[Federal Register Volume 66, Number 62 (Friday, March 30, 2001)]
[Notices]
[Pages 17437-17438]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 01-7896]


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DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR

Bureau of Indian Affairs


Notice of Availability of the Draft Environmental Impact 
Statement for the Proposed Moapa Paiute Energy Center and Associated 
Facilities, Moapa River Indian Reservation and Bureau of Land 
Management Lands, Clark County, NV

AGENCY: Bureau of Indian Affairs, Interior.

ACTION: Notice.

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SUMMARY: This notice advises the public that the Bureau of Indian 
Affairs (BIA) and the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) intend to file a 
Draft Environmental Impact Statement (DEIS) for the Proposed Moapa 
Paiute Energy Center and Associated Facilities with the Environmental 
Protection Agency. The DEIS was prepared with the cooperation of the 
Moapa Band of Paiute Indians (Tribe) and Calpine Corporation (Calpine). 
The Tribe proposes to lease land and water on the Moapa River Indian 
Reservation (Reservation) to Calpine for the construction, operation, 
and maintenance of a nominal baseload 760-megawatt natural gas-fired 
combined cycle power plant. The proposed term of the lease is 25 years, 
with the possibility of renewal for an additional 20 years. The 
purposes of the proposed action are to provide much needed economic 
development for the Tribe and to provide an alternative power supply to 
meet the growing demand for power in southern Nevada and the 
southwestern United States. Details on the project location, proposed 
action, and areas of environmental concern addressed in the DEIS are 
provided in the SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION section. This notice also 
announces public meetings to solicit comments on the content of the 
DEIS.

DATES: Written comments on the DEIS must arrive by May 29, 2001. The 
public meetings will be held on Wednesday, April 18, 2001, from 6:00 
p.m. to 8:00 p.m. and on Thursday, April 19, 2001, from 6:00 p.m. to 
8:00 p.m.

ADDRESSES: You may mail or hand carry written comments to Amy L. 
Heuslein, Regional Environmental Protection Officer, Western Regional 
Office, Bureau of Indian Affairs, Environmental Quality Services, P.O. 
Box 10, Phoenix, Arizona 85001, or to Deborah Hamlin, Realty 
Specialist, Southern Paiute Field Station, P.O. Box 720, St. George, 
Utah 84771.
    The April 18, 2001, public meeting will be in the Tribal Hall, 
Number 1 Lincoln Street, Moapa River Indian Reservation, Moapa, Nevada. 
The April 19, 2001, public meeting will be in the Guy Elementary School 
Multi-Purpose Room, 4028 La Madre Way, North Las Vegas, Nevada.
    To obtain a hard copy or CD of the DEIS, contact any one of the 
following: (1) Amy L. Heuslein, Regional Environmental Protection 
Officer, Western Regional Office, Bureau of Indian Affairs, 
Environmental Quality Services, P.O. Box 10, Phoenix, Arizona 85001, 
Telephone 602-379-6750; (2) Deborah Hamlin, Realty Specialist, Southern 
Paiute Field Station, P.O. Box 720, St. George, Utah 84771, Telephone 
435-674-9720 or Telefax 435-674-9714; (3) BLM, Las Vegas Field Office, 
4765 Vegas Drive, Las Vegas, Nevada 89108, Telephone 702-647-5000; or 
(4) the Moapa Band of Paiutes, Tribal Hall, Number 1 Lincoln Street, 
Moapa River Indian Reservation, Moapa, Nevada, 89025, Telephone 702-
865-2787 extension 202.
    A hard copy of the DEIS will be available for review at the Clark 
County Library--Urban Branch, 1401 East Flamingo Road, Las Vegas, 
Nevada, Telephone 702-733-7810. The DEIS will also be available 
electronically on the BIA Internet web site at http://phxao.az.bia.gov/branches/environment/eis.htm, and on the BLM website at http://www.nv.blm.gov.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Amy L. Heuslein, 602-379-6750, or 
Deborah Hamlin, 435-674-9720.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The proposed project would utilize up to 300 
acres of Indian and federal lands under the jurisdiction of BIA, BLM, 
and the Tribe. The proposed project would be located in Clark County, 
Nevada, approximately 45 miles northeast of the City of Las Vegas, 15 
miles southwest of the City of Glendale, and approximately 3 miles 
northwest of the Interstate 15 and State Route 169 interchange 
(location of Moapa Tribal Enterprises). The facility would be located 
on approximately 65 acres of Reservation land within sections 14 and 15 
of Township 16 South, Range 64 East (reference: Arrow Canyon Southeast 
U.S. Geological Survey Map 7.5-minute series). The transmission lines 
would be located on Indian and federal lands within sections 14, 15, 
22, 27, 28, 32, and 33 of Township 16 South, Range 64 East; sections 9, 
16, 17, 20, 29, 30, and 31 of Township 17 South, Range 64 East; section 
6 of Township 18 South, Range 64 East; section 1 of Township 18 South, 
Range 63 East; and section 36 of Township 17, Range 63 East (reference: 
Arrow Canyon Southeast, Dry Lake, Dry Lake Northwest, and Apex U.S. 
Geological Survey Maps 7.5-minute series). The access road for the Well 
Site and plant site would be located on Indian and federal lands within 
sections 15, 22, 27, 28, and 33 of Township 16 South, Range 64 East; 
sections 10, 15, 16, 20, 21, 29, 31, and 32 of Township 17 South, Range 
64 East; sections 6 and 7 of Township 18 South, Range 64 East; and 
sections 12 and 13 of Township 18 South, Range 63 East (reference: 
Arrow Canyon Southeast, Dry Lake, Dry Lake Northwest, and Apex U.S. 
Geological Survey Maps 7.5-minute series).
    Because the BIA has trust responsibility over Indian lands, its 
approval of the lease between the Tribe and Calpine is a major federal 
action. The preparation of this DEIS under the National Environmental 
Policy Act (NEPA) of 1969, as amended, is therefore required in order 
to evaluate potential impacts and alternatives for

[[Page 17438]]

project planning and environmental protection. The BLM, which also has 
trust responsibility, is a cooperating agency on the project because 
the transmission lines, the access road, and a portion of the gas 
pipeline traverses federal land under its jurisdiction.
    The proposed nominal 760-megawatt, natural gas-fired, combined 
cycle power plant project would employ three gas turbines and one heat 
recovery steam generator (HRSG). The stacks would be approximately 145 
to a maximum of 200 feet high and have a diameter of about 18 feet. 
Groundwater would be used in operations and for cooling. Both storm 
water and process wastewater would be confined to the site in retention 
ponds. The power plant would be fueled by natural gas from the existing 
Kern River (Williams) natural gas pipeline that is located on the 
Reservation, approximately 3,000 feet from the proposed plant location. 
The proposed project would include construction of a gas supply lateral 
pipeline on Reservation land and a power grid interconnection at the 
Harry Allen substation, located approximately 12 miles southwest of the 
proposed plant. Two parallel 230kv lines would traverse both 
Reservation and federal land, mostly within an existing utility 
corridor. The project would also include an access road to connect the 
site to Interstate Highway 15.
    The DEIS discusses potential impacts of power plant development and 
operation on environmental resources in the study area. The DEIS 
describes the alternatives that were considered, but eliminated from 
further consideration, and also documents the analysis of three 
alternatives, the proposed action, a southern site alternative, and no 
action. Issues to be covered in the DEIS include geology and soils, 
surface and groundwater resources, biological resources, air quality, 
visual resources, noise, public services/utilities, hazardous 
materials, paleontological and cultural resources, socio-economic 
conditions, land use, environmental justice, Indian Trust Assets, and 
potential cumulative impacts.

Public Comment Solicitation

    As an alternative to submitting written comments regarding the 
content of the EIS/EIR to the locations identified in the ADDRESSES 
section, interested persons may instead comment via the Internet to 
http://phxao.az.bia.gov/branches/environment/eis or to 
[email protected]. Please submit Internet comments as an ASCII 
file, avoiding the use of special characters and any form of 
encryption. If you do not receive confirmation from the system that 
your Internet message was received, contact Amy L. Heuslein at 602-379-
6750, or Deborah Hamlin at 435-674-9720, respectively.
    Comments, including names and home addresses of respondents, will 
be available for public review at the mailing addresses shown in the 
ADDRESSES section, during regular business hours, 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., 
Monday through Friday, except holidays. Individual respondents may 
request confidentiality. If you wish us to withhold your name and/or 
address from public review or from disclosure under the Freedom of 
Information Act, you must state this prominently at the beginning of 
your written comment. Such requests will be honored to the extent 
allowed by law. We will not, however, consider anonymous comments. All 
submissions from organizations or businesses, and from individuals 
identifying themselves as representatives or officials of organizations 
or businesses, will be made available for public inspection in their 
entirety.

Authority

    This notice is published in accordance with section 1503.1 of the 
Council on Environmental Quality Regulations (40 CFR parts 1500 through 
1508), implementing the procedural requirements of the National 
Environmental Policy Act of 1969, as amended (42 U.S.C. 4321 et seq.), 
and the Department of the Interior Manual (516 DM 1-6), and is in the 
exercise of authority delegated to the Assistant Secretary--Indian 
Affairs by 209 Departmental Manual 8.1.

    Dated: March 22, 2001.
James H. McDivitt,
Deputy Assistant Secretary--Indian Affairs (Management).
[FR Doc. 01-7896 Filed 3-29-01; 8:45 am]
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