[Federal Register Volume 69, Number 70 (Monday, April 12, 2004)]
[Notices]
[Page 19215]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 04-8155]


-----------------------------------------------------------------------

DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR

Bureau of Land Management

[NV-065-1990]


Notice of Intent To Prepare an Environmental Impact Statement for 
the Gold Hill Project, Nye County, NV

AGENCY: Bureau of Land Management, Interior; Forest Service, 
Agriculture.

ACTION: Notice of Intent (NOI) to prepare an Environmental Impact 
Statement (EIS) to analyze the Proposed Plan of Operations for Gold 
Hill Project and notice of scoping period.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------

SUMMARY: Pursuant to section 102(2)(c) of the National Environmental 
Policy Act of 1969, 40 Code of Federal Regulations subparts 1500-1508, 
and 43 Code of Federal Regulations subpart 3809, notice is hereby given 
that the Bureau of Land Management (BLM), Battle Mountain District, 
Tonopah Field Station, and the U.S. Department of Agriculture, Forest 
Service (USFS), Tonopah Ranger District as a cooperating agency, will 
be directing the preparation of an EIS for the gold Hill Project, a 
proposed gold mine located on public lands in Nye County, Nevada. Round 
Mountain Gold Corporation (RMGC) has submitted a 43 CFR 3809 Plan of 
Operations to the BLM for the proposed mining project. A third-party 
contractor will prepare the EIS under the direction of the BLM.
    During the scoping period, the Gold Hill Plan of Operations (Plan) 
will be presented to the local public during scoping meetings to be 
held in Round Mountain and Tonopah, Nevada. The BLM invites public 
comment on the scope of the analysis.

DATES: This notice initiates a 45-day public scoping period. Written 
comments on the scope of the EIS should be post-marked or otherwise 
delivered by 4:30 p.m. by May 27, 2004 to ensure full consideration. 
The public will be notified of the two scoping meetings through the 
local news media at least 15 days prior to the meetings.

ADDRESSES: Scoping comments should be sent to the Bureau of Land 
Management, Battle Mountain Field Office, Attention: George Deverse, 
Bureau of Land Management, P.O. Box 911, Tonopah, NV 89049. Comments, 
including names and street addresses of respondents, will be available 
for public review at the Tonopah Field Station, Tonopah, Nevada, during 
regular business hours, and may be published as part of the EIS. 
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. BLM will not consider 
anonymous comments. 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.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: George Deverse at the BLM Tonopah 
address or call (775) 482-7800.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Round Mountain Gold Corporation has 
submitted a Plan of Operations (43 CFR 3809) for a gold mine (the Gold 
Hill Project), located 7 miles east of the town of Carvers, Nevada. The 
historic Gold Hill mine and mill operated in the 1930's within the 
proposed Gold Hill project area. The proposed Gold Hill Project is 
located in Nye County, Nevada, on public lands in sections 28, 29, 32, 
and 33, T. 11 N., R. 44 E., and sections 4, 5 and 6, T. 10 N., R. 44 
E., Mount Diablo Meridian. The Project would disturb approximately 
1,600 acres of public land. Major facilities at the proposed mine 
include two open pits of 380 acres and 105 acres in size. Gold-bearing 
ore and waste rock would be drilled, blasted, loaded and hauled from 
the open pits. Lower-grade gold ore would be loaded on the heap leach 
pad (280 acres) for chemical dissolution of the gold by a solution of 
sodium cyanide. Higher-grade ore would be trucked to a mill at the 
existing Round Mountain Gold mine located 5 miles to the south of the 
Gold Hill Project. Waste rock would be hauled to a waste rock dump (640 
acres). The planned disturbances also include process plant (25 acres) 
for extraction of the gold and a network of access and haul roads (170 
acres).
    The U.S. Department of Agriculture, Forest Service, Tonopah Ranger 
District will be a cooperating agency in the preparation of the EIS. 
Other Federal, State of Nevada, local agencies, tribal entities and 
public organizations that may be interested in or affected by the 
proposed action are invited to participate in the scoping process and, 
if eligible, may request, or be requested by the BLM to participate as 
a cooperating agency.

Mark Storzer,
Associate Field Manager, Battle Mountain Field Office.
[FR Doc. 04-8155 Filed 4-9-04; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4310-HC-P