Federal Register / Vol. 62, No. 211 / Friday, October 31, 1997 / Notices 58979

DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR

Bureau of Land Management

[WY–060–1620–01, WYW141435]

Notice of Scoping on a Coal Lease

Application (WYW141435) Received

From Antelope Coal Company

SUMMARY: On February 14, 1997, BLM

received a coal lease application

(WYW141435) from Antelope Coal

Company (ACC), a subsidiary of

Kennecott Energy and Coal Company.

The application covers about 1,470

acres of Federal mineral estate and

includes approximately 177.5 million

tons of coal in Campbell and Converse

Counties, Wyoming. The application

area, called the Horse Creek Tract, is

adjacent to ACC’s existing Antelope

Mine. The Horse Creek Tract

application is a maintenance Lease-byApplication (LBA) under 43 CFR

3425.1. The Powder River Regional Coal

Team (RCT), at their April 23, 1997,

meeting in Casper, Wyoming, reviewed

the application and recommended BLM

process this lease application.

BLM requests comments from the

public on which of the following

options would best satisfy the

requirements of NEPA for processing

the Horse Creek LBA. Both options

would analyze the impacts of issuing a

coal lease for the area included in the

application.

Option 1 is to prepare an

Environmental Assessment (EA). The

Horse Creek tract is adjacent to the

existing Antelope Mine. If leased to the

applicant, the Horse Creek Tract would

be mined to extend the life of the

Antelope Mine. No other existing

operation is able to mine the Horse

Creek Tract either as a maintenance

lease or as a new mine start. The Horse

Creek Tract is partially surrounded by

existing Antelope Mine, Federal and

State leases, and the surrounded portion

of the tract will probably be bypassed if

not mined with the existing leases.

Option 2 is to prepare an

Environmental Impact Statement (EIS).

This is the second application filed by

ACC. In addition, this is BLM’s ninth

maintenance coal lease application from

the six surface coal mines located

immediately east and southeast of

Wright, Wyoming, since 1990 when the

Powder River Federal Coal Region was

decertified. All are in southeastern

Campbell and northern Converse

Counties, Wyoming.

After reviewing the scoping

comments, the BLM will decide

whether to prepare an EA or an EIS for

the Horse Creek Coal Tract application.

DATES: A public scoping meeting is

scheduled at 7 p.m., on November 13,

1997, at the Tower West Lodge, 109

North U.S. Highway 14–16, Gillette,

Wyoming. If you have concerns or

issues you believe the BLM should

address in processing this lease

application, you can express them either

verbally at the scoping meeting, or by

mail, or fax written comment to BLM at

the address below by November 30,

1997.

ADDRESSES: Please address questions,

comments, or concerns to the Casper

District Office, Bureau of Land

Management, Attn: Nancy Doelger, 1701

East E Street, Casper, Wyoming 82601,

or fax them to 307–234–1525.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

Nancy Doelger or Mike Karbs at the

above address, or telephone: 307–261–

7600.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: On

February 14, 1997, ACC filed coal lease

application WYW141435 for the

following lands in Campbell and

Converse Counties, Wyoming:

T. 41 N., R. 71 W., 6th P.M., Wyoming

Section 22: Lots 2 and 3;

Section 23: Lots 10 thru 16;

Section 25: Lot 11;

Section 26: Lots 1 thru 8, 12, and 13;

Section 27: Lots 5, 6, 11 thru 14, and 16;

Section 34: Lots 1, 7, 8 thru 10, and 16;

Section 35: Lots 8 thru 10;

Containing 1,470.570 acres more or less

with an estimated 177.5 million tons of coal.

The Antelope Mine is adjacent to the

lease application area. The Antelope

Mine has an approved mining and

reclamation plan, and an approved air

quality permit from the Air Quality

Division of the Wyoming Department of

Environmental Quality to mine up to 30

million tons of coal per year. According

to the application filed for the Horse

Creek Tract, the maintenance tract

would be mined to extend the life of the

existing mine.

The ACC previously acquired

maintenance coal lease WYW128322,

containing approximately 617 acres

adjacent to the Antelope Mine, using the

LBA process, effective February 1, 1997.

The Office of Surface Mining

Reclamation and Enforcement (OSM)

will be a cooperating agency in the

preparation of the environmental

analysis. The OSM is the Federal agency

responsible for recommending approval,

approval with conditions, or

disapproval of the mining plan to the

Secretary of the Interior. If this

maintenance tract is leased to the

applicant, the new lease must be

incorporated into the existing mining

plans for the adjacent mine. The

Secretary must approve those mining

plans before the coal in the tract can be

mined.

Although the lease application area is

within the boundaries of the Thunder

Basin National Grasslands, the U.S.

Forest Service (USFS) will not be a

cooperating agency in the preparation of

the environmental document because

none of the surface estate is currently

owned by the Federal Government.

The major issues related to this lease

application that have been identified to

date, include the potential increases in

impacts to air quality, groundwater, and

wildlife that may occur if this lease is

issued. If you have specific concerns

about these issues, have other concerns

or issues BLM should consider in

processing this application, or if you

have comments on whether BLM should

prepare an EA or an EIS to evaluate the

impacts of issuing a lease for this tract,

please address them in writing to the

above individuals or state them verbally

at the November 13, 1997, public

scoping meeting at the location shown

above. The BLM will accept written

comments at the address shown above

through November 30, 1997.

Alan R. Pierson,

State Director.

[FR Doc. 97–28869 Filed 10–30–97; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 4310–22–P

DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR

Bureau of Land Management

[CO–030–7122–00–7509; COC–61031]

Notice of Realty Action; NonCompetitive Sale of Lands

AGENCY: Bureau of Land Management,

Department of the Interior.

ACTION: Notice; designation of public

lands located in San Juan County,

Colorado as suitable for disposal.

SUMMARY: Approximately 2.54 acres of

public land located in San Juan County,

Colorado have determined to be suitable

for disposal by sale utilizing noncompetitive procedures, at not less than

the fair market value. Fair Market value

is to be determined by an appraisal

completed by a Federal or independent

appraiser using the principals contained

in the ‘‘Uniform Appraisal Standards for

Federal Land Acquisitions’’. Authority

for the sale is section 203 of Public Law

94–579, the Federal Land Policy and

Management Act of l976.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION: Additional

information about this sale is available

for review at the Bureau of Land

Management, Montrose District Office,

2465 South Townsend, Montrose,

Colorado 81401, attention: Tom
58980 Federal Register / Vol. 62, No. 211 / Friday, October 31, 1997 / Notices

Hurshman. Comments shall be

submitted by December 15, 1997 to the

Montrose District Manager. Any adverse

comments will be reviewed by the

District Manager, who may sustain,

vacate, or modify this realty action. In

the absence of any adverse comments,

this realty action will become the final

determination of the Department of the

Interior.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The

following described land has been

determined to be suitable for disposal

by sale utilizing non-competitive

procedures.

New Mexico Principal Meridian, Colorado

T. 42 N., R. 6 W.,

Tract 37

Containing approximately 2.54 acres more

or less.

This land is being offered as a direct,

non-competitive sale to Mr. Kevin D.

Padrick, a private individual. BLM has

determined a direct sale is necessary as

Mr. Padrick owns the adjoining private

property known as the Great Western

Lode, MS 1603. A large three story

boarding house that was constructed in

the 1920’s, known as the Martin

Boarding House, is situated on the Great

Western Lode. A portion of the structure

has encroached upon adjoining public

lands that have been surveyed to create

the above described Tract 37. The direct

sale will resolve this inadvertent

unauthorized occupancy of said land.

The land will not be offered for sale

until at least 60 days after the date of

publication of this notice in the Federal

Register.

In the event of a sale, the mineral

interest shall be conveyed

simultaneously with the surface

interest. The mineral interest being

offered for conveyance has no known

mineral value. Upon acceptance of a

direct sale offer, the purchaser shall be

required to make application for

conveyance of those mineral interests.

Upon publication of this notice in the

Federal Register, the land will be

segregated from all forms of

appropriation under the public land

laws, including the general mining laws.

This segregation will terminate upon

issuance of a patent or 270 days from

the date of this publication.

The patent, when issued, would

contain a reservation of a right-of-way

thereon for ditches and canals

constructed by the authority of the

United States, Act of August 30, 1890,

26 Stat. 391, 43 U.S.C. 945. Any patent

would also be subject to an existing

overhead power line right-of-way

authorization, COC–18281, currently

held by San Miguel Power Association.

Signed: October 22, 1997.

Mark W. Stiles,

District Manager.

[FR Doc. 97–28864 Filed 10–30–97; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 4310–JB–P

DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR

Bureau of Land Management

[ID–957–1430–00]

Idaho: Filing of Plats of Survey; Idaho

The plats of the following described

land were officially filed in the Idaho

State Office, Bureau of Land

Management, Boise, Idaho, effective

9:00 a.m., October 23, 1997.

The plat representing the dependent

resurvey of a portion of the south

boundary, subdivisional lines, adjusted

1903–1904 meanders of the right and

left banks of the Snake River, and the

meanders of an island in the Snake

River, designated as lots 2 and 6 in

1903–1904, the subdivision of section

35, the meanders of the left bank of the

Snake River, and the survey of a

partition line in section 35, T. 3 S., R.

1 E., Boise Meridian, Idaho, Group 955,

was accepted October 23, 1997.

The plat representing the dependent

resurvey of a portion of the

subdivisional lines, and the subdivision

of certain sections, T. 4 S., R. 1 E., Boise

Meridian, Idaho, Group 955, was

accepted October 23, 1997. These

surveys were executed to meet certain

administrative needs of the Bureau of

Land Management. All inquiries

concerning the surveys of the above

described land must be sent to the

Chief, Cadastral Survey, Idaho State

Office, Bureau of Land Management,

1387 South Vinnell Way, Boise, Idaho,

83709–1657.

Dated: October 23, 1997.

Duane E. Olsen,

Chief Cadastral Surveyor for Idaho.

[FR Doc. 97–28859 Filed 10–30–97; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 4310–GG–M

DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR

Bureau of Land Management

[ID–957–1430–00]

Idaho: Filing of Plats of Survey; Idaho

The plat of the following described

land was officially filed in the Idaho

State Office, Bureau of Land

Management, Boise, Idaho, effective

9:00 a.m. October 23, 1997.

The plat representing the dependent

resurvey of portions of the north

boundary, subdivisional lines and

boundaries of certain mineral surveys,

and the retracement of the northerly

side line of Main Street through the

townsite of Murray, Idaho, and the

survey of certain new lots in section 5,

T. 49 N., R. 5 E., Boise Meridian, Idaho,

Group 951, was accepted October 23,

1997.

This survey was executed to meet

certain administrative needs of the

Bureau of Land Management. All

inquiries concerning the survey of the

above described land must be sent to the

Chief, Cadastral Survey, Idaho State

Office, Bureau of Land Management,

1387 South Vinnell Way, Boise, Idaho,

83709–1657.

Dated: October 23, 1997.

Duane E. Olsen,

Chief Cadastral Surveyor for Idaho.

[FR Doc. 97–28860 Filed 10–30–97; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 4310–66–M

DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR

Bureau of Land Management

[ID–957–1420–00]

IDAHO: Filing of Plats of Survey; Idaho

The plat of the following described

land was officially filed in the Idaho

State Office, Bureau of Land

Management, Boise, Idaho, effective 9

a.m. October 23, 1997.

The plat representing the dependent

resurvey of portions of the Second

Standard Parallel South (south

boundary), portions of the east, west,

and north boundaries of the

subdivisional lines, and of Mineral

Survey No. 2538, T. 12 S., R. 45 E.,

Boise Meridian, Idaho, Group 913, was

accepted October 23, 1997. This survey

was executed to meet certain

administrative needs of the USDA

Forest Service.

All inquiries concerning the survey of

the above described land must be sent

to the Chief, Cadastral Survey, Idaho

State Office, Bureau of Land

Management, 1387 South Vinnell Way,

Boise, Idaho, 83709–1657.

Dated: October 23, 1997.

Duane E. Olsen,

Chief Cadastral Surveyor for Idaho.

[FR Doc. 97–28861 Filed 10–30–97; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 4310–GG–M