51248 Federal Register / Vol. 72, No. 172 / Thursday, September 6, 2007 / Notices 

(Fritillaria liliacea), Loma Prieta hoita 

(Hoita strobilina), smooth lessingia 

(Lessingia micradenia var. glabrata), 

Hall’s bush mallow (Malacothamnus 

hallii), robust monardella (Monardella 

villosa ssp. globosa), rock sanicle 

(Sanicula saxatilis), and most beautiful 

jewelflower (Streptanthus albidus ssp. 

peramoenus). 

Section 9 of the Act and Federal 

regulations prohibit the ‘‘take’’ of 

wildlife species listed as endangered or 

threatened (16 U.S.C. 1538). The Act 

defines the term ‘‘take’’ as: to harass, 

harm, pursue, hunt, shoot, wound, kill, 

trap, capture, or collect listed species, or 

to attempt to engage in such conduct (16 

U.S.C. 1532). Harm includes significant 

habitat modification or degradation that 

actually kills or injures listed wildlife 

by significantly impairing essential 

behavioral patterns, including breeding, 

feeding, and sheltering [50 CFR 17.3(c)]. 

Pursuant to Section 10(a)(1)(B) of the 

Act, we may issue permits to authorize 

‘‘incidental take’’ of listed species. 

‘‘Incidental take’’ is defined by the Act 

as take that is incidental to, and not the 

purpose of, carrying out an otherwise 

lawful activity. Service regulations 

governing permits for threatened species 

and endangered species, respectively, 

are promulgated in 50 CFR 17.32 and 50 

CFR 17.22. NMFS regulations governing 

permits for threatened and endangered 

species of salmonids that may be 

covered in the Plan are promulgated in 

50 CFR 222.22. 

Take of listed plant species is not 

prohibited under the Act, and cannot be 

authorized under a Section 10 permit. 

We propose to include plant species on 

the permit in recognition of the 

conservation benefits provided for them 

under an HCP. For the purposes of the 

Plan, certain plant species are further 

included to meet regulatory obligations 

under Section 7 of the Act and the 

California Endangered Species Act 

(CESA). All species included on an 

incidental take permit would receive 

assurances under the Service’s ‘‘No 

Surprises’’ regulations found in 50 CFR 

17.22(b)(5) and 17.32(b)(5). 

The Plan would result in take 

authorization for otherwise lawful 

actions, such as public and private 

development that may incidentally take 

or harm animal species or their habitats 

within the Plan area, and the formation 

and management of a conservation 

program for covered species. The Local 

Partners will request incidental take 

coverage for the following seven 

categories of covered activities: (1) 

Urban development, (2) in-stream 

capital projects, (3) in-stream operation 

and maintenance activities, (4) rural 

capital projects, (5) rural operations and 

maintenance activities, (6) rural 

development, and (7) conservation 

strategy implementation. 

The study area includes 

approximately 518,819 acres, or 

approximately 62 percent of Santa Clara 

County. The study area was defined as 

the area in which covered activities 

would occur, impacts would be 

evaluated, and conservation activities 

would be implemented. The boundary 

of the study area was based on political, 

ecological, and hydrologic factors. The 

study area includes the Pajaro River 

watershed within Santa Clara County 

including all or a portion of the Llagas, 

Uvas, Pescadero and Pacheco subwatersheds and the Coyote Creek 

watershed with the exception of the 

Baylands region. A large portion of the 

Guadalupe watershed is within the 

study area, as well as small areas 

outside of each of these watersheds. 

Environmental Impact Statement/ 

Report 

The EIS/EIR will consider the 

proposed action (i.e., the issuance of a 

Section 10(a)(1)(B) permit under the 

Act), no action (no project/no Section 10 

permit), and a reasonable range of 

alternatives. A detailed description of 

the proposed action and alternatives 

will be included in the EIS/EIR. The 

alternatives to be considered for 

analysis in the EIS/EIR may include: 

Modified lists of covered species, land 

coverage areas, and extent of future 

conservation efforts. The EIS/EIR will 

also identify potentially significant 

impacts on biological resources, land 

use, air quality, water quality, 

economics, and other environmental 

resource issues that could occur directly 

or indirectly with implementation of the 

proposed action and alternatives. 

Different strategies for avoiding, 

minimizing and mitigating the impacts 

of incidental take may also be 

considered. 

Environmental review of the EIS/EIR 

will be conducted in accordance with 

the requirements of NEPA (42 U.S.C. 

4321 et. seq.), its implementing 

regulations (40 CFR parts 1500–1508), 

other applicable regulations, and 

Service procedures for compliance with 

those regulations. This notice is being 

furnished in accordance with 40 CFR 

Section 1501.7 and 1508.22 to obtain 

suggestions and information from other 

agencies and the public on the scope of 

issues and alternatives to be addressed 

in the EIS/EIR. The primary purpose of 

the scoping process is to identify 

important issues raised by the public 

related to the proposed action. Written 

comments from interested parties are 

invited to ensure that the full range of 

issues related to the permit application 

is identified. Comments will only be 

accepted in written form. You may 

submit written comments by mail, 

facsimile transmission, or in person (see 

ADDRESSES). All comments received, 

including names and addresses, will 

become part of the official 

administrative record and may be made 

available to the public. 

Our practice is to make comments, 

including names, home addresses, home 

phone numbers, and email addresses of 

respondents available for public review. 

Individual respondents may request that 

we withhold their names and/or home 

addresses, etc., but if you wish us to 

consider withholding this information 

you must state this prominently at the 

beginning of your comments. In 

addition, you must present a rationale 

for withholding this information. This 

rationale must demonstrate that 

disclosure would constitute a clearly 

unwarranted invasion of privacy. 

Unsupported assertions will not meet 

this burden. In the absence of 

exceptional, documentable 

circumstances, this information will be 

released. We will always make 

submissions from organization or 

businesses, and from individuals 

identifying themselves as 

representatives of or officials of 

organizations or businesses, available 

for public inspection in their entirety. 

Dated: August 30, 2007. 

Ken McDermond, 

Deputy Manager, California/Nevada 

Operations Office, Sacramento, California. 

[FR Doc. E7–17588 Filed 9–5–07; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 4310–55–P 

DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR 

Bureau of Land Management 

[NV–910–07–1990–EX, 7–08808] 

Notice of Availability of Draft 

Supplemental Environmental Impact 

Statement for Newmont Mining 

Corporation’s Leeville Project, Nevada 

AGENCY: Bureau of Land Management, 

Interior. 

ACTION: Notice of Availability. 

SUMMARY: In accordance with the 

National Environmental Policy Act 

(NEPA, 42 U.S.C. 4321, et seq.), the 

Bureau of Land Management (BLM), 

Elko Field Office has prepared a Draft 

Supplemental Environmental Impact 

Statement (SEIS) for Newmont Mining 

Corporation’s Leeville gold mine in 

Eureka and Elko counties, Nevada, and 

by this notice is announcing the 

opening of the comment period. 

mstockstill on PROD1PC66 with NOTICES

Federal Register / Vol. 72, No. 172 / Thursday, September 6, 2007 / Notices 51249 

DATES: To assure they will be 

considered, the BLM must receive 

written comments on the Draft SEIS 

within 60 days following the date the 

Environmental Protection Agency 

publishes their Notice of Availability in 

the Federal Register. 

ADDRESSES: You may submit comments 

by the following methods: Fax: (775) 

753–0255, Mail: Leeville Project 

Manager, BLM Elko Field Office, 3900 

East Idaho Street, Elko, NV 89801. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Deb 

McFarlane, BLM Elko Field Office, 3900 

East Idaho Street, Elko, NV 89801, (775) 

753–0200. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The BLM 

signed a Record of Decision (ROD) for 

Newmont Mining Corporation’s Leeville 

Project, an underground gold mine 

located on the Carlin Trend in 

northeastern Nevada, on September 25, 

2002. The Leeville Mine includes three 

main ore bodies located approximately 

2,500 feet below ground surface. 

Newmont is authorized to construct 

ancillary mine facilities, including 

construction of five shafts to access the 

ore bodies, shaft hoists, waste rock 

disposal facility, refractory ore 

stockpiles, facilities to support mine 

dewatering, and facilities to support 

backfill operations. Surface disturbance 

totals 486 acres. Four years of legal 

review resulted in a decision by the 

United States Court of Appeals for the 

Ninth Circuit holding that portions of 

the cumulative effects analysis were 

insufficient. In response, the BLM has 

updated the cumulative effects analyzed 

in Chapter 4 of the 2002 EIS, including 

information on any new or proposed 

projects that could contribute 

cumulative effects, and has issued this 

Draft SEIS which analyzes the 

cumulative effects analysis for 

Newmont Mining Corporation’s Leeville 

gold mine in Eureka and Elko counties, 

Nevada. A copy of the Draft SEIS may 

be obtained from: Bureau of Land 

Management, Elko Field Office, 3900 

Idaho Street, Elko, Nevada 89801. The 

Draft SEIS may also be found on the 

Elko Field Office Internet site at: 

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

elko_field_office/blm_information/ 

nepa.htm. Comments, including names 

and street addresses of respondents, will 

be available for public review at the 

above address during regular business 

hours 7:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., Monday 

through Friday, except holidays, and 

may be published as part of the Final 

SEIS. 

Before including your address, phone 

number, e-mail address, or other 

personal identifying information in your 

comment, be advised 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. 

Ron Wenker, 

State Director, Nevada. 

[FR Doc. 07–4340 Filed 8–31–07; 2:38 pm] 

BILLING CODE 4310–HC–P 

DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR 

Bureau of Land Management 

[NV–910–07–1990–EX, 7–08808] 

Notice of Availability of Draft 

Supplemental Environmental Impact 

Statement for Newmont Mining 

Corporation’s South Operations Area 

Project Amendment, Nevada 

AGENCY: Bureau of Land Management, 

Interior. 

ACTION: Notice of Availability. 

SUMMARY: In accordance with the 

National Environmental Policy Act 

(NEPA, 42 U.S.C. 4321, et seq.) the 

Bureau of Land Management (BLM) has 

prepared a Draft Supplemental 

Environmental Impact Statement (SEIS) 

for Newmont Mining Corporation’s 

South Operations Area Project 

Amendment (SOAPA) in Eureka and 

Elko counties, Nevada, and by this 

notice is announcing the opening of the 

comment period. 

DATES: To assure they will be 

considered, the BLM must receive 

written comments on the Draft SEIS 

within 60 days following the date the 

Environmental Protection Agency 

publishes their Notice of Availability in 

the Federal Register. 

ADDRESSES: You may submit comments 

by the following methods: Fax: (775) 

753–0255, Mail: Send to SOAPA Project 

Manager, BLM Elko Field Office, 3900 

East Idaho Street, Elko, NV 89801. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Deb 

McFarlane, BLM Elko Field Office, 3900 

East Idaho Street, Elko, NV 89801, (775) 

753–0200. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The BLM 

signed a Record of Decision (ROD) for 

Newmont Mining Corporation SOAPA 

project located on the Carlin Trend in 

northeastern Nevada, on July 26, 2002. 

That ROD authorized Newmont to mine 

an additional 350 feet below what had 

been previously authorized, to expand 

139 acres of surface occupation, to 

expand waste rock disposal facilities 

and heap leach facilities, to continue 

dewatering and ground water discharge 

to Maggie Creek, and to construct 

associated ancillary facilities. Four years 

of legal review resulted in a decision by 

the United States Court of Appeals for 

the Ninth Circuit holding that portions 

of the cumulative effects analysis were 

insufficient. In response, the BLM has 

updated the cumulative effects analysis 

for Newmont Mining Corporation’s 

SOAPA project in Chapter 5 of the 2002 

EIS, including, any new or proposed 

projects that could contribute to 

cumulative effects, and has issued a 

Draft SEIS. A copy of the Draft SEIS may 

be obtained from the Bureau of Land 

Management, Elko Field Office, 3900 

Idaho Street, Elko, Nevada 89801. The 

Draft SEIS may also be found on the 

Elko Field Office Internet site: http:// 

www.blm.gov/nv/st/en/fo/ 

elko_field_office/blm_information/ 

nepa.htm. Comments, including names 

and street addresses of respondents, will 

be available for public review at the 

above address during regular business 

hours 7:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., Monday 

through Friday, except holidays, and 

may be published as part of the Final 

SEIS. 

Before including your address, phone 

number, e-mail address, or other 

personal identifying information in your 

comment, be advised 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. 

Ron Wenker, 

State Director, Nevada. 

[FR Doc. 07–4339 Filed 8–31–07; 2:38 pm] 

BILLING CODE 4310–HC–P 

DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR 

Bureau of Land Management 

Meeting of the California Desert 

Advisory Council 

AGENCY: Bureau of Land Management, 

Interior. 

ACTION: Notice of public meeting. 

SUMMARY: Notice is hereby given, in 

accordance with Public Laws 92–463 

and 94–579, that the California Desert 

District Advisory Council to the Bureau 

of Land Management, U.S. Department 

of the Interior, will participate in a field 

tour of BLM-administered public lands 

on Friday, September 28, 2007 from 8 

a.m. to 4 p.m., and meet in formal 

session on Saturday, September 29 from 

mstockstill on PROD1PC66 with NOTICES