[Federal Register Volume 71, Number 165 (Friday, August 25, 2006)]
[Proposed Rules]
[Pages 50378-50379]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 06-7136]


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DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR

Bureau of Land Management

43 CFR Part 3900

[WO-3201310-PP-OSHL]
RIN 1004-AD90


Commercial Oil Shale Leasing Program

AGENCY: Bureau of Land Management, Interior.

ACTION:  Advance Notice of Proposed Rulemaking.

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SUMMARY: The Bureau of Land Management (BLM) requests comments and 
suggestions to assist in the writing of a proposed rule to establish a 
commercial leasing program for oil shale.
    The Energy Policy Act of 2005 directs the Secretary of the Interior 
to: (1) Complete a Programmatic Environmental Impact Statement (PEIS) 
for a commercial leasing program for oil shale and tar sands resources 
on public lands, with emphasis on the most geologically prospective 
lands within Colorado, Utah and Wyoming, and (2) Publish a final rule 
establishing such program, not later than 180 days after completion of 
the PEIS. On May 18, 2006, BLM published a final rule for the leasing 
of tar sands.
    As an aid in preparing the proposed rule to establish an oil shale 
commercial leasing system and regulate oil shale mining operations, we 
encourage members of the public to provide comments and suggestions on 
the following key components; royalty rate; fair market value for 
conversion of preference right acreage and for commercial leasing; 
diligence; royalty determination point; and small tract leasing. See 
Section III for a list of specific questions relating to these topics.

DATES: We will accept comments and suggestions on the Advance Notice of 
Proposed Rulemaking until September 25, 2006.

ADDRESSES: You may submit comments by any of the following methods:
    Mail: Director (630), Bureau of Land Management, Administrative 
Record, Room 401 LS, Eastern States Office, 7450 Boston Boulevard, 
Springfield, Virginia 22153.
    Personal or messenger delivery: Room 401, 1620 L Street, NW., 
Washington, DC 20036.
    Federal eRulemaking Portal: http://www.regulations.gov.
    E-mail: [email protected]. (Include ``Attn: 1004-AD90'')

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: For information on the substance of 
the Advance Notice, please contact Ted Murphy at (202) 452-0350. For 
information on procedural matters, please contact Kelly Odom at (202) 
452-5028. Persons who use a telecommunications device for the deaf 
(TDD) may call the Federal Information Relay Service (FIRS) at 1-800-
877-8339, to contact the above individuals during business hours. FIRS 
is available twenty-four hours a day, seven days a week.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

I. Public Comment Procedures

Commenting on the Advance Notice of Proposed Rulemaking

    Written comments or suggestions should:

--Be specific;
--Explain the reasoning behind your comments and suggestions; and
--Address the issues outlined in the Notice.

    For comments and recommendations to be the most useful, and most 
likely to influence decisions on the content of the proposed rule, they 
should:

--Be substantive;
--Facilitate the development and implementation of an environmentally-
responsible commercial leasing system for Federally owned oil shale 
resources located on Federal lands.

    The BLM is particularly interested in receiving comments and 
suggestions

[[Page 50379]]

about the topics listed in SECTION III of this Notice. All 
communication on these topics should refer to RIN 1004-AD90 and may be 
submitted by several methods listed under the ADDRESSES section of this 
notice.
    Comments received after the close of the comment period (see DATES) 
may not necessarily be considered or included in the Administrative 
Record for the proposed rule. Likewise, comments delivered to an 
address other than those listed above (see ADDRESSES) need not be 
considered or included in the Administrative Record for the proposed 
rule.

Reviewing Comments Submitted by Others

    Comments, including names and street addresses of respondents, will 
be available for public review at the address listed under ADDRESSES 
Personal or messenger delivery during regular business hours (7:45 a.m. 
to 4:15 p.m.), Monday through Friday, except holidays. Individual 
respondents may request confidentiality, which will be honored to the 
extent allowable by law. Those wishing to withhold their name or 
address (except for the city or town) must state this prominently at 
the beginning of their comment, and state a reason for the request. 
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.

II. Background

    On December 13, 2005, BLM published in the Federal Register (70 FR 
73791) a Notice of Intent (NOI) to prepare a PEIS for Oil Shale and Tar 
Sands Resources Leasing on public lands administered by the BLM in 
Colorado, Utah, and Wyoming. The NOI announced that the PEIS will 
support amendment of existing BLM Resource Management Plans to provide 
for oil share leasing in each of the three states, and tar sands in 
Utah. Additionally, the NOI identified preliminary planning criteria, 
initiated the public scoping process, and invited interested members of 
the public to provide comments on the scope and objectives of the PEIS. 
As part of the public scoping process identified in the NOI, public 
scoping meetings were held in January 2006 at seven western locations.
    Through the Oil Shale and Tar Sands Resources Leasing PEIS, the BLM 
will evaluate decisions regarding which public lands will be open for 
leasing in Colorado, Utah, and Wyoming and under what constraints. The 
PEIS will analyze and document the environmental, social, and economic 
issues associated with alternative approaches for leasing oil shale and 
tar sands resources. Information about all opportunities for public 
involvement in the Oil Shale and Tar Sands Leasing PEIS, including 
releases of documents for review, is available at the project Web site: 
http://ostseis.anl.gov.
    Comments received on the ANPR and the PEIS will be considered in 
shaping the rule as well as land use planning decisions, both of which 
are prerequisites to a commercial leasing program. NEPA requirements 
for the rulemaking will be determined after considering information 
received in response to this notice and identifying the regulatory 
issues to be addressed.
    The proposed rule that BLM is currently developing constitutes the 
second step of the Department of the Interior's efforts to initiate a 
phased or staged approach to oil shale development--the first step 
being a research, development, and demonstration project (RF&D) 
authorized dated June 5, 2005 (70 FR 33753), BLM solicited nominations 
of parcels to be leased for RD&D of oil shale recovery technologies in 
Colorado, Utah, and Wyoming.

III. Description of Information Requested

    The BLM is particularly interested in receiving comments on the 
following questions relating to regulations it is developing for an oil 
shale commercial leasing program:
    1. What should be the royalty rate and point of royalty 
determination?
    2. Should the regulations establish a process for bid adequacy 
evaluation, i.e., Fair Market Value determination, or should the 
regulations establish a minimum acceptable lease bonus bid?
    3. How should diligent development be determined?
    4. What should be the minimum production requirement?
    5. Should there be provisions for small tract leasing?
    The BLM is also interested in receiving any other comments 
regarding contents and structure of the oil shale leasing program, 
including the management of mining operations. Comments focused on 
environmental issues should be directed to those preparing the 
Programmatic EIS. For information on how to submit such comments, see 
http://ostseis.anl.gov.

    Dated: August 16, 2006.
Chad Calvert,
Acting Assistant Secretary, Land and Minerals Management.
[FR Doc. 06-7136 Filed 8-24-06; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4310-84-M