77654 Federal Register / Vol. 75, No. 238 / Monday, December 13, 2010 / Notices 

management, sociology and economics, 

and Geographic Information Systems. 

Authority: 40 CFR 1501.7, 43 CFR 1610.2. 

Ron Wenker, 

Nevada State Director. 

[FR Doc. 2010–31207 Filed 12–10–10; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 4310–HC–P 

DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR 

Bureau of Land Management 

[CACA–051552, LLCAD0700 L51010000 

ER0000 LVRWB10B3980] 

Notice of Intent To Prepare a Land Use 

Plan Amendment and an 

Environmental Impact Statement for 

the Pattern Energy Group Ocotillo 

Express Wind Energy Project, Imperial 

County, CA 

AGENCY: Bureau of Land Management, 

Interior. 

ACTION: Notice of Intent. 

SUMMARY: In compliance with the 

National Environmental Policy Act of 

1969, as amended (NEPA); the Federal 

Land Policy and Management Act of 

1976, as amended, and the California 

Environmental Quality Act (CEQA), the 

Bureau of Land Management (BLM) El 

Centro Field Office and Imperial 

County, California, intend to prepare a 

joint Environmental Impact Statement 

(EIS) and Environmental Impact Report 

(EIR) along with a proposed amendment 

to the California Desert Conservation 

Area (CDCA) Plan (1980, as amended). 

This notice announces the beginning of 

the scoping process to solicit public 

comments and identify issues. 

DATES: This notice initiates the public 

scoping process for the Draft EIS/EIR 

and possible CDCA Plan amendment. 

Comments may be submitted in writing 

until January 12, 2011. The date(s) and 

location(s) of any scoping meetings and 

site visits will be announced at least 15 

days in advance through local media, 

newspapers and the BLM Web site at: 

http://www.blm.gov/ca/st/en/fo/ 

elcentro.html. In order to be included in 

the Draft EIR/EIS, all comments must be 

received prior to the close of the scoping 

period or 15 days after the last public 

meeting, whichever is later. We will 

provide additional opportunities for 

public participation upon publication of 

the Draft EIR/EIS. 

ADDRESSES: You may submit comments 

on issues and planning criteria related 

to the Pattern Energy Group Ocotillo 

Express Wind Energy Project Draft EIR/ 

EIS by any of the following methods: 

• Web site: http://www.blm.gov/ca/st/ 

en/fo/elcentro.html. 

• E-mail: caocotillo@blm.gov. 

• Fax: (760) 337–4490. 

• Mail: Cedric Perry, Project Manager, 

California Desert District (CDD), BLM, 

22835 Calle San Juan De Los Lagos, 

Moreno Valley, California 92553. 

Documents pertinent to this proposal 

may be examined at the CDD or the 

BLM’s California State Office, 2800 

Cottage Way, Sacramento, California 

95825. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: For 

further information and/or to have your 

name added to the project mailing list, 

contact Cedric Perry, BLM Project 

Manager, telephone (951) 697–5388; 

address 22835 Calle San Juan De Los 

Lagos, Moreno Valley, CA 92553; e-mail 

Cedric_Perry@ca.blm.gov. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Ocotillo 

Express, LLC has submitted an 

application for a right-of-way 

authorization to construct, operate, 

maintain, and decommission, an 

approximate 15,000-acre, 550 megawatt 

(MW) wind energy project including a 

substation, administration, operations 

and maintenance facilities, 

transmission, and temporary 

construction lay down areas. The 

proposed wind energy project would be 

located on BLM administered lands and 

a small portion on lands under the 

jurisdiction of Imperial County, 

approximately 5 miles west of the town 

of Ocotillo, Imperial County, California. 

The proposed action consists of the 

construction, operation, maintenance, 

and decommissioning of wind turbine 

generators and associated facilities 

necessary to successfully generate up to 

550 MW of electricity. The project 

would be constructed in 2 phases: Phase 

I is anticipated to total approximately 

299 MW, and Phase II is about 251 MW. 

A recently approved high-voltage 

transmission line known as the Sunrise 

Powerlink crosses the Ocotillo Wind 

Energy Project site and will facilitate 

interconnection of the proposed project 

and transmission of its renewable 

energy output to Southern California. 

The BLM will be the lead agency for 

NEPA compliance and Imperial County 

will act as the lead agency under CEQA 

for the project. The BLM has invited the 

U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (Corps) to 

be a cooperating Federal agency in the 

preparation of the EIR/EIS because the 

proposed project may require a section 

404 permit under the Clean Water Act. 

The BLM and Corps agree that 

establishing a cooperating agency 

relationship will create a more 

streamlined and coordinated approach 

in developing the Ocotillo EIR/EIS and 

they will be developing a Memorandum 

of Understanding for this purpose. 

The purpose of the public scoping 

process is to determine relevant issues 

that will influence the scope of the 

environmental analysis, including 

alternatives, and will guide the process 

of developing the EIR/EIS. At present, 

the BLM has identified the following 

preliminary issues: air quality, 

biological resources, recreation, cultural 

resources, water resources, geological 

resources, land use, noise, 

paleontological resources, land with 

wilderness characteristics, public 

health, socioeconomics, soils, traffic and 

transportation, visual resources, and 

other issues. Authorization of this 

proposal would require an amendment 

of the CDCA Plan. By this notice, the 

BLM is complying with requirements in 

43 CFR 1610.2(c) to notify the public of 

potential amendments to land use plans. 

The BLM will integrate the land use 

planning process with the NEPA 

process for this project. 

The BLM will use and coordinate the 

NEPA commenting process to satisfy the 

public involvement process for Section 

106 of the National Historic 

Preservation Act (16 U.S.C. 470(f)) as 

provided for in 36 CFR 800.2(d)(3). 

Native American Tribal consultations 

will be conducted in accordance with 

policy, and Tribal concerns, including 

impacts on Indian trust assets, will be 

given due consideration. Federal, State, 

and local agencies, along with other 

stakeholders that may be interested or 

affected by the BLM’s decision on this 

project, are invited to participate in the 

scoping process and, if eligible, may 

request or be requested by the BLM to 

participate as a cooperating agency. 

Public comments, including names 

and street addresses of respondents, will 

be available for public review at the 

Bureau of Land Management, El Centro 

Field Office, 1661 South 4th Street, El 

Centro, California 92243, during regular 

business hours (8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.), 

Monday through Friday, except 

holidays. 

Before including your address, phone 

number, e-mail 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 


wwoods2 on DSK1DXX6B1PROD with NOTICES_PART 1
Federal Register / Vol. 75, No. 238 / Monday, December 13, 2010 / Notices 77655 

cannot guarantee that we will be able to 

do so. 

Thomas Pogacnik, 

Deputy State Director, Natural Resources. 

Authority: 40 CFR 1501.7 and 43 CFR 

1610.2. 

[FR Doc. 2010–31139 Filed 12–10–10; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 4310–40–P 

DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR 

Bureau of Land Management 

[LLCOS06000 L91310000.EI0000] 

Notice of Proposed Supplementary 

Rules for Public Lands in Colorado: 

Saguache, Alamosa, Rio Grande, 

Conejos, and Costilla Counties 

AGENCY: Bureau of Land Management, 

Interior. 

ACTION: Proposed supplementary rules. 

SUMMARY: The Bureau of Land 

Management (BLM) Colorado is 

proposing supplementary rules for 

public land included in the San Luis 

Resource Area Travel Management Plan 

(TMP), approved on June 4, 2009. These 

supplementary rules would apply to the 

public lands within Saguache, Alamosa, 

Rio Grande, Conejos, and Costilla 

Counties, Colorado, within the TMP, 

and under the management of the San 

Luis Valley Public Lands Center. The 

proposed rules implement decisions 

found in the TMP relating to the use of 

the lands, conduct of visitors, health 

and safety of visitors, and protection of 

visitors and natural resources. 

DATES: You should submit your 

comments by February 11, 2011. 

Comments postmarked or received in 

person or by electronic mail after this 

date may not be considered in the 

development of the final supplementary 

rules. 

ADDRESSES: You may submit comments 

by the following methods: Mail or handdeliver: Larry Velarde, Bureau of Land 

Management, San Luis Valley Public 

Lands Center, 1803 West Hwy 160, 

Monte Vista, Colorado, 81144. 

You may also submit comments via 

electronic mail to: 

rgfo_comments@blm.co.gov (include 

‘‘Attn: San Luis Resource Area Travel 

Management Plan’’ in the subject line). 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 

Larry Velarde, Natural Resource 

Specialist, Recreation, San Luis Valley 

Public Lands Center, 1803 West Hwy 

160, Monte Vista, Colorado 81144, (719) 

852–5941. Persons who use a 

telecommunications device for the deaf 

(TDD) may contact these individuals by 

calling the Federal Information Relay 

Service (FIRS) at (800) 877–8339, 24 

hours a day, 7 days a week. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

I. Authority 

II. Public Comment Procedures 

III. Background 

IV. Discussion of the Proposed 

Supplementary Rules 

V. Procedural Matters 

I. Authority 

43 U.S.C. 1740, 43 U.S.C. 315a, 43 

CFR 8341.1, 8364.1, and 8365.1–6. 

II. Public Comment Procedures 

You may mail or hand-deliver 

comments to the Bureau of Land 

Management, San Luis Valley Public 

Lands Center, 1803 West Hwy 160, 

Monte Vista, Colorado 81144, or e-mail 

to rgfo_comments@blm.co.gov. 

Written comments on the proposed 

supplementary rule should be specific, 

confined to issues pertinent to the 

proposed supplementary rules, and 

explain the reason for any 

recommended change. Where possible, 

your comments should reference the 

specific section or paragraph of the 

proposal that you are addressing. The 

BLM is not obligated to consider or 

include in the Administrative Record 

for the final supplementary rule, 

comments that the BLM receives after 

the close of the comment period (see 

DATES), unless they are postmarked or 

electronically dated before the deadline, 

or comments delivered to an address 

other than those listed above (see 

ADDRESSES). 

Comments, including names, street 

addresses, and other contact 

information of respondents, will be 

available for public review at the San 

Luis Valley Public Lands Center address 

listed in ADDRESSES during regular 

business hours (8 a.m. to 4 p.m., 

Monday through Friday, except Federal 

holidays). Before including your 

address, phone number, e-mail 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. 

III. Background 

A ‘‘Notice of Intent to Prepare the San 

Luis Resource Valley Travel 

Management Plan and Amend San Luis 

Valley Resource Management Plan and 

Start the Scoping Period’’ was 

announced in the Federal Register on 

March 30, 2004 (69 FR 16599). The 

completion of the San Luis Resource 

Area TMP Environmental Assessment 

(EA) led to a 30-day public comment 

period, starting on June 3, 2008. 

Following analysis of the public 

comments, the BLM issued two 

decisions: An RMP amendment 

proposed decision record (May 14, 

2009), and an implementation decision 

on the San Luis Resource Area TMP 

(June 4, 2009). The decision restricts offhighway vehicle use to designated roads 

and trails in the TMP area and includes 

discussion of the proposed 

supplementary rules. 

IV. Discussion of the Proposed 

Supplementary Rules 

These proposed supplementary rules 

apply to the public lands within the San 

Luis Resource Area TMP area. The TMP 

area consists of 520,945 acres of public 

lands within Saguache, Alamosa, Rio 

Grande, Conejos, and Costilla Counties, 

Colorado, in the following described 

townships: 

Colorado, New Mexico Principal Meridian 

T. 45 N., R. 4 E. through T. 45 N., R. 11 E.; 

T. 46 N., R. 4 E. through T. 46 N., R. 11 E.; 

T. 41 N., R. 6 E. and R. 7 E.; 

T. 40 N., R. 4 E. through T. 40 N., R. 6 E.; 

T. 40 N., R. 11 E.; 

T. 42 N., R. 5 E. through T. 42 N., R. 7 E.; 

T. 42 N., R. 9 E. and R. 10 E.; 

T. 43 N., R. 5 E. through T. 43 N., R. 7 E.; 

T. 43 N., R. 9 E. through T. 43 N., R. 12 E.; 

T. 44 N., R. 4 E. through T. 44 N., R. 12 E.; 

T. 47 N., R. 7 E. through T. 47 N., R. 10 E.; 

T. 48 N., R 8 E. and R. 9 E.; 

T. 36 N., R. 6 E. through T. 36 N., R. 8 E.; 

T. 36 N., R. 11 E. and R. 12 E.; 

T. 38 N., R. 6 E. and R. 7 E.; 

T. 38 N., R. 11 E. through T. 38 N., R. 13 E.; 

T. 37 N., R. 6 E. and R. 7 E.; 

T. 37 N., R. 12 E. and R. 13 E.; 

T. 37 N., R. 4 E. through T. 37 N., R. 7 E.; 

T. 37 N., R. 11 E. through T. 37 N., R. 13 E.; 

T. 32 N., R. 7 E. through T. 32 N., R. 11 E.; 

T. 33 N., R. 8 E. through T. 33 N., R. 11 E.; 

T. 34 N., R. 6 E. through T. 34 N., R. 8 E.; 

T. 34 N., R. 10 E. and R. 11 E.; 

T. 35 N., R. 5 E. through T. 35 N., R. 8 E.; 

and 

T. 35 N., R. 10 E. and R. 11 E. 

6th Principal Meridian 

T. 27 S., 73 W. through T. 29 S., R. 73 W. 

The proposed supplementary rules 

are consistent with the record of 

decision of the San Luis Resource Area 

TMP, approved on June 4, 2009. The 

TMP includes specific management 

actions that restrict certain activities 

and define allowable uses. Restrictions 

on general travel and off-highway 

vehicle use are intended to enhance 

user safety and ensure compliance with 

travel management restrictions. These 

restrictions are designed to protect 

critical resources and scenic values in 


wwoods2 on DSK1DXX6B1PROD with NOTICES_PART 1