Notice2024-19544
Notice of Availability of the Draft Environmental Impact Statement and Proposed Resource Management Plan Amendments for the Proposed Greenlink North Transmission Project in White Pine, Eureka, Lander, Churchill, and Lyon Counties, Nevada
Primary source
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Published
September 10, 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 Draft Resource Management Plan Amendments (RMPA) and a Draft Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) for the Greenlink North Transmission Project and by this notice is providing information announcing the opening of the comment period on the Draft RMPA/EIS. The BLM Nevada State Office is the lead agency for purposes of the NEPA analysis, with the U.S. Forest Service and other agencies participating as Cooperating Agencies.
Full Text
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<title>Federal Register, Volume 89 Issue 175 (Tuesday, September 10, 2024)</title>
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[Federal Register Volume 89, Number 175 (Tuesday, September 10, 2024)]
[Notices]
[Pages 73429-73431]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [<a href="http://www.gpo.gov">www.gpo.gov</a>]
[FR Doc No: 2024-19544]
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DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR
Bureau of Land Management
[BLM_NV_FRN_MO4500180600]
Notice of Availability of the Draft Environmental Impact
Statement and Proposed Resource Management Plan Amendments for the
Proposed Greenlink North Transmission Project in White Pine, Eureka,
Lander, Churchill, and Lyon Counties, Nevada
AGENCY: Bureau of Land Management, Interior.
ACTION: Notice of availability.
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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 Draft Resource Management Plan Amendments (RMPA) and a Draft
Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) for the Greenlink North
Transmission Project and by this notice is providing information
announcing the opening of the comment period on the Draft RMPA/EIS. The
BLM Nevada State Office is the lead agency for purposes of the NEPA
analysis, with the U.S. Forest Service and other agencies participating
as Cooperating Agencies.
DATES: This notice announces the opening of a 90-day comment period for
the Draft RMPA/EIS beginning with the date following the Environmental
Protection Agency's (EPA) publication of its Notice of Availability
(NOA) in the Federal Register. The EPA usually publishes its NOAs on
Fridays.
To afford the BLM the opportunity to consider comments in the Draft
RMPA/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.
ADDRESSES: The Draft RMPA/EIS is available for review on the BLM
project website at: <a href="https://eplanning.blm.gov/eplanning-ui/project/2017033/510">https://eplanning.blm.gov/eplanning-ui/project/2017033/510</a>.
<bullet> Website: <a href="https://eplanning.blm.gov/eplanning-ui/project/2017033/510">https://eplanning.blm.gov/eplanning-ui/project/2017033/510</a>.
<bullet> Email: <a href="/cdn-cgi/l/email-protection#a3c1cfcefccdd5fcc4d1c6c6cdcfcacdc8cdccd1d7cbe3c1cfce8dc4ccd5"><span class="__cf_email__" data-cfemail="e3818f8ebc8d95bc849186868d8f8a8d888d8c91978ba3818f8ecd848c95">[email protected]</span></a>.
<bullet> Mail: BLM, Nevada State Office, Attn: Greenlink North
Transmission Project, 1340 Financial Boulevard, Reno, NV 89502.
Documents pertinent to this proposal may be examined online at
<a href="https://eplanning.blm.gov/eplanning-ui/project/2017033/510">https://eplanning.blm.gov/eplanning-ui/project/2017033/510</a> and at the
BLM Nevada State Office in Reno.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Brian Buttazoni, Project Manager,
telephone: (775) 861-6491; address: 1340 Financial Boulevard, Reno, NV
89502; email: <a href="/cdn-cgi/l/email-protection#6d0f010032031b320a1f0808030104030603021f19052d0f0100430a021b"><span class="__cf_email__" data-cfemail="abc9c7c6f4c5ddf4ccd9cecec5c7c2c5c0c5c4d9dfc3ebc9c7c685ccc4dd">[email protected]</span></a>. Contact us at this email
address to have your name added to our mailing list. 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. 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 RMPA/EIS, and provides
information announcing the opening of the comment period. The RMP
amendments would change the existing 2001 Consolidated Resource
Management Plan in the Carson City District, 1986 Shoshone-Eureka
Resource Management Plan/Record of Decision in the Battle Mountain
District, and 2008 Record of Decision/Resource Management Plan in the
Ely District. The Draft RMPA is being considered to allow the BLM to
evaluate the establishment of a 210 mile long by 3,500 foot wide
utility corridor within greater sage-grouse habitat management areas
and in proximity to lek buffers on BLM-administered lands, which would
require amending the land use plans listed above. The original proposed
utility corridor width (3 miles) and length (235 miles) was reduced
after scoping to be consistent with other national utility corridor
widths, and to clarify the length applies to BLM-administered lands
only.
The planning area is in White Pine, Eureka, Lander, Churchill, and
Lyon counties, Nevada, and encompasses approximately 84,700 acres of
BLM-administered lands.
A Notice of Intent to Amend the Resource Management Plans for the
Greenlink North Transmission Project and Prepare an Associated
Environmental Impact Statement was published in the Federal Register on
March 11, 2024 (89 FR 17510), providing notice to the public of
potential amendments to RMPs, as required by 43 CFR 1610.2(c). The
public scoping period closed on April 10, 2024. The BLM held one
virtual meeting and received approximately 25 public scoping comment
emails and letters during the 30-day scoping period. The scoping
comments focused on biological resources; alternatives development;
visual resources; cultural resources; impacts to general and special-
status wildlife species, including threatened and endangered species
and their habitat; social and economic conditions; vegetation/riparian/
noxious and invasive weeds/special status plant species; water
resources; special designations; recreation; socioeconomic concerns;
and Native American cultural/sacred sites. The BLM prepared a scoping
report, which is available on the project's website--<a href="https://eplanning.blm.gov/eplanning-ui/project/2017033/510">https://eplanning.blm.gov/eplanning-ui/project/2017033/510</a>.
Purpose and Need
The BLM's purpose and need for this Federal action is to respond to
the right-of-way (ROW) application submitted by NV Energy under Title V
of FLPMA (43 U.S.C. 1761) on July 20, 2020, to construct, operate,
maintain, and decommission a proposed system of new 525-kV, 345-kV,
230-kV, and 120-kV electric transmission facilities on BLM-administered
lands in White Pine, Eureka, Lander, Churchill, and Lyon counties, in
compliance with FLPMA, BLM ROW regulations, NEPA, the BLM NEPA Handbook
(BLM 2008), U.S. Department of the Interior NEPA regulations, and other
applicable federal and state laws and policies. In accordance with
FLPMA, public lands are to be managed for multiple uses that consider
the long-term needs of future generations for renewable and non-
[[Page 73430]]
renewable resources. The BLM is authorized to grant ROWs on public
lands for systems of generation, transmission, and distribution of
electrical energy (FLPMA section 501(a)(4)).
The U.S. Forest Service, Humboldt-Toiyabe National Forest also
received an application from NV Energy for an approximately 10-mile
segment of the project. The Forest Service's purpose and need is to
respond to NV Energy's application for a Special Use Permit to
construct, operate, maintain, and decommission the proposed 500-kV
transmission line on National Forest System land in Lander County in
compliance with FLPMA, the National Forest Management Act (16 U.S.C.
1601-1614), and the Toiyabe National Forest Land and Resource
Management Plan (Forest Service 1986 as amended), which provides
standards and guidelines for managing the National Forest.
Alternatives Including the Preferred Alternative
The BLM has analyzed 3 action alternatives in detail, plus the No
Action Alternative. The State Director and Forest Supervisor have
identified NV Energy's Proposed Action with three modified segments
crossing BLM and National Forest System land as the Preferred
Alternative. The first modified segment realigns the Proposed Action
south of the public purpose conveyance parcels that will be transferred
to Churchill County as a result of the National Defense Authorization
Act of 2023. This alternative segment would be approximately 8 miles
long and would slightly reduce the disturbance footprint of the 525 kV
transmission line on BLM-administered lands. The second modified
segment would realign the Proposed Action further away from the
recently established Desatoya Wilderness Area. The third modified
segment is the U.S. Forest Service preferred northern alternative route
from the Lander Substation that would cross approximately 10 miles of
the Humboldt-Toiyabe National Forest and approximately 9 miles of
adjacent BLM administered lands to the east. The route would parallel
an existing 230 kV transmission line within the Forest's existing
utility corridor until reconnecting with the Proposed Action route. The
reconnection with the Proposed Action route 9 miles east of the
Humboldt-Toiyabe National Forest provides the most technically feasible
way to reduce the cost, line angles, and disturbances from the proposed
525 kV transmission line. The BLM further considered 9 additional
transmission alternatives but dismissed these alternatives from
detailed analysis as explained in the Draft RMPA/EIS.
The Preferred Alternative was found to best meet the State
Director's planning guidance and would meet the project's purpose and
need while addressing impacts to greater sage-grouse habitats primarily
through co-location, which limits new disturbance to areas already
impacted by existing transmission lines. The Greenlink North
Transmission Project would be co-located for approximately 210 miles of
the 233-mile-long proposed transmission line.
Mitigation
The Preferred Alternative for the portions of the project within
and adjacent to greater sage-grouse habitats includes the requirement
for NV Energy to install anti-perching/nesting deterrents on
transmission poles to minimize potential predation by ravens.
Schedule for the Decision-Making Process
Consistent with NEPA and BLM's land use planning regulations, the
BLM will include a 30-day public protest period and a concurrent 60-day
Governor's consistency review when the BLM publishes the Final EIS/
Proposed RMPA. The Final EIS/Proposed RMPA is anticipated to be
available in March 2025, with a Record of Decision anticipated in July
2025.
The BLM will be holding a combination of virtual and in-person
public meetings. The specific date(s) and location(s) of these meetings
will be announced at least 15 days in advance through the Project
website.
The BLM will utilize and coordinate the NEPA and land use planning
processes for this planning effort to help support compliance with
applicable procedural requirements under the Endangered Species Act (16
U.S.C. 1536). The BLM is utilizing the NEPA substitution process to
comply with the requirements of section 106 of the National Historic
Preservation Act (NHPA), 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 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). The information about historic and cultural
resources and threatened and endangered species within the area
potentially affected by the proposed plan will assist the BLM in
identifying and evaluating impacts to such resources.
The BLM and U.S. Forest Service will continue to consult with
Indian Tribes 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.
Additional government-to-government meetings will occur during this
review period.
Forest Service Administrative Review Process
The decision that the U.S. Forest Service will make is subject to a
pre-decisional administrative review process, also known as an
objection process (36 CFR part 218, subparts A and B). The objection
process provides an opportunity for members of the public who have
participated in the planning process for the action to have any
unresolved concerns reviewed by the U.S. Forest Service prior to a
final decision by the Responsible Official.
It is important that reviewers provide their comments at such times
and in such manner that they are useful to the agency's preparation of
the Final EIS; therefore, comments should be provided prior to the
close of the comment period and should clearly articulate the
reviewer's concerns and contentions. Commenting during scoping and any
other designated opportunity to comment provided by the Responsible
Official as prescribed by the applicable regulations will also govern
eligibility to object once the Final EIS and draft Record of Decision
has been published. Comments received in response to this solicitation,
including names and addresses of those who comment, will be part of the
public record for this proposed action. Comments submitted anonymously
will be accepted and considered; however, they will not be used to
establish eligibility for the objection process.
Objections will be accepted only from those who have previously
submitted specific written comments regarding the proposed project
during scoping or other designated opportunity for public comment in
accordance with 36 CFR 218.5(a). Issues raised in objections must be
based on previously submitted timely, specific written comments
regarding the proposed project unless based on new information arising
after designated opportunities.
Before including your address, phone number, email address, or
other personal identifying information in your comment, you should be
aware that
[[Page 73431]]
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 1501.7 and 43 CFR 1610.2)
Jon K. Raby,
State Director.
[FR Doc. 2024-19544 Filed 9-9-24; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4331-21-P
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