[Federal Register Volume 69, Number 64 (Friday, April 2, 2004)]
[Notices]
[Pages 17445-17446]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 04-7465]


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DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR

Bureau of Land Management

[NV-060-1990-EX]


Notice of Intent To Prepare a Supplemental Environmental Impact 
Statement (SEIS) To Analyze Homestake Mining Company's Proposed 
Modification to the Plan of Operations for Expansion of Its Ruby Hill 
Mine, Eureka County, NV

AGENCY: Bureau of Land Management, Interior.

ACTION: Notice of Intent to Prepare a Supplemental Environmental Impact 
Statement.

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SUMMARY: Pursuant to Section 102(2)(c) of the National Environmental 
Policy Act of 1969 (NEPA), 40 CFR 1500-1508 Council on Environmental 
Quality Regulations, and 43 CFR Subpart 3809, the Bureau of Land 
Management's Battle Mountain Field Office will be directing the 
preparation of a Supplemental Environmental Impact Statement (SEIS) to 
analyze a proposed expansion of an open-pit mine and associated 
facilities in Eureka County, Nevada. Expansion of the Ruby Hill Mine, 
specifically development of the East Archimedes deposit, was defined in 
the EIS for the existing mine as a reasonably foreseeable future 
action. The project will involve public and private lands. The SEIS 
will be prepared by a third-party contractor directed by the BLM.
    The BLM invites comments on the scope of the analysis. The purpose 
of the public scoping meetings is to identify issues to be addressed in 
the SEIS and potentially viable alternatives that address these issues. 
BLM personnel will be present to explain the NEPA process, mining 
regulations, and other requirements for processing the proposed Plan of 
Operations Amendment and the associated SEIS.

DATES: This notice initiates the public scoping process. Comments on 
the scope of the SEIS can be submitted in writing to the address below 
and will be accepted throughout the writing of the Draft SEIS. Scoping 
meetings will be held in Eureka and in Battle Mountain, Nevada. All 
public meetings will be announced through the local news media, 
newsletters or flyers, and will be posted on the Battle Mountain BLM 
Web site, http://www.nv.blm.gov/bmountain, at least 15 days prior to 
each event. The minutes and list of attendees for each meeting will be 
available to the public and open for 30 days after the meeting to any 
participants who wish to clarify the views they expressed.

ADDRESSES: Written scoping comments should be sent to: Bureau of Land 
Management, Battle Mountain Field Office, 50 Bastian Rd., Battle 
Mountain, NV 89820, ATTN: Mary Craggett. Written comments may also be 
faxed to Mary Craggett at (775) 635-4034. Documents pertinent to this 
proposal as well as comments, including names and street addresses of 
respondents, may be examined at the Battle Mountain Field Office during 
regular business hours (7:30 a.m.-4:30 p.m. Monday through Friday, 
except holidays). Comments may be published as part of the SEIS.
    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 and businesses, and from individuals identifying 
themselves as representatives or officials of organizations or 
businesses, will be available for public inspection in their entirety. 
BLM will not consider anonymous comments.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Mary Craggett, Project Manager, Battle 
Mountain Field Office, 50 Bastian Road, Battle Mountain, NV 89820 (775-
635-4060.)

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: HMC has submitted a proposal to expand its 
existing Ruby Hill Mine located south of Highway 50, approximately 1 
mile northwest of the town of Eureka, Nevada. The project (development 
of the East Archimedes deposit) would consist of extending the existing 
open pit, expansion of existing waste rock and heap leach facilities, 
construction of dewatering facilities, and the continued operation, 
reclamation, and closure of the existing Ruby Hill Mine, to include 
mine office and warehouse, truck shop, haul roads, ore stockpiles, 
access road, diversion ditches, power transmission lines, water wells 
and pipelines, process solution transmission pipelines and a landfill. 
The project area is unchanged from the existing Ruby Hill Mine approved 
Plan of Operations (N64-95-001P) and related Environmental Impact 
Statement (NV64-EIS96-33), and is within portions of Township 19 North, 
Range 53 East, MDM, sections 2 to 11, inclusive, 14 to 18, inclusive, 
and 20 to 23 inclusive and portions of Township 20 North, Range 53 
East, sections 28 and 31 to 35, inclusive. Under the proposed action, 
an estimated additional disturbance of 665 acres would occur. This 
proposed disturbance includes approximately 484 acres of private land 
owned by HMC, and 181 acres of BLM-administered public land. Project 
access will continue to be via an improved gravel road from U.S. 
Highway 50.
    Potentially significant direct, indirect, residual, and cumulative 
impacts from the proposed action will be analyzed in the SEIS. 
Significant issues to be addressed in the SEIS include dewatering 
activities and visual impacts. Additional issues to be addressed may 
arise during the scoping process. Federal, State, and local agencies, 
and other individuals or organizations that may be interested in or 
affected by the BLM's decision on this plan of operations amendment are 
invited to participate in the scoping process. The life of the project 
under this modification would increase approximately six years over the 
timeline outlined in the Ruby Hill Project Final EIS


[[Page 17446]]


    Dated: February 3, 2004.
Gerald M. Smith,
Field Manager, Battle Mountain Field Office.
[FR Doc. 04-7465 Filed 4-1-04; 8:45 am]
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