[Federal Register Volume 80, Number 11 (Friday, January 16, 2015)]
[Notices]
[Pages 2437-2438]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2015-00453]


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DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR

Bureau of Land Management

[LLWYR05000.L51100000.GN0000.LVEMK11CW630-WYW168184]


Notice of Availability of the Draft Environmental Impact 
Statement for the Sheep Mountain Uranium Project, Fremont County, 
Wyoming

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 Act of 1976 
(FLPMA) and associated regulations, the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) 
has prepared a Draft Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) for the Sheep 
Mountain Uranium Project and by this notice is announcing the opening 
of the comment period.

DATES: To ensure comments will be considered, the BLM must receive 
written comments on the Sheep Mountain Uranium Project Draft EIS within 
45 days following the date the Environmental Protection Agency 
publishes its Notice of Availability in the Federal Register. The BLM 
will announce future meetings or hearings and any other public 
involvement activities related to this Draft EIS at least 15 days in 
advance through public notices, media releases and/or mailings.

ADDRESSES: Comments on the Draft EIS may be submitted by any of the 
following methods:
     Web site: http://www.blm.gov/wy/st/en/info/NEPA/documents/lfo/gashills.html.
     Email: [email protected].
     Mail: Chris Krassin, Project Manager, BLM Lander Field 
Office, 1335 Main Street, Lander, WY 82520.
    Copies of the Sheep Mountain Uranium Project Draft EIS are 
available in the Lander Field Office at the above address, the BLM 
Wyoming State Office in Cheyenne, Wyoming, and online at the above Web 
site.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Chris Krassin, Project Manager, 
telephone: 307-332-8400; address: BLM Lander Field Office, 1335 Main 
Street, Lander, WY 82520; or email: [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

[[Page 2438]]

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: Titan Uranium USA Inc., a wholly owned 
subsidiary of Titan Uranium Inc., submitted a 43 CFR 3809 Plan of 
Operations (Plan) to the BLM Lander Field Office (LFO) for the Sheep 
Mountain Uranium Project (Project) in Fremont County, Wyoming, on June 
16, 2011. On February 29, 2012, Energy Fuels Inc. merged with Titan 
Uranium Inc. and all of its subsidiaries are now wholly-owned 
subsidiaries of Energy Fuels Resources (USA) Inc. (Energy Fuels). 
Energy Fuels will continue as the owner and operator of the Sheep 
Mountain Project. Energy Fuels submitted revised Plans to the BLM on 
July 16, 2012, August 29, 2013, and January 14, 2014. The 2014 revision 
consisted of a revision to the Wyoming Department of Environmental 
Quality--Land Quality Division (WDEQ-LQD) Mine Permit 381C and a final 
update to the Plan for which the EIS is based.
    The Project is located 8 road miles south of Jeffrey City, Wyoming, 
in south-central Fremont County, in the Crooks Gap-Green Mountain 
District which was extensively mined starting in the 1950s. This area 
lies 62 road miles southeast of Riverton, Wyoming and 105 road miles 
west of Casper, Wyoming. The Project is within an active State of 
Wyoming Permit to Mine (No.381C) administered by the WDEQ-LQD. 
Revisions to the WDEQ-LQD permit have been submitted by Energy Fuels. 
Energy Fuels is currently considering applying for a U.S. Nuclear 
Regulatory Commission (NRC) Source Materials License for the proposed 
heap leach and processing facility.
    Energy Fuels proposes to explore for and develop uranium reserves 
to produce approximately 1.0 million to 2.0 million pounds of uranium 
per year over an anticipated project life of 20 years. Uranium would be 
extracted using conventional open-pit and underground mining methods. 
Ore processing into yellowcake (U3O8) would occur 
either on-site using a heap leach and solvent extraction/ion exchange 
or offsite utilizing the existing conventional Sweetwater Uranium Mill 
approximately 30 miles to the south (NRC License SUA-1350). The 
boundary of the Sheep Mountain Project Area (Project Area) is within 
the active WDEQ-LQD 381C Mine Permit Area, encompassing approximately 
3,611 acres (5.6 square miles) of which approximately 929 acres would 
be disturbed under the Proposed Action Alternative. Approximately 62 
percent (572.5 acres) of the surface within the Proposed Action 
disturbance area historically was disturbed by previous mining and 
exploration activities.
    The Draft EIS addresses the direct, indirect and cumulative impacts 
of the Proposed Action and two alternatives including the No Action 
Alternative and the BLM Mitigation Alternative.
    The No Action Alternative, as required by NEPA, describes 
conditions that would occur if the proposed project were denied. This 
includes existing reclamation efforts on 227 acres of existing 
disturbance within the Project Area as required by the financial 
guarantee held for Mine Permit 381C. This reclamation includes a 
portion of the McIntosh pit and the existing underground mines, roads 
and facilities. Reclamation of the entire McIntosh Pit would be 
completed by the Wyoming Department of Environmental Quality--Abandoned 
Mine Lands program (WDEQ-AML) in coordination with Energy Fuels.
    The Proposed Action Alternative is the project as proposed by 
Energy Fuels in their Plan, as amended, and the revised WDEQ-LQD Mine 
Permit 381C.
    The BLM Mitigation Alternative would utilize the same conventional 
mining techniques over the same period as under the Proposed Action, 
but modifications to the proposed reclamation plan and development of a 
transportation plan would be required. In addition, the BLM Mitigation 
Alternative would identify opportunities to apply hierarchical 
mitigation strategies for on-site, regional and compensatory mitigation 
strategies and identify areas appropriate to apply landscape-level 
conservation and management actions to achieve regional mitigation 
objectives.
    The Notice of Intent to prepare an EIS was published in the Federal 
Register on August 23, 2011 (76 FR 52688). Key issues identified during 
scoping were related to the development of additional alternatives, 
cumulative impacts, mitigation and monitoring and potential impacts to 
range, water, recreation, and wildlife resources.
    The public is encouraged to comment on any of these alternatives. 
The BLM asks that those submitting comments make them as specific as 
possible with reference to chapters, page numbers and paragraphs in the 
Draft EIS document. Comments that contain only opinions or preferences 
will not receive a formal response; however, they will be considered 
and included as part of the BLM decision-making process. The most 
useful comments will include new technical or scientific information, 
identification of data gaps in the impact analysis, or technical or 
scientific rationale for opinions or preference.
    Please note that public comments and information submitted 
including names, street addresses, and email addresses of persons who 
submit comments will be available for public review and disclosure at 
the above address during regular business hours (8 a.m. to 4 p.m.), 
Monday through Friday, except holidays.
    Before including your address, phone number, email address, or 
other personal identifying information in your comment, you should be 
aware that your entire comment--including your personal identifying 
information--may be made publicly available at any time. While you can 
ask us in your comment to withhold your personal identifying 
information from public review, we cannot guarantee that we will be 
able to do so.

Donald A. Simpson,
State Director.
[FR Doc. 2015-00453 Filed 1-15-15; 8:45 am]
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