[Federal Register Volume 66, Number 92 (Friday, May 11, 2001)]
[Notices]
[Pages 24151-24152]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 01-10912]


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DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR

Bureau of Land Management

[NV-030-1990-EX]


Notice of Availability for the Oil-Dri Corporation of Nevada's 
Reno Clay Plant Project Draft Environmental Impact Statement

AGENCY: Bureau of Land Management, Department of the Interior.

COOPERATING AGENCIES: U.S. Bureau of Indian Affairs, Reno-Sparks Indian 
Colony, and Washoe County, Nevada.

ACTION: Notice of availability of a draft environmental impact 
statement (EIS) for the Oil-Dri Corporation of Nevada Reno Clay Plant 
Project, notice of public meeting, and initiation of a 60-day public 
comment period.

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SUMMARY: Pursuant to section 102(2)(C) of the National Environmental 
Policy Act (NEPA) and 40 CFR 1500-1508 Council on Environmental Quality 
Regulations (CEQ), and 43 CFR 3809 Surface Management Regulations, 
notice is given that the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) Carson City 
Field Office has prepared, with the assistance of a third-party 
consultant, a Draft EIS on the proposed Reno Clay Plant Project, and 
has made the document available for public and agency review.

DATES: Written comments on the Draft EIS must be submitted or 
postmarked to the BLM no later than July 10, 2001. Written comments may 
also be presented at a public open house that is scheduled for May 30, 
2001, from 5 pm to 7 pm, at the BLM Nevada State Office, 1340 Financial 
Boulevard, Reno, NV.

ADDRESSES: Written comments on the Draft EIS should be addressed to: 
Bureau of Land Management, Carson City Field Office, 5665 Morgan Mill 
Road, Carson City, NV 89701, Attn: Terri Knutson, Oil-Dri EIS Project 
Manager. Comments may also be sent via electronic mail to the following 
address: [email protected] or via fax: (775) 885-6147. A limited 
number of copies of the Draft EIS may be obtained at the above BLM 
Field Office in Carson City, NV. In addition, the Draft EIS is 
available on the internet via the Carson City Field Office Home Page 
at: www.nv.blm.gov/carson.
    Comments, including names and addresses of respondents, will be 
available for public review at the above address during regular 
business hours (7:30 a.m.-5 p.m.), Monday through Friday, except 
holidays, and may be published as part of the EIS. Individual 
respondents may request

[[Page 24152]]

confidentiality. If you wish to withhold your name or street 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. However, we will not consider anonymous comments. Such 
requests will be honored to the extent allowed by law. 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.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Terri Knutson, Oil-Dri EIS Project 
Manager, Bureau of Land Management, 5665 Morgan Mill Road, Carson City, 
NV 89701, (775) 885-6156.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Oil-Dri Corporation of Nevada (Oil-Dri) has 
submitted a Plan of Operations for the construction, operation, and 
reclamation of a mining operation and processing facility located 
approximately ten miles north of the Reno/Sparks area in Hungry Valley, 
Washoe County, Nevada. The proposed mining operation, known as the Reno 
Clay Plant Project, would be located on 305 acres of public and 40 
acres of private land and would result in the development of two open 
pit mine areas, construction of a processing facility, construction 
and/or upgrade of haul and access roads, and continued exploration 
activities. Construction is scheduled to begin in the Fall of 2001 and 
continue for approximately 20 years.
    The Draft EIS analyzes the environmental impacts associated with 
the proposed mining and processing facilities, two access alternatives, 
and the no action alternative. Issues analyzed include geology, 
minerals, paleontology, air resources, aesthetics (visual & noise), 
water resources, soils, vegetation, range resources, wildlife, special 
status species, land use, access, recreation, cultural resources, 
Native American Religious Concerns, social & economic resources, and 
Environmental Justice.
    A copy of the Draft EIS has been sent to all individuals, agencies, 
and groups who have expressed interest in the project or as mandated by 
regulation or policy. A limited number of copies are available upon 
request from the BLM at the address listed above. In addition, the 
document is available on the Carson City Field Office Home Page at the 
address above.
    Public participation has occurred throughout the EIS process. A 
Notice of Intent to Prepare an EIS was published in the Federal 
Register on July 22, 2000 (Pages 43779-43780) and the 30-day public 
scoping period was initiated. A public open house was held in Reno on 
August 8, 2000 and additional presentations were made to three Washoe 
County Citizen Advisory Boards and to a community meeting at the Reno-
Sparks Indian Colony.
    To assist the BLM in identifying and considering issues and 
concerns on the proposed action and alternatives, comments on the Draft 
EIS should be as specific as possible. Comments should also refer to 
specific pages or chapters in the document. After the comment period 
ends, all comments will be analyzed and considered by the BLM in 
preparing the Final EIS.

    Dated: April 23, 2001.
John Singlaub,
Manager, Carson City Field Office.
[FR Doc. 01-10912 Filed 5-10-01; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4310-HC-P