[Federal Register Volume 62, Number 51 (Monday, March 17, 1997)]
[Notices]
[Pages 12665-12666]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 97-6678]


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DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR
Bureau of Reclamation


Proposed Long-term Contract Renewal, Angostura Irrigation 
District, Angostura Unit, Pick-Sloan Missouri Basin Program, South 
Dakota

AGENCY: Bureau of Reclamation, Interior.

ACTION: Notice of intent to prepare a draft environmental impact 
statement.

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SUMMARY: Pursuant to sec. 102(2)(c) of the National Environmental 
Policy Act (NEPA) of 1969, as amended, the Bureau of Reclamation 
(Reclamation) will prepare a draft environmental impact statement (EIS) 
on the proposed renewal of a long-term contract (LTC) with the 
Angostura Irrigation District (District) for water supply, repayment of 
construction costs, and payment of operation and maintenance costs. A 
series of public information/scoping meetings will be scheduled in 
connection with the development of the EIS. These meetings will be 
scheduled to inform the public of the status of contract renewal; to 
inform the public of the NEPA and LTC processes; and, to solicit from 
the public significant issues that should be analyzed in the draft EIS.

DATES: Five scoping meetings have been scheduled for this action. See 
Supplementary Information section for meeting dates.

ADDRESSES: Five scoping meetings have been scheduled for this action. 
See Supplementary Information section for meeting addresses.
    Comments and questions concerning this notice should be addressed 
to Mr. Kenneth Parr, Bureau of Reclamation, Dakotas Area Office, Newell 
Field Office, P.O. Box 226, Newell, SD 57760.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Mr. Kenneth Parr, Bureau of 
Reclamation, telephone: (605) 456-2695; e-mail: [email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The existing contract expired in December 
1995. In July 1996, Reclamation signed an interim contract for the 
Angostura Unit (Unit). The interim contract will expire in July 1999. 
This 3-year period is intended to allow Reclamation sufficient time to 
conduct the NEPA process and negotiate an LTC.
    The purpose of this action is to provide for the continued 
beneficial use of federally developed water associated with the Unit in 
southwestern South Dakota. Reclamation is proposing to renew the LTC 
with the District in accordance with current law and policy while 
examining all reasonable alternatives to balance contemporary surface 
water needs within the Basin.
    The Angostura Unit, Pick-Sloan Missouri Basin Program, is located 
at the southeastern edge of the Black Hills in southwest South Dakota. 
The Unit consists of a Dam, Reservoir and surrounding uplands, and 
associated irrigation distribution system. The Dam impounds the 
Cheyenne River near Angostura Canyon.
    The Unit was originally authorized by the Water Conservation and 
Utilization Act of 1939. The Flood Control Act of 1944 reauthorized the 
Unit, and construction of the Dam began August 23, 1946, and was 
completed December 7, 1949. The Unit was authorized as a multipurpose 
facility for irrigation, flood control, power generation, recreation, 
and fish and wildlife benefits. The first delivery of water to the 
District was in 1953 and full service water was available to 12,218 
acres of irrigable lands in 1956. The power plant constructed with the 
dam was abandoned in 1959 due to an inadequate water supply.
    In May 1951, Reclamation executed the initial contract with the 
District for water service from Angostura Reservoir and repayment of 
delivery system construction costs. The water service provisions of the 
contract provided a 40-year water supply which began in 1956 and 
expired in December 1995. The repayment and operation and maintenance 
provisions of the contract were initiated in 1966 following a 10-year 
development period and do not expire. In 1996, Reclamation negotiated a 
3-year interim contract with the District.
    Recreation and land management activities at the Reservoir are 
currently the responsibility of South Dakota Department of Game, Fish 
and Parks (SDGF&P) under a Memorandum of Understanding with 
Reclamation. SDGF&P has documented a continual, steady increase in 
recreational visitation at Angostura.
    The Angostura Unit is within the lands ceded to the United States 
by the Great Sioux Nation in the 1868 Treaty of Fort Laramie. The 
Cheyenne River forms the northwest boundary of the Pine Ridge Indian 
Reservation and the southern boundary of the Cheyenne River Sioux 
Indian Reservation. These conditions indicate the potential presence of 
Indian Trust Assets. The Oglala, Cheyenne River, and Lower Brule Sioux 
Tribes have responded to

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Reclamation's requests for consultations. These Tribes have expressed 
an interest in the management and protection of Federal reserved water 
rights.
    Management of the Unit affects many of the environmental, 
recreational, agricultural, and economic resources of the region. The 
NEPA process required prior to negotiation of a new LTC will provide an 
opportunity to review the multipurpose benefits of the Reservoir.

Meetings

    The following scoping meetings have been scheduled for this action:
     April 23, 1997, Wednesday, 7 p.m. to 10 p.m., Rapid City, 
SD, Howard Johnson Convention Center.
     April 24, 1997, Thursday, 7 p.m. to 10 p.m., Hot Springs, 
SD, Mueller Civic Center.
     April 29, 1997, Tuesday, 1 p.m. to 4 p.m., Lower Brule 
Indian Reservation, SD, Tribal Convention Center.
     April 30, 1997, Wednesday, 1 p.m. to 4 p.m., Eagle Butte, 
SD, Cheyenne River Super 8 Motel.
     May 1, 1997, Thursday, 1 p.m. to 4 p.m., Kyle, SD, Oglala 
Lakota College.

    Dated: March 6, 1997.
Greg Gere,
Acting Area Manager, Dakotas Area Office.
[FR Doc. 97-6678 Filed 3-14-97; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4310-94-P