Federal Register / Vol. 88, No. 220 / Thursday, November 16, 2023 / Notices 78781 

Total Estimated Number of Annual 

Burden Hours: 3,017 hours. 

Data End-Users 

Total Estimated Number of Annual 

Respondents: 300. 

Total Estimated Number of Annual 

Responses: 300. 

Initial contact: 150 with completion 

time of 1 minute. 

Data submission: 150 with 

completion time of 15 minutes. 

Total Estimated Number of Annual 

Burden Hours: 41 hours. 

Totals Combining All Four InformationCollection Components 

Total Estimated Number of Annual 

Respondents: 9,600. 

Total Estimated Number of Annual 

Responses: 15,100. 

Estimated Completion Time per 

Response: 1 minute–4 hours. 

Total Estimated Number of Annual 

Burden Hours: 13,745 hours. 

Respondent’s Obligation: Voluntary. 

Frequency of Collection: Once per 

year, except monthly for individual 

water-user reporting component. 

Total Estimated Annual Nonhour 

Burden Cost: None. 

An agency may not conduct or 

sponsor, nor is a person required to 

respond to, a collection of information 

unless it displays a currently valid OMB 

control number. 

The authority for this action is the 

PRA. 

Donald W. Cline, 

U.S. Geological Survey, Associate Director for 

Water. 

[FR Doc. 2023–25249 Filed 11–15–23; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE P 

DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR 

Bureau of Land Management 

Fish and Wildlife Service 

[BLM_FRN_MO4500175331] 

Notice of Intent To Prepare a 

Supplemental Environmental Impact 

Statement To Reconsider a Highway 

Right-of-Way Application and 

Associated Amendment of an 

Incidental Take Permit, Washington 

County, Utah 

AGENCY: Bureau of Land Management, 

Fish and Wildlife Service, 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 (FLPMA), and the 

Endangered Species Act of 1973, as 

amended (ESA), the Bureau of Land 

Management (BLM) and the Fish and 

Wildlife Service (FWS), as co-lead 

agencies, intend to prepare a 

Supplemental Environmental Impact 

Statement (SEIS) to further consider the 

effects of granting a right-of-way (ROW) 

to the Utah Department of 

Transportation (UDOT) for the Northern 

Corridor Project (a proposed highway) 

as well as a potential amendment to the 

Incidental Take Permit (ITP) issued to 

Washington County, Utah, under 

Section 10(a)(1)(B) of the ESA. 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 SEIS. The BLM 

and FWS request the public submit 

comments concerning the scope of the 

analysis, potential alternatives, impacts 

of the proposed action and alternatives, 

and identification of relevant 

information and studies by December 

18, 2023. To afford the BLM and FWS 

the opportunity to consider comments 

in the Draft SEIS, please ensure your 

comments are received prior to the close 

of the 30-day scoping period or 15 days 

after the last public meeting, whichever 

is later. 

ADDRESSES: You may submit comments 

related to the highway ROW and 

associated amendment of an ITP by any 

of the following methods: 

• Website: https://eplanning.blm.gov/ 

eplanning-ui/project/2026562/510. 

• Mail: Bureau of Land Management, 

Attn: Northern Corridor SEIS, 345 East 

Riverside Drive, St. George, UT 84790. 

Documents pertinent to this proposal 

may be examined online at https://

eplanning.blm.gov/eplanning-ui/ 

project/2026562/570 and at the BLM St. 

George Field Office. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 

Dawna Ferris-Rowley, NCA Manager, 

Red Cliffs and Beaver Dam Wash NCAs, 

telephone (435) 688–3200; address 345 

East Riverside Drive, St. George, UT 

84790; email BLM_UT_

NorthernCorridor@blm.gov. Contact Ms. 

Ferris-Rowley to have your name added 

to our mailing list. Individuals in the 

United States who are deaf, deafblind, 

hard of hearing, or have a speech 

disability may dial 711 (TTY, TDD, or 

TeleBraille) to access 

telecommunications relay services for 

contacting Ms. Ferris-Rowley. 

Individuals outside the United States 

should use the relay services offered 

within their country to make 

international calls to the point-ofcontact in the United States. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The BLM 

and FWS are issuing this Notice of 

Intent pursuant to NEPA, 42 United 

States Code (U.S.C.) 4321 et seq.; the 

Council on Environmental Quality 

regulations for implementing NEPA, 43 

Code of Federal Regulations (CFR) parts 

1500–1508; and the Department of the 

Interior’s NEPA regulations, 43 CFR part 

46. 

The SEIS is being prepared to 

supplement the analysis contained in 

the 2020 Final EIS (FEIS) by BLM and 

FWS (the entire FEIS can be found at: 

https://eplanning.blm.gov/eplanning-ui/ 

project/1502103/570). 

On September 4, 2018, UDOT 

submitted an application for a ROW 

grant for the Northern Corridor Project 

north of the City of St. George, Utah, on 

BLM-managed and non-Federal lands 

within the Red Cliffs National 

Conservation Area (NCA) and Red Cliffs 

Desert Reserve. To consider the 

application, the BLM needed to also 

consider amending the St. George Field 

Office and Red Cliffs NCA Resource 

Management Plans (RMPs). The Red 

Cliffs NCA was established through the 

passage of the Omnibus Public Land 

Management Act of 2009 (16 U.S.C. 

460www), and the Red Cliffs Desert 

Reserve was established for the 

protection of the Mojave desert tortoise 

under the 1995 Washington County 

Habitat Conservation Plan. In 2015, 

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

ESA, Washington County applied to 

renew and amend the ITP. The restated 

and amended Habitat Conservation Plan 

associated with the ITP application 

described the Northern Corridor 

highway as a potential changed 

circumstance, which would be partially 

offset with the addition of a new sixth 

zone to the Red Cliffs Desert Reserve 

(Reserve Zone 6) as the primary 

conservation strategy. 

In accordance with NEPA, the BLM 

and FWS prepared an EIS to analyze the 

environmental impacts associated with 

the proposed action and reasonable 

alternatives. The BLM also consulted 

with the FWS to meet the requirements 

in Section 7 of the ESA. The FWS 

issued a biological opinion to the BLM 

that determined the ROW and 

amendments to the RMPs were not 

likely to jeopardize the continued 

existence of the Mojave desert tortoise 

and that they were not likely to destroy 

or adversely modify designated critical 

habitat for the desert tortoise. The FWS 

issued an intra-agency biological 

opinion which determined that the ITP 

is not likely to jeopardize the continued 

existence of the Mojave desert tortoise, 

Holmgren milkvetch, Shivwits 

milkvetch, dwarf bear-poppy, Siler 


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78782 Federal Register / Vol. 88, No. 220 / Thursday, November 16, 2023 / Notices 

pincushion cactus, Gierisch mallow, 

and Fickeisen plains cactus or result in 

the adverse modification of critical 

habitat for any of the above listed 

species. 

On January 13, 2021, the Secretary of 

the Interior signed a Record of Decision 

that approved the Northern Corridor 

ROW application and approved the 

amendments to the RMPs. The decision 

approving the ROW was effective 

immediately. The BLM then signed and 

issued the ROW grant to UDOT on the 

same day. Also on January 13, 2021, the 

FWS Regional Director for Interior 

Regions 5 and 7 signed a Record of 

Decision approving the issuance of an 

ITP to Washington County. The FWS 

issued the ITP to Washington County on 

January 13, 2021. 

On June 3, 2021, seven conservation 

organizations (collectively, Plaintiffs) 

filed an initial complaint in the United 

States District Court for the District of 

Columbia, Case No. 1:21–cv–01506. 

Among other claims, Plaintiffs alleged 

the BLM’s ROW decision violated both 

NEPA and the National Historic 

Preservation Act (NHPA). The Plaintiffs 

stated, in part, that the FEIS did not 

fully address the changed circumstances 

of wildfire in the region and the impacts 

it may have on the Mojave desert 

tortoise, desert tortoise habitat, and the 

spread of invasive annual grasses. The 

Plaintiffs also alleged that the BLM 

failed to comply with the consultation 

requirements under Section 106 of the 

NHPA. On July 27, 2021, Plaintiffs 

amended their complaint to include the 

FWS and additional claims related to 

NEPA and the ESA. 

As part of the ongoing litigation, the 

United States moved for the remand and 

partial vacatur of BLM’s and FWS’s 

2021 decisions. In the motion, the 

United States acknowledged that the 

BLM did not comply with the NHPA as 

well as the BLM’s and FWS’s substantial 

and legitimate concerns that the FEIS 

may lack sufficient analysis of certain 

resource effects (see Summary of 

Expected Impacts). In addition to that 

pending motion, the United States and 

Plaintiffs have also reached a settlement 

agreement. 

Purpose and Need for the Proposed 

Action 

In 2018, UDOT applied for a ROW to 

construct a multi-lane, divided highway 

on BLM-administered lands within the 

Red Cliffs NCA and the overlapping Red 

Cliffs Desert Reserve. In January 2021, 

after completing the FEIS, the Secretary 

of the Interior approved the ROW 

application, and the BLM issued a 

FLPMA Title V ROW grant to UDOT. 

Per the motion and by the terms of the 

settlement agreement, the BLM’s 

purpose and need for this action is to 

reconsider the 2018 ROW application to 

determine whether the BLM will 

approve, approve with modifications, or 

deny the application. The FWS’s 

purpose and need for action is to 

consider an amendment of Washington 

County’s ITP consistent with the BLM’s 

reconsideration of UDOT’s ROW 

application. 

Preliminary Proposed Action and 

Alternatives 

At this time, the BLM anticipates the 

range of alternatives analyzed in detail 

in the SEIS will be substantially similar 

to those analyzed in the FEIS completed 

in 2020 for the ROW alignments. The 

FWS anticipates the ITP-related 

alternatives will range between 

amending the ITP or not amending the 

ITP corresponding with the BLM’s range 

of alternatives. The SEIS will not 

reconsider any amendments to the 

BLM’s RMPs. The BLM and FWS 

welcome comments on all preliminary 

alternatives as well as suggestions for 

additional alternatives. 

Summary of Expected Impacts 

The impacts disclosed in the SEIS are 

expected to substantially align with the 

impacts that were analyzed in the 2020 

FEIS with additional analysis of 

potential impacts, including further 

analysis of the effects of the 

construction and use of the Northern 

Corridor Project in the context of the 

following: (1) the trend in the increasing 

frequency and extent of wildfires in the 

Mojave Desert; (2) the rise of nonnative/exotic and invasive vegetation in 

post-burn areas; and (3) the impacts 

increased fire and new non-native/ 

exotic and invasive vegetation have on 

desert tortoise. The BLM is concerned 

that supplemental analysis may be 

needed to better inform its review of the 

potential impacts of UDOT’s ROW 

application in light of impacts from 

wildfires to the desert tortoise and its 

habitat. The BLM also intends to 

complete the consultation requirements 

under the NHPA before issuing a new 

ROW decision. 

Anticipated Permits and Authorizations 

The BLM will reconsider UDOT’s 

2018 ROW application and decide 

whether to approve, approve with 

modifications, or deny UDOT’s ROW 

application. The FWS will determine 

whether to amend Washington County’s 

ITP for the Mojave desert tortoise. 

Schedule for the Decision-Making 

Process 

The BLM and FWS will provide 

additional opportunities for public 

participation consistent with the NEPA 

process, including a 45-day comment 

period on the Draft SEIS. The Draft SEIS 

is anticipated to be available for public 

review in spring 2024, and the Final 

SEIS is anticipated to be released in 

September 2024 with Records of 

Decision in November 2024. 

Public Scoping Process 

This Notice of Intent initiates the 

scoping period. The BLM and FWS will 

be holding one in-person public scoping 

meeting in St. George, Utah. The 

specific date and location of the scoping 

meeting will be announced in advance 

through local media, the ePlanning 

project page (see ADDRESSES), and the 

BLM website (see ADDRESSES). 

Lead and Cooperating Agencies 

Lead agencies are the BLM and the 

FWS. Based on who participated in the 

FEIS, cooperating agencies are likely to 

include the State of Utah—Public Lands 

Policy Coordinating Office, Washington 

City, Dixie Metropolitan Planning 

Organization, the City of St. George, the 

City of Ivins, Santa Clara City, and the 

City of Hurricane. 

Responsible Officials 

The responsible official for the BLM 

is the BLM Utah State Director. The 

scope of the State Director’s decision is 

limited to the ROW. If the decision 

authorizes issuance of a new ROW 

grant, the St. George Field Manager will 

be the responsible official to issue the 

grant. The responsible official for the 

FWS is the Deputy Regional Director for 

the Mountain-Prairie Region. The scope 

of the Deputy Regional Director’s 

decision is limited to the ITP for the 

Mojave desert tortoise. 

Nature of Decision To Be Made 

The Responsible Officials will 

determine whether to approve, approve 

with modifications, or deny the 2018 

ROW application for the construction of 

a highway (BLM) and what 

amendments, if any, are needed to the 

ITP (FWS). 

Additional Information 

The BLM and FWS will identify, 

analyze, and consider mitigation to 

address the reasonably foreseeable 

impacts to resources from the proposed 

action and all analyzed reasonable 

alternatives and, in accordance with 40 

CFR 1502.14(e), include appropriate 

mitigation measures not already 

included in the proposed action or 


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Federal Register / Vol. 88, No. 220 / Thursday, November 16, 2023 / Notices 78783 

alternatives. Mitigation may include 

avoidance, minimization, rectification, 

reduction or elimination over time, and 

compensation; and may be considered 

at multiple scales, including the 

landscape scale. 

The BLM and FWS will utilize and 

coordinate the NEPA process to help 

support compliance with applicable 

procedural requirements under the ESA 

(16 U.S.C. 1536). BLM will also use the 

NEPA process to comply with Section 

106 of the NHPA (54 U.S.C. 306108) as 

provided in 36 CFR 800.2(d)(3), 

including the public involvement 

requirements of Section 106. 

Information about historic and cultural 

resources within the area potentially 

affected by the proposed project will 

assist the BLM in identifying and 

evaluating impacts to such resources. 

The BLM will also consult on cultural 

resources and create a Memorandum of 

Agreement with consulting parties. 

The BLM and FWS will consult with 

Indian Tribal Nations on a governmentto-government basis in accordance with 

Executive Order 13175, BLM Manual 

Section 1780, and other Departmental 

policies. Tribal concerns, including 

impacts on Indian trust assets and 

potential impacts to cultural resources, 

will be given due consideration. 

Federal, State, and local agencies, along 

with Indian Tribal Nations and other 

stakeholders that may be interested in or 

affected by the proposed action the BLM 

and the FWS are evaluating, are invited 

to participate in the scoping process 

and, if eligible, may request or be 

requested by the BLM and FWS to 

participate in the development of the 

environmental analysis as a cooperating 

agency. 

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 include in your comment 

a request to withhold your personal 

identifying information from public 

review, the agencies cannot guarantee 

that they will be able to do so. 

(Authority: 40 CFR 1501.9) 

Gregory Sheehan, 

State Director. 

Anna Munoz, 

Deputy Regional Director. 

[FR Doc. 2023–25252 Filed 11–15–23; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 4331–25–P 

DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR 

Bureau of Land Management 

[BLM_NM_FRN_MO4500175760; NMNM 

106216530, NMNM 109118] 

Public Land Order No. 7934; Extension 

of Public Land Order No. 7591; 

Withdrawal for Federal Law 

Enforcement Training Center, New 

Mexico 

AGENCY: Bureau of Land Management, 

Interior. 

ACTION: Public land order. 

SUMMARY: This order extends the 

duration of the withdrawal created by 

Public Land Order (PLO) No. 7591 for 

an additional 20-year term. PLO No. 

7591 withdrew 1,920.80 acres of public 

lands from location and entry under the 

United States mining laws, but not from 

leasing under the mineral leasing laws, 

and reserved the lands for the 

Department of Homeland Security 

(DHS) to protect, maintain, and operate 

its Federal Law Enforcement Training 

Center (FLETC) in Eddy County, New 

Mexico. 

DATES: This PLO takes effect on 

November 19, 2023. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 

Tammie Hochstein, BLM Carlsbad Field 

Office Realty Specialist, by email at 

thochste@blm.gov, or (575) 234–5902. 

Individuals in the United States who are 

deaf, deafblind, hard of hearing, or have 

a speech disability may dial 711 (TTY, 

TDD, or Tele Braille) to access 

telecommunications relay services. 

Individuals outside the United States 

should use the relay services offered 

within their country to make 

international calls to the point-ofcontact in the United States. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The 

purpose of the withdrawal extended by 

this order is for the continued 

protection of the FLETC and to allow 

the DHS to continue operations without 

interference or any potential adverse 

impacts of mineral development. 

Order 

By virtue of the authority vested in 

the Secretary of the Interior by Section 

204 of the Federal Land Policy and 

Management Act of 1976, 43 U.S.C. 

1714, it is ordered as follows: 

1. Subject to valid existing rights, PLO 

No. 7591 (68 FR 65471, November 20, 

2003), which withdrew 1,920.80 acres of 

public lands from location and entry 

under the United States mining laws for 

the Department of Homeland Security to 

protect, operate, and maintain its 

Federal Law Enforcement Training 

Center, is hereby extended for an 

additional 20-year period. 

2. This withdrawal will expire 20 

years from the effective date of this 

order unless, as a result of a review 

conducted prior to the expiration date 

pursuant to Section 204(f) of the Federal 

Land Policy and Management Act, 43 

U.S.C. 1714(f), the Secretary determines 

that the withdrawal shall be further 

extended. 

(Authority: 43 U.S.C. 1714) 

Robert T. Anderson, 

Solicitor. 

[FR Doc. 2023–25284 Filed 11–15–23; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 4331–23–P 

DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR 

National Park Service 

[NPS–WASO–VRP–REGS–NPS0036654; 

PPWOVPADU0, POPFR2021.XZ0000 (222); 

OMB Control Number 1024–0026] 

Agency Information Collection 

Activities; Submission to the Office of 

Management and Budget for Review 

and Approval; Special Park Use 

Applications 

AGENCY: National Park Service, Interior. 

ACTION: Notice of information collection; 

request for comment. 

SUMMARY: In accordance with the 

Paperwork Reduction Act (PRA) of 1995 

we, the National Park Service (NPS) are 

proposing to renew an existing 

information collection with revisions. 

DATES: Interested persons are invited to 

submit comments on or before 

December 18, 2023. 

ADDRESSES: Written comments and 

suggestions on the information 

collection requirements should be 

submitted by the date specified above in 

DATES to http://www.reginfo.gov/public/ 

do/PRAMain. Find this particular 

information collection by selecting 

‘‘Currently under Review—Open for 

Public Comments’’ or by using the 

search function. Please provide a copy 

of your comments to the NPS 

Information Collection Clearance Officer 

(ADIR–ICCO), 13461 Sunrise Valley 

Drive, Mail Stop 244 Reston, VA 20192, 

VA 20191 (mail); or phadrea_ponds@

nps.gov (email). Please reference OMB 

Control Number 1024–0026 in the 

subject line of your comments. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: To 

request additional information about 

this ICR, please contact Maggie Tyler, 

Special Park Uses Program Manager, 

1849 C Street NW, Main Interior 

Building—Rm 2474, Washington D.C 

20240; or at Maggie_tyler@nps.gov 


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