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[Federal Register Volume 90, Number 7 (Monday, January 13, 2025)]
[Notices]
[Pages 2744-2745]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2025-00410]

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DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR

Office of Surface Mining Reclamation and Enforcement

[S1D1S SS08011000 SX064A000 256S180110; S2D2S SS08011000 SX064A000 
25XS501520]

Notice of Availability of the Final Environmental Impact 
Statement for Navajo Transitional Energy Company's Federal Mining Plan 
Modification for Federal Lease MTM 94378

AGENCY: Office of Surface Mining Reclamation and Enforcement, Interior.

ACTION: Notice of availability of the final environmental impact 
statement.

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SUMMARY: The Office of Surface Mining Reclamation and Enforcement 
(OSMRE) announces the availability of the final environmental impact 
statement (EIS) for Navajo Transitional Energy Company's (NTEC) Lease 
by Application 1 (LBA1) Federal Mining Plan Modification for Federal 
Lease MTM-94378 and MTM 110693 (the Project). Spring Creek Mine (SCM) 
is in Big Horn County, Montana, approximately 32 miles from Sheridan, 
Wyoming. The Project, as proposed, includes 162.5 acres of additional 
surface disturbance and recovery of an additional 39.9 million tons 
(Mt) of Federal coal.

DATES: The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) will also publish 
a notice of availability (NOA) in the Federal Register. The Final EIS 
waiting period begins with the publication of EPA's NOA in the Federal 
Register and will last for 30 days. After the waiting period, OSMRE 
will select an alternative and issue the Record of Decision (ROD).

ADDRESSES: The Final EIS and documents pertinent to this proposal are 
available for review on OSMRE's website at: https://www.osmre.gov/laws-and-regulations/nepa/projects.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Marcelo Calle, Program Support 
Division Chief, OSMRE Western Regions 5, 7-11, P.O. Box 25065, 
Lakewood, CO 80225-0065; (303) 236-2929 or [email protected].
    Individuals who use telecommunication devices for the deaf (TDD) 
may call the Federal Information Relay Service (FIRS) at 1-800-877-8339 
between 8 a.m. and 8 p.m., Eastern Time, Monday through Friday.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Project Background

    OSMRE has prepared a Final EIS for SCM's LBA1 mining plan 
modification for inclusion in its decision document recommending 
approval, disapproval, or conditional approval of the mining plan 
modification to the Secretary of the Department of the Interior 
(Secretary). 30 CFR 746.13. In accordance with the Mineral Leasing Act 
of 1920 (MLA), the Secretary must approve, disapprove, or conditionally 
approve the mining plan modification because it contains lands with 
leased Federal coal associated with MTM-94378 and MTM 110693. The 
Secretary has delegated this authority to the Assistant Secretary for 
Land and Minerals Management (ASLM).
    OSMRE initially published an environmental assessment (EA) for LBA1 
on October 3, 2016. This EA was challenged, and the United States 
District Court for the District of Montana held, in WildEarth Guardians 
v. Haaland, No. CV 17-80-BLG-SPW (D. Mont. 2021), that the EA failed to 
take a hard look at: indirect and cumulative effects of diesel 
emissions, noise, vibrations, and coal dust emissions; indirect effects 
of non-greenhouse gas from downstream combustion emissions; and effects 
related to the social costs of greenhouse gases. This Final EIS updates 
and expands on the environmental analysis in the 2016 EA and provides 
the additional impacts analysis identified as deficient by the district 
court.
    The SCM is operated by NTEC under Permit SMP C1979012, which was 
issued by the Montana Department of Environmental Quality (MDEQ). As 
proposed, the Project includes 162.5 acres of additional surface 
disturbance and recovery of an additional 39.9 Mt of Federal coal.

Purpose and Need for the Proposed Action

    OSMRE's purpose in preparing this Final EIS is to fully analyze the 
potential environmental impacts of the proposed Federal mining plan 
modification, with particular attention to addressing the deficiencies 
identified by the district court, so that OSMRE can make a 
recommendation to the ASLM to approve, disapprove, or conditionally 
approve the proposed Federal mining plan modification for LBA1. NTEC, 
the current operator, will not be able to access or recover the 
remaining Federal coal in the LBA1 tracts unless OSMRE completes its 
analysis under the National Environmental Policy Act and the ASLM 
approves the Federal mining plan modification.

Proposed Action and Alternatives

    Under the Proposed Action, OSMRE would recommend to the ASLM to 
approve the mining plan modification as proposed. If approved by the 
ASLM, the Proposed Action would allow 162.5 acres of additional surface 
disturbance and the recovery of an additional 39.9 Mt of Federal coal 
in the LBA1 tracts over a period of approximately 16 years.
    The Final EIS analyzes three additional alternatives:
     No Action: Under the No Action alternative, the Federal 
mining plan modification for the LBA1 tracts would not be approved, and 
SCM would no longer be authorized to mine Federal coal in the LBA1 
tracts.
     Partial Mining Alternative: Under the Partial Mining 
alternative, ASLM-approval of the mining plan modification for the LBA1 
tracts would end after a five-year term. As analyzed in this EIS, 
during this 5-year approval term, approximately 78.5 acres of surface 
disturbance and the recovery of 19.3 Mt of Federal coal from the LBA1 
tracts are anticipated. Under the Partial Mining alternative, if the 
operator would like to continue mining beyond the initial 5-year term, 
the operator can apply for an additional mining plan modification.
     Accelerated Mining Rate Alternative: Under the Accelerated 
Mining Rate alternative, it is assumed that the remaining 39.9 Mt of 
coal would be mined from LBA1 tracts at a rate of 18 Mt per year, which 
reflects the rate of mining that was expected to occur in 2016 but is 
unlikely to occur under current market conditions. If approved by the 
ASLM, the Accelerated Mining Rate alternative would allow 162.5 acres 
of additional surface disturbance and the recovery of an additional 
39.9 Mt of Federal coal from the LBA1 tracts, over a 2.2-year period.
    Based on the analyses contained in the Final EIS, and, after 
carefully considering input received during scoping and the public 
comment period

[[Page 2745]]

of the Draft EIS, OSMRE selected the Partial Mining alternative as the 
preferred alternative.

Summary of Expected Impacts

    Reasonably foreseeable effects of mining Federal coal were 
evaluated for the following resources in the Final EIS:
     Air Quality (measured as concentration of criteria air 
pollutants regulated under the National Ambient Air Quality Standards, 
Hazardous Air Pollutants, and Air Quality Related Values such as 
visibility [haze] and atmospheric deposition)
     Emissions of greenhouse gases as they relate to climate 
change (measured in terms of carbon dioxide equivalent for both 20-year 
and 100-year global warming potentials)
     Surface water and groundwater quality and quantity
     Socio-economic effects (including changes to state and 
local taxes, royalties, fees, lease bids and bonuses, as well as 
payroll benefits as well as effects to Environmental Justice 
populations)
     Federally listed threatened/endangered species
     Geology
     Soils
     Cultural Resources
     Visual Resources
     Wildlife

Anticipated Permits and Authorizations

    None.

Schedule for the Decision-Making Process

    The OSMRE anticipates releasing a ROD in February 2025.

Public Participation

    In addition to making the Draft EIS available for public comment, 
OSMRE hosted one public meeting during the comment period. OSMRE 
received 452 written comments, including comments from Federal and 
State agencies, non-governmental organizations, and members of the 
public. OSMRE addressed these comments in the Final EIS. OSMRE 
considered the public comments received on the Draft EIS and during 
internal OSMRE review and incorporated them as appropriate into the 
Final EIS. Public comments and internal OSMRE review resulted in the 
addition of clarifying text. The revisions and edits have not 
significantly changed the impact analyses.

Lead and Cooperating Agencies

    OSMRE is the lead agency for this EIS. No agencies indicated an 
interest in being a cooperating agency on the EIS.

Decision Maker

    Department of the Interior Assistant Secretary for Land and 
Minerals Management.

Nature of Decision To Be Made

    OSMRE will take the analysis in the Final EIS into consideration as 
it makes a recommendation to the ASLM about the Federal mining plan 
modification associated with development of the LBA1 Federal coal 
tracts. The ASLM will consider OSMRE's recommendation to decide whether 
the mining plan modification is approved, disapproved, or approved with 
conditions. OSMRE's recommendation to the ASLM is based, at a minimum, 
on the documentation specified at 30 CFR 746.13.

David A. Berry,
Regional Director, Unified Regions, 5, 7-11.
[FR Doc. 2025-00410 Filed 1-10-25; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4310-05-P
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