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[Federal Register Volume 76, Number 27 (Wednesday, February 9, 2011)]
[Notices]
[Pages 7228-7229]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Printing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2011-2821]

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DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR

Bureau of Ocean Energy Management, Regulation and Enforcement

Outer Continental Shelf (OCS), Western and Central Planning Areas 
of the Gulf of Mexico (GOM), Oil and Gas Lease Sales for 2012-2017

AGENCY: Bureau of Ocean Energy Management, Regulation and Enforcement 
(BOEMRE), Interior.

ACTION: Notice of Intent to Prepare an Environmental Impact Statement 
(EIS) and Notice of Scoping Meetings.

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1. Authority

    This Notice of Intent (NOI) and notice of scoping meetings is 
published pursuant to the regulations (40 CFR 1501.7) implementing the 
provisions of the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) of 1969 as 
amended (42 U.S.C. 4321 et seq. (1988)).

2. Purpose of Notice of Intent

    Pursuant to the regulations implementing the procedural provisions 
of NEPA, BOEMRE is announcing its intent to prepare an EIS on the 2012-
2017 oil and gas leasing proposals in the Western and Central Planning 
Areas of the GOM, off the States of Texas, Louisiana, Mississippi, and 
Alabama. The NOI also serves to announce the scoping process for this 
EIS. Throughout the scoping process, Federal, State, and local 
government agencies, and other interested parties have the opportunity 
to aid BOEMRE in determining the significant issues and alternatives to 
be analyzed in the EIS. BOEMRE will use and coordinate the NEPA 
commenting process to satisfy the public involvement process for 
Section 106 of the National Historic Preservation Act (16 U.S.C. 470f), 
as provided for in 36 CFR 800.2(d)(3).
    The EIS analysis will focus on the potential environmental effects 
of oil and natural gas leasing, exploration, development, and 
production in the areas identified through the Area Identification 
Procedure as the proposed lease sale areas. In addition to the no 
action alternative (i.e., cancel the sale), other alternatives may be 
considered for each sale such as deferring certain areas from the 
proposed lease sales.
    BOEMRE is also preparing a Programmatic EIS on the 5-Year OCS Oil 
and Gas Leasing Program for 2012-2017 in the draft proposed Outer 
Continental Shelf Oil and Gas Leasing Program: 2012-2017 (See FR Vol. 
75, No. 63, Page 16828, April 2, 2010). BOEMRE is combining scoping 
meetings for the Programmatic and Gulf

[[Page 7229]]

of Mexico Multisale EISs in Houston, Texas; New Orleans, Louisiana; and 
Mobile, Alabama. Information concerning the Leasing Program and 
Programmatic EIS can be accessed at: http://www.BOEMRE.gov/5-year/.

3. Supplemental Information

    Federal regulations allow for several proposals to be analyzed in 
one EIS (40 CFR 1502.4). Since each sale proposal and projected 
activities are very similar each year for each sale area, BOEMRE is 
proposing to prepare a single EIS (Multisale EIS) for the several 
Western and Central Planning Areas lease sales to be held annually, 
scheduled for 2012-2017. The Multisale EIS approach allows for 
subsequent NEPA analysis to focus on changes in the proposed sales and 
on new issues and information. The Multisale EIS will eliminate the 
repetitive issuance of draft and final EISs for each sale area. The 
resource estimates and scenario information for the EIS analyses will 
be presented as a range that would encompass the resources and 
activities estimated for any of the 10 proposed lease sales. No final 
decision will be made until the end of the EIS process to allow for 
full consultation with Federal agencies, affected States, and the 
public. At the completion of this EIS process, BOEMRE will make 
decisions only for the first proposed sale in each sale area, scheduled 
to be held in 2012 (Western) and 2013 (Central). Subsequent to these 
first sales, BOEMRE will complete the NEPA process for each of the 
other proposed lease sales in the 2012-2017 Leasing Program. Formal 
consultation with other Federal agencies, affected States, and the 
public will be carried out to assist in the determination of whether or 
not the information and analyses in the original Multisale EIS are 
still valid. These consultations and NEPA reviews will be completed 
before decisions are made on the subsequent sales. For more information 
on the proposed sales or the Multisale EIS, you may contact Mr. Gary D. 
Goeke, Chief, Environmental Assessment Section, Leasing and Environment 
(Mail Stop 5410), Bureau of Ocean Energy Management, Regulation and 
Enforcement, Gulf of Mexico OCS Region, 1201 Elmwood Park Boulevard, 
New Orleans, Louisiana 70123-2394 or e-mail MultisaleEIS@BOEMRE.gov. 
You may also contact Mr. Goeke by telephone at (504) 736-3233.

4. Cooperating Agency

    BOEMRE invites other Federal agencies and State, tribal, and local 
governments to consider becoming cooperating agencies in the 
preparation of the Multisale EIS. We invite qualified government 
entities to inquire about cooperating agency status for the EIS. 
Following the guidelines from the Council on Environmental Quality 
(CEQ), qualified agencies and governments are those with ``jurisdiction 
by law or special expertise.'' Potential cooperating agencies should 
consider their authority and capacity to assume the responsibilities of 
a cooperating agency and remember that an agency's role in the 
environmental analysis neither enlarges nor diminishes the final 
decisionmaking authority of any other agency involved in the NEPA 
process. Upon request, BOEMRE will provide potential cooperating 
agencies with a written summary of ground rules for cooperating 
agencies, including time schedules and critical action dates, 
milestones, responsibilities, scope and detail of cooperating agencies' 
contributions, and availability of predecisional information. BOEMRE 
anticipates this summary will form the basis for a Memorandum of 
Agreement between BOEMRE and each cooperating agency. Agencies should 
also consider the ``Factors for Determining Cooperating Agency Status'' 
in Attachment 1 to CEQ's January 30, 2002, Memorandum for the Heads of 
Federal Agencies: Cooperating Agencies in Implementing the Procedural 
Requirements of the National Environmental Policy Act. A copy of this 
document is available at: http://nepa.fhwa.dot.gov/ReNEPA/ReNepa.nsf/
All+Documents/D155918ABFA4EB3A85256BF20071E9AE/$FILE/
Cooperating%20Agencies%20Memorandum.1.30.02.doc and http://
nepa.fhwa.dot.gov/ReNEPA/ReNepa.nsf/All+Documents/
D155918ABFA4EB3A85256BF20071E9AE/$FILE/
Cooperating%20Agency%20Memo%20Factors.1.30.02.doc.
    BOEMRE, as the lead agency, will not provide financial assistance 
to cooperating agencies. Even if an organization is not a cooperating 
agency, opportunities will exist to provide information and comments to 
BOEMRE during the normal public input phases of the NEPA/EIS process. 
If further information about cooperating agencies is needed, please 
contact Mr. Gary D. Goeke at (504) 736-3233.

5. Comments

    Federal, State, and local government agencies, and other interested 
parties are requested to send their written comments on the scope of 
the Multisale EIS, significant issues that should be addressed, and 
alternatives that should be considered one of the following three ways:
    1. In written form enclosed in an envelope labeled ``Comments on 
the Multisale EIS'' and mailed (or hand carried) to Mr. Gary D. Goeke, 
Chief, Environmental Assessment Section, Leasing and Environment (MS 
5410), Bureau of Ocean Energy Management, Regulation and Enforcement, 
Gulf of Mexico OCS Region, 1201 Elmwood Park Boulevard, New Orleans, 
Louisiana 70123-2394;
    2. By e-mail BOEMRE e-mail address: MultisaleEIS@BOEMRE.gov; or
    3. Online at: http://ocs5yeareis.anl.gov.
    Comments should be submitted no later than March 28, 2011.
    Because BOEMRE is combining scoping meetings for the Programmatic 
and Gulf of Mexico Multisale EISs, interested parties are reminded that 
written scoping comments on the Programmatic EIS will be accepted until 
March 31, 2011, and may be submitted to: Mr. J. F. Bennett, Chief, 
Branch of Environmental Assessment, Bureau of Ocean Energy Management, 
Regulation and Enforcement, 381 Elden Street, Mail Stop 4042, Herndon, 
Virginia 20170-4817.

6. Scoping Meetings

    BOEMRE will hold scoping meetings to obtain additional comments and 
information regarding the scope of the Multisale EIS. The scoping 
meetings are scheduled as follows:
     Tuesday, February 15, 2011, Houston Airport Marriott at 
George Bush Intercontinental, 18700 John F. Kennedy Boulevard, Houston, 
Texas, 1 p.m. CST.
     Wednesday, February 16, 2011, New Orleans, Louisiana, 
Hilton New Orleans Airport, 901 Airline Drive, Kenner, Louisiana, 1 
p.m. CST.
     Thursday, February 17, 2011, 5 Rivers--Alabama's Delta 
Resource Center, 30945 Five Rivers Blvd., Spanish Fort, Alabama, 1 p.m. 
CST.

    Dated: January 12, 2011.
L. Renee Orr,
Acting Associate Director for Offshore Energy and Minerals Management.
[FR Doc. 2011-2821 Filed 2-8-11; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4310-MR-W-P
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