[Federal Register Volume 61, Number 86 (Thursday, May 2, 1996)]
[Notices]
[Pages 19606-19607]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 96-10847]
========================================================================
Notices
Federal Register
________________________________________________________________________
This section of the FEDERAL REGISTER contains documents other than rules
or proposed rules that are applicable to the public. Notices of hearings
and investigations, committee meetings, agency decisions and rulings,
delegations of authority, filing of petitions and applications and agency
statements of organization and functions are examples of documents
appearing in this section.
========================================================================
Federal Register / Vol. 61, No. 86 / Thursday, May 2, 1996 /
Notices
[[Page 19606]]
DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE
Forest Service
GRIFFON Project; Humboldt-Toiyabe National Forests, White Pine
County, Nevada
AGENCY: Forest Service.
ACTION: Notice of intent to prepare an environmental impact statement.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
SUMMARY: The Department of Agriculture, Forest Service will be
directing the preparation of an Environmental Impact Statement (EIS)
for the proposed development of an open pit gold mining project in the
White Pine Range northwest of Ellison Guard Station in White Pine
County, Nevada (T14N, R58N, sec 24 & 25). This EIS will be prepared by
contract and funded by the proponent, Alta Gold Company. (Alta).
DATES: Written comments concerning the scope of the analysis should be
received by May 31, 1996 to ensure timely consideration.
ADDRESSES: Send written comments to: David Valenzuela, Project Team
Leader, Ely Ranger District, Humboldt-Toiyabe National Forests, PO Box
539, Ely, Nevada 89301.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:
Direct questions about the proposed project and preparation of the EIS
to David Valenzuela, Project Team Leader, at the same address,
Telephone: 702-289-3031.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Alta has submitted to the Humboldt-Toiyabe
National Forests, a Proposed Plan of Operations (POO) for a new mine in
White Pine County, Nevada. The POO describes the proposed mining
development activities and operational and reclamation procedures for
the GRIFFON Project. The proposal includes developing two open pits.
Waste rock dumps, soil stockpiles, ore stockpile, haul roads and
support facilities would also be developed. Ore would be processed at a
proposed mill-site located on the project site.
The proposal would affect approximately 161 acres of public lands.
Preliminary internal scoping has identified several issues which would
be addressed in the analysis process. The following list of issues is
not intended to be all inclusive. They are: impacts to ground and
surface water resources; impacts to grazing resources; impacts to
Waters of the United States including wetlands; mine economics;
threatened, endangered, and sensitive plant and wildlife species; and
visual resources. These issues and any others identified during the
scoping process may be used to develop alternatives to the proposed
action. In addition, the No Action alternative will be considered in
the analysis.
Public participation is important during the EIS scoping process.
As part of the scoping process, the Forest Service will be seeking
information and comments from Federal, State, County and local agencies
and other individuals or organizations who may be interested in or
affected by the proposed actions. This input will be used in the
preparation of the draft EIS and Final EIS.
Several government agencies will be invited to participate in this
project as cooperating or participating agencies. These agencies
include, but are not limited to, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, U.S.
Fish and Wildlife Service, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Nevada
Division of Environmental Protection, Nevada Division of Wildlife, and
White Pine County Board of Commissioners. In addition to the Plan of
Operations, various Federal, State, and local permits and licenses may
be required to implement the proposed action. These may include, but
are not limited to, a Section 404 permit, Water Pollution Control
Permit, Reclamation Permit for Mining Operations, and a General
Discharge Permit for Stormwater.
The Forest Service is the lead agency for this project and Monica
J. Schwalbach, Assistant Forest Supervisor for the Central Nevada
Ecosystem of the Humboldt-Toiyabe National Forests is the responsible
official. She will make a decision to approve the proposed Plan of
Operations or one of the alternatives analyzed. Alta's rights under the
1872 Mining Law as amended, applicable Forest Service regulations and
the Humboldt National Forest Land and Resource Management Plant (1986)
will be taken into account throughout the analysis.
The Draft EIS is expected to be filed with the U.S. Environmental
Protection Agency (EPA) and be available for review in November 1996.
At that time, EPA will publish a Notice of Availability of the Draft
EIS in the Federal Register.
The comment period on the Draft EIS will be at least 45 days from
the date the EPA's notice of availability appears in the Federal
Register.
The Forest Service believes, at this early stage, it is important
to give reviewers notice of several court rulings related to public
participation in the environmental review process. First, 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 reviewer's position and
contentions. Vermont Yankee Nuclear Power Corp. v. NRDC, 435 U.S. 519,
553 (1978). Also, environmental objections that could be raised at the
draft environmental impact stage but that are not raised until after
completion of the final environmental impact statement may be waived or
dismissed by the courts. City of Angoon v. Hodel, 803 F.2d 1016, 1022
(9th Cir. 1986) and Wisconsin Heritages, Inc. v. Harris, 490 F. Supp.
1334, 1338 (E.D. Wis. 1980). Because of these court rulings, it is very
important that those interested in this proposed action participate by
the close of the 45-day comment period so 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
environmental impact statement. To assist the Forest Service in
identifying and considering issues and concerns on the proposed action,
comments on the draft environmental impact statement should be as
specific as possible. It is also helpful if comments refer to specific
pages or chapters of the draft statement. Comments may also address the
adequacy of the draft environmental impact statement or the merits of
the alternatives formulated or discussed in the statement. Reviewers
may wish to refer to the Council on Environmental
[[Page 19607]]
Quality Regulations for implementing the procedural provisions of the
National Environmental Policy Act at 40 CFR 1503.3 in addressing these
points.
Pursuant to 7 CFR, Part 1, Subpart B, Section 1.27, all written
submissions in response to this notice shall be made available for
public inspection including the submitter's name, unless the submitter
specifically requests confidentiality. Anonymous comments will be not
accepted. All written submissions from business entities and
organizations, submitted on official letterhead, in response to this
notice shall be made available for public inspection in their entirety.
Dated: April 22, 1996.
Monica J. Schwalbach
Assistant Forest Supervisor, Central Nevada Ecosystem, Humboldt-Toiyabe
National Forests.
[FR Doc. 96-10847 Filed 5-1-96; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3410-11-M
