Federal Register / Vol. 79, No. 60 / Friday, March 28, 2014 / Notices 17567 

Resort, (6 miles south of Hagerman), 

18734 Hwy–30, Hagerman, ID 83332. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 

Heather Tiel-Nelson, Twin Falls 

District, Idaho, 2536 Kimberly Road, 

Twin Falls, Idaho, 83301, (208) 736– 

2352. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The 15- 

member RAC advises the Secretary of 

the Interior, through the Bureau of Land 

Management, on a variety of planning 

and management issues associated with 

public land management in Idaho. The 

purpose of the April 23rd tour is to give 

RAC members an in depth look at the 

process a livestock grazing permittee 

follows to fulfill the parameters of their 

grazing permit. 

Additional topics may be added and 

will be included in local media 

announcements. More information is 

available at www.blm.gov/id/st/en/res/

resource_advisory.3.html. RAC meetings 

are open to the public. 

Dated: March 19, 2014. 

James Stovall, 

District Manager (Acting). 

[FR Doc. 2014–06907 Filed 3–27–14; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 4310–GG–P 

DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR 

Bureau of Land Management 

DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE 

Forest Service 

DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY 

[14X L1109AF LLWO300000 L14300000 

PN0000] 

Request for Information: West-Wide 

Energy Corridor Review 

AGENCY: Bureau of Land Management, 

Interior; Forest Service, USDA; Office of 

Electricity Delivery and Energy 

Reliability, DOE. 

ACTION: Notice. 

SUMMARY: The U.S. Department of the 

Interior (DOI), Bureau of Land 

Management (BLM); U.S. Department of 

Agriculture, U.S. Forest Service (FS); 

and the U.S. Department of Energy 

(DOE), Office of Electricity Delivery and 

Energy Reliability, are seeking the 

information described in this notice 

related to the West-wide Energy 

Corridor Review. 

DATES: Comments must be submitted by 

May 27, 2014. 

ADDRESSES: You may submit comments 

electronically to 368corridors@blm.gov. 

Entire comments, including any 

personal identifying information, may 

be made publicly available upon 

request. While respondents may request 

that personal identifying information be 

withheld from the public, the BLM, FS, 

and DOE (Agencies) cannot guarantee 

that they will be able to do so. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 

Stephen Fusilier, BLM, at 202–912– 

7426 or by email at sfusilie@blm.gov. 

Persons who use a telecommunications 

device for the deaf may call the Federal 

Information Relay Service at 800–877– 

8339 to contact Mr. Fusilier during 

normal business hours. The FIRS is 

available 24 hours per day, 7 days per 

week. You will receive a reply during 

normal business hours. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: On August 

8, 2005, the President signed into law 

the Energy Policy Act of 2005 (EPAct) 

(42 U.S.C. 15801 et seq.). In Section 368 

of the EPAct (42 U.S.C. 15926), Congress 

directed the Secretaries of Agriculture, 

Commerce, Defense, Energy, and the 

Interior (the Secretaries) to designate 

corridors for oil, gas, and hydrogen 

pipelines and electrical transmission 

and distribution facilities on Federal 

lands in the 11 contiguous Western 

states (Section 368 Corridors). The 

Secretaries were also directed to 

perform any environmental reviews 

required to complete the designation of 

Section 368 Corridors, incorporate the 

Section 368 Corridors into land use 

plans, and establish a process for 

identifying new Section 368 Corridors. 

On January 14, 2009, the DOI 

approved a record of decision (ROD) 

that amended 92 BLM land use plans 

and designated approximately 5,000 

miles of Section 368 Corridors on BLMadministered lands. The affected States 

are Arizona, California, Colorado, Idaho, 

Montana, Nevada, New Mexico, Oregon, 

Utah, Washington, and Wyoming. The 

FS issued a ROD on January 14, 2009, 

which amended 38 FS land use plans 

and designated approximately 990 miles 

of Section 368 Corridors on National 

Forest System lands in 10 states. Both 

RODs adopted mandatory interagency 

operating procedures (IOP) for projects 

sited within the Section 368 Corridors. 

On July 7, 2009, several nonprofit 

organizations filed a complaint in the 

United States District Court for the 

Northern District of California, 

Wilderness Society v. United States 

Department of the Interior, No. 3:09-cv03048–JW, challenging the DOI and FS 

RODs pursuant to the EPAct, National 

Environmental Policy Act, Endangered 

Species Act, and the Administrative 

Procedure Act. 

On July 11, 2012, the court approved 

a settlement agreement (Settlement) and 

dismissed the case. The Settlement set 

forth five provisions with the objective 

of ensuring that future Section 368 

Corridor revisions, deletions, and 

additions consider the following 

principles: Location of Section 368 

Corridors in favorable landscapes; 

facilitation of renewable energy projects 

where feasible; avoidance of 

environmentally sensitive areas to the 

maximum extent practicable; 

diminution of the proliferation of 

dispersed rights-of-way crossing the 

landscape; and improvement of the 

long-term benefits of reliable and safe 

transmission. The Settlement also 

provides that public input and an open 

and transparent process with 

engagement by tribes, States, local 

governments, and other interested 

parties occur as part of the process for 

making potential revisions, deletions, or 

additions to Section 368 Corridors. 

Two of the Settlement provisions are 

relevant to this RFI: (1) Preparation of 

regional periodic reviews of designated 

Section 368 Corridors (Regional 

Periodic Reviews) and reviews of IOPs; 

and (2) Development of a corridor study 

to assess the overall usefulness of the 

Section 368 Corridors (Section 368 

Corridor Study). Information referenced 

in this RFI can be found at http://

corridoreis.anl.gov. 

Purpose of the RFI 

The purpose of this RFI is to solicit 

information that will assist the Agencies 

in the development of the Section 368 

Corridor Study and provide the 

foundation for the initial Regional 

Periodic Review. In particular, the 

Agencies seek responses to the 

questions posed in the sections below. 

All work described in the Work Plan 

and Memorandum of Understanding 

(MOU) is contingent upon the 

availability of appropriated funds. 

Section 368 Corridor Study 

On July 7, 2013, the Agencies 

finalized a Corridor Study Work Plan for 

the Section 368 Corridors (Work Plan). 

The Work Plan identifies how 

information will be gathered and 

analyzed and establishes a schedule for 

completion of the Section 368 Corridor 

Study. Under the Section 368 Corridor 

Study, the Agencies will study Section 

368 Corridors to assess their overall 

usefulness with regard to various 

factors, including their effectiveness in 

reducing the proliferation of dispersed 

rights-of-way across Federal lands. The 

Agencies will also assess the efficiency 

and effectiveness of the Section 368 

Corridors and record lessons learned in 

the siting process. The Section 368 

Corridor Study will also: 

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17568 Federal Register / Vol. 79, No. 60 / Friday, March 28, 2014 / Notices 

• Identify where corridors are being 

over- or underutilized and evaluate use 

of the IOPs; 

• Focus on information relating to the 

use of Section 368 Corridors that is 

publicly available at the time the 

Agencies initiate the Section 368 

Corridor Study; 

• Help to inform the Regional 

Periodic Reviews and review of the 

IOPs; and 

• Be made public upon completion. 

(1) Updates to Spatial Data. A 

geographic information system (GIS) 

was used to support the mapping and 

location-specific analyses in the Final 

West-wide Energy Corridor 

Programmatic Environmental Impact 

Statement (EIS). GIS databases contain 

spatial data including imagery, map 

graphics, and associated tabular data, 

and GIS software allows for storing, 

processing, analyzing, modeling, and 

visualizing the spatial data. Lists of the 

GIS data that were used for the analyses 

and maps in the Programmatic EIS as 

well as the sources, quality, and scale of 

the data are posted at http://

corridoreis.anl.gov (Appendix I of the 

Programmatic EIS and Appendix A of 

the Work Plan). Under the Section 368 

Corridor Study, the Agencies will 

update the Programmatic EIS data using 

compatible, publicly available data. The 

Agencies are interested in suggestions of 

new or updated compatible, publicly 

available data that may be utilized to 

inform the Section 368 Corridor Study. 

Are there any new or updated data that 

is publicly available? 

(2) Types of Authorized Projects to 

Consider. The Agencies propose to 

focus on 100 kilovolt (kV) or higher 

electric transmission lines and oil, gas, 

and hydrogen pipelines, 10 inches or 

more in diameter that have been 

authorized on Federal lands (both inside 

and outside of Section 368 Corridors) 

since approval of the DOI and FS RODs. 

The purposes of assessing the use of 

Section 368 Corridors is to evaluate 

their effectiveness in improving 

reliability, relieving congestion, and 

enhancing the capability of the national 

grid to deliver electricity across Federal 

lands and to evaluate IOPs for the 

Section 368 Corridor Study. Are there 

any other types of projects that the 

Agencies should consider to assess use 

of Section 368 Corridors? 

(3) Methods for Assessing 

Effectiveness of IOPs. The Agencies will 

compile information relating to the use 

of IOPs for projects authorized since 

approval of the RODs, potentially by 

project type, based on consideration of 

projects identified in response to 

question 2 that are located entirely or 

partially within a Section 368 Corridor. 

Are there methods the Agencies should 

consider using to evaluate the 

effectiveness of the IOPs? 

Regional Periodic Review 

On July 7, 2013, the Agencies entered 

into an MOU describing the process for 

conducting Regional Periodic Reviews, 

including concurrent review of IOPs. 

The Agencies will identify and 

prioritize regions for periodic review. 

(1) New Relevant Information. In 

accordance with the MOU, as a part of 

the Regional Periodic Reviews 

(including review of IOPs), the Agencies 

will consider new, relevant information. 

In general, the Agencies will consider 

significant regional energy development 

and corridor and transmission plans or 

studies, which are supplemented by 

project-specific studies that were 

completed after January 2009 or that are 

substantially underway. Examples of 

new information the Agencies will 

consider include the following: 

• Results of: (1) Joint studies of 

electric transmission needs and 

renewable energy potential being 

conducted by the Western Electricity 

Coordinating Council and the Western 

Governors’ Association (WGA) and 

funded by the DOE; and (2) The DOE’s 

Transmission Corridor Assessment 

Report for Western States (DOE Corridor 

Study). These studies address the need 

for upgraded and new electrical 

transmission and distribution facilities 

to improve reliability, relieve 

congestion, and facilitate renewable 

energy development. The DOE Corridor 

Study is addressed in the June 7, 2013, 

Presidential Memorandum, 

‘‘Transforming our Nation’s Electric 

Grid Through Improved Siting, 

Permitting, and Review,’’ available at 

http://www.whitehouse.gov/the-pressoffice/2013/06/07/presidentialmemorandum-transforming-ournations-electric-grid-through-i. 

• Results of the BLM’s Rapid 

Ecoregional Assessments that 

characterize ecological values across 

regional landscapes; 

• Once completed, the results of the 

Section 368 Corridor Study and review 

of the IOPs; 

• Results of other ongoing resource 

studies, such as the WGA wildlife 

corridor study, the BLM’s and FS’s 

National Sage-Grouse Habitat 

Conservation Strategy, and the State of 

Wyoming’s sage grouse strategy; 

• Other factors, such as States’ 

renewable portfolio standards, that 

address potential energy demand, 

sources, and loads, with particular 

regard to renewable energy; 

• The BLM’s Approved Resource 

Management Plan Amendments/ROD 

for Solar Energy Development in Six 

Southwestern States based on the joint 

BLM and DOE 2012 Solar Energy 

Development Programmatic EIS that 

assessed the environmental, social, and 

economic impacts associated with solar 

energy development on BLM-managed 

lands in Arizona, California, Colorado, 

Nevada, New Mexico, and Utah. The 

ROD amends 89 BLM land use plans 

incorporating land use allocations and 

programmatic Solar Energy Zonespecific design features; updates and 

revises policies and procedures for solar 

energy development; and implements a 

comprehensive solar energy program for 

administering the development of 

utility-scale solar energy resources in 6 

southwestern states; 

• The BLM Arizona Restoration 

Design Energy Project Final EIS and 

ROD issued in January 2013; 

• Information from the Desert 

Renewable Energy Conservation Plan 

Draft EIS/Environmental Impact Report 

scheduled for release in 2014; 

• The BLM/FS Greater Sage-Grouse 

Sub-Regional Planning Areas that 

overlie Section 368 Corridors; 

• Draft and Final EISs, land use plan 

amendments, and related studies for 

pipelines 10 inches or more in diameter 

and 100 kV or higher electric 

transmission lines that utilize Section 

368 Corridors; 

• The National Renewable Energy 

Laboratory’s Renewable Energy Futures 

Study Report (2012); and 

• New IOPs submitted by the 

Plaintiffs who are a party to the 

Settlement. 

Is there any other publicly available 

information that the Agencies should 

consider as part of the initial Regional 

Periodic Review, including review of 

the IOPs, and if so, where or how can 

it be found, and what parts of it are 

relevant to this RFI? 

(2) Identification of New 

Requirements. Are there any laws, 

regulations, or other requirements that 

have been implemented since issuance 

of the DOI and FS RODs in January 2009 

that the Agencies should consider when 

reviewing Section 368 Corridors? 

(3) Identification of Regional 

Stakeholder Fora. The Agencies have 

identified an initial list of existing 

regional stakeholder fora as possible 

options for stakeholder engagement 

during Regional Periodic Reviews (e.g., 

BLM and FS Resource Advisory 

Councils, the Western Electricity 

Coordinating Council, Landscape 

Conservation Cooperatives, Western 

Governors’ Association, and the Indian 

Country Energy and Infrastructure 

Working Group, which was established 

to work collaboratively with the DOE). 

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Federal Register / Vol. 79, No. 60 / Friday, March 28, 2014 / Notices 17569 

Are there any additional regional 

stakeholder fora that the Agencies 

should consider for stakeholder 

engagement during Regional Periodic 

Reviews? 

(4) Changes to IOPs. Are there any 

additions, deletions, or revisions the 

Agencies should consider making to the 

IOPs that were adopted in the DOI and 

FS RODs, and what is the rationale for 

those changes? 

(5) Comments on New IOPs. The 

Agencies have committed to 

consideration of new IOPs submitted by 

the Plaintiffs who are parties to the 

Settlement. The new IOPs are available 

at http://corridoreis.anl.gov Are there 

any comments on these new IOPs? 

Michael D. Nedd, 

Assistant Director, Energy, Minerals, and 

Realty Management, Bureau of Land 

Management, U.S. Department of the Interior. 

Tony L. Tooke, 

Associate Deputy Chief, National Forest 

System, U.S. Forest Service, U.S. Department 

of Agriculture. 

Matt Rosenbaum, 

Acting Director National Electricity Delivery, 

Office of Electricity Delivery and Energy 

Reliability, U.S. Department of Energy. 

[FR Doc. 2014–06945 Filed 3–27–14; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 4310–84–P 

DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR 

Office of Surface Mining Reclamation 

and Enforcement 

[S1D1S SS08011000 SX066A000 67F 

134S180110; S2D2S SS08011000 SX066A00 

33F 13xs501520] 

Notice of Availability of the Four 

Corners Power Plant and Navajo Mine 

Energy Project Draft Environmental 

Impact Statement 

AGENCY: Office of Surface Mining 

Reclamation and Enforcement, Interior. 

ACTION: Notice of Availability. 

SUMMARY: In accordance with the 

National Environmental Policy Act 

(NEPA) of 1969, as amended, the Office 

of Surface Mining Reclamation and 

Enforcement (OSMRE) has prepared a 

Draft Environmental Impact Statement 

(EIS) for the Four Corners Power Plant 

and Navajo Mine Energy Project 

(Project), in northwestern New Mexico 

and by this notice is announcing the 

opening of the comment period. 

DATES: To ensure comments will be 

considered, the OSMRE must receive 

written comments on the Draft EIS no 

later than May 27, 2014. The OSMRE 

will conduct public meetings in the 

following locations and on the following 

dates: 

Hotevilla, AZ:—Navajo and Hopi 

interpreters available 

Wednesday, April 30, 5 to 8 p.m. 

Hotevilla Village (Hotevilla Youth and 

Elderly Center), Auditorium, 1 

Main St., Hotevilla, AZ 86030 

Cortez, CO: 

Thursday, May 1, 5 to 8 p.m. 

Montezuma-Cortez High School, The 

Commons Area, 206 W. Seventh St., 

Cortez, CO 81321 

Burnham, NM:—Navajo interpreters 

available 

Friday, May 2, 5 to 8 p.m. 

Tiis Tsoh Sikaad (Burham) Chapter 

House, Large Meeting Room, 12 

miles east of U.S. 491 on Navajo 

Route 5 and 1⁄2 mile south on 

Navajo Route 5080 

Durango, CO: 

Saturday, May 3, 9:30 a.m. to 12:30 

p.m. 

Durango Community Recreation 

Center, 2700 Main Ave., Durango, 

CO 81301 

Farmington, NM: 

Monday, May 5, 5 to 8 p.m. 

Farmington Civic Center, Exhibition 

Hall, 200 W. Arrington St., 

Farmington, NM 87401 

Shiprock, NM:—Navajo interpreters 

available 

Tuesday, May 6, 5 to 8 p.m. 

Shiprock High School, Commons, 

Highway 64 W, Shiprock, NM 

87420 

Nenahnezad, NM:—Navajo interpreters 

available 

Wednesday, May 7, 5 to 8 p.m. 

Nenahnezad Chapter House, 

Multipurpose Hall, County Road 

6675, Navajo Route 365, Fruitland, 

NM 87416 

Window Rock, AZ:—Navajo interpreters 

available 

Thursday, May 8, 5 to 8 p.m. 

Navajo Nation Museum, Resource 

Room, Highway 264, Postal Loop 

Road, Window Rock, AZ 86515 

Albuquerque, NM: 

Friday, May 9, 5 to 8 p.m. 

Indian Pueblo Cultural Center, Silver 

and Turquoise Room, 2401 12th St. 

NW., Albuquerque, NM 87104 

Public meetings will be conducted in 

an open-house style format. The 

meeting rooms will be arranged into the 

following areas: (1) An area where 

attendees may view a video discussing 

the project and the Draft EIS findings; 

(2) an area containing informational 

displays where attendees may read and 

subsequently discuss the project and the 

Draft EIS findings with OSMRE 

representatives, the Bureau of Indian 

Affairs (BIA) and consultant personnel; 

(3) an area where attendees may record 

and submit written comments; and (4) 

an area where an OSMRE representative 

and a transcriber will record oral 

comments. Hopi and Navajo interpreters 

will be present at meetings on the Hopi 

and Navajo Reservations. If you require 

reasonable accommodation to attend 

one of the meetings, please contact the 

person listed under FOR FURTHER

INFORMATION CONTACT at least one week 

before the meeting. 

ADDRESSES: The draft EIS is available for 

review at http://www.wrcc.osmre.gov/

Current_Initiatives/FCNAVPRJ/

FCPPEIS.shtm. Paper and computer 

compact disk (CD) copies of the Draft 

EIS are available for review at the 

OSMRE Western Region office, 1999 

Broadway, Suite 3320, Denver, Colorado 

80202–5733. In addition, a paper and 

CD copy of the Draft EIS is also 

available for review at each of the 

following locations: 

Navajo Nation Library—Highway 264 

Loop Road, Window Rock, AZ 86515 

Navajo Nation Division of Natural 

Resources—Executive Office Building 

1–2636, Window Rock Blvd., Window 

Rock, AZ 86515 

Hopi Public Mobile Library—1 Main 

Street, Kykotsmovi, AZ 86039 

Albuquerque Main Library—501 Copper 

Ave NW., Albuquerque, NM 87102 

Cortez Public Library—202 N. Park 

Street, Cortez, CO 81321 

Durango Public Library—1900 E. Third 

Ave, Durango, CO 81301 

Farmington Public Library—2101 

Farmington Ave, Farmington, NM 

87401 

Octavia Fellin Public Library—115 W. 

Hill Ave., Gallup, NM 87301 

Shiprock Branch Library—U.S. Highway 

491, Shiprock, NM 87420 

Tuba City Public Library—78 Main 

Street, Tuba City, AZ 86045 

Chinle Chapter House—Highway 191, 

Chinle, AZ 86503 

Coalmine Canyon Chapter House— 

Highway 160 and Main Street, Tuba 

City, AZ 86045 

Nenahnezad Chapter House—County 

Road 6675, Navajo Route 365, 

Fruitland, NM 87416 

Shiprock Chapter House—East on 

Highway 64, Shiprock, NM 87420 

Tiis Tsoh Sikaad Chapter House—12 

miles east of U.S. 491 on Navajo 

Route 5 and 1⁄2 mile south on Navajo 

Route 5080 

Upper Fruitland Chapter House—N562 

Building #006–001, North of Highway 

N36, Fruitland, NM 87416 

OSMRE Albuquerque Area Office—435 

Montano Road, NE., Albuquerque, 

NM 87107 

BIA Chinle Office—Navajo Route 7, 

Building 136–C, Chinle, AZ 86503 

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