[Federal Register Volume 68, Number 80 (Friday, April 25, 2003)]
[Notices]
[Pages 20403-20404]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 03-9668]


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DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR

Bureau of Land Management

[WY-030-1310-DB]


Notice of Availability of Draft Environmental Impact Statement 
for the Desolation Flats Natural Gas Field Development Project.

AGENCY: Bureau of Land Management, Interior.

ACTION: Notice of availability of Draft Environmental Impact Statement 
for the Desolation Flats Natural Gas Field Development Project.

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SUMMARY: The Bureau of Land Management (BLM) announces the availability 
of the Desolation Flats Natural Gas Field Development Project Draft 
Environmental Impact Statement (DEIS) which analyzes the environmental 
consequences of the proposed Desolation Flats natural gas development 
and production operation. Expansion of natural gas exploration and 
development is proposed in and adjacent to other oil and gas 
developments in the Willow Reservoir, Wedge, Mulligan Draw, Powder 
Mountain, Desolation Flats, Ruger, Dripping Rock, Cedar Chest, Triton, 
Lookout Wash Units, and the surrounding areas, collectively referred to 
as the Desolation Flats Area. The 233,542 acre Desolation Flats project 
area is located within the administrative jurisdictions of the BLM 
Rawlins and Rock Springs Field Offices, approximately 21 miles south of 
Wamsutter, Wyoming, and 14 miles west of Baggs, Wyoming, in Townships 
13-16 North, Ranges 93-96 West, Sixth Principal Meridian, Sweetwater 
and Carbon Counties, Wyoming. Surface owners of the project area lands 
are: Federal Government, 96 percent; private, 3 percent; and the State 
of Wyoming, less than 1 percent. Currently, there are approximately 63 
oil and gas wells drilled within the proposed project area. If 
approved, up to 592 additional wells could be drilled over the next 20 
years.

DATES: Written comments on the DEIS will be accepted for 60 days 
following the date the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) publishes 
its Notice of Availability of the DEIS in the Federal Register.
    Two formal hearings are scheduled to obtain public comments on the 
proposed project and the DEIS at the BLM Rock Springs Field Office, 
Rock Springs, Wyoming; and at the BLM Rawlins Field Office, Rawlins, 
Wyoming. All meetings or hearings and any other public involvement 
activities will be announced at least 15 days in advance through public 
notices, media news releases, and/or mailings.

ADDRESSES: If you wish to comment, you may submit your comments by any 
one of several methods. You may send written comments to: John Spehar, 
Project Manager, Rawlins Field Office, Bureau of Land Management, 1300 
N. Third Street, P.O. Box 2407, Rawlins, Wyoming 82301. You may also 
comment via the Internet to: [email protected]. Please submit 
Internet comments as an ASCII file avoiding the use of special 
characters and any form of encryption.
    Please also include: ``Attn: Desolation Flats Project Manager'' and 
your name and return address in your Internet message. If you do not 
receive a confirmation from the system that we have received your 
Internet message, contact us directly at the BLM Rawlins Field Office, 
John Spehar, 307-328-4264. You may hand-deliver comments to Rawlins 
Field Office, Bureau of Land Management, 1300 N. Third Street, Rawlins, 
Wyoming, between the hours of 7:30 a.m. and 4:30 p.m., Monday through 
Friday, excluding Federal holidays.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: For further information including 
public meeting times, dates, and locations or to obtain a copy of the 
DEIS, contact John Spehar, telephone 307-328-4264 or you may view or 
download an electronic version of the document from our BLM State Web 
site at http://www.wy.blm.gov.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Marathon Oil Company, EOG Resources, Inc., 
Tom Brown, Inc., Basin Exploration, Inc., Yates Petroleum Corporation, 
Questar Exploration and Production Company, Merit Energy Company, Santa 
Fe Snyder Corporation and other companies (Operators) have submitted a 
proposal to drill up to 592 wells in the Desolation Flats area. Over 
the next 20 years, the Operators propose to explore and develop the oil 
and gas resources held through their existing leases within the 
Desolation Flats Project Area. Well density would range from two wells 
per 640 acres to four wells per 640 acres, depending on geologic 
conditions.

[[Page 20404]]

    The Desolation Flats DEIS analyzes the impacts of the Proposed 
Action: economic field development of 385 natural gas wells at 361 well 
locations and associated access roads (approximately 542 miles of new 
or upgraded), pipelines (approximately 361 miles), and other ancillary 
facilities (one gas processing plant, four compressor stations, water 
disposal sites, etc.). The DEIS also analyzes Alternative A, which is 
similar to the Proposed Action but would expand well development into 
the economically marginal areas of the leases and increase the density 
of wells. Alternative A proposes to increase the number of wells to 
approximately 592 wells at 555 locations with a proportional increase 
of access roads (approximately 833 of new or upgraded), pipelines (555 
miles) and other ancillary facilities (two gas processing plants, six 
compressor stations, water disposal sites etc.).
    Alternative B is the No Action Alternative. This alternative would 
deny the proposal as submitted but would allow consideration of 
individual APDs on Federal lands on a case-by-case basis through 
individual project and site-specific environmental analysis. No Action 
would allow drilling and development of 23 additional wells in the 
Mulligan Draw project area, and drilling and development of 34 
additional wells in the Dripping Rock/Cedar Breaks project area. 
Drilling outside the Mulligan Draw and Dripping Rock/Cedar Break 
project areas but within the DFPA project area could continue on a 
case-by-case basis until BLM made a determination that further drilling 
activity would result in field development.
    Based upon issues and concerns identified during the scoping 
process, the DEIS focuses on the impacts to air quality, biological and 
physical resources, transportation, and socio-economic environment and 
their cumulative effects. In compliance with Section 7(c) of the 
Endangered Species Act as amended, this DEIS includes the Biological 
Assessment that identifies endangered or threatened species that would 
potentially be affected by the Proposed Action.
    The proposed Desolation Flats Natural Gas Field Development 
activities are in conformance with the Great Divide Resource Management 
Plan (USDI-BLM 1990), and Green River Resources Management Plan (USDI-
BLM 1997).
    Our practice is to make comments, including the names and street 
addresses of each respondent, available for public review at the BLM 
offices listed above during regular business hours (7:45 a.m. to 4:30 
p.m.), Monday through Friday, except for Federal holidays. Your 
comments may be published as part of the EIS process. Individual 
respondents may request confidentiality. If you wish to withhold your 
name and/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. However, we will not 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.

    Dated: March 10, 2003.
Alan L. Kesterke,
Associate State Director.
[FR Doc. 03-9668 Filed 4-24-03; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4310-22-P