[Federal Register Volume 76, Number 73 (Friday, April 15, 2011)]
[Notices]
[Pages 21402-21403]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2011-9076]


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DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR

Bureau of Land Management

[CACA 048649, LLCAD06000, L51010000.FX0000, LVRWB09B2490]


Notice of Availability of the Final Environmental Impact 
Statement for the Desert Sunlight Holdings, LLC, Desert Sunlight Solar 
Farm and Proposed California Desert Conservation Area Plan Amendment

AGENCY: Bureau of Land Management, Interior.

ACTION: Notice of Availability.

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SUMMARY: In accordance with the National Environmental Policy Act of 
1969, as amended (NEPA), and the Federal Land Policy and Management Act 
of 1976, as amended (FLPMA), the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) has 
prepared a Proposed California Desert Conservation Area (CDCA) Plan 
Amendment/Final Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) for the Desert 
Sunlight Solar Farm (DSSF) project and by this notice is announcing its 
availability.

DATES: The BLM planning regulations state that any person who meets the 
conditions as described in the regulations may protest the BLM's 
Proposed CDCA Plan Amendment/Final EIS. A person who meets the 
conditions and files a protest must file the protest within 30 days of 
the date that the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) publishes its 
notice in the Federal Register. The protest procedures are described in 
the ``Dear Reader'' letter accompanying the Proposed Plan Amendment/
Final EIS.

ADDRESSES: Copies of the DSSF Proposed CDCA Plan Amendment/Final EIS 
have been sent to affected Federal, state, and local government 
agencies and to other stakeholders. Copies are available for public 
inspection at the Palms Springs South Coast Field Office, 1201 Bird 
Center Drive, Palm Springs, California 92262. Interested persons may 
also review the document at the following Web site: http://www.blm.gov/ca/st/en/fo/palmsprings/Solar_Projects/Desert_Sunlight.html. All 
protests must be in writing and mailed to one of the following 
addresses:

Regular Mail: BLM Director (210), Attention: Brenda Williams, P.O. Box 
71383, Washington, DC 20024-1383;
 Overnight Mail: BLM Director (210), Attention: Brenda Williams, 20 M 
Street, S.E., Room 2134LM, Washington, DC 20003.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: For further information contact 
Allison Shaffer, BLM Project Manager, telephone (760) 833-7100; address 
(see above); or e-mail [email protected]. 
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 individual during normal business hours. The FIRS is 
available 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, to leave a message or question 
with the above individual. You will receive a reply during normal 
business hours.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Desert Sunlight Holdings, LLC has submitted 
a right of way (ROW) application to the BLM to construct the proposed 
DSSF which includes a 550-megawatt (MW) solar photovoltaic (PV) 
facility and associated 220- kilovolt (kV) interconnection line (gen-
tie line), and to facilitate the construction and operation by Southern 
California Edison (SCE) of the new 500/220-kV Red Bluff Substation, 
where the project would interconnect with the SCE regional transmission 
system. The total project footprint consists of approximately 4,165 
acres of BLM-managed lands with a proposed ROW encompassing 
approximately 4,317 acres. The power generation site would consist of 
several components: A main generation area which includes PV arrays, 
combining switchgear, overhead lines, and access corridors; an 
operations and maintenance facility; a solar energy visitor center; an 
on-site substation; and site security and fencing. The gen-tie line ROW 
from the project to the proposed Red Bluff Substation would cover 256 
acres with a 12-mile long, 160-foot wide corridor. The gen-tie line 
would transmit power to SCE's existing Devers-Palo Verde 1 (DPV1) 500-
kV transmission line.
    The Red Bluff Substation would consist of a 500/220-kV substation 
on approximately 76 acres, with an additional 73 acres for related 
features including access roads and drainage control. Substation 
features would include: connection of the project transmission line 
into the substation; transmission lines to connect the substation to 
the DPV1 line; modification of DPV1 towers near the substation; 
construction of an electric

[[Page 21403]]

distribution line for substation light and power; and installation of 
telecommunications facilities.
    The project site is located approximately 6 miles north of 
Interstate 10 and the rural community of Desert Center in Riverside 
County. The project area is within 2 miles of Joshua Tree National 
Park.
    The BLM's purpose and need for the DSSF project is to respond to an 
application for a ROW grant to construct, operate, maintain, and 
decommission a solar photovoltaic facility on public lands in 
compliance with FLPMA, BLM ROW regulations, and other applicable 
Federal laws. The BLM will decide whether to approve, approve with 
modification, or deny the ROW for the proposed DSSF project. The BLM 
will also consider amending the CDCA Plan in this analysis. The CDCA 
Plan (1980, as amended), while recognizing the potential compatibility 
of solar generation facilities on public lands, requires that all sites 
associated with power generation or transmission not identified in that 
plan be considered through the plan amendment process. If the BLM 
decides to grant a ROW, the BLM would also amend the CDCA Plan as 
required.
    In the Final EIS, the proposed action is to authorize the DSSF 
project and approve a CDCA Plan amendment in response to the 
application received from Desert Sunlight Holdings, LLC. The BLM's 
preferred alternative is the proposed action, which consists of the 
power generation site (Solar Farm Layout B), Gen-Tie Line GT-A-1 (which 
parallels Kaiser Road), Substation A, and Access Road 2, aggregating 
4,165 acres of permanent ground disturbance. Other alternatives to 
authorizing the proposed DSSF project include: (1) Authorize the Solar 
Farm Layout B, Gen-Tie Line GT-B-2, and Red Bluff Substation B, 
aggregating 4,100 acres of permanent ground disturbance; and (2) 
authorize a reduced footprint alternative with a reduced output 
including Solar Farm Layout C (413 MW), Gen-Tie Line GT-A-2, Red Bluff 
Substation A, and Access Road 1, aggregating 3,292 acres of permanent 
ground disturbance. Additionally, the Final EIS analyzes two no project 
alternatives: (1) Deny the project but amend the CDCA Plan to allow 
other solar energy power generation projects on the project site; and 
(2) deny the project and amend the CDCA Plan to prohibit solar energy 
projects on the project site. As required under NEPA, the Final EIS 
analyzes a no action alternative (no ROW grant and no CDCA Plan 
amendment).
    The Final EIS evaluates the potential impacts of the proposed DSSF 
and CDCA Plan Amendment on air quality, biological resources, cultural 
resources, water resources, geological resources and hazards, land use, 
noise, paleontological resources, public health, socioeconomics, soils, 
traffic and transportation, visual resources, wilderness 
characteristics, and other resources.
    A Notice of Availability for the DSSF Draft CDCA Plan Amendment/
Draft EIS was published by the EPA in the Federal Register on August 
27, 2010 (75 FR 52736). The formal 90-day comment period ended on 
November 26, 2010. Comments were considered and incorporated as 
appropriate into the Proposed CDCA Plan Amendment/Final EIS. Public 
comments resulted in the addition of clarifying text, but did not 
significantly change proposed land use plan decisions.
    Instructions for filing a protest with the Director of the BLM 
regarding the DSSF project may be found in the ``Dear Reader'' letter 
of the Proposed CDCA Plan Amendment/Final EIS and at 43 CFR 1610.5-2. 
E-mail and faxed protests will not be accepted as valid protests unless 
the protesting party also provides the original letter by either 
regular or overnight mail postmarked by the close of the protest 
period. Under these conditions, the BLM will consider the e-mail or 
faxed protest as an advance copy and it will receive full 
consideration. If you wish to provide the BLM with such advance 
notification, please direct faxed protests to the attention of the BLM 
protest coordinator at 202-912-7212, and e-mails to [email protected]. All protests, including the follow-up letter to e-
mails or faxes, must be in writing and mailed to the appropriate 
address, as set forth in the ADDRESSES section above.
    Before including your phone number, e-mail address, or other 
personal identifying information in your protest, you should be aware 
that your entire protest-including your personal identifying 
information-may be made publicly available at any time. While you can 
ask us in your protest to withhold your personal identifying 
information from public review, we cannot guarantee that we will be 
able to do so.

    Authority:  40 CFR 1506.6 and 1506.10; 43 CFR 1610.2 and1610.5.

Thomas Pogacnik,
Deputy State Director, California.
[FR Doc. 2011-9076 Filed 4-14-11; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4310-40-P