Notice2024-00393
Notice of Availability of the Draft Resource Management Plan Amendment and Environmental Impact Statement for the Rough Hat Clark Solar Project in Clark County, NV
Primary source
Metadata and text below are from the Federal Register, a public-domain U.S. government work. Always verify the official published version before relying on it for any legal matter.
Published
January 12, 2024
Issuing agencies
Interior DepartmentLand Management Bureau
Abstract
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 Rough Hat Clark Solar Project and by this notice is providing information announcing the opening of the comment period on the Draft RMP Amendment/EIS.
Full Text
<html>
<head>
<title>Federal Register, Volume 89 Issue 9 (Friday, January 12, 2024)</title>
</head>
<body><pre>
[Federal Register Volume 89, Number 9 (Friday, January 12, 2024)]
[Notices]
[Pages 2239-2240]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [<a href="http://www.gpo.gov">www.gpo.gov</a>]
[FR Doc No: 2024-00393]
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR
Bureau of Land Management
[BLM_NV_FRN_MO4500176465]
Notice of Availability of the Draft Resource Management Plan
Amendment and Environmental Impact Statement for the Rough Hat Clark
Solar Project in Clark County, NV
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 Rough Hat Clark 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.
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 in-person public meeting and one
virtual public meeting during the public comment period.
<bullet> In-Person Meeting
[cir] Date and Time: January 30, 2024, 6 p.m. to 8 p.m. Pacific
standard time (PST)
[cir] Location: Pahrump Nugget Hotel and Casino, 681 NV Highway
160, Pahrump, Nevada 89048
<bullet> Virtual Meeting
[cir] Date and Time: February 1, 2024, 6 p.m. to 8 p.m. PST
[cir] Registration information: <a href="https://eplanning.blm.gov/eplanning-ui/project/2019992/510">https://eplanning.blm.gov/eplanning-ui/project/2019992/510</a>
Details on public meetings will be provided on the National NEPA
Register project website: <a href="https://eplanning.blm.gov/eplanning-ui/project/2019992/510">https://eplanning.blm.gov/eplanning-ui/project/2019992/510</a>.
ADDRESSES: The Draft RMP Amendment/EIS is available for review on the
BLM National NEPA Register project website at <a href="https://eplanning.blm.gov/eplanning-ui/project/2019992/510">https://eplanning.blm.gov/eplanning-ui/project/2019992/510</a>. Additionally, a
copy of the Draft RMP Amendment/EIS is physically available at the
following locations:
<bullet> BLM Southern Nevada District Office, Pahrump Field Office,
4701 N Torrey Pines Drive, Las Vegas, Nevada 89130
<bullet> Pahrump Community Library, 701 East Street, Pahrump, NV 89408
<bullet> Tecopa Branch Library, 408 Tecopa Hot Springs Road, Tecopa, CA
92389
Written comments related to the Draft RMP Amendment/EIS for the
Rough Hat Clark Solar Project in Clark County, NV may be submitted by
any of the following methods:
<bullet> Website: <a href="https://eplanning.blm.gov/eplanning-ui/project/2019992/510">https://eplanning.blm.gov/eplanning-ui/project/2019992/510</a>.
<bullet> Email: <a href="/cdn-cgi/l/email-protection#4f0d0302100119101c010b100a212a3d28361f3d20252a2c3b3c0f2d232261282039"><span class="__cf_email__" data-cfemail="084a444557465e575b464c574d666d7a6f71587a67626d6b7c7b486a6465266f677e">[email protected]</span></a>.
<bullet> Mail: BLM Southern Nevada District Office, Attn: Rough Hat
Clark Solar Project, 4701 N Torrey Pines Drive, Las Vegas, NV 89130.
<bullet> Documents pertinent to this proposal may be examined
online at <a href="https://eplanning.blm.gov/eplanning-ui/project/2019992/510">https://eplanning.blm.gov/eplanning-ui/project/2019992/510</a>
and at the locations above.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Whitney Wirthlin, Project Manager,
telephone (725) 249-3318; address 4701 N Torrey Pines Drive, Las Vegas,
NV 89130; email <a href="/cdn-cgi/l/email-protection#783a343527362e272b363c273d161d0a1f01280a17121d1b0c0b381a1415561f170e"><span class="__cf_email__" data-cfemail="8fcdc3c2d0c1d9d0dcc1cbd0cae1eafde8f6dffde0e5eaecfbfccfede3e2a1e8e0f9">[email protected]</span></a>. 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 Whitney Wirthlin.
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
Nevada State Director has prepared a Draft RMP Amendment/EIS and
provides information announcing the opening of the comment period on
the Draft RMP Amendment/EIS. The 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,
which 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 area.
The total acreage for the VRM Class I through IV areas designated under
the 1998 Las Vegas RMP is approximately 3,297,016 acres.
The RMP Amendment would encompasses approximately 9,960 acres of
BLM-administered land currently designated as VRM Class III. An
amendment to the Las Vegas RMP is being considered to update the BLM's
VRM management objectives in this area to VRM Class IV. The amendment
area would include the proposed Rough Hat Clark Solar Project area
along with other constructed projects and proposed solar applications
within the Pahrump Valley.
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
[[Page 2240]]
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 would meet the BLM's
obligation to contribute 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 RMP
to bring it into compliance. In particular, the Applicant's proposed
Project does not conform with the management objectives of the Project
area's VRM classification (Class III).
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 RMP Amendment is to
ensure that any development of renewable energy production in the
general vicinity of the Applicant's proposed Project area 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.
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 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, and generation of dust.
Alternatives Including the Preferred Alternative
The BLM has analyzed three alternatives in detail, including the no
action alternative. These are the Applicant Proposed Action,
Alternative Action 1, and the No Action Alternative.
Alternative Action 1 (referred to as the 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, setting restoration goals, and
utilizing topography-spanning technologies for solar panel array
installation. Setting a disturbance cap would ensure a consistent
comparison of alternatives and outcomes for NEPA analysis purposes.
Specifically, Alternative Action 1--Resources Integration Alternative
would implement non-traditional development methods (overland travel),
as this construction method is less intensive than traditional methods
and is expected to improve the retention of native vegetation, wildlife
habitat, soils, seed banks, and biological soil crusts while minimizing
water quality impacts and air quality impacts from fugitive dust.
The No Action Alternative would be a continuation of existing
conditions and no new action would be taken.
The BLM further considered seven additional alternatives but
dismissed these alternatives from detailed analysis as explained in the
Draft RMP Amendment/EIS.
The State Director has identified Alternative Action 1--Resources
Integration Alternative as the Preferred Alternative. Alternative
Action 1--Resources Integration Alternative was found to best meet the
State Director's planning guidance and is designed to be a Project
lifecycle alternative to not only address the impacts of construction,
but also operations, maintenance, and decommissioning of the solar
facility. Alternative Action 1--Resources Integration Alternative
minimizes disturbance to vegetation and soils within the solar
facility, thereby minimizing impacts to wildlife habitat, soils, air
quality, and water quality.
Mitigation
The BLM included seven mitigation measures: dust control and
stabilization (MM AIR-1), reducing the Project footprint (MM WILD-1),
holding a job fair in a nearby community (MM EJ-1), facilitating Tribal
consultation (MM NA-1), fire prevention and safety (MM PS-3), reducing
cumulative transportation effects (MM TRAF-1), and advanced
notification to Clark County Department of Aviation (MM V-1). These
mitigation measures, along with required Solar Programmatic EIS
Programmatic Design Features (PDFs), Southern Nevada District Office
PDFs, and required management plans, are described 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 August 2024 with an Approved RMP Amendment and Record
of Decision by October 2024.
The BLM will continue to consult with Indian Tribal Nations on a
government-to-government basis in accordance with Executive Order
13175, BLM MS 1780 and other Departmental policies. Tribal concerns,
including impacts on Indian trust assets and potential impacts to
cultural resources, 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)
Jon K. Raby,
State Director.
[FR Doc. 2024-00393 Filed 1-11-24; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4331-21-P
</pre><script data-cfasync="false" src="/cdn-cgi/scripts/5c5dd728/cloudflare-static/email-decode.min.js"></script></body>
</html>Indexed from Federal Register on January 12, 2024.
This is legal information, not legal advice. Laws vary by jurisdiction and change frequently. Always verify current law with official sources and consult a licensed attorney in your jurisdiction for advice on your specific situation.