[Federal Register Volume 66, Number 192 (Wednesday, October 3, 2001)]
[Notices]
[Pages 50446-50447]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 01-24662]
[[Page 50446]]
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DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR
Bureau of Land Management
[WY-920-1320-EM, WYW136142]
Federal Coal Lease Modification
AGENCY: Bureau of Land Management, Interior.
ACTION: Notice of availability of the Documentation of Land Use Plan
Conformance and Determination of NEPA Adequacy (DNA) and notice of
public hearing on the Modification of Federal Coal Lease WYW136142 at
the North Antelope/Rochelle Mine Complex operated by Powder River Coal
Company, in Campbell County, WY.
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SUMMARY: Pursuant to the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) and
implementing regulations and other applicable statutes, the Bureau of
Land Management (BLM) announces the availability of the DNA for the
modification of Federal coal lease WYW136142 in the Wyoming Powder
River Basin, and announces the scheduled date and place for a public
hearing pursuant to 43 CFR 3432, 3425.3 and 3425.4. The draft DNA
addresses the impacts of modifying this Federal coal lease and mining
the modification area as a part of the North Antelope/Rochelle Mine
Complex operated by Powder River Coal Company, in Campbell County, WY.
The purpose of the hearing is to solicit public comments on the DNA,
the fair market value, the maximum economic recovery, and the proposed
noncompetitive offer of the coal included in the proposed lease
modification. This lease modification is being considered for offer as
a result of a request received from Powder River Coal Company on June
19, 2000. The tract as requested includes about 19.97 acres containing
approximately 2.5 million tons of Federal coal reserves.
DATES: A public hearing will be held at 7 p.m. MDT, on October 9, 2001,
at the Clarion Western Plaza Motel, 2009 S. Douglas Highway, Gillette,
Wyoming. Written comments on the DNA will be accepted on or before
November 2, 2001.
ADDRESSES: Please address questions, comments or requests for copies of
the DNA to the BLM Casper Field Office, Attn: Mike Karbs, 2987
Prospector Drive, Casper, WY 82604; or you may e-mail them to the
attention of Mike Karbs at [email protected]; or fax them to 307-
261-7587.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Mike Karbs or Nancy Doelger at the
above address, or phone: 307-261-7600.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The BLM Casper Field Office has received a
request to modify an existing Federal coal lease at the North Antelope/
Rochelle Mine Complex. This mine is operated by Powder River Coal
Company, and is located in Campbell County, WY, approximately 20 miles
southeast of Wright. On June 19, 2000, Powder River Coal Company filed
an application with the BLM to modify Federal lease WYW136142 by adding
the following lands:
T. 41 N., R. 70 W., 6th PM, Wyoming
Section 18: Lot 6 (N\1/2\) or (N\1/2\NW\1/4\NE\1/4\)
This tract is adjacent to Powder River Coal Company's North
Antelope/ Rochelle Mine Complex and includes 19.97 acres more or less
with an estimated 2.5 million tons of coal. This application was filed
as a lease modification under the provisions of 43 CFR 3432.
BLM believes that this lease modification serves the interests of
the United States because it allows for a more efficient recovery of
coal in a narrow or ``neck'' area of the current lease. This
modification area is logically recovered as a part of the planned
operations on the existing lease, and while this area could be
recovered as part of a later competitive coal lease tract, that is not
a certainty. If this coal is recovered in concert with the existing
lease, it would result in minimal additional surface disturbance.
BLM further believes that there is no current competitive interest
in the lands proposed for lease modification, although as noted above,
this area could be recovered as part of a later competitive coal lease
tract, but that may or may not occur. This lease modification would not
reduce the competitive value of a later competitive coal lease tract.
Under the lease modification process, the modified lands would be added
to the existing lease without competitive bidding. Before offering the
lease modification the BLM will prepare an appraisal of the fair market
value of the lease. The United States would receive fair market value
of the lease for the added lands.
The proposed lease modification is within the mine permit area of
the North Antelope/Rochelle Mine Complex. No new facilities or
employees would be needed to mine the coal. Haul distances would not be
increased. If production at the North Antelope/Rochelle Mine continues
at the 2000 rate of 70 million tons of coal, the 2.5 million tons of
coal included in the proposed lease modification would represent less
than one-half month of production. The lands have most recently been
studied under the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969 (NEPA) as
part of the Powder River/Thundercloud LBA EIS (lease by application
environmental impact statement), as well as several earlier NEPA
analyses. BLM prepared a DNA for this action to make most effective use
of these existing NEPA analyses. If this tract is modified into the
current lease, the new lands must be incorporated into the existing
mining plans for the North Antelope/Rochelle Mine Complex. The Office
of Surface Mining Reclamation and Enforcement (OSM) is a cooperating
agency in the preparation of the environmental document because it is
the Federal agency that is responsible for any required actions
necessary to incorporate these lands into the current mining plan.
BLM conducted scoping during August 2001, soliciting specific
concerns that should be considered in processing this modified lease
application, with scoping comments accepted through September 7, 2001.
The DNA addresses issues identified or information received during this
scoping period for the proposed lease modification. In addition to
preparing the DNA, BLM will also develop possible stipulations
regarding mining operations, determine the fair market value of the
tract and evaluate maximum economic recovery of the coal in the
proposed tract while processing this lease modification.
Comments on the DNA, the fair market value, the maximum economic
recovery, and the proposed noncompetitive offer of the coal included in
the proposed lease modification, as well as scoping comments already
received, including names and street addresses of respondents, will be
available for public review at the address below during regular
business hours (7:45 a.m.-4:30 p.m.), Monday through Friday, except
holidays. Individual respondents may request 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. 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.
[[Page 50447]]
Dated: August 30, 2001.
Alan Rabinoff,
Deputy State Director, Minerals and Lands.
[FR Doc. 01-24662 Filed 10-2-01; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4310-22-P