Federal Register / Vol. 65, No. 97 / Thursday, May 18, 2000 / Notices 31595

The Pinedale Anticline EIS identifies

the need for amendment, planning

review, and/or maintenance of the

following 1988 Pinedale RMP items: (1)

The amendment of a Pinedale RMP offroad vehicle (ORV) designation; (2) the

update and modification, if necessary,

of visual resource management (VRM)

classification; and (3) withhold

unleased Federal lands and minerals

and/or expired leases in the Hoback

Basin, southern foothills of the Gros

Ventre Range, and the Wind River Front

from oil and gas leasing until the effects

of leasing these lands can be addressed

in a planning review of the Pinedale

RMP and Bridger-Teton Leasing EIS.

DATES: Comments on the FEIS will be

accepted for 30 days following the date

that the Environmental Protection

Agency (EPA) publishes their Notice of

Availability in the Federal Register. The

EPA notice is anticipated to be

published on June 2, 2000. Protest of the

proposed ORV designation amendment

to the Pinedale RMP must be

postmarked within 30 days following

the date that the Environmental

Protection Agency publishes the filing

notice for the Final EIS in the Federal

Register.

ADDRESSES: Comments on the FEIS

should be sent to Bureau of Land

Management, Bill McMahan (Project

Coordinator), 280 Highway 191 North,

Rock Springs, WY 82901, or they can be

e-mailed to bill_mcmahan@blm.gov.

Protests on the proposed ORV

designation amendment to the Pinedale

RMP should be sent to the Director

(210), Bureau of Land Management,

Attention: Brenda Williams, 1849 C

Street NW, Washington, DC 20240.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Bill

McMahan, Project Coordinator, Bureau

of Land Management, Rock Springs,

Wyoming 82901, (307) 352–0224.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The DEIS

(NOA published by EPA in the Federal

Register, November 26, 1999; comment

due date February 4, 2000, following

State Director approval of a 10 day

extension of time for review/comment

on the DEIS) analyzed a proposal by the

Pinedale Anticline Operators to drill up

to 900 new wells to achieve 700

producing locations over the next 10 to

15 years on their leased acreage within

the Pinedale Anticline Project Area

(PAPA) (approximately 197,345 acres)

in western Wyoming. Lands associated

with the new drilling program are

located between the town of Pinedale,

Wyoming, and the Jonah Natural Gas

Field (30 miles south); and between the

Green River on the west and Wyoming

Highway 191 on the east (between 8 and

15 miles wide). Comments were

received on the DEIS from a number of

groups. A total of 235 comment letters

were received. BLM held a public

hearing on January 12, 2000. A total of

86 people signed in at the hearing—17

gave statements. BLM responses to each

comment letter and hearing comments

are included in Sections 5, 6, and 7 of

the FEIS.

Factors Affecting Pinedale Resource

Management Plan (RMP) Completed in

1988—The Pinedale Anticline EIS

addresses the need for amendment,

planning review, and/or maintenance of

the Pinedale RMP. The EIS identifies

that (1) the RMP decision designating

portions of the PAPA as ‘‘open’’ to offroad vehicle (ORV) use should be

amended from ‘‘open’’ to ‘‘limited to

existing roads and trails’’ to protect

surface values and to be consistent with

other oil/gas development areas; (2) the

visual resource management (VRM)

classification for the VRM

classifications within the Resource Area

need to be updated and the RMP

modified if necessary; and (3) all

Federal lands and minerals that are

unleased and/or that have expired

leases in the Hoback Basin, southern

foothills of the Gros Ventre Range, and

the Wind River Front should be

withheld from oil and gas leasing until

the effects of leasing these lands can be

addressed in a planning review to

determine any needed modification to

the 1988 Pinedale RMP and to the

Bridger-Teton Leasing EIS (Management

Areas 21, 45, 71, and 72).

The RMP planning review for the

identified areas (see Pinedale Anticline

DEIS Figure 5–2) would address new

issues and concerns for air quality

related values, protection of scenic

values of the mountain ranges,

protection of the new and/or more

densely populated rural subdivisions

occurring on private surface underlain

by Federal minerals, and other resource

concerns. An analysis of these factors

may affect Federal mineral leasing and

other Federal authorizations on the

described lands.

The Pinedale Anticline EIS proposal

to amend the Pinedale RMP ORV

‘‘open’’ area designation to ‘‘limited to

existing roads and trails’’ is protestable.

This is the only part of the Pinedale

Anticline EIS that is protestable under

the BLM Planning Regulations (43 CFR

1610.5–2). Anyone disagreeing with the

proposed decision to change the ORV

designation within the Pinedale

Anticline project area must file a written

protest within the 30-day review period

for the FEIS. The proposed amendment

may be protested by parties who

participated in the Pinedale Anticline

EIS process, who have an interest which

is or may be adversely affected by the

proposed change, and who raised issue

with ORV use during the EIS process.

The protest must include the following

information: (1) The name, mailing

address, telephone number, and interest

of the person filing the protest; (2) a

statement of the issue(s) submitted

during the DEIS review process by the

protesting party, or an indication of the

date the issue(s) were discussed for the

record; (3) a statement of the part(s) of

the recommendation being protested; (4)

a copy of all documents addressing the

issue(s) that were submitted during the

DEIS review process by the protesting

party, or an indication of the date the

issue(s) were discussed for the record;

and (5) a concise statement explaining

why the proposed decision is believed

to be wrong.

At the end of the 30-day protest

period, the proposed change, if not

protested, will become final. If a protest

is received, approval of oil and gas

development will be based upon the

existing ORV designation until final

action on the protest has been

completed. Any significant change

made as a result of a protest will be

made available for public review and

comment before it is approved.

This DEIS, in compliance with section

7(c) of the Endangered Species Act (as

amended), includes the Biological

Assessment for the purpose of

identifying any endangered or

threatened species which are likely to

be affected by the proposed action.

Dated: May 12, 2000.

Alan L. Kesterke,

Associate State Director.

[FR Doc. 00–12495 Filed 5–17–00; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 4310–22–P

DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR

Bureau of Land Management

[WY–030–2000–1310–DB]

Notice of Intent To Prepare an

Environmental Impact Statement;

Desolation Flats Natural Gas

Development Project, Carbon and

Sweetwater Counties, Wyoming, To

Conduct a Planning Review of the

Proposed Project Area, and if

Necessary, Amend Either or Both the

Great Divide and Green River

Resource Management Plans

AGENCY: Bureau of Land Management,

Interior.

ACTION: Notice of Intent (NOI) to prepare

an Environmental Impact Statement

(EIS) and to conduct scoping for the

Desolation Flats Natural Gas

31596 Federal Register / Vol. 65, No. 97 / Thursday, May 18, 2000 / Notices

Development Project, Carbon and

Sweetwater Counties, Wyoming.

SUMMARY: Under section 102(2)(C) of the

National Environmental Policy Act

(NEPA) of 1969, as amended, the Bureau

of Land Management (BLM), Rawlins

Field Office, will direct the preparation

of an EIS on the potential impacts of a

proposed natural gas field development

project. Approximately 385 gas wells

and associated facilities could be

constructed on approximately 229,781

acres of primarily Federal land (some

private and State included), over a 20-

year development period. The project

area is located in southwestern Carbon

County and southeastern Sweetwater

County, Wyoming. The proposed action

may be modified, as a result of

comments received during scoping or

anytime during the preparation of the

draft EIS, to include actions that may,

upon review, require a plan amendment

to the Green River and Great Divide

Resource Management Plans. A

planning review of existing land-use

decisions would be conducted.

Additionally an evaluation of potential

relevant and important resource values

in the Desolation Flats project area

portion of the Monument Valley

Management Area of the Rock Springs

Field Office would be done. Any needed

changes in existing management or any

new management actions to be

prescribed for the area will be identified

and, if necessary, the Green River RMP

amended. In accordance with 43 CFR

3420.1–2, this notice also serves as a

call for coal and other resource

information to solicit indications of

interest and information on coal

resource development potential in the

proposed project area and on other

resources which may be affected by the

proposed project. Affected Federal lands

are administered by the BLM Rawlins

and Rock Springs Field Offices. The EIS

will be prepared by a third-party

contractor.

DATES: Comments on the project

proposal will be accepted through June

23, 2000. Public scoping meetings will

be held at 7 p.m. on the following dates,

at the following locations:

—June 7, 2000, in Rock Springs,

Wyoming, Bureau of Land

Management, Rock Springs Field

Office, 280 Highway 191 North.

—June 8, 2000, in Rawlins, Wyoming,

Bureau of Land Management, Rawlins

Field Office, 1300 North Third Street.

ADDRESSES: Comments should be sent to

Bureau of Land Management, Rawlins

Field Office, John Spehar, Team Leader,

1300 North Third Street, P.O. Box 2407,

Rawlins, Wyoming 82301, phone (307)

328–4200, or e-mailed to

rawlinslwymail@blm.gov.

Additionally, the Scoping Notice will be

posted on the Wyoming BLM homepage

at www.wy.blm.gov. Your response is

important and will be considered in the

environmental analysis process. If you

do respond, we shall keep you informed

of decisions resulting from the analysis.

Please note that public comments

submitted for this scoping review,

including names, e-mail addresses, and

street addresses of the respondents will

be available for public review and

disclosure at the above address during

regular business hours (7:45 a.m. to 4:30

p.m.) Monday through Friday, except

holidays. Individual respondents may

request confidentially. If you wish to

withhold your name, e-mail address, or

street address from public review or

from disclosure under the Freedom of

Information Act, you must state this

plainly at the beginning of your written

comment. Such requests will be

honored to the extent allowed by law.

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.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

Bureau of Land Management, John

Spehar, Project Manager, 1300 North

Third Street, P.O. Box 2407, Rawlins,

Wyoming 82301, phone 307–328–4264,

e-mail: John_Spehar@blm.gov.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Marathon

Oil Company (Marathon) has notified

the Bureau of Land Management that

Marathon and other operators propose a

20-year field development project. The

proposed project area, referred to as the

Desolation Flats area, is generally

located in Townships 13–16 North,

Ranges 94–96 West, Sixth Principal

meridian, Carbon and Sweetwater

Counties, Wyoming.

The project area is located

approximately 14 miles west and north

of Baggs, Wyoming. The project area is

approximately 229,781 acres in size.

The vast majority of land and mineral

ownership is Federal. The Federal land

surface and Federally owned minerals

are managed by the Rawlins and Rock

Springs BLM Field Offices.

Marathon and other operators propose

to drill 385 wells on 361 locations and

construct associated facilities, including

roads, well pads, pipelines, and

compressor stations. Drilling of

exploratory or confirmation/delineation

wells on existing Federal leases will be

permitted on a case-by-case basis during

the preparation of the EIS. A sitespecific environmental assessment (EA)

will be prepared for each individual

drilling proposal.

The Desolation Flats project area

contains lands covered by two existing

natural gas development project EISs.

The Mulligan Draw Unit EIS and the

Dripping Rock/Cedar Breaks Area EA

were approved for spacing of one well

per section and for drilling in the

Almond Formation. The intent of

including the Mulligan Draw EIS area

and the Dripping Rock/Cedar Breaks EA

area within the Desolation Flats project

area, as described by the operators, is to

determine the feasibility and

environmental impacts of a well-spacing

density greater than the authorized onewell per 640-acre spacing.

This EIS will address cumulative

impacts and will include consideration

of affects of other oil and gas projects

addressed in recently completed EISs

for the Mulligan Draw Gas Field Project,

the Creston/Blue Gap Natural Gas

Project, the soon to be completed

Continental Divide/Wamsutter II

Natural Gas Project, and the recently

proposed Atlantic Rim Coalbed

Methane Project EA. Potential issues to

be addressed in the EIS include, but are

not limited to: impacts to wildlife

populations and their habitats, access

road development and transportation

management, surface and ground water

resources, impacts from additional

drilling and production activities,

reclamation, noxious weed control,

conflicts with livestock grazing

operations, protection of cultural and

paleontological resources, threatened

and endangered species, and cumulative

impacts.

Dated: May 12, 2000.

Alan R. Pierson,

State Director.

[FR Doc. 00–12496 Filed 5–17–00; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 4310–22–P

DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR

Bureau of Land Management

[ID–010–0777–XQ]

Notice of Meeting

AGENCY: Lower Snake River District,

Bureau of Land Management, Interior.

ACTION: Meeting notice.

SUMMARY: The Lower Snake River

District Resource Advisory Council will

meet in Boise. Potential agenda topics

are the Interior Columbia Basin

Ecosystem Management Plan, the

Integrated Natural Resources

Management Plan for the U.S. Air Force