[Federal Register: May 3, 2002 (Volume 67, Number 86)]
[Notices]
[Page 22391-22392]
From the Federal Register Online via GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov]
[DOCID:fr03my02-17]
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DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE
Forest Service
Manti-La Sal National Forest; Prima Oil and Gas Company Gas
Exploration Well, Carbon County, UT; Notice of Intent To Prepare an
Environmental Impact Statement
AGENCY: Forest Service, USDA.
ACTION: Notice of intent to prepare an environmental impact statement.
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SUMMARY: The Forest Service (FS) and Bureau of Land Management (BLM)
will jointly prepare an Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) to
document the analysis and disclose the environmental and human effects
of authorizing a gas exploration well and associated road access on the
Manti-La Sal National Forest. The proposed well, designated the East
Clear Creek Federal #22-42, was proposed by Prima Oil and Gas Company
(Prima).
Agency Decisions
The BLM is responsible for administration of oil and gas leases
under the Mineral Leasing Act of 1920, as amended, and Federal
Regulations in 43 CFR part 3100. The BLM Moab Field Office Manager must
decide whether or not to approve the Application for Permit to Drill
(APD). The Regional Forester, Intermountain Region, must decide whether
or not to approve the Surface-Use Plan of Operations and what
conditions to require for the protection of non-mineral resources.
Forest Service authority is provided under the Federal Onshore Oil and
Gas Leasing Reform Act of 1987 and Federal Regulations in 36 CFR part
228, sub-part E.
DATES: Written comments concerning issues and alternatives to be
considered and the scope of the analysis described in this notice
should be received within 30 days from the date of publication of this
notice in the Federal Register.
ADDRESSES: Send written comments to Forest Supervisor, Manti-La Sal
National Forest, 599 West Price River Drive, Price, Utah, 84501, ATTN:
Karl Boyer.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Questions concerning the proposed
action and EIS should be addressed to Karl Boyer or Carter Reed, Manti-
La Sal National Forest, phone (435) 637-2817.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Prima has submitted an APD in order to
obtain approval to conduct gas exploration and reclamation activities
in the summer of 2003. All exploration activities would take place on
Federal Oil and Gas Lease UTU-77087. One exploration well and
[[Page 22392]]
associated road construction is proposed. The site would be located
approximately 4 miles south-southeast of the town of Clear Creek, via
FSR50110, in Section 22, T.14S., R.7E, SLM, Carbon County, UT on Castle
Valley Ridge within an Inventoried Roadless Area.
Purpose and Need
The purpose of the exploration program is to assess the economic
recoverability of potential gas reserves in the Ferron Sandstone. The
exploration drilling program would provide the structural,
stratigraphic, and reservoir data necessary for the development of a
suitable plan which would allow the company to economically and
efficiently recover the gas reserves within Federal Oil and Gas Lease
UTU-77087.
Proposed Action
The BLM is proposing to approve the APD. The Forest Service is
proposing to approve the Surface Use Plan of Operations (SUPO) with
conditions for mitigation of effects to non-mineral resources.
Public Participation
The Forest Service is seeking information and comments from
Federal, State, and local agencies as well as individuals and
organizations that may be interested in, or affected by, the proposed
action. The agency invites written comments regarding potential issues
and alternatives related to the proposed action and the area being
analyzed. Information received will be used to prepare the Draft and
Final EIS and considered in making agency decisions.
The EIS and Record of Decision (ROD) will tier to the Final EIS and
ROD for the Manti-La Sal National Forest Land and Resource Management
Plan (Forest Plan) 1986, as amended, by the 1994 Record of Decision for
Oil and Gas Leasing on Lands Administered by the Manti-La Sal National
Forest.
Draft preliminary issues include effects to wildlife, visual
quality, roadless character, and dispersed recreation use along the
Castle Valley Ridge Trail System.
Agency representatives and other interested people are invited to
visit with Forest Service and BLM officials at any time during the EIS
process. Two specific time periods are identified for the receipt of
formal comments on the analysis. The two comment periods are, (1)
during the scoping process, the next 30 days following publication of
this Notice in the Federal Register, and (2) during the formal review
period of the Draft EIS.
The Draft EIS is estimated to be filed with the Environmental
Protection Agency (EPA) and available for public review in October
2002. At that time the EPA will publish an availability notice in the
Federal Register. The comment period on the Draft EIS will be 45 days
from the date that EPA's notice of availability appears in the Federal
Register. The Final EIS is expected to be released in March 2003.
The Forest Service believes, at this early stage, it is important
to give reviewers notice of several court rulings related to public
participation in the environmental review process. First, reviewers of
draft environmental impact statements must structure their
participation in the environmental review of the proposal so that it is
meaningful and alerts an agency to the reviewer's position and
contentions. Vermont Yankee Nuclear Power Corp. v. NRDC, 435 U.S. 519,
533 (1978). Also, environmental objections that could be raised at the
draft environmental impact statement stage but that are not raised
until after completion of the final environmental impact statement may
be waived or dismissed by the courts. City of Angoon v. Hodel, 803 F.2d
1016, 1022 (9th Cir. 1986) and Wisconsin Heritages, Inc. v. Harris, 490
F. Supp. 1334, 1338 (E.D. Wis. 1980). Because of these court rulings,
it is very important that those interested in this proposed action
participate by the close of the 45-day comment period so that
substantive comments and objections are made available to the Forest
Service at a time when it can meaningfully consider them and respond to
them in the final environmental impact statement.
To assist the Forest Service in identifying and considering issues
and concerns on the proposed action, comments on the draft
environmental impact statement should be as specific as possible. It is
also helpful if comments refer to specific pages or chapters of the
draft statement. Comments may also address the adequacy of the draft
environmental impact statement or the merits of the alternatives
formulated and discussed in the statement. Reviewers may wish to refer
to the Council on Environmental Quality Regulations for implementing
the procedural provisions of the National Environmental Policy Act at
40 CFR 1503.3 in addressing these points.
Authority: (Mineral Leasing Act of February 25, 1920 (Pub. L.
66-146, 41 Stat. 437, as amended; 30 U.S.C. 181-287))
Dated: April 19, 2002.
Elaine J. Zieroth,
Forest Supervisor, Mant-La Sal National Forest.
[FR Doc. 02-10464 Filed 5-2-02; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3410-11-M
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