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[Federal Register Volume 77, Number 131 (Monday, July 9, 2012)]
[Notices]
[Pages 40380-40381]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Printing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2012-16732]

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DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR

Bureau of Ocean Energy Management

Outer Continental Shelf, Gulf of Mexico, Oil and Gas Lease Sales, 
Western Planning Area Lease Sale 233 and Central Planning Area Lease 
Sale 231

AGENCY: Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM), Interior.

ACTION: Notice of Intent to Prepare a Supplemental Environmental Impact 
Statement (EIS).

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    Authority:  This Notice of Intent to Prepare a Supplemental EIS 
(NOI) is published pursuant to the regulations (40 CFR 1501.7) 
implementing the provisions of the National Environmental Policy Act 
of 1969, as amended (42 U.S.C. 4321 et seq.) (NEPA).

SUMMARY: Pursuant to the regulations implementing the procedural 
provisions of NEPA, BOEM is announcing its intent to prepare a 
Supplemental EIS for proposed Western Planning Area (WPA) Lease Sale 
233 and Central Planning Area (CPA) Lease Sale 231 (WPA/CPA 
Supplemental EIS). The proposed lease sales are in the Gulf of Mexico's 
WPA off the States of Texas and Louisiana and in the CPA off the States 
of Louisiana, Mississippi, and Alabama. The WPA/CPA Supplemental EIS 
will update the environmental and socioeconomic analyses in the Gulf of 
Mexico OCS Oil and Gas Lease Sales: 2012-2017; WPA Lease Sales 229, 
233, 238, 246, and 248; CPA Lease Sales 227, 231, 235, 241, and 247, 
Final Environmental Impact Statement (OCS EIS/EA BOEM 2012-019) (WPA/
CPA Multisale Final EIS). The WPA/CPA Multisale Final EIS was completed 
in July 2012.
    A Supplemental EIS is deemed appropriate to supplement the WPA/CPA 
Multisale Final EIS for these lease sales in order to consider new 
circumstances and information arising, among other things, from the 
Deepwater Horizon event. The WPA/CPA Supplemental EIS analysis will 
focus on updating the baseline conditions and potential environmental 
effects of oil and natural gas leasing, exploration, development, and 
production in the WPA and CPA. The WPA/CPA Supplemental EIS will also 
analyze the 1.4 nautical mile (nmi) buffer area in the Western Gap, 
which was excluded from the WPA/CPA Multisale EIS but which may be 
available in the proposed lease sale or subsequent sale. The WPA/CPA 
Supplemental EIS will assist decisionmakers in making informed 
decisions regarding the approval of operations, as well as leasing.
    The WPA/CPA Supplemental EIS analysis will focus on the potential 
environmental effects of oil and natural gas leasing, exploration, 
development, and production in the areas identified as the proposed 
lease sale areas. In addition to the no action alternative (i.e., 
canceling the proposed sales), other alternatives may be considered for 
each proposed lease sale, such as deferring certain areas from the 
proposed lease sales.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: On June 28, 2012, the Department of the 
Interior released a Proposed Final OCS Oil and Gas Leasing Program for 
2012-2017, which includes proposed WPA Lease Sale 233 and CPA Lease 
Sale 231. The general area proposed for WPA Lease Sale 233 covers 
approximately 29 million acres in the western portion of the Gulf of 
Mexico (GOM) (excluding whole and partial blocks within the boundary of 
the Flower Garden Banks National Marine Sanctuary). The general area 
proposed for CPA Lease Sale 231 covers approximately 67 million acres 
in the central portion of the GOM (excluding whole and partial blocks 
deferred by the Gulf of Mexico Energy Security Act of 2006 and blocks 
that are beyond the United States Exclusive Economic Zone in the area 
known as the northern portion of the Eastern Gap).
    On February 20, 2012, the United States and Mexico signed an 
Agreement between the United States of America and the United Mexican 
States Concerning Transboundary Hydrocarbon Reservoirs in the Gulf of 
Mexico (hereinafter referred to as the ``Agreement''). Upon the 
Agreement's entry into force, additional acreage that lies within 1.4 
nmi north of the continental shelf boundary in the area formerly known 
as the Western Gap will be available for lease. A treaty with Mexico 
currently prohibits leasing in this 1.4 nmi buffer area until 2014. 
This area includes acreage in the CPA and WPA along the continental 
shelf boundary between the United States and Mexico. If the Agreement 
enters into force, this 1.4 nmi buffer area may be available for 
leasing prior to 2014. When this area becomes available for lease, it 
will be announced in a Notice of Sale. The 1.4 nmi buffer area was not 
previously considered in the Multisale Final EIS, but potential impacts 
on this area will be considered in the WPA/CPA Supplemental EIS.
    This Federal Register notice is not an announcement to hold the 
proposed lease sales, but is a continuation of information gathering 
and is published early in the environmental review process as required 
by NEPA. The comments received during the scoping comment period will 
help form the content of the WPA/CPA Supplemental EIS and will be 
summarized in presale documentation prepared prior to holding the 
proposed WPA or CPA lease sales. If, after completion of the 
Supplemental EIS, the Secretary's decision is to hold one or both of 
the lease sales, then the lease sale areas identified in the Notice of 
Sale may exclude or defer certain lease blocks from the areas offered. 
For purposes of the WPA/CPA Supplemental EIS and to adequately assess 
the potential impacts of two area wide lease sales, however, BOEM is 
conservatively assuming that all unleased blocks may be offered in the 
proposed WPA and CPA lease sales.
    In order to ensure a greater level of transparency during the Outer 
Continental Shelf Lands Act (OCSLA) stages and tiered NEPA processes of 
the Proposed Final OCS Oil & Gas Leasing Program 2012-2017, (the Five-
Year Program), BOEM established an alternative and mitigation tracking 
table (the Table), which is designed to track the receipt and treatment 
of alternative and mitigation suggestions. Section 4.3.2 of the Outer 
Continental Shelf Oil and Gas Leasing Program: 2012-2017; Final 
Programmatic Environmental Impact Statement (the Five-Year EIS) (http://www.boem.gov/5-year/2012-2017/PEIS.aspx) has presented a list of 
deferral and alternatives requests that were received during the 
development of the Five-Year EIS but were determined to be more 
appropriately considered at subsequent OCSLA and NEPA stages. The WPA/
CPA Multisale Final EIS addressed these deferral and alternatives 
requests, even though they were ultimately deemed inappropriate for 
further analysis as a separate alternative or deferral from those 
already included and considered in the WPA/CPA Multisale Final EIS. In 
future NEPA analyses, BOEM will continue to evaluate whether these or 
other deferral or alternative requests warrant additional consideration 
as appropriate. (Please refer to Sections 2.2.1.1 and 2.2.1.1 of the 
WPA/CPA Multisale Final EIS for a complete discussion; http://www.boem.gov/Environmental-Stewardship/Environmental-Assessment/NEPA/nepaprocess.aspx). The key requirement at each stage in the NEPA 
process is to identify how the recommendations for deferral and 
mitigation requests are being addressed and whether new information or

[[Page 40381]]

circumstances favor new or different analytical approaches in response 
to these requests.
    Additionally, BOEM has created a tailored map of the potentially 
affected area through the Multipurpose Marine Cadastre (MMC) Web site, 
http://boem.gov/Oil-and-Gas-Energy-Program/Leasing/Five-Year-Program/Lease-Sale-Schedule/Interactive-Maps.aspx. This map is an integrated 
marine information system that provides a more comprehensive look at 
geospatial data and ongoing activities and studies occurring in the 
area being considered. This Web site provides the ability to view 
multiple data layers of existing geospatial data. Commenters can 
suggest data layers for consideration by following the commenting 
instructions below.
    Scoping Process: Through this NOI, BOEM is also announcing the 
scoping process for the WPA/CPA Supplemental EIS. Throughout the 
scoping process, Federal, state, tribal, and local government agencies, 
and other interested parties have the opportunity to aid BOEM in 
determining the significant issues, reasonable alternatives, and 
potential mitigation measures to be analyzed in the WPA/CPA 
Supplemental EIS, as well as providing additional information. BOEM 
will use the NEPA commenting process to satisfy the public involvement 
process for Section 106 of the National Historic Preservation Act (16 
U.S.C. 470f), as provided for in 36 CFR 800.2(d)(3).
    Cooperating Agency: BOEM invites other Federal agencies and sate, 
tribal, and local governments to consider becoming cooperating agencies 
in the preparation of the WPA/CPA Supplemental EIS. We invite qualified 
government entities to inquire about cooperating agency status for the 
WPA/CPA Supplemental EIS. Following the guidelines from the Council of 
Environmental Quality (CEQ), qualified agencies and governments are 
those with ``jurisdiction by law or special expertise.'' Potential 
cooperating agencies should consider their authority and capacity to 
assume the responsibilities of a cooperating agency and to remember 
that an agency's role in the environmental analysis neither enlarges 
nor diminishes the final decisionmaking authority of any other agency 
involved in the NEPA process. Upon request, BOEM will provide potential 
cooperating agencies with a written summary of ground rules for 
cooperating agencies, including time schedules and critical action 
dates, milestones, responsibilities, scope and detail of cooperating 
agencies' contributions, and availability of predecisional information. 
BOEM anticipates this summary will form the basis for a Memorandum of 
Agreement between BOEM and each cooperating agency. Agencies should 
also consider the ``Factors for Determining Cooperating Agency Status'' 
in Attachment 1 to CEQ's January 30, 2002, Memorandum for the Heads of 
Federal Agencies: Cooperating Agencies in Implementing the Procedural 
Requirements of the National Environmental Policy Act. These documents 
are available at the following locations on the Internet: http://
nepa.fhwa.dot.gov/ReNEPA/ReNepa.nsf/All+Documents/
D155918ABFA4EB3A85256BF20071E9AE/$FILE/
Cooperating%20Agencies%20Memorandum.1.30.02.doc and http://
nepa.fhwa.dot.gov/ReNEPA/ReNepa.nsf/All+Documents/
D155918ABFA4EB3A85256BF20071E9AE/$FILE/
Cooperating%20Agency%20Memo%20Factors.1.30.02.doc.
    BOEM, as the lead agency, will not provide financial assistance to 
cooperating agencies. Even if an organization is not a cooperating 
agency, opportunities will exist to provide information and comments to 
BOEM during the normal public input stages of the NEPA/EIS process. For 
further information about cooperating agencies, please contact Mr. Gary 
D. Goeke at (504) 736-3233.
    Comments: All interested parties, including Federal, state, and 
local government agencies, and the general public, may submit written 
comments on the scope of the WPA/CPA Supplemental EIS, significant 
issues that should be addressed, alternatives that should be 
considered, potential mitigation measures, and the types of oil and gas 
activities of interest in the proposed lease sale areas.
    Written scoping comments may be submitted in one of the following 
two ways:
    1. In an envelope labeled ``Scoping for the WPA/CPA Supplemental 
EIS'' and mailed (or hand delivered) to Mr. Gary D. Goeke, Chief, 
Regional Assessment Section, Office of Environment (MS 5410), Bureau of 
Ocean Energy Management, Gulf of Mexico OCS Region, 1201 Elmwood Park 
Boulevard, New Orleans, Louisiana 70123-2394; or
    2. BOEM email address: Ls_233_231SEIS@boem.gov.
    Petitions, although accepted, do not generally provide useful 
information to assist in scoping. BOEM does not consider anonymous 
comments. Before including your address, phone number, email address, 
or other personal identifying information in your comment, you should 
be aware that your entire comment--including your personal identifying 
information--may be made publicly available at any time. While you can 
ask us in your comment to withhold your personal identifying 
information from public review, we cannot guarantee that we will be 
able to do so. If you wish for your name and/or address to be withheld, 
you must state your preference prominently at the beginning of your 
comment. All submissions from organizations or businesses and from 
individuals identifying themselves as representatives or officials of 
organizations or businesses will be made available for public 
inspection in their entirety.

DATES: Comments must be received no later than August 8, 2012 at the 
address specified below.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: For information on the WPA/CPA 
Supplemental EIS, scoping process, the submission of comments, or 
BOEM's policies associated with this notice, please contact Mr. Gary D. 
Goeke, Chief, Regional Assessment Section, Office of Environment (MS 
5410), Bureau of Ocean Energy Management, Gulf of Mexico OCS Region, 
1201 Elmwood Park Boulevard, New Orleans, Louisiana 70123-2394, 
telephone (504) 736-3233.

    Dated: July 3, 2012.
Tommy P. Beaudreau,
Director, Bureau of Ocean Energy Management.
[FR Doc. 2012-16732 Filed 7-6-12; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4310-MR-P
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