Federal Register / Vol. 89, No. 183 / Friday, September 20, 2024 / Notices 77175 

hard of hearing, or have a speech 

disability may dial 711 (TYY, TDD, or 

TeleBraille) to access 

telecommunication relay services for 

contacting Mr. Distel. Individuals 

outside the United States should use the 

relay services offered within their 

country to make international calls to 

the point-of-contact in the United 

States. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

Purpose and Need 

The BLM’s purpose for the action is 

to respond to Ioneer’s proposal as 

described in its proposed Plan of 

Operations, and to analyze the potential 

environmental effects associated with 

the Proposed Action and alternatives to 

the Proposed Action. NEPA mandates 

that the BLM evaluate the potential 

effects of the Proposed Action and 

develop alternatives. The BLM’s need 

for the action is established by the 

BLM’s responsibilities under section 

302 of FLPMA and the BLM Surface 

Management Regulations at 43 CFR part 

3800 subpart 3809 to respond to a 

proposed Plan of Operations. 

Alternatives A, B, and C 

Under Alternative A, the Proposed 

Action, Ioneer is proposing to construct, 

operate, close, and reclaim a new 

lithium-boron mine project in 

Esmeralda County, Nevada. The 

proposed Rhyolite Ridge Lithium-Boron 

Mine Project Plan of Operations 

boundary would encompass 7,166 acres, 

which consists of a 6,369-acre 

Operational Project Area and a 797-acre 

Access Road and Infrastructure 

Corridor. The total surface disturbance 

associated with Alternative A, including 

existing and reclassified disturbance 

and exploration, would be 2,306 acres of 

BLM-administered public lands and 

private land. 

The Project would employ a 

workforce of approximately 400 to 500 

employees during initial construction 

and approximately 350 employees 

during operations. The Project would 

operate 24 hours per day, 365 days per 

year. The total life of the Project would 

be 23 years, including four years of 

construction (years 1 through 4), 17 

years of quarrying (years 1 through 17), 

13 years of ore processing (years 4 

through 17), and 6 additional years of 

reclamation (Years 18 through 23). 

Reclamation of disturbed areas would 

be completed in accordance with BLM 

and Nevada Division of Environmental 

Protection regulations. Concurrent 

reclamation would take place where 

practicable and safe. 

The proposed activities for the Project 

would include: 

• A mine, including an open pit berm 

and water storage tanks; 

• A processing facility, including a 

contact water pond and diversion 

channels; 

• Three overburden storage facilities 

(North, West, and Quarry Infill), 

including contact water ponds and 

diversion channels; 

• One spent ore storage facility, 

including an underdrain pond and 

diversion channels; 

• Project Area exploration, including 

access routes and drill sites with sumps; 

• Haul roads, service roads, and 

public road realignment; 

• Buckwheat exclusion area and 

critical habitat fencing; and 

• Ancillary facilities including an 

explosives storage area, communication 

towers, All-Terrain Vehicle trails, a 

batch plant, a proposed water supply 

testing facilities including pipelines, a 

sewage system including septic leach 

fields, a dewatering pipeline, growth 

media stockpiles, stormwater controls 

and diversions, monitoring wells, 

laydown yards, and fencing. 

Under Alternative B, the North and 

South OSF Alternative, which is the 

BLM’s preferred alternative, all mine 

components and operations would be 

the same as Alternative A, but the 

facility layout would be modified to 

reduce surface disturbance within the 

Tiehm’s buckwheat (Eriogonum tiemii) 

designated critical habitat. Surface 

disturbance under Alternative B would 

be less than Alternative A and total 

approximately 2,271 acres. 

Under Alternative C, the No Action 

Alternative, the development of the 

Project would not be authorized and 

Ioneer would not construct, operate, and 

close a new lithium-boron mine project. 

Lead and Cooperating Agencies 

The BLM Battle Mountain District 

Office is the lead agency for the EIS. The 

Nevada Department of Wildlife, the 

Nevada Division of Forestry, the U.S. 

Department of Energy, the U.S. Fish and 

Wildlife Service—Ecological Services, 

the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service— 

Migratory Birds Program, the U.S. 

Environmental Protection Agency, and 

the Esmeralda County Board of County 

Commissioners have participated in this 

environmental analysis as cooperating 

agencies. Several Native American 

Tribes have also participated in the 

environmental analysis. 

Schedule for the Decision-Making 

Process 

Consistent with the NEPA and the 

BLM’s land use planning regulations, 

the BLM is providing a 30-day public 

review period for the Final EIS and will 

not issue a decision on the proposal for 

a minimum of 30 days after the date that 

EPA publishes its NOA in the Federal 

Register. 

(Authority: 40 CFR 1506.6, 40 CFR 1506.10) 

Jon D. Sherve, 

District Manager, Battle Mountain District. 

[FR Doc. 2024–21580 Filed 9–19–24; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 4331–21–P 

DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR 

Bureau of Land Management 

[BLM_NV_FRN_MO4500180510] 

Notice of Availability of the Draft 

Resource Management Plan 

Amendment and Environmental Impact 

Statement for the Copper Rays Solar 

Project in Nye County, Nevada 

AGENCY: Bureau of Land Management, 

Interior. 

ACTION: Notice of availability. 

SUMMARY: In compliance with the 

National Environmental Policy Act of 

1969, as amended (NEPA), and the 

Federal Land Policy and Management 

Act of 1976, as amended (FLPMA), the 

Bureau of Land Management (BLM) has 

prepared a Draft Resource Management 

Plan (RMP) Amendment and Draft 

Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) 

for the Copper Rays Solar Project and by 

this notice is providing information 

announcing the opening of the comment 

period on the Draft RMP Amendment/ 

EIS. 

DATES: This notice announces the 

opening of a 90-day comment period for 

the Draft RMP Amendment/EIS 

beginning with the date following the 

Environmental Protection Agency’s 

(EPA) publication of its Notice of 

Availability (NOA) in the Federal 

Register. The EPA usually publishes its 

NOAs on Fridays. 

To afford the BLM the opportunity to 

consider comments on the Draft RMP 

Amendment/EIS, please ensure your 

comments are received prior to the close 

of the 90-day comment period or 15 

days after the last public meeting, 

whichever is later. 

The BLM will be holding one inperson public meeting and one virtual 

public meeting during the public 

comment period. 

• In-Person Meeting 

—Date and Time: October 22, 2024, 6 

p.m. to 8 p.m. Pacific Daylight Time 

(PDT) 

—Location: Pahrump Nugget Hotel 

and Casino, 681 NV Highway 160, 

Pahrump, Nevada 89048 

• Virtual Meeting 


ddrumheller on DSK120RN23PROD with NOTICES1
77176 Federal Register / Vol. 89, No. 183 / Friday, September 20, 2024 / Notices 

—Date and Time: October 24, 2024, 6 

p.m. to 8 p.m. PDT 

—Registration information: https://

eplanning.blm.gov/eplanning-ui/ 

project/2019523/510 

Details on public meetings and 

pertinent documents will be provided 

on the National NEPA Register project 

website: https://eplanning.blm.gov/ 

eplanning-ui/project/2019523/510. 

ADDRESSES: The Draft RMP 

Amendment/EIS is available for review 

on the BLM National NEPA Register 

project website at https://eplanning.

blm.gov/eplanning-ui/project/2019523/ 

510. Additionally, a copy of the Draft 

RMP Amendment/EIS is physically 

available at the following locations: 

• BLM Southern Nevada District 

Office, Pahrump Field Office, 4701 N. 

Torrey Pines Drive, Las Vegas, Nevada 

89130. 

• Pahrump Community Library, 701 

East Street, Pahrump, Nevada 89408. 

• Tecopa Branch Library, 408 Tecopa 

Hot Springs Road, Tecopa, California 

92389. 

Written comments related to the Draft 

RMP Amendment/EIS for the Copper 

Rays Solar Project may be submitted by 

any of the following methods: 

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

eplanning-ui/project/2019523/510. 

• Email: BLM_NV_SND_

EnergyProjects@blm.gov. 

• Mail: BLM Pahrump Field Office, 

Attn: Copper Rays Solar Project, 4701 N. 

Torrey Pines Drive, Las Vegas, Nevada 

89130. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 

Jessica Headen, Project Manager, 

telephone (702) 515–5206; address 4701 

N.Torrey Pines Drive, Las Vegas, 

Nevada 89130; email BLM_NV_SND_

EnergyProjects@blm.gov. 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 Jessica Headen. Individuals 

outside the United States should use the 

relay services offered within their 

country to make international calls to 

the point-of-contact in the United 

States. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: This 

document provides notice that the BLM 

has prepared a Draft RMP Amendment/ 

EIS and provides information 

announcing the opening of the comment 

period on the Draft RMP Amendment/ 

EIS. The Draft RMP Amendment is 

being considered to allow the BLM to 

evaluate the effects of modifying the 

Visual Resource Management (VRM) 

Class III designated lands south of State 

Route 160 and west of Tecopa Road to 

the Town of Pahrump, Nevada, to VRM 

Class IV and modifying two existing 

undeveloped utility corridors that 

intersect the Project site. Both changes 

would require amending the existing 

1998 Las Vegas RMP. 

The planning area in Clark and Nye 

counties, Nevada, encompasses 

approximately 9,890,365 acres within 

the Southern Nevada District. The total 

acreage for the VRM Class I through IV 

areas designated under the 1998 Las 

Vegas RMP is approximately 3,297,016 

acres. This Draft RMP Amendment aims 

to modify the VRM Class for an area of 

approximately 9,960 acres of BLMadministered land that is currently 

designated as VRM Class III and update 

the BLM’s VRM management objectives 

in this area to VRM Class IV. The 

amendment area would include the 

proposed Copper Rays Project site along 

with other constructed projects and 

proposed solar applications within the 

Pahrump Valley. 

A BLM designated energy corridor, 

Segment # 224–225 North Pahrump/ 

U.S. 95 to Las Vegas/Ivanpah Valley (a 

Section 368 energy corridor) along the 

Clark County/Nye County border 

intersects the western portion of the 

Project site. A locally designated utility 

corridor, established by the 1998 Las 

Vegas RMP (the RMP-designated utility 

corridor), intersects the southwest 

corner of the Project site. An 

amendment to the 1998 Las Vegas RMP 

is being considered to modify these two 

existing undeveloped corridors to avoid 

the Project site. The Draft RMP 

Amendment, if approved, will realign 

the existing Section 368 energy corridor 

to be outside of the Project site 

boundary and remove the Amargosa— 

Roach section of the RMP-designated 

utility corridor, which is approximately 

96 miles in length. 

The BLM is utilizing the NEPA 

substitution process to comply with the 

requirements of Section 106 of the 

National Historic Preservation Act, 54 

U.S.C. 306108, consistent with 36 CFR 

800.8(c). The BLM, as lead Federal 

agency, has incorporated information 

and the steps of the Section 106 process 

into the Draft EIS, and publication of the 

Draft EIS will allow the consulting 

parties and the public an opportunity to 

review and comment on the process as 

provided in 36 CFR 800.8(c)(2). 

Purpose and Need 

The need for the BLM’s action 

(processing the Applicant’s application) 

is to respond to the Applicant’s request 

for a right-of-way (ROW) authorization 

to construct, operate, maintain, and 

decommission the proposed Project in 

accordance with the BLM’s 

responsibility under Title V of FLPMA 

and 43 CFR part 2800. The BLM’s action 

of considering the ROW application also 

contributes towards the legislative and 

administrative goals of advancing the 

development of renewable energy 

production on Federal public lands as 

directed by section 3104 of the Energy 

Act of 2020 and Executive Order 14057. 

The Project as proposed would not 

conform to the 1998 Las Vegas RMP as 

required by 43 CFR 1610.5–3(a). The 

BLM would need to amend the 1998 Las 

Vegas RMP to bring the Project into 

compliance. In particular, the 

Applicant’s proposed Project does not 

conform with the management 

objectives of the Project site’s VRM 

classification (Class III) and two existing 

undeveloped utility corridors that 

intersect the Project site would require 

realignment. 

The purpose of the BLM’s action is to 

determine if the Applicant’s Project and 

alternatives are consistent with relevant 

laws, regulations, and policies, and to 

consider whether to grant, grant with 

modifications, or deny the ROW. The 

purpose of the Draft RMP Amendment 

is to ensure that any development of 

renewable energy production in the 

general vicinity of the Applicant’s 

proposed Project site conforms with the 

RMP’s provisions, as provided for in 43 

CFR 1610.5–3(c), specifically by 

reclassifying this geographic area as 

VRM Class IV and modifying the 

location of the utility corridors to avoid 

the Project site. 

The Draft EIS addresses the direct, 

indirect, and cumulative environmental 

impacts of the Proposed Action and 

alternatives. Alternatives to the 

Proposed Action were developed by the 

BLM to avoid or reduce various resource 

conflicts. Key resource constraints 

include habitat for, and presence of, the 

Mojave desert tortoise, which is listed as 

threatened under the Endangered 

Species Act; presence of waters of the 

United States; limited groundwater 

resources; vegetation at the Project site; 

recreation use in the surrounding area; 

proximity to local communities; and 

generation of dust. 

Alternatives Including the Preferred 

Alternative 

The BLM has analyzed five 

alternatives in detail: the Applicant 

Proposed Action, Alternative 1 (BLM 

preferred alternative), Alternative 2, 

Alternative 2A, and the No Action 

Alternative. These are discussed in 

detail in Chapter 2, Proposed Action 

and Alternatives, of the Draft RMP 

Amendment and EIS. 

Alternative Action 1, the BLM 

preferred alternative (referred to as the 


ddrumheller on DSK120RN23PROD with NOTICES1
Federal Register / Vol. 89, No. 183 / Friday, September 20, 2024 / Notices 77177 

Resources Integration Alternative) was 

identified in response to issues raised 

by the public and agency 

considerations. The intent of the 

Resources Integration Alternative is to 

minimize disturbance to vegetation and 

soils within the solar facility by setting 

maximum allowable disturbance 

thresholds to vegetation during 

construction, utilizing various 

construction methods across the site, 

and setting restoration goals. Grading 

would be limited to a maximum of 20 

percent of the total development area, 

and construction would involve 

implementation of overland travel and 

drive and crush methods such that 60 

percent of the vegetation density is 

maintained. 

Alternative 2, which was proposed by 

the Applicant, and Alternative 2A were 

designed to minimize disturbance to 

vegetation and soils within the solar 

facility by setting maximum allowable 

disturbance thresholds to vegetation 

during construction; however, those 

disturbance thresholds differ from 

Alternative 1. Under Alternative 2, 

grading would be limited to a maximum 

of 25.6 percent (918 acres) of the 

development area and vegetation would 

be cut to a maximum of 10 inches 

anywhere solar panels would be 

constructed and in a 5-foot buffer 

around each of the solar arrays. 

Alternative 2A is a hybrid alternative of 

Alternative 1 and Alternative 2. 

Alternative 2A would include the same 

grading allowance as Alternative 2, but 

maintain native desert vegetation at a 

height of 24 inches or taller across the 

Project site (with trimming allowed to 

no less than 18 inches where it directly 

interferes with equipment or panel 

performance). 

The No Action Alternative would be 

a continuation of existing conditions 

and the ROW would not be approved. 

The BLM further considered a number 

of additional alternatives but dismissed 

these alternatives from detailed analysis 

as explained in the Draft RMP 

Amendment/EIS and Alternatives 

Report. 

The BLM has identified Alternative 

Action 1—Resources Integration 

Alternative as the preferred alternative. 

Alternative Action 1 was found to best 

meet the BLM’s planning guidance and 

is designed to be a Project lifecycle 

alternative, as the alternative addresses 

not only construction, but also 

operations, maintenance, and 

decommissioning of the solar facility. 

Alternative Action 1 minimizes 

disturbance to vegetation and soils 

within the solar facility, and minimizes 

impacts to wildlife habitat, soils, air 

quality, and water quality. Alternative 

Action 1 also reduces impacts to 

recreation by maintaining an existing 

OHV route southwest of the Project. 

Mitigation 

The BLM included forty-four 

mitigation measures including, but not 

limited to, the following measures to 

address key resources: 

• Dust control and stabilization (MM 

AIR–1) 

• Emissions control (MM AIR–2) 

• Reducing the project footprint and 

access control (MM WILD–1) 

• Qualified biologist (MM WILD–2) 

• Wildlife workers environmental 

awareness program (MM WILD–3) 

• Pre-construction and pre-activity 

surveys (MM WILD–4) 

• Minimization of wildlife entrapment 

(MM WILD–5) 

• Minimization of wildlife conflicts 

(MM WILD–6) 

• Protection of mesquite bosque (MM 

WILD–7) 

• Pre-construction western monarch 

butterfly surveys (MM WILD–8) 

• Desert tortoise burrows (MM WILD–9) 

• Timing of plant surveys, site 

restoration, and plan requirements 

(MM VG–1) 

• Cacti, yucca, and perennial plant 

salvage (MM VG–2) 

• Invasive species management (MM 

VG–3) 

• Timing of vegetation maintenance 

(MM VG–4) 

• Visual design considerations and 

surface treatment procedures (MM 

VR–1) 

• Minimize reflectivity (MM VR–2) 

• Night lighting (MM VR–3) 

• Minimize visual impacts during 

construction (MM VR–4) 

• Minimize visual impacts during 

operation and maintenance (MM VR– 

5) 

• Aviation glare notification (MM VR– 

6) 

• OHV route signage for alternative 

routes (MM REC–1) 

• Old Route 16 maintained access (MM 

REC–2) 

• Stormwater quality monitoring 

program (MM WR–1) 

• Prevention of flooding and 

development in floodplain areas (MM 

WR–2) 

• Spill prevention and control measures 

(MM WR–3) 

• Groundwater pumping meter and 

development of a groundwater 

monitoring and reporting plan (MM 

WR–4) 

• Fence maintenance (MM WR–5) 

• Septic system documentation and 

adaptive management (MM WR–6). 

These mitigation measures, along 

with Project Design Features required by 

the Southern Nevada District Office, 

management plans, and interagency 

operating procedures, are provided in 

full in Appendix B of the Draft RMP 

Amendment/EIS. 

Schedule for the Decision-Making 

Process 

The BLM will provide additional 

opportunities for public participation 

consistent with the NEPA and land use 

planning processes, including a 30-day 

public protest period and a concurrent 

60-day Governor’s consistency review 

on the Proposed RMP Amendment. The 

Proposed RMP Amendment/Final EIS is 

anticipated to be available for public 

protest by late spring 2025, and if the 

project is authorized, the approved RMP 

Amendment and Record of Decision 

would be available by late summer 

2025. 

The BLM will continue to consult 

with Indian Tribal Nations on a 

government-to-government basis in 

accordance with Executive Order 13175, 

BLM Manual 1780 and other 

Departmental policies. Tribal concerns 

will be given due consideration. 

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 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. 

(Authority: 40 CFR 1506.6, 40 CFR 1506.10, 

43 CFR 1610.2, and 43 CFR part 2800) 

Jon K. Raby, 

State Director. 

[FR Doc. 2024–21607 Filed 9–19–24; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 4331–21–P 

DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR 

National Park Service 

[NPS–WASO–NAGPRA–NPS0038728; 

PPWOCRADN0–PCU00RP14.R50000] 

Notice of Inventory Completion: 

University of California, Berkeley, 

Berkeley, CA 

AGENCY: National Park Service, Interior. 

ACTION: Notice. 

SUMMARY: In accordance with the Native 

American Graves Protection and 

Repatriation Act (NAGPRA), the 

University of California Berkeley has 

completed an inventory of human 

remains and associated funerary objects 


ddrumheller on DSK120RN23PROD with NOTICES1