[Federal Register Volume 72, Number 61 (Friday, March 30, 2007)]
[Notices]
[Pages 15159-15161]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: E7-5776]


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DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR

Bureau of Reclamation

[DES 07-09]


Navajo-Gallup Water Supply Project

AGENCY: Bureau of Reclamation, Interior.

ACTION: Notice of Availability and Notice of Public Meetings for the 
Planning Report and Draft Environmental Impact Statement for the 
Navajo-Gallup Water Supply Project.

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SUMMARY: Pursuant to the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) of 
1969 (as amended) and the general authority to conduct water resources 
planning under the Reclamation Act of 1902 and all acts amendatory 
thereof and supplementary thereto, the Bureau of Reclamation 
(Reclamation) has prepared a Planning Report and Draft Environmental 
Impact Statement (PR/DEIS). This document was undertaken to provide a 
discussion for the (1) various ways to provide a municipal and 
industrial (M&I) water supply to the Navajo Nation; City of Gallup, New 
Mexico; and Jicarilla Apache Nation; (2) identification of a preferred 
alternative; and (3) associated environmental impacts and costs of such 
an endeavor, should it be undertaken.
    The PR/DEIS presents alternatives for providing an anticipated year 
2040 M&I water supply for the project area. Alternatives considered 
include diverting and distributing water from the San Juan River using 
various configurations, water conservation using existing groundwater 
supplies, and no action.

DATES: A 90-day public review period commences with the publication of 
this notice. Comments on the PR/DEIS should be submitted no later than 
June 28, 2007, to Mr. Rege Leach, Bureau of Reclamation, Western 
Colorado Area Office, 835 East Second Avenue, Suite 300, Durango, 
Colorado 81301. Comments may also be submitted electronically at 
[email protected].
    Reclamation will conduct five public meetings to obtain public 
input on the PR/DEIS. All of the meetings will take place from 6 p.m. 
to 9 p.m. The public meetings schedule is as follows:

 Tuesday, May 22, 2007--University of New Mexico, Calvin Hall 
Room 248, 200 College Drive, Gallup, New Mexico
 Wednesday, May 23, 2007--Crownpoint Chapter House, Building 
CO23-001, East Crownpoint Road, Crownpoint, New Mexico
 Thursday, May 24, 2007--St. Michaels Chapter House, St 
Michaels, Arizona
 Tuesday, June 5, 2007--Shiprock Chapter House, Highway 61, 
Shiprock, New Mexico
 Wednesday, June 6, 2007--San Juan College, IT Building, Room 
7103, 5001 College Blvd., Farmington, New Mexico

[[Page 15160]]


ADDRESSES: Copies of the PR/DEIS are available for public inspection 
and review at the following locations:

 Albuquerque/Bernalillo County Library, 501 Copper Avenue, NW., 
Albuquerque, New Mexico
 Aztec Public Library, 319 South Ash, Aztec, New Mexico
 Bloomfield City Library, 333 South First Street, Bloomfield, 
New Mexico
 Cortez Public Library, 202 N. Park, Cortez, Colorado
 Din[eacute] College Library, 1228 Yucca Street, Shiprock, New 
Mexico
 Durango Public Library, 1188 E. 2nd Avenue, Durango, Colorado
 Farmington Public Library, 2101 Farmington Avenue, Farmington, 
New Mexico
 Fort Lewis College Library, 1000 Rim Drive, Durango, Colorado
 Navajo Nation Library, Window Rock, Arizona
 New Mexico State Library, 1209 Camino Carlos Rey, Santa Fe, 
New Mexico
 New Mexico State University Library, Las Cruces, New Mexico
 San Juan College Library, 4601 College Boulevard, Farmington, 
New Mexico
 University of Colorado Libraries, Government Publications, 
1720 Pleasant Street, Boulder, Colorado
 Zimmerman Library, Government Information Department, 
University of New Mexico, Albuquerque, New Mexico
    The PR/DEIS is also available electronically at the following 
internet location: http://www.usbr.gov/uc/rm/navajo/nav-gallup/index.html. Alternatively, a hard copy or CD-ROM version is available 
upon written request to Mr. Rege Leach, Bureau of Reclamation, Western 
Colorado Area Office, 835 East Second Avenue, Suite 300, Durango, 
Colorado 81301.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Mr. Rege Leach, Bureau of Reclamation, 
Western Colorado Area Office, 835 East Second Avenue, Suite 300, 
Durango, Colorado 81301; telephone 970-385-6500; facsimile 970-385-
6539; e-mail: [email protected]. If special assistance is required 
regarding accommodations for attendance at any of the public meetings, 
please contact Mr. Leach no less than 5 working days prior to the 
applicable meeting(s).

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The proposed project is to provide a long-
term supply, treatment, and transmission of M&I water to the Navajo 
Nation, the Jicarilla Apache Nation, and the City of Gallup, New 
Mexico. A sustainable water supply is needed for the area to support 
current and future populations. The proposed project would be designed 
to serve a future population of approximately 250,000 people by the 
year 2040. The existing groundwater supplies are dwindling and have 
limited capacity and poor quality. More than 40 percent of Navajo 
households rely on water hauling to meet daily water needs. The City of 
Gallup's groundwater levels have dropped approximately 200 feet over 
the past 10 years and the supply is not expected to meet current water 
demands within the decade. The Jicarilla Apache people are currently 
not able to live and work outside the Town of Dulce, New Mexico, on the 
reservation because of a lack of water supply.
    The cost analysis contained in this PR/DEIS is based on an 
appraisal level of analysis. As part of Reclamation's efforts to attain 
greater transparency and accountability with regards to its engineering 
analyses, the cost estimate is being repriced. This means that instead 
of updating the 2005 cost estimates using engineering cost indices, the 
components of the project will be individually repriced in order to 
gain greater confidence in the estimate. Once the repricing is 
completed, which we anticipate to occur during the 90-day public 
comment period, Reclamation will update the PR/DEIS through an addendum 
or potentially the use of errata sheets.
    Reclamation historically supports projects for construction after a 
feasibility report is completed which includes a feasibility level cost 
estimate. This appraisal level cost estimate does not meet that 
requirement. Additional analysis, detail, and updating of the appraisal 
level cost estimate presented in this draft report are needed before 
project construction authorization can be supported. Failure to 
complete this additional effort may result in reliance on a cost 
estimate for the project which is not sufficient to characterize the 
expected project cost. The appraisal level design must be upgraded to 
feasibility level before Reclamation would begin construction. The cost 
of, and time for completing this additional work, would be substantial.
    Reclamation has developed this PR/DEIS pursuant to Public Law 92-
199 and the general authority to conduct water resources planning under 
the Reclamation Act of 1902 and all acts amendatory thereof and 
supplementary thereto. This document was undertaken to provide a 
discussion for the (1) various ways to provide an M&I water supply to 
the Navajo Nation; City of Gallup, New Mexico; and Jicarilla Apache 
Nation; (2) identification of a preferred alternative; and (3) 
associated environmental impacts and costs of such an endeavor, should 
it be undertaken. Reclamation, however, does not have the current 
substantive or budgetary authorization that is required to construct, 
operate, and maintain any proposed facilities discussed in this PR/
DEIS, and it will take an act of Congress to provide such authority. In 
addition, Reclamation takes no position on whether such a project 
should be authorized. The indication of a preferred alternative is 
solely to meet the requirements of NEPA and is not an indication that a 
particular alternative should be pursued since, as noted earlier, there 
is no project authorization that would allow Reclamation to commence 
this project.
    Finally, we are aware that the Navajo Nation and the State of New 
Mexico have reached an agreement concerning the settlement of the 
Navajo's water rights in the San Juan River Basin in New Mexico and 
that a part of the settlement is the construction, operation, and 
maintenance of the Navajo-Gallup Water Supply Project. We wish to be 
clear that neither Reclamation, the Department of the Interior, or the 
Administration have taken a position on the Navajo-San Juan Settlement 
executed between the Navajo Nation and the State of New Mexico and that 
nothing herein is any indication of any position regarding the overall 
settlement.

Public Disclosure

    It is our practice to make comments, including names, home 
addresses, home telephone numbers, and e-mail addresses of respondents, 
available for public review. Individual respondents may request that we 
withhold their names and/or home addresses, etc., but if you wish us to 
consider withholding this information you must state this prominently 
at the beginning of your comments. In addition, you must present a 
rationale for withholding this information. This rationale must 
demonstrate that disclosure would constitute a clearly unwarranted 
invasion of privacy. Unsupported assertions will not meet this burden. 
In the absence of exceptional, documentable circumstances, this 
information will be released. We will always make submissions from 
organizations or businesses, and from individuals identifying 
themselves as representatives or officials of organizations or 
businesses, available for public inspection in their entirety.


[[Page 15161]]


    Dated: March 22, 2007.
Rick L. Gold,
Regional Director--Bureau of Reclamation, Upper Colorado Region.
 [FR Doc. E7-5776 Filed 3-29-07; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4310-MN-P