[Federal Register Volume 80, Number 94 (Friday, May 15, 2015)]
[Notices]
[Pages 28001-28002]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2015-11298]



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DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR

Bureau of Indian Affairs

[156A2100DD/AAKC001030/A0A501010.999900 253G]


Draft Environmental Impact Statement for the Proposed Aiya Solar 
Project, Clark County, Nevada

AGENCY: Bureau of Indian Affairs, Interior.

ACTION: Notice of Availability.

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SUMMARY: In accordance with the National Environmental Policy Act 
(NEPA), the Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA), as the lead Federal agency, 
with the Bureau of Land Management (BLM), the Environmental Protection 
Agency (EPA), U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS), and the Moapa 
Band of Paiute Indians (Tribe) as Cooperating Agencies, has prepared a 
draft environmental impact statement (DEIS) for the proposed Aiya Solar 
Project on the Moapa River Indian Reservation (Reservation) in Clark 
County, Nevada. This notice announces that the DEIS is now available 
for public review and that BIA will hold public meetings to solicit 
comments on the DEIS.

DATES: The date and locations of the public meetings will be announced 
at least 15 days in advance through notices in the following local 
newspapers: Las Vegas Sun, Las Vegas Review Journal and the Moapa 
Valley Progress and on the following Web site: 
www.AiyaSolarProjectEIS.com. In order to be fully considered, written 
comments on the DEIS must arrive no later than 45 days after EPA 
publishes its Notice of Availability in the Federal Register.

ADDRESSES: You may mail, email, hand deliver or telefax written 
comments to Mr. Chip Lewis, Acting Regional Environmental Protection 
Officer, BIA Western Regional Office, Branch of Environmental Quality 
Services, 2600 North Central Avenue, 4th Floor Mail Room, Phoenix, 
Arizona 85004-3008; fax (602) 379-3833; email: [email protected]. The 
DEIS will be available for review at: BIA Western Regional Office, 2600 
North Central Avenue, 12th Floor, Suite 210, Phoenix, Arizona; BIA 
Southern Paiute Agency, 180 North 200 East, Suite 111, St. George, 
Utah; and the BLM Southern Nevada District Office, 4701 N. Torrey Pines 
Drive, Las Vegas, Nevada. The DEIS is also available on line at: 
www.AiyaSolarProjectEIS.com.
    To obtain a compact disk copy of the DEIS, please provide your name 
and address in writing or by voicemail to Mr. Chip Lewis or Mr. Garry 
Cantley. Their contact information is listed in the FOR FURTHER 
INFORMATION CONTACT section of this notice. Individual paper copies of 
the DEIS will be provided only upon request.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Mr. Chip Lewis, BIA Western Regional 
Office, Branch of Environmental Quality Services, 2600 North Central 
Avenue, Phoenix, Arizona 85004-3008, telephone (602) 379-6782; or Mr. 
Garry Cantley at (602) 379-6750.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The proposed Federal action, taken under 25 
U.S.C. 415, is BIA's approval of a solar energy ground lease and 
associated agreements entered into by the Tribe with Aiya Solar 
Project, LLC (Aiya Solar or Applicant), a wholly owned subsidiary of 
First Solar, Inc. (First Solar), to provide for construction and 
operation of an up-to 100 megawatt (MW) alternating current solar 
photovoltaic (PV) electricity generation facility located entirely on 
the Reservation and specifically on lands held in trust by BIA for the 
Tribe. The proposed 230 kilovolt (kV) generation-tie transmission line 
required for interconnection would be located on Tribal lands, private 
lands and Federal lands administered and managed by BLM. The Applicant 
has accordingly requested that BIA and BLM additionally approve right-
of-ways (ROWs) authorizing the construction and operation of the 
transmission line. Together, the proposed solar energy facility, 
transmission line, and other associated facilities make up the proposed 
Aiya Solar Project (Project).
    The Project would be located in Township 14 South, Range 66 East, 
Sections 29, 30, 31, and 32 Mount Diablo Meridian, Nevada. The 
generation facility would generate electricity using PV panels. Also 
included would be inverters, a collection system, an on-site substation 
to step-up the voltage to transmission level voltage at 230 kV, an 
operations and maintenance building, and other related facilities. A 
single overhead 230 kV generation-tie transmission line, approximately 
1.5 to 3 miles long, would connect the solar project to NV Energy's 
Reid-Gardner 230kV substation through a point northeast of the existing 
Reid-Gardner substation where a new NV Energy collector station would 
be built in the future.
    Construction of the Project is expected to take approximately 12 to 
15 months. The Applicant is expected to operate the energy facility for 
30 years, with two options to renew the lease for an additional 10 
years, if mutually acceptable to the Tribe and Applicant. During 
construction, the PV panels will be placed on top of fixed-tilt and/or 
single-axis tracking mounting systems that are set on steel posts 
embedded in the ground. Other foundation design techniques may be used 
depending on the site topography and conditions. No water will be used 
to generate electricity during operations. Water will be needed during 
construction for dust control and a minimal amount will be needed 
during operations for landscape irrigation and administrative and 
sanitary water use on site. The water supply required for construction 
of the Project would be leased from the Tribe and would be provided via 
a new temporary intake installed in the Muddy River and a new temporary 
above-ground pipeline approximately two miles in length. Operational 
water would be provided through a tap into an existing water pipeline 
that crosses the solar site. Access to the Project will be provided via 
State Highway 168.
    The purposes of the Project are to: (1) Provide a long-term, 
diverse, and viable economic revenue base and job opportunities for the 
Tribe; (2) help Nevada and neighboring states to meet their state 
renewable energy needs; and (3) allow the Tribe, in partnership with 
the Applicant, to optimize the use of the lease site while maximizing 
the potential economic benefit to the Tribe.
    The BIA and BLM will use the EIS to make decisions on the land 
lease and ROW applications under their respective jurisdiction. The EPA 
may use the document to make decisions under its authorities. The Tribe 
may use the EIS to make decisions under its Tribal Environmental Policy 
Ordinance. The USFWS may use the EIS to support its decision under the 
Endangered Species Act.
    Directions for Submitting Comments: Please include your name, 
return address and the caption: ``DEIS Comments, Proposed Aiya Solar 
Project'', on the first page of your written comments.
    Public Comment Availability: Written comments, including names and 
addresses of respondents will be available for public review at the BIA 
mailing addresses shown in the ADDRESSES section during regular 
business hours, 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., Monday through Friday, except 
holidays. Before including your address, telephone 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

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identifying information from public review, we cannot guarantee that we 
will be able to do so.

    Authority:  This notice is published in accordance with section 
1503.1 of the Council on Environmental Quality regulations (40 CFR 
part 1500 et seq.) and the Department of the Interior Regulations 
(43 CFR part 46) implementing the procedural requirements of the 
National Environmental Policy Act (42 U.S.C. 4321 et seq.), and in 
accordance with the exercise of authority delegated to the Assistant 
Secretary--Indian Affairs by part 209 of the Department Manual.

    Dated: May 1, 2015.
Kevin Washburn,
Assistant Secretary--Indian Affairs.
[FR Doc. 2015-11298 Filed 5-14-15; 8:45 am]
 BILLING CODE 4337-15-P