Federal Register / Vol. 65, No. 226 / Wednesday, November 22, 2000 / Notices 70361

contain the following reservations to the

United States:

1. A right-of-way thereon for ditches

or canals constructed by the authority of

the United States, Act of August 30,

1890 (43 U.S.C. 945).

2. All minerals shall be reserved to

the United States, together with the

right to prospect for, mine and remove

such deposits from the same under

applicable law and such regulations as

the Secretary of the Interior may

prescribe and will be subject to:

1. Easements in accordance with the

Clark County Transportation Plan.

2. Those rights for water pipeline

purposes which have been granted to

Las Vegas Valley Water District by

Permit No. N–61268 under the Act of

October 21, 1976 (43 U.S.C. 1761).

3. Those rights for highway purposes

which have been granted to Nevada

Department of Transportation by Permit

Nev–031066 under the Act of November

9, 1921 (42 Stat. 0216).

Detailed information concerning this

action is available for review at the

office of the Bureau of Land

Management, Las Vegas Field Office,

4765 Vegas Drive, Las Vegas, Nevada.

On November 22, 2000, the above

described land will be segregated from

all other forms of appropriation under

the public land laws, including the

general mining laws, except for lease/

conveyance under the Recreation and

Public Purposes Act, leasing under the

mineral leasing laws, and disposal

under the mineral material disposal

laws.

On or before January 8, 2001,

interested parties may submit comments

regarding the proposed lease/

conveyance for classification of the

lands to the Las Vegas Field Manager,

Las Vegas Field Office, 4765 Vegas

Drive, Las Vegas, Nevada 89108.

Classification Comments

Interested parties may submit

comments involving the suitability of

the land for a high school. Comments on

the classification are restricted to

whether the land is physically suited for

the proposal, whether the use will

maximize the future use or uses of the

land, whether the use is consistent with

local planning and zoning, or if the use

is consistent with State and Federal

programs.

Application Comments

Interested parties may submit

comments regarding the specific use

proposed in the application and plan of

development, whether the BLM

followed proper administrative

procedures in reaching the decision, or

any other factor not directly related to

the suitability of the land for a high

school. Any adverse comments will be

reviewed by the State Director. In the

absence of any adverse comments, the

classification of the land described in

this Notice will become effective on

January 22, 2001. The lands will not be

offered for lease/conveyance until after

the classification becomes effective.

Dated: November 14, 2000.

Rex Wells,

Assistant Field Manager, Division of Lands,

Las Vegas, NV.

[FR Doc. 00–29797 Filed 11–21–00; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 4510–HC–P

DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR

Minerals Management Service

Notice of Intent To Prepare an

Environmental Impact Statement on

Exploratory Drilling Activities in

Federal Waters Offshore Santa Barbara

County, California

AGENCY: Minerals Management Service,

Interior.

ACTION: Notice of Intent (NOI) to prepare

an Environmental Impact Statement and

announcement of public scoping

meetings.

SUMMARY: In accordance with section

102(2)(C) of the National Environmental

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

Minerals Management Service (MMS) is

preparing an Environmental Impact

Statement (EIS) to identify and assess

potential impacts and mitigation

measures associated with multiple

projects. The projects include the

sequential drilling of 5–8 delineation

wells from a single mobile offshore

drilling unit on existing leases in

Federal Outer Continental Shelf (OCS)

waters in the Santa Maria Basin and

western Santa Barbara Channel.

Previously, 28 exploration wells have

been drilled in the area where activities

are proposed. The purpose of the

proposed drilling is to further delineate

oil and gas resources on leases or units

that have previous commercial

discoveries of oil and gas. Delineation

wells are a type of exploration well.

Notice is hereby given that the public

scoping process has been initiated to

prepare an EIS that will address the

impacts of and alternatives to the

proposal. The purpose of the scoping

process is to solicit public comment

regarding the full spectrum of issues

and concerns, including a suitable range

of alternatives, and the nature and

extent of potential environmental

impacts and appropriate mitigation

measures that should be addressed in

the EIS process. It is anticipated that a

draft EIS will be available in Summer

2001.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION: Questions

concerning the draft EIS should be

directed to Mr. Maurice Hill, Office of

Environmental Evaluation, Pacific OCS

Region, Minerals Management Service,

770 Paseo Camarillo, Camarillo,

California 93010–6064; phone

805.389.7815.

Background

Pursuant to the OCS Lands Act, as

amended, and the implementing

regulations at 30 Code of Federal

Regulations, § 250.203 (Exploration

Plan), the MMS reviews Exploration

Plans (EP’s) and revisions to those EP’s

to decide whether those plans or

revisions should be approved; should be

modified to be consistent with the

provisions of the lease, the OCS Lands

Act, and the implementing regulations;

or should be disapproved. To meet the

agency’s responsibilities under the

National Environmental Policy Act

(NEPA), MMS is preparing an EIS that

will provide an assessment of the

environmental effects of drilling 5–8

delineation wells offshore the Santa

Barbara County coast in Federal waters.

Proposed Action

In accordance with 30 Code of Federal

Regulations (CFR), § 250.110(a)(1)

(Suspension of Production or Other

Operations), the MMS approved the

lease operator’s requests for suspension

of production or operations and

established milestones for the operators

to submit revisions to their existing EP’s

by September 2001. All of the leases on

which drilling could occur have EP’s

that have been previously approved by

the MMS and granted consistency by

the California Coastal Commission

(CCC) according to 15 CFR 930.79. The

approved EP’s identify proposed well

locations that have received CCC

consistency concurrence but, to date,

have not been drilled. Because a number

of years have elapsed since these

approvals, the MMS has established

milestones for the operators of the leases

to update their previously approved

EP’s through revisions. The EIS will

address all the proposed delineation

drilling activities on several leases. The

multi-project activities will be subject to

existing laws, regulations, and other

requirements. The activities include

sequential drilling of 5–8 delineation

wells by a single mobile offshore

drilling unit. The operators need the

information from these wells to identify

oil and gas characteristics, reservoir

characteristics, and reservoir extent in

70362 Federal Register / Vol. 65, No. 226 / Wednesday, November 22, 2000 / Notices

order to determine the location, size,

and type of facilities that may be

required to develop the resources and

thus could be proposed at a future time.

The delineation drilling would occur

on units where there have been

commercial oil and gas discoveries, and

where MMS believes that development

could occur in the future. Therefore, the

EIS will also include a discussion of the

potential impacts of the buildout of

production facilities as part of the

cumulative analysis. The cumulative

analysis will also cover other past,

present, and reasonably foreseeable

activities in the area of the proposed

exploratory drilling. Subsequent to the

delineation drilling, detailed

Development and Production Plans

(DPP’s) would be prepared by the

operators for the development of the

leases in the future and are expected to

be submitted to the MMS and subjected

to separate NEPA analyses. The DPP’s

would also be submitted to the

California Coastal Commission to ensure

their consistency with the California

Coastal Management Plan.

Alternatives

Alternatives will include (1) the

action of drilling 5–8 delineation wells

on undeveloped leases in the Santa

Maria Basin and western Santa Barbara

Channel, and (2) no action. Other

possible alternatives that may be

considered include variations on the

proposed action and alternatives

identified during the scoping process.

Scoping

Scoping is an open process for

determining the scope of the EIS and for

identifying significant issues related to

the proposed action. Scoping also

provides an opportunity to identify

alternatives to the proposed action and

appropriate mitigation measures. All

interested persons, organizations and

agencies wishing to provide comments,

suggestions, or relevant information on

the activities may do so as follows:

(1) Send input to Minerals

Management Service, Attn: Exploratory

Activities EIS, Office of Environmental

Evaluation, 770 Paseo Camarillo,

Camarillo, CA 93010–6064;

(2) Attend and provide comment at

the public scoping meetings the MMS

will conduct in Santa Barbara County as

follows: (a) December 6, 2000, 5:30

p.m.–9:00 p.m. at Fess Parker’s

DoubleTree Resort, 633 East Cabrillo

Blvd., Sierra Madre Room, Santa

Barbara, California; (b) January 22, 2001,

5:30 p.m.–9:00 p.m. at Allan Hancock

College, Marian Theatre, Bldg. D, 800 S.

College Drive, Santa Maria, California.

Further details of the meetings will be

posted on the MMS, Pacific Region,

homepage at http://www.mms.gov/

omm/pacific and will be advertised in

the local media; and

(3) Email input to

ExplorationEIS@mms.gov.

A Notice of Availability of the draft

EIS for public review and comment will

be announced by the MMS and the

Environmental Protection Agency in the

Federal Register; on the MMS, Pacific

Region, homepage; and in the local

media. We anticipate that a draft EIS

will be available for review in Summer

2001, and a final EIS will be completed

in Fall 2001. Public hearings will be

held in the local area following release

of the draft EIS. Dates and locations are

to be determined.

Dated: November 17, 2000.

Carolita U. Kallaur,

Associate Director, Offshore Minerals

Management.

[FR Doc. 00–29921 Filed 11–21–00; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 4310–MR–P

DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR

National Park Service

Notice of Inventory Completion for

Native American Human Remains and

Associated Funerary Objects in the

Possession of the Palmer Foundation

for Chiropractic History, Palmer

College of Chiropractic, Davenport, IA

AGENCY: National Park Service, Interior.

ACTION: Notice.

Notice is hereby given in accordance

with provisions of the Native American

Graves Protection and Repatriation Act

(NAGPRA), 43 CFR 10.9, of the

completion of an inventory of human

remains and associated funerary objects

in the possession of the Palmer

Foundation for Chiropractic History,

Davenport, IA.

This notice is published as part of the

National Park Service’s administrative

responsibilities under NAGPRA, 43 CFR

10.2 (c). The determinations within this

notice are the sole responsibility of the

museum, institution, or Federal agency

that has control of these Native

American human remains and

associated funerary objects. The

National Park Service is not responsible

for the determinations within this

notice.

A detailed assessment of the human

remains was made by Palmer

Foundation for Chiropractic History

professional staff in consultation with

representatives of the Onondaga Nation

of New York and the Haudenosaunee

Standing Committee on Burials and

Regulations.

At an unknown time prior to 1960,

human remains representing one

individual were removed from an

unknown location in Clifton Springs,

NY, by unknown persons. They were

donated to the Palmer School of

Chiropractic prior to 1960 by an

unknown person. No known individual

was identified. No associated funerary

objects are present.

Museum records and osteological

characteristics identify these human

remains as Native American. The degree

of preservation of these remains

indicates a date of burial within the last

millennium. Consultation with

representatives of the Onondaga Nation

of New York indicates that Clifton

Springs, NY, is located within the

traditional territory of the Onondaga

Nation of New York, and indicates that

a relationship exists between these

human remains and the Onondaga

Nation of New York. Officials of the

Palmer Foundation for Chiropractic

History have found it reasonable to

affiliate these human remains, based on

consultation results, with the Onondaga

Nation of New York.

Based on the above-mentioned

information, officials of the Palmer

Foundation for Chiropractic History

have determined that, pursuant to 43

CFR 10.2 (d)(1), the human remains

listed above represent the physical

remains of one individual of Native

American ancestry. Officials of the

Palmer Foundation for Chiropractic

History also have determined that,

pursuant to 43 CFR 10.2 (e), there is a

relationship of shared group identity

that can be reasonably traced between

these Native American human remains

and the Onondaga Nation of New York.

This notice has been sent to officials

of the Onondaga Nation of New York

and the Haudenosaunee Standing

Committee on Burials and Regulations.

Representatives of any other Indian tribe

that believes itself to be culturally

affiliated with these human remains

should contact Alana Callender, Palmer

Foundation for Chiropractic History,

Palmer College of Chiropractic, 1000

Brady Street, Davenport, IA 52803,

telephone (319) 884-5404, before

December 22, 2000. Repatriation of the

human remains to the Onondaga Nation

of New York may begin after that date

if no additional claimants come

forward.