[Federal Register Volume 63, Number 33 (Thursday, February 19, 1998)]
[Notices]
[Pages 8426-8427]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 98-4168]
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DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE
Forest Service
Cottonwood Coal Lease Tract, UTU-68012; Manti-La Sal National
Forest, Emery County, Utah
ACTION: Notice of intent to prepare a third-party Environmental Impact
Statement.
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SUMMARY: The Forest Service and Bureau of Land Management will direct
preparation of a Third-Party Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) to
document the analysis and disclose the environmental and human effects
of proposed actions to offer the Cottonwood Coal Lease Tract for
competitive bidding in accordance with 43 CFR part 3425. As the surface
management agency, the Forest Service will be the lead agency for
preparation of the EIS and the Bureau of Land Management will be a
joint lead agency. The Office of Surface Mining and Bureau of
Reclamation will also participate as cooperating agencies.
The coal lease tract, as delineated by the Tract Delineation Team,
encompasses 9,243.87 acres of Federal coal lands on the Manti-La Sal
National Forest as follows:
T. 17 S., R. 6 E., SLM,
Section 2, SW4;
Section 3, lots 1-12, SE4;
Section 4, lots 1-2, S2NE4, SE4;
Section 9, E2, E2W2;
Section 10, lots 1-8, E2;
Section 11, All;
Section 12, W2W2;
Section 13, W2W2;
Section 14, lots 1-4, E2, NW4;
Section 15, lots 1-12, NE4;
Section 16, NE4NW4;
Section 20, E2E2;
Section 21, All;
Section 22, All;
Section 23; lots 1-12, NE4;
Section 24, W2W2;
Section 25, N2NW4;
Section 26, N2NE4, W2SW4NE4, NW4, N2SW4, W2NW4SE4;
Section 27, N2, N2S2;
Section 28, All;
Section 29, E2;
Section 32, E2;
Section 33; All.
(Additions and/or deletions to the delineated tract may be
considered as alternatives to the proposed action, to be developed and
analyzed based on issues and management needs.)
PacifiCorp applied to the Bureau of Land Management for the lease
to obtain additional coal reserves to increase the production life of
their Cottonwood/Wilberg/Trail Mountain mine complex. The tract lies
west and north of the boundary of the existing approved permit area for
the Trail Mountain Mine. If PacifiCorp obtains the tract, it would be
mined by longwall and room-and-pillar methods through underground
workings in the existing permit area. Existing portal facilities in
Cottonwood/Wilberg/Trail Mountain mine comples would be used. If
another company obtains the tract, it is most likely that new portal
facilities would be required in Cottonwood Canyon, north of the
existing Trail Mountain Mine facility. The underground mining methods
and layout would be similar. The EIS would consider the effects of both
scenarios, the No Action Alternative, and other alternatives to be
developed after completion of project scoping.
AGENCY DECISIONS: In accordance with the Coal Leasing Amendments Act of
1975, which amended the Mineral Leasing Act of 1920, the Forest
Supervisor, Manti-La Sal National forest, must decide whether or not to
consent to leasing by the Bureau of Land Management and identify
special coal lease stipulations needed to protect non-mineral
resources.
In accordance with the Mineral Leasing Act of 1920, as amended, the
Utah State Director of the Bureau of Land Management must decide
whether or not to offer the tract for competitive leasing and under
what terms, conditions, and stipulations.
DATES: Written comments concerning the scope of the analysis described
in this notice should be received on or before March 23, 1998.
ADDRESSES: Send written comments to Manti-La Sal National Forest, 599
West Price River Drive, Price, Utah 84501.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:
Questions concerning the proposed action and EIS should be addressed to
Dale Harber or Aaron Howe, Manti-La Sal National Forest, phone (435)
637-2817.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: This EIS will tier to the Final EIS and
Record of Decision for the Manti-La Sal National Forest Land and
Resource Management Plan (Forest Plan). The Manti-La Sal Forest Plan
provides the overall guidance (Goals, Objectives, Standards, and
Management Area Direction) to achieve the Desired Future Condition for
the area being analyzed, and contains specific management area
prescriptions for the entire Forest. The proposed lease tract is
available for further consideration for coal leasing. The Forest
Service and Bureau of Land Management have determined that data are
available to meet the Data Adequacy Standards for Federal Coal Leasing,
Uinta-Southwestern Utah Coal Region.
Issues and alternatives to be evaluated in the analysis will be
determined through public scoping. The major issues are expected to
include the socioeconomic benefits of mining; the potential impacts of
underground mining and mining-induced subsidence to surface and ground
water, vegetation, wildlife, cultural/paleontological resources, range
improvements, and other land uses; the potential for impacts on the
Joes Valley Dam; and the potential impacts of any new surface
facilities to the Forest and human environments.
The Forest Service is seeking information and comments from
Federal, State, and local agencies as well as individuals and
organizations who may be interested in, or affected by, the proposed
action. The Forest Service invites written comments and suggestions on
the issues related to the proposal and the area being analyzed.
Information received will be used in preparation of the Draft EIS and
Final
[[Page 8427]]
EIS. For most effective use, comments would be submitted to the Forest
Service within 30 days from the date of publication of this notice in
the Federal Register. Preparation of the EIS will include the following
steps:
1. Define the purpose of and need for action.
2. Identify potential issues.
3. Eliminate issues of minor importance or those that have been
covered by previous and relevant environmental analysis.
4. Select issues to be analyzed in depth.
5. Identify reasonable alternatives to the proposed action.
6. Describe the affected environment.
7. Identify the potential environmental effects of the
alternatives.
Steps 2, 3, and 4 will be completed through the scoping process.
Step 5 will consider a range of alternatives developed from the key
issues and management needs. At a minimum, the ``No Action'' and
``Propose Action'' Alternatives will be analyzed. Other alternatives
could involve modified tract boundaries (additions and/or reductions)
and different sets of special lease stipulations for the protection of
non-mineral resources. Alternatives may also be developed to include
analysis of mining in the existing adjacent lease area and a potential
modification of adjacent existing leases to add up to 160 acres/lease
to prevent bypassing minable reserves.
Step 6 will describe the physical attributes of the area to be
affected by this proposal, with special attention to the environmental
factors that could be adversely affected.
Step 7 will analyze the environmental effects of each alternative.
This analysis will be consistent with management direction outlined in
the Forest plan. The direct, indirect, and cumulative effects of each
alternative will be analyzed and documented. In addition, the site
specific mitigation measures for each alternative will be identified
and the effectiveness of these mitigation measures will be disclosed.
Agency representatives and other interested people are invited to
visit with Forest Service officials at any time during the EIS process.
Two specific time periods are identified for the receipt of formal
comments on the analysis. The two comment periods are, (1) during the
scoping process, the next 30 days following publication of this Notice
in the Federal Register, and (2) during the formal review period of the
Draft EIS.
The Draft EIS is estimated to be filed with the Environmental
Protection Agency (EPA) and available for public review in September,
1998. At this time the EPA will publish an availability notice of the
Draft EIS in the Federal Register.
The comment period on the Draft EIS will be 45 days from the date
the Environmental Protection Agency's notice of availability appears in
the Federal Register. It is very important that those interested in
this proposed action participate at that time. To be the most helpful,
comments on the Draft EIS should be as specific as possible and may
address the adequacy of the statement or the merits of the alternatives
discussed (See The Council on Environmental Quality Regulations for
implementing the procedural provisions of the National Environmental
Policy Act at 40 CFR 1503.3).
In addition, Federal court decisions have established that
reviewers of draft environmental impact statements must structure their
participation in the environmental review of the proposal so that it is
meaningful and alerts an agency to the reviewers' position and
contentions. Vermont Yankee Nuclear Power Corp. v. NRDC, 435 U.S. 519,
553 (1978). Environmental objections that could have been raised at the
draft stage may be waived if not raised until after completion of the
final environmental impact statement. City of Angoon v. Hodel, (9th
Circuit, 1986) and Wisconsin Heritages, Inc. v. Harris, 490 F. Supp.
1334, 1338 (E.D. Wis. 1980). The reason for this is to ensure that
substantive comments and objections are made available to the Forest
Service at a time when it can meaningfully consider them and respond to
them in the final document.
To assist the Forest Service in identifying and considering issues
and concerns related to the proposed action, comments on the Draft EIS
should be as specific as possible. Referring to specific pages or
chapters of the Draft EIS is most helpful. Comments may also address
the adequacy of the Draft EIS or the merits of the alternatives
formulated and discussed in the statement. (Reviewers may wish to refer
to the Council on Environmental Quality Regulations for implementing
the procedural provisions of the National Environmental Policy Act, 40
CFR 1503.3, in addressing these points.)
The final EIS is expected to be released in December, 1998.
The Forest Supervisor for the Manti-La Sal National Forest and Utah
State Director of the Bureau of Land Management, who are the
responsible officials for the EIS, will then make their respective
decisions regarding this proposal, after considering the comments,
responses, and environmental consequences discussed in the Final
Environmental Impact Statement, and applicable laws, regulations, and
policies. The rationale for the respective agency decisions will be
documented in the Record(s) of Decisions.
Dated: February 11, 1998.
Janette S. Kaiser,
Forest Supervisor, Manti-La Sal National Forest.
[FR Doc. 98-4168 Filed 2-18-98; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3410-11-M
