you can
ask us to withhold your personal identifying information from public
review, we cannot guarantee that we will be able to do so.
(Authority: 40 CFR 1501.7 and 43 CFR 1610.2)
Joe Stout,
Acting State Director.
[FR Doc. 2020-01178 Filed 1-23-20; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4310-40-P