62052 Federal Register / Vol. 76, No. 194 / Thursday, October 6, 2011 / Notices 

and Mitigation, and summarized in the 

January 2011 ROD. These practices and 

mitigation measures, and additional 

mitigation measures identified in the 

Supplement Analysis for the Modified 

Proposed Action, will be implemented 

for the Project. Mitigation measures 

beyond those specified in permit 

conditions will be addressed in a 

mitigation action plan (MAP) that DOE 

will prepare pursuant to 10 CFR 

1021.331. The MAP and annual 

monitoring reports will be available on 

the DOE NEPA Web site (http:// 

energy.gov/nepa) and the DOE Golden 

Field Office Web site (http:// 

www.eere.energy.gov/golden/ 

Reading_Room.aspx). 

DOE’s decision in this ROD is 

whether or not to issue a $134 million 

loan guarantee to Abengoa to support 

construction and start-up of the Project. 

Accordingly, DOE’s alternatives are (1) 

to issue a loan guarantee to Abengoa for 

the Proposed Action alternative selected 

in the January 2011 ROD and 

subsequently modified (the Modified 

Proposed Action described in the 

Supplement Analysis), and (2) No 

Action Alternative, i.e., no loan 

guarantee. 

Environmentally Preferred Alternative 

Issuance of a loan guarantee for the 

Project would result in both beneficial 

and adverse potential environmental 

impacts. Potential beneficial impacts 

include those associated with 

reductions in greenhouse gas emissions 

and a decrease in water withdrawals; 

adverse impacts include those 

associated with a substantial increase in 

transportation activity and minor 

impacts from air emissions. On balance, 

DOE regards the No Action Alternative, 

which would result in no change in 

existing environmental conditions, as 

the environmentally preferred 

alternative. 

Decision 

On January 12, 2011, DOE announced 

the issuance of a ROD to provide 

Federal funding under Section 932 of 

EPAct 2005 to Abengoa for the Project. 

DOE’s decision in this ROD is to select 

alternative (1) identified above: To issue 

a loan guarantee for construction and 

start-up of the Project (the Modified 

Proposed Action as described in the 

Supplement Analysis). Under 

alternative (2), the No Action 

Alternative, DOE would not issue a loan 

guarantee for the Project, and it is 

unlikely that Abengoa would implement 

the Project as currently planned. While 

the direct and indirect environmental 

impacts of the Project would be avoided 

under the No Action Alternative, the 

benefits that would be gained from the 

development, demonstration, and 

commercial operation of an integrated 

biorefinery that uses lignocellulosic 

feedstocks would not be realized. In 

addition, no benefits would be realized 

from the reduction of air pollutants and 

emissions of greenhouse gases by 

displacing gasoline with biofuel. 

Approval of the loan guarantee for the 

Project meets DOE’s purpose and need 

pursuant to Title XVII of EPAct 2005 (42 

U.S.C. 16511–16514) for eligible 

projects under Section 1703 of Title 

XVII, which authorizes the Secretary of 

Energy to make loan guarantees for 

projects that (1) avoid, reduce, or 

sequester air pollutants or 

anthropogenic emissions of greenhouse 

gases and (2) employ new or 

significantly improved technologies as 

compared to commercial technologies in 

service in the United States at the time 

the guarantee is issued. Issuance of loan 

guarantees for projects under Section 

1703 of Title XVII of EPAct 2005 

facilitates the acceleration of the 

commercialization of innovative, 

environmentally-friendly technologies 

that will have an impact on ensuring 

clean, affordable, and reliable supplies 

of energy. The purpose and need for 

DOE’s loan guarantee action is to 

comply with DOE’s mandate under Title 

XVII of EPAct 2005 by selecting projects 

that meet the goals of the Act. 

In addition, the Project is also eligible 

for a loan guarantee under Section 1705 

of Title XVII (implemented pursuant to 

Section 406 of the American Recovery 

and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (ARRA)). 

Eligible Section 1705 projects include 

renewable energy projects and related 

manufacturing facilities, electric power 

transmission projects, and leading edge 

biofuels projects. The primary purposes 

of ARRA are job preservation and 

creation, infrastructure investment, 

energy efficiency and science, assistance 

to the unemployed, and state and local 

fiscal stabilization. Issuances of loan 

guarantees for eligible projects under 

Section 1705 are designed to address the 

current economic conditions facing the 

nation. To qualify under Section 1705, 

projects must commence construction 

by September 30, 2011. 

Mitigation 

This ROD incorporates all practicable 

means to avoid or minimize 

environmental harm. The Project that 

will be supported by issuance of the 

DOE loan guarantee includes all 

mitigation conditions applied by DOE 

for this Project in its Final EIS, January 

2011 ROD, and Supplement Analysis. In 

the Supplement Analysis, DOE 

concluded that additional mitigation 

measures are warranted to reduce 

potential impacts from accidental 

releases of anhydrous ammonia. 

Mitigation measures beyond those 

specified in permit conditions will be 

addressed in a MAP that DOE will 

prepare pursuant to 10 CFR 1021.331. 

The MAP will explain how the 

mitigation measures will be planned, 

implemented, and monitored. DOE will 

ensure that commitments in the ROD 

are incorporated into DOE’s loan 

guarantee agreement with Abengoa. The 

MAP and annual monitoring reports 

will be available on the DOE NEPA Web 

site (http://energy.gov/nepa) and the 

DOE Golden Field Office Web site 

(http://www.eere.energy.gov/golden/ 

Reading_Room.aspx). 

DOE’s loan guarantee agreements 

require the applicant to comply with all 

applicable laws and the MAP, including 

mitigation measures contained therein. 

An applicant’s failure to comply with 

applicable laws and the MAP would 

constitute a default. Upon the 

continuance of a default, DOE would 

have the right under the loan guarantee 

agreement between it and the applicant 

to exercise usual and customary 

remedies. To ensure that the applicant 

so performs, the DOE Loan Programs 

Office proactively monitors all operative 

loan guarantee transactions. 

Issued in Washington, DC, on September 

20, 2011. 

Jonathan M. Silver, 

Executive Director, Loan Programs Office. 

[FR Doc. 2011–25857 Filed 10–5–11; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 6450–01–P 

DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY 

Issuance of a Loan Guarantee to First 

Solar, Inc., for the Desert Sunlight 

Solar Farm Project 

AGENCY: U.S. Department of Energy. 

ACTION: Record of decision. 

SUMMARY: The U.S. Department of 

Energy (DOE) announces its decision to 

issue a loan guarantee under Title XVII 

of the Energy Policy Act of 2005 (EPAct 

2005) to First Solar, Inc., (First Solar) for 

construction and start-up of the Desert 

Sunlight Solar Farm Project (DSSFP or 

the Project), a 550-megawatt (MW) 

nominal capacity solar photovoltaic 

power generating facility on 

approximately 4,144 acres, all of which 

is administered by the U.S. Department 

of the Interior, Bureau of Land 

Management (BLM), in Riverside 

County, California. The potential 

environmental impacts of constructing 

and operating this project were analyzed 

pursuant to the National Environmental 

mstockstill on DSK4VPTVN1PROD with NOTICES

Federal Register / Vol. 76, No. 194 / Thursday, October 6, 2011 / Notices 62053 

Policy Act (NEPA) in Plan Amendment/ 

Final Environmental Impact Statement 

for the Desert Sunlight Solar Farm 

Project (76 Federal Register [FR] 21402; 

April 15, 2011) prepared by the BLM 

Palm Springs-South Coast Field Office 

with DOE as a cooperating agency. BLM 

consulted DOE during preparation of 

the EIS, DOE provided comments to 

BLM on the content, and BLM 

addressed those comments in the Final 

EIS. DOE subsequently determined that 

the project analyzed in the Final EIS is 

substantially the same as the project that 

would be covered by the DOE loan 

guarantee and that its own NEPA 

procedures had been satisfied, and DOE 

adopted the Final EIS (DOE/EIS–0448) 

(76 FR 37112; June 24, 2011). 

ADDRESSES: Copies of this ROD and the 

Final EIS may be obtained by contacting 

Joseph Marhamati, NEPA Document 

Manager, Environmental Compliance 

Division, Loan Programs Office (LP–10), 

U.S. Department of Energy, 1000 

Independence Avenue, SW., 

Washington, DC 20585; telephone 202– 

586–8198; or e-mail 

joseph.marhamati@hq.doe.gov. The 

Final EIS and this ROD are also 

available on the DOE NEPA Web site at: 

http://nepa.energy.gov, and on the Loan 

Programs Web site at: http:// 

www.loanprograms.energy.gov. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: For 

further information about this ROD, 

contact Joseph Marhamati, as indicated 

in the ADDRESSES section above. For 

general information about the DOE 

NEPA process, contact Carol Borgstrom, 

Director, Office of NEPA Policy and 

Compliance (GC–54), U.S. Department 

of Energy, 1000 Independence Avenue, 

SW., Washington, DC 20585; telephone 

202–586–4600; leave a message at 800– 

472–2756; or e-mail 

askNEPA@hq.doe.gov. Information 

about DOE NEPA activities and access 

to DOE NEPA documents are available 

through the DOE NEPA Web site at 

http://nepa.energy.gov. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

Background 

The proposed DSSFP is a photovoltaic 

solar electrical generating facility using 

commercial, thin-film cadmium 

telluride solar module technology on a 

total of approximately 4,144 acres of 

BLM-administered Federal land in 

Riverside County, California, six miles 

north of Desert Center, between the 

cities of Coachella to the west and 

Blythe to the east. The Project includes 

an operations and maintenance facility, 

solar energy visitor’s center, and an onsite electric transmission substation. 

Also, the Project includes a 220-kilovolt 

(kV) Gen-Tie Line (generation 

interconnection line) that will transmit 

the electricity generated to the regional 

transmission system, through the 

proposed new Red Bluff Substation 

where the power will feed into Southern 

California Edison’s existing ‘‘Devers 

Palo Verde 1’’ 500-kV transmission line. 

The Gen-Tie Line will be 12.1 miles 

long. In addition, the Project will 

include a distribution line, an electrical 

transmission line, telecommunication 

facilities, and an access road 

(approximately 7.3 miles long). 

In November 2009, the BLM Palm 

Springs-South Coast Field Office 

received an application pursuant to 

Title V of the Federal Land Policy and 

Management Act (43 United States Code 

[U.S.C.] 1761) for a right-of-way (ROW) 

grant to construct, operate, maintain, 

and decommission a project identified 

as the Desert Sunlight Solar Farm 

Project on BLM-administered Federal 

land in Riverside County, California. 

The BLM California Desert Conservation 

Area (CDCA) Plan requires all sites 

identified for power generation or 

transmission facilities that are not 

identified in the CDCA Plan to acquire 

a Plan Amendment to the CDCA Plan. 

BLM approved the Proposed Plan 

Amendment to the CDCA Plan to allow 

the DSSFP and approved a solar energy 

ROW grant to First Solar for the project. 

BLM published a Notice of Availability 

for its ROD in the Federal Register on 

August 15, 2011 (76 FR 50493). 

In December 2009, First Solar applied 

to DOE for a loan guarantee under Title 

XVII of EPAct 2005, as amended by 

Section 406 of the American Recovery 

and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (Recovery 

Act). On January 7, 2010, First Solar 

submitted its Part II application for a 

$1.24 billion loan guarantee to support 

the financing of the DSSFP. 

NEPA Review 

BLM was the lead Federal agency in 

the preparation of the DSSFP EIS, and 

DOE was a cooperating agency pursuant 

to a Memorandum of Agreement 

between DOE and BLM signed in 

January 2010. DOE reviewed the content 

of the draft EIS and provided comments 

to BLM to ensure that information 

requirements of DOE NEPA regulations 

(10 Code of Federal Regulations part 

1021) were satisfied and that the 

analyzed alternatives encompassed the 

DOE proposed loan guarantee for 

construction and start-up of DSSFP. 

On January 13, 2010, BLM published 

‘‘Notice of Intent To Prepare an 

Environmental Impact Statement for the 

Proposed First Solar Desert Sunlight 

Solar Farm Project, Riverside County, 

CA and Possible Land Use Plan 

Amendment’’ in the Federal Register 

(75 FR 1801), with a 30-day scoping 

period for public comments that closed 

on February 12, 2010. The U.S. 

Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) 

published a Notice of Availability of the 

Draft EIS and the Draft CDCA Plan 

Amendment for DSSFP in the Federal 

Register on August 27, 2010 (75 FR 

52736). The Draft EIS was available for 

a 90-day public comment period, which 

closed on November 26, 2010. 

Comments received on the Draft EIS 

were addressed in the Plan Amendment 

and Final Environmental Impact 

Statement for the Desert Sunlight Solar 

Energy Project (Final EIS), and the EPA 

published a Notice of Availability in the 

Federal Register on April 15, 2011 (76 

FR 21345). All substantive comments 

received during the 30-day waiting 

period for the Final EIS were reviewed 

and responded to in Section 5.3 of 

BLM’s Record of Decision for the Desert 

Sunlight Solar Farm Project (BLM ROD). 

BLM published the Notice of 

Availability for its ROD in the Federal 

Register on August 15, 2011 (76 FR 

50493). Links to these documents can be 

found on the BLM Web site: http:// 

www.blm.gov/ca/st/en/prog/energy/ 

fasttrack/First/fedstatus.html. 

Alternatives Considered 

BLM considered six alternatives: (1) 

The project identified in the Final EIS 

as the Proposed Action with Land Use 

Plan Amendment (4,144-acre site layout 

and 550 MW output); (2) an Alternate 

Action Alternative with Land Use Plan 

Amendment (reconfigured 4,110-acre 

site layout and 550 MW output); (3) a 

Reduced Acreage Alternative with Land 

Use Plan Amendment (3,303-acre site 

layout and 413 MW output); (4) No 

Action Alternative A (No Issuance of a 

Right-of-Way Grant and No Land Use 

Plan Amendment); (5) No Action 

Alternative B (No Project with Plan 

Amendment to identify the area as 

unsuitable for solar energy 

development); and (6) No Action 

Alternative C (No Project with Plan 

Amendment to identify the area as 

suitable for solar energy development). 

Chapter 2 of the Final EIS describes 

these alternatives in detail, and they are 

fully analyzed in Chapter 4 of the Final 

EIS. Alternative 1 was identified in the 

Final EIS as the Preferred Alternative 

and ultimately selected by BLM. BLM 

also approved part of Final EIS 

Alternative 5 that makes the remainder 

of the Project Study Area 

(approximately 14,500 acres) 

unavailable for large-scale solar energy 

development. 

The DOE decision is whether or not 

to issue a loan guarantee to First Solar 

mstockstill on DSK4VPTVN1PROD with NOTICES

62054 Federal Register / Vol. 76, No. 194 / Thursday, October 6, 2011 / Notices 

for $1.24 billion to support construction 

and start-up of the DSSFP. Accordingly, 

the DOE alternatives are to issue the 

loan guarantee to First Solar for 

construction and start-up of the DSSFP 

under the Proposed Action identified as 

the BLM Selected Alternative in the 

BLM ROD, and the No Action 

Alternative. Under the No Action 

Alternative, DOE would not issue a loan 

guarantee for the project and it is not 

likely that First Solar would implement 

the project as currently planned. 

Environmentally Preferable Alternative 

BLM’s environmentally preferred 

alternative is the No Action Alternative 

involving No Project with Plan 

Amendment to Identify the Area as 

Unsuitable for Solar Development 

(Alternative 5). This alternative would 

not allow development of the proposed 

project or other solar energy generating 

projects at this location and would have 

no impacts on the ground. BLM 

indicated in its ROD that this alternative 

would not allow the development of 

renewable energy, and this alternative 

was not chosen in full by BLM. 

However, a portion of the alternative 

was approved which made the 

remainder of the Project Study Area 

unavailable to solar development. 

DOE has decided that its proposed 

Alternative, to issue a loan guarantee for 

construction and start-up of the DSSFP 

identified as the Proposed Action in the 

Final EIS, is environmentally preferable. 

DOE has determined that this 

alternative offers substantial 

environmental benefits due to 

anticipated reductions in greenhouse 

gas emissions as described in the Final 

EIS, and because all practicable means 

to avoid or minimize environmental 

harm, as described in the Final EIS and 

BLM ROD and its appendices for the 

DSSFP, are required by BLM as 

mitigation measures. 

Consultation 

As the lead Federal agency for the 

DSSFP, BLM complied with Section 106 

of the National Historic Preservation Act 

and consulted with the Advisory 

Council on Historic Preservation, the 

California State Historic Preservation 

Officer, and interested Native American 

tribes; complied with Section 7 of the 

Endangered Species Act and the Bald 

and Golden Eagle Protection Act and 

consulted with the U.S. Fish and 

Wildlife Service; and entered into 

government-to-government 

consultations with a number of tribal 

governments. In addition, BLM 

consulted with the U.S. Army Corps of 

Engineers, which determined that the 

project site does not impact waters of 

the United States and that a Clean Water 

Act permit will not be required, and the 

State of California and Riverside County 

regarding compliance with state and 

local laws. Chapter 5 of the BLM Final 

EIS summarizes consultations with 

agencies and other entities. 

Intentional Destructive Acts 

As a part of its review, DOE verified 

that a discussion of acts of terrorism, 

sabotage or other intentional destructive 

acts was included in the Final EIS. DOE 

concludes that the proposed DSSFP 

presents an unlikely target for an act of 

terrorism or sabotage. Further, as 

discussed in the Final EIS, the site 

security measures provide appropriate 

levels of security to protect electrical 

infrastructure from malicious mischief, 

vandalism, or domestic/foreign terrorist 

attacks. 

Decision 

DOE has decided to issue a loan 

guarantee for construction and start-up 

of DSSFP identified as the Proposed 

Action with Land Use Plan Amendment 

alternative in the Final EIS, which BLM 

selected in its ROD. 

Approval of the loan guarantee for 

DSSFP responds to the DOE purpose 

and need pursuant to Title XVII Section 

1705 of EPAct 2005 (42 U.S.C. 16511– 

16514). Section 1705 authorizes a 

program for rapid deployment of 

renewable energy projects and related 

manufacturing facilities, electric power 

transmission projects, and leading-edge 

biofuels projects. The primary purposes 

of the Recovery Act are job preservation 

and creation, infrastructure investment, 

energy efficiency and science, assistance 

to the unemployed, and state and local 

fiscal stabilization. The Section 1705 

Program is designed to address the 

economic conditions of the Nation, in 

part, through renewable energy, 

transmission, and leading-edge biofuels 

projects. To be eligible, projects must 

commence construction by September 

30, 2011. 

Mitigation 

The DSSFP project for which DOE has 

decided to issue a loan guarantee, 

includes mitigation measures, terms, 

and conditions applied by BLM in its 

ROW grants. The mitigation measures, 

terms, and conditions represent 

practicable means by which to avoid or 

minimize environmental harm from the 

selected alternative (Proposed Action). 

BLM is the lead Federal agency for the 

DSSFP project under NEPA and is 

responsible for ensuring compliance 

with all adopted mitigation measures, 

terms, and conditions for the DSSFP 

project set forth in the Final EIS and 

BLM ROD. The mitigation measures, 

terms, and conditions are provided in 

Appendix L of the Final EIS and 

Appendix 2 of the BLM ROD. A 

Compliance Monitoring Plan for those 

measures, terms, and conditions is 

provided in Appendix 5 of the BLM 

ROD. 

The DOE loan guarantee agreement 

requires that the applicant comply with 

all applicable laws and the terms of the 

ROW grant, including mitigation 

measures contained therein. An 

applicant’s failure to comply with 

applicable laws and the ROW grant 

would constitute a default. Upon 

continuance of a default, DOE would 

have the right under the loan guarantee 

agreement between DOE and the 

applicant to exercise usual and 

customary remedies. To ensure that the 

applicant so performs, the Loan 

Programs Office proactively monitors all 

operative loan guarantee transactions. 

Issued in Washington, DC, on September 

29, 2011. 

Jonathan M. Silver, 

Executive Director, Loan Programs Office. 

[FR Doc. 2011–25891 Filed 10–5–11; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 6450–10–P 

DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY 

Environmental Management SiteSpecific Advisory Board Chairs 

AGENCY: Department of Energy. 

ACTION: Notice of open teleconference. 

SUMMARY: This notice announces a 

teleconference of the Environmental 

Management Site-Specific Advisory 

Board (EM SSAB) Chairs. The Federal 

Advisory Committee Act (Pub. L. 92– 

463, 86 Stat. 770) requires that public 

notice of this teleconference be 

announced in the Federal Register. 

DATES: Thursday, October 20, 2011; 

11 a.m.–3 p.m. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 

Catherine Alexander, Designated 

Federal Officer, U.S. Department of 

Energy, 1000 Independence Avenue, 

SW., Washington, DC 20585; Phone: 

(202) 586–7711. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

Purpose of the Board: The purpose of 

the Board is to make recommendations 

to DOE–EM and site management in the 

areas of environmental restoration, 

waste management, and related 

activities. 

Tentative Agenda Topics 

Æ EM Program Update. 

Æ EM SSAB Chairs’ Round Robin: 

Top Three Site-Specific Topics and 

Achievements. 

mstockstill on DSK4VPTVN1PROD with NOTICES