[Federal Register Volume 72, Number 149 (Friday, August 3, 2007)]
[Notices]
[Pages 43228-43229]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 07-3743]


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DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE

Forest Service


Manti-La Sal National Forest, Utah, EIS for Oil and Gas Leasing

AGENCY: Forest Service, USDA, and Bureau of Land Management, USDI.

ACTION: Notice of intent to prepare an environmental impact statement.

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SUMMARY: The Manti-La Sal National Forest gives notice of the intent to 
prepare an environmental impact statement (EIS) to document the 
analysis and disclose the environmental and human effects of oil and 
gas leasing on lands administered by the Manti-La Sal National Forest. 
The Federal Onshore Oil and Gas Leasing Reform Act of 1987 (FOOGLRA) 
requires the Forest Service to evaluate National Forest System (NFS) 
lands for potential oil and gas leasing.
    As the agency responsible for lease issuance and administration, 
the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) will participate as a cooperating 
agency.

DATES: Comments concerning the scope of the analysis should be received 
by September 10, 2007, to be most helpful. The draft environmental 
impact statement is scheduled for completion by the spring of 2008, and 
the final environmental impact statement is scheduled for completion by 
the fall of 2008.

ADDRESSES: Send written comments to: Dale Harber, Oil and Gas Team 
Leader, Manti-La Sal National Forest, 599 West Price River Drive, 
Price, UT 84501; phone (435) 636-3548; fax (435) 637-4940; email 
[email protected]. Please include ``Oil and Gas 
Leasing Analysis Project'' on the subject line.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Ann King, Public Affairs Officer, 
Manti-La Sal National Forest, 599 West Price River Drive, Price, UT 
84501; phone (435) 636-3535.
    Fore technical information contact Dale Harber, Oil and Gas Team 
Leader, (435) 636-3548.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Purpose and Need for Action

    FOOGLRA requires the Forest Service to evaluate NFS lands for 
potential oil and gas leasing and establishes Forest Service consent 
authority for leasing prior to the BLM offering NFS lands for lease. A 
leasing EIS was prepared in the early 1990s, with the Record of 
Decision (ROD) signed January 12, 1993, and a ROD modifying specific 
aspects of the original ROD signed on January 4, 1994. Due to the 
length of time since the last EIS was prepared and the increased 
interest by the industry due to the increased demand for oil and gas, 
high prices, and discoveries of oil and gas reserves in nearby areas 
with similar geologic conditions, it is now time to prepare an updated 
EIS to continue leasing. The BLM Utah State Office has received, and 
continues to receive, numerous Expressions of Interest for leasing 
portions of the Manti-La Sal Natioal Forest.

Proposed Action

    The Forest Supervisor of the Manti-La Sal National Forest and the 
Utah State Director, Bureau of Land Management, propose to conduct that 
analysis and decide which lands to make available for oil and gas 
leasing. The analysis area includes all NFS lands administered by the 
Manti-La Sal National Forest. As part of the analysis, the Forest 
Service will identify those areas that would be available for leasing 
subject to the terms and conditions of the standard oil and gas lease 
form, or the use of lease stipulations such as those prohibiting 
surface occupancy. The analysis will also: (1) Identify alternatives to 
the proposed action, including that of not allowing leasing (no 
action), (2) project the type/amount of post-leasing activity that is 
reasonably foreseeable, and (3) analyze the reasonably foreseeable 
impacts of projected post-leasing activity [36 CFR 228.102(c)].

Possible Alternatives

    All alternatives studied in detail must fall within the scope of 
the purpose and need for action and will generally tier to and comply 
with the Manti-La Sal Forest Plan. Law requires evaluation of a ``no 
action alternative''. Under the No Action/No Lease alternative, no 
additional oil and gas leasing would occur. Alternatives to be 
evaluated would range from the No Action/No Lease alternative (most 
restrictive) to the Standard Lease Terms alterative (least restrictive) 
where all lands legally open to leasing would be made administratively 
available for leasing with only the standard BLM terms and conditions 
contained on BLM Lease Form 3100-11. Other alternatives which fall 
somewhere between the No Action/No Lease alternative and Lease with 
Standard Terms alternative would also be developed and evaluated, which 
would involve making some lands unavailable for leasing and other lands 
available for leasing with stipulations for the protection of other 
resources and interests.
    The Forest is expecting that the public input will generate either 
thematic concerns or area-specific issues that may be addressed by 
modifying the proposed action to create a new alternative or 
alternatives.

Lead and Cooperating Agencies

    The Forest Service is the lead agency. The Bureau of Land 
Management will participate as a cooperating agency.

Responsible Officials

    Rodney L. Player, Forest Supervisor, Manti-La Sal National Forest, 
599 West Price River Drive, Price, UT 84501.
    Selma Sierra, Utah State Director, Bureau of Land Management, 440 
West 200 South, Suite 500, Salt Lake City, UT 84145.

Nature of Decision to be Made

    The Forest Supervisor, Manti-La Sal National Forest, will decide 
which lands administered by the Manti-La Sal National Forest will be 
administratively available for oil and gas leasing, along with 
associated conditions or constraints for the protection of non-mineral 
interests [36 CFR 228.102(d)]. The Forest Supervisor will also 
authorize the BLM to offer specific lands for lease, subject to the 
Forest Service ensuring that the required stipulations are attached to 
the leases [36 CFR 228.102(e)].
    The BLM is responsible for issuing and administration of oil and 
gas leases under the Mineral Leasing Act of 1920, as amended, and 
Federal Regulations in 43 CFR 3101.7. The BLM Utah State Director must 
decide whether or not to offer for lease specific lands authorized for 
leasing by the Manti-La Sal National Forest and with what stipulations.

[[Page 43229]]

Scoping Process

    The first formal opportunity to comment on the Manti-La Sal 
National Forest Oil and Gas Leasing Analysis Project is during the 
scoping process (40 CFR 1501.7), which begins with the issuance of this 
Notice of Intent. The Forest Service requests comments on the nature 
and scope of the environmental, social, and economic issues, and 
possible alternatives related to oil and gas leasing on lands 
administered by the Manti-La Sale National Forest. Mail comments to: 
Dale Harber, Oil and Gas Team Leader, Manti-La Sal National Forest, 599 
West Price River Drive, Price, UT 84501.
    A series of public meetings are scheduled to describe the proposal 
and to provide an opportunity for public input. Meetings are planned in 
Moab, Monticello, Ferron, Ephraim, Price, and Provo, Utah, and Delta, 
Colorado, in late August and early September. The schedule will be 
published in the newspapers of record for the Manti-La Sal National 
Forest Supervisor's Office and the Ranger Districts as soon as it is 
finalized. Written comments will be accepted at this meetings.
    The Forest Service will work with tribal governments to address 
issues that would significantly or uniquely affect them.

Preliminary Issues

    Important goals for the project are to meet the legal requirements 
for evaluating NFS lands and make the required decisions. The intent of 
the applicable laws and regulations (see Summary) are to lease 
appropriate NFS lands and provide a reasonable opportunity to explore 
for, discover, and produce economic oil and gas reserves from available 
Federal lands, while meeting the requirements of environmental laws and 
protection of other resources and interests not compatible with such 
activities. Issues are anticipated to involve potential effects to 
wildlife, water, vegetation, recreation, public safety, roadless 
character, visual resources, cultural and paleontological resources, 
and social and economic settings. Specific issues will be developed 
through review of public comments and internal review.

Comment Requested

    This Notice of Intent initiates the scoping process which guides 
the development of the EIS. The Forest has also received substantial 
input at public meetings held for the Forest Plan revision, including 
issues relative to mineral exploration and development. Through these 
efforts the Forest has an understanding of the broad range of 
perspectives on the resource issues and social values attributed to 
resource activities on the Manti-La Sal National Forest. Consequently, 
site-specific comments or concerns are the most important types of 
information needed for this EIS. Because the Oil and Gas Leasing EIS is 
a stand-alone document, only public comment letters which address 
relevant issues and concerns will be considered and formally addressed 
in an appendix in the EIS.

Early Notice of Importance of Public Participation in Subsequent 
Environmental Review

    A draft environmental impact statement will be prepared for 
comment. The comment period on the draft environmental impact statement 
is expected to be 45 days from the date the Environmental Protection 
Agency publishes the notice of availability in the Federal Register. 
The Forest Service believes, at this early stage, it is important to 
give reviewers notice of several court rulings related to public 
participation in the environmental review process. First, reviewers of 
draft environmental impact statements must structure their 
participation in the environmental review of the proposal so that it is 
meaningful and alerts an agency to the reviewer's position and 
contentions. Vermont Yankee Nuclear Power Corp. v. NRDC, 435 U.S. 519, 
533 (1978). Also, environmental objections that could be raised at the 
draft environmental impact statement stage but that are not raised 
until after completion of the final environmental impact statement may 
be waived or dismissed by the courts. City of Angoon v. Hodel, 803 F.2d 
1016, 1022 (9th Cir. 1986) and Wisconsin Heritages, Inc. v. Harris, 490 
F. Supp. 1334, 1338 (E.D. Wis. 1980). Because of these court rulings, 
it is very important that those interested in this proposed action 
participate by providing comments during the scoping comment period and 
during the comment period following the release of the draft EIS so 
that substantive comments and objections are made available to the 
Forest Service at a time when it can meaningfully consider them and 
respond to them in the final environmental impact statement.
    To assist the Forest Service in identifying and considering issues 
and concerns on the proposed action, comments should be as specific as 
possible. Reviewers may wish to refer to the Council on Environmental 
Quality Regulations for implementing the procedural provisions of the 
National Environmental Policy Act at 40 CFR 1503.3 in addressing their 
points.
    Comment received, including the names and addresses of those who 
comments, will be considered part of the public record on this proposal 
and will be available for public inspection.

(Authority: 40 CFR 1501.7 and 1508.22; Forest Service Handbook 
1909.15, Section 21.)

    Dated: July 26, 2007.
Rodney L. Player,
Forest Supervisor, Manti-La Sal National Forest.
[FR Doc. 07-3743 Filed 8-2-07; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3410-11-M