54650 Federal Register / Vol. 62, No. 203 / Tuesday, October 21, 1997 / Notices

disputes between rival locators over

possessory rights since Congress has

provided for such determinations in

local courts.

Dated: October 9, 1997.

Jimmie Buxton,

Branch Chief, Lands and Minerals.

[FR Doc. 97–27713 Filed 10–20–97; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 4310–GG–P

DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR

Bureau of Land Management

[CACA 31137; FES 97–33]

Notice of Availability

AGENCY: Bureau of Land Management,

Needles Resource Area.

ACTION: Notice of Availability for the

Castle Mountain Mine Expansion

Project, Final Environmental Impact

Statement/Environmental Impact

Report.

SUMMARY: Pursuant to the National

Environmental Policy Act of 1969, as

amended, and in coordination with the

County of San Bernardino in its

administration of the California

Environmental Quality Act as amended,

notice is hereby given that the Bureau

of Land Management (BLM) has

prepared, with the assistance of a third

party consultant, a Final Environmental

Impact Statement (EIS)/Environmental

Impact Report (EIR)on the proposed

Castle Mountain Mine Expansion

Project and has made copies available

for public and agency review. The Final

EIS/EIR addresses the potential

environmental impacts associated with

expansion and continued operation of

an open pit heap leach gold mine in

northeastern San Bernardino County,

California.

DATES: Comments on the Final EIS/EIR

must be received no later than 4 p.m.,

November 17, 1997.

ADDRESSES: Written comments should

be addressed to: George R. Meckfessel,

U.S.D.I. Bureau of Land Management,

Needles Resource Area, 101 West Spikes

Road, Needles California 92363.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

George R. Meckfessel, Planning and

Environmental Coordinator, telephone

(760) 326–7000.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Viceroy

Gold Corporation has proposed to mine

additional ore adjacent to deposits

currently being mined at the Castle

Mountain Mine, an open-pit heap-leach

gold mine. Under the present operating

permits, mining, processing and

reclamation could continue through

December 31, 2010. The mine operating

period would be extended 10 years past

the currently permitted time to 2010.

Under the proposed expansion, these

activities could continue through

December 31, 2020. The Proposed

Action would increase areas of open pit,

create an overburden storage site, and

expand the heap leach pad, on

approximately 485 acres. Mining and

processing methods, and rates would

not change. Previous permitted and

proposed surface disturbances at the

conclusion of mining would total 1,375

acres of the 3,910-acre project area.

Molly S. Brady,

Area Manager.

[FR Doc. 97–27782 Filed 10–20–97; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 4310–40–P

DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR

Minerals Management Service

Alaska Outer Continental Shelf Region

AGENCY: Minerals Management Service,

Interior.

ACTION: Notice of the Availability of

Environmental Documents Prepared for

Outer Continental Shelf (OCS) Mineral

Exploration Proposal on the Alaska

OCS.

SUMMARY: The Minerals Management

Service (MMS), in accordance with

Federal regulations (40 CFR Section

1501.4 and Section 1506.6) that

implement the National Environmental

Policy Act (NEPA), announces the

availability of a NEPA-related

Environmental Assessment prepared by

the MMS for oil and gas exploration

activities proposed on the Alaska OCS.

This listing includes the only proposal

for which a Finding of No Significant

Impact (FONSI) was prepared by the

Alaska OCS Office in the 3-month

period preceding this Notice.

Proposal

The proposal is for exploratorydrilling operations that would be

conducted in accordance with the OCS

Lands Act. The purpose of the

Environmental Assessment (EA) is to

evaluate the probable environmental

effects of the operations, described in

the Exploration Plan (EP) for the ARCO

Warthog No. 1 Exploration Well, dated

July 1997. The Warthog drill site would

be located within Camden Bay in the

Beaufort Sea, near several former drill

sites and the Arctic National Wildlife

Refuge. The bottom-hole location would

be under adjacent State of Alaska lands

on the inner continental shelf. The

methods by which the exploratory well

would be drilled are detailed in the EP

and in the associated Environmental

Report and Oil Discharge Prevention

and Contingency Plan. Additional

details about the proposed operations

are included in Federal Register Notice

62–FR–37881, summarizing an ARCO

application for an Incidental

Harassment Authorization from the

National Marine Fisheries Service.

Location

Lease Block

OCS–Y–1663 NR 06–04 7067

(additional lease)

OCS–Y–1662 NR 06–04 7066

EA Number: EA No. AK 97–01.

FONSI Date: August 14, 1997.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

Persons interested in reviewing

environmental documents for the

proposal listed above, or in obtaining

information about EA’s and FONSI’s

prepared for activities on the Alaska

OCS, are encouraged to contact the

Alaska OCS Regional office of MMS.

The FONSI and associated EA are

available for public inspection between

the hours of 7:45 a.m. and 4:30 p.m.,

Monday through Friday at: Minerals

Management Service, Alaska OCS

Region, Resource Center, 949 East 36th

Avenue, Room 330, Anchorage, Alaska

99508–4363, phone: (907) 271–6070 or

(907) 271–6621 or toll free at 1–800–

764–2627. Request may also be sent to

MMS at akwebmaster@mms.gov.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The MMS

prepares EA’s and FONSI’s for

proposals which relate to exploration

for oil and gas resources on the Alaska

OCS. The EA’s examine the potential

environmental effects of activities

described in the proposals and present

MMS conclusions regarding the

significance of those effects. The EA is

used as a basis for determing whether or

not approvals of the proposals

constitute major Federal actions that

significantly affect the quality of the

human environment in the sense of

NEPA 102(2)(C). A FONSI is prepared in

those instances where MMS finds that

approval will not result in significant

effects on the quality of the human

environment. The FONSI briefly

presents the basis for that finding and

includes a summary or copy of the EA.

This Notice constitutes the public

Notice of Availability of environmental

documents required under the NEPA

regulations.

Dated: October 14, 1997.

John Goll,

Regional Director, Alaska OCS Region,

Minerals Management Service.

[FR Doc. 97–27784 Filed 10–20–97; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 4310–MR–M