[Federal Register Volume 84, Number 91 (Friday, May 10, 2019)]
[Notices]
[Pages 20657-20659]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2019-09599]


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DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR

Bureau of Land Management

[LLCAC09000 L16100000.DF000 19XL; MO#4500122590]


Notice of Availability of the Central Coast Field Office Proposed 
Resource Management Plan Amendment and Final Environmental Impact 
Statement for Oil and Gas Leasing and Development, California

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, and the Federal Land Policy and Management Act of 
1976, as amended, the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) has prepared a 
proposed Resource Management Plan (RMP) amendment and Final 
Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) for oil and gas leasing and 
development within the boundaries of the Central Coast Field Office, 
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 RMP amendment and 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 of 
Availability in the Federal Register.

ADDRESSES: Copies of the proposed RMP amendment and Final EIS have been 
sent to affected Federal, State, local, and tribal government agencies 
and to other stakeholders. Copies of the proposed RMP amendment and 
Final EIS are available for public inspection at the BLM Central Coast 
Field Office at 940 2nd Ave., Marina, CA 93933. Interested persons may 
also review the proposed RMP amendment and Final EIS on the internet at 
https://go.usa.gov/xEGQC.
    All protests must be in writing (43 CFR 1610.5-2(a)(1)) and filed 
with the BLM Director, either as a hard copy or electronically via the 
BLM's ePlanning project website. To file a protest electronically, 
visit https://go.usa.gov/xEGQC. Protests in hard copy must be 
postmarked no more than 30 days after the date the EPA publishes its 
Notice of Availability of the Final EIS in the Federal Register and 
must be mailed to one of the following addresses:
    Regular Mail: BLM Director (210), Attention: Protest Coordinator, 
P.O. Box 71383, Washington, DC 20024-1383.

[[Page 20658]]

    Overnight Delivery: BLM Director (210), Attention: Protest 
Coordinator, 20 M Street SE, Room 2134LM, Washington, DC 20003.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Sky Murphy, BLM Planning and 
Environmental Coordinator, telephone (831) 582-2200; address Bureau of 
Land Management, Central Coast Field Office, 940 2nd Ave., Marina, CA 
93933; or email [email protected].
    Persons who use a telecommunications device for the deaf (TDD) may 
call the Federal Relay Service (FRS) at (800) 877-8339 to contact Sky 
Murphy during normal business hours. FRS 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: The Central Coast Field Office proposed RMP 
amendment and Final EIS describes and analyzes alternatives for the 
planning and management of oil and gas leasing and development on 
public lands and Federal mineral estate managed by the BLM Central 
Coast Field Office. The former Hollister Field Office moved to Marina, 
California, and is now called the Central Coast Field Office. The 
planning area is located in central California and comprises 
approximately 6.8 million acres of land. Within the planning area, the 
BLM manages approximately 300,000 acres of surface estate and 
approximately 800,000 acres of subsurface Federal mineral estate. 
Planning decisions in the proposed RMP amendment will apply only to the 
BLM-managed public lands and Federal mineral estate in the planning 
area.
    Through this planning process, the BLM is revising the ``2007 
Resource Management Plan for the Southern Diablo Mountain Range and 
Central Coast of California'' to analyze the effects of alternative oil 
and gas management approaches on public lands and Federal mineral 
estate. The proposed RMP amendment/Final EIS also includes 
implementation-level analysis regarding 14 leases that were the subject 
of litigation in 2011 and 2012.
    In 2014, the BLM conducted scoping to solicit input from the public 
and interested agencies on the nature and extent of issues and impacts 
to be addressed. Fifteen issues were identified through the scoping 
process: (1) Water resources; (2) Health and safety; (3) Vegetation and 
wildlife; (4) Air quality; (5) Climate change; (6) Geology and 
seismicity; (7) Soil resources; (8) Socioeconomics; (9) Traffic; (10) 
Tribal and cultural resources; (11) Environmental justice; (12) Land 
use; (13) Livestock grazing; (14) Recreation; and (15) Visual 
resources.
    To assist the agency decision maker and the public in focusing on 
appropriate solutions to planning issues, the proposed RMP amendment 
and Final EIS considers six management alternatives.
    Alternative A. Alternative A would continue current management 
under the existing RMP. All Federal mineral estate would be available 
for oil and gas leasing, except for designated wilderness, wilderness 
study areas, the Fort Ord National Monument, and the Clear Creek 
Serpentine Area of Critical Environmental Concern (ACEC), which are 
closed under the existing RMP. No Surface Occupancy (NSO) stipulations 
would be applied in ACECs and to Recreation and Public Purpose (R&PP) 
leases. The Endangered Species stipulation from the existing RMP would 
apply in all areas open to leasing.
    Alternative B. Under Alternative B, Federal mineral estate within 
the boundaries of oil and gas fields plus a 0.5-mile buffer currently 
identified by the California Division of Oil, Gas, and Geothermal 
Resources (DOGGR) would be available for leasing. Other areas would be 
closed to oil and gas leasing, including all National Conservation 
Lands. Controlled Surface Use (CSU) stipulations would apply to all 
lands open to leasing.
    Alternative C. Under Alternative C, unless currently closed under 
the existing RMP, Federal mineral estate would be open to leasing 
within high oil and gas potential areas or within 0.5-mile of the 
boundaries of oil and gas fields currently identified by DOGGR, with 
the exception of core population areas of the giant kangaroo rat in the 
vicinity of Panoche, Griswold-Tumey and Ciervo Hills, which would be 
closed to leasing. CSU stipulations would apply to all lands open to 
leasing. NSO stipulations would apply to some lands open to leasing, 
including: (1) Threatened and endangered species critical habitat; (2) 
BLM-developed recreation and administrative sites; and (3) Special 
status split estate lands (e.g., State parks, county parks, lands with 
existing conservation easements, land trusts and scenic designations).
    Alternative D. Under Alternative D, unless currently closed under 
the existing RMP, Federal mineral estate underlying BLM surface estate 
would be available for leasing. All Federal mineral estate underlying 
the Ciervo Panoche Natural Area (both BLM surface and split-estate 
lands) would be closed to leasing. CSU stipulations would apply to all 
lands open to leasing. NSO stipulations would be applied in ACECs and 
R&PP leases.
    Alternative E. Under Alternative E, unless currently closed under 
the existing RMP, Federal mineral estate outside of a California 
Department of Water Resources Bulletin 118, Groundwater Basin or Sub-
basin, would be available for leasing. CSU stipulations would apply to 
all lands open to leasing. NSO stipulations would apply to some lands 
open to leasing, including: (1) 12-digit Hydrologic Unit Codes (HUCs) 
intersecting EPA impaired, perennial surface waters (BLM surface and 
split estate); (2) 12-digit HUCs intersecting non-impaired, perennial 
surface waters that intersect split estate; (3) 12-digit HUC sub-
watersheds with the highest aquatic intactness score; (4) 0.25 miles 
from non-impaired, perennial surface waters; and (5) 0.25 miles from 
eligible Wild and Scenic Rivers.
    Alternative F (Preferred Alternative). Under Alternative F, all 
Federal mineral estate would be available for oil and gas leasing with 
CSU stipulations, except for designated wilderness, wilderness study 
areas, the Fort Ord National Monument, and the Clear Creek Serpentine 
ACEC, which are closed under the existing RMP. NSO stipulations would 
be applied in the Joaquin Rocks ACEC, as well as within ACECs and giant 
kangaroo rat core population areas in the Ciervo Panoche Natural Area. 
Under each action alternative, CSU stipulations would apply to all 
lands open to leasing. The CSU stipulations would mitigate impacts to 
sensitive resources such as protected, sensitive and priority species, 
critical and priority habitat, cultural resources, and water resources 
by requiring special operational constraints on surface use to protect 
these resources.
    There are three ACECs managed by the CCFO: The Clear Creek 
Serpentine ACEC is approximately 31,000 acres; the Panoche/Coalinga 
ACEC is approximately 56,000 acres: And the Joaquin Rocks ACEC is 
approximately 8,000 acres. No boundaries of these ACECs are being 
modified by this proposed RMP amendment.
    The proposed RMP amendment and Final EIS also addresses two leases 
and 12 prospective leases within the CCFO that do not contain NSO 
stipulations (non-NSO leases), pursuant to a July 2014, Federal court 
settlement agreement to resolve the disputes set forth in Center for 
Biological Diversity and Sierra Club v. Bureau of Land

[[Page 20659]]

Management, et al., Case No. 11-06174 and Case No. 13-1749 (N.D. Cal.). 
The BLM's proposed plan identifies implementation-level decisions for 
these 14 issued and prospective leases. For each of the 14 leases, the 
implementation decision will determine whether the leases would be 
issued and identify stipulations necessary for resource protection. 
These implementation-level decisions are subject to appeal to the 
Interior Board of Land Appeals after the signing of a Record of 
Decision for this project.
    Public comments on the draft RMP amendment and Draft EIS received 
from the public and internal BLM review in 2017 were considered and 
incorporated, as appropriate into the proposed plan. As a result of 
comments, the BLM developed and analyzed Alternative F to be consistent 
with the BLM's land use planning and energy development policies. 
Public comments resulted in the addition of clarifying text in the 
Final EIS.
    Instructions for filing a protest with the Director of the BLM 
regarding the proposed RMP amendment and Final EIS may be found in the 
``Dear Reader'' letter of the Central Coast Field Office proposed RMP 
amendment and Final EIS and at 43 CFR 1610.5-2. All protests must be in 
writing and mailed to the appropriate address, as set forth in the 
ADDRESSES section earlier or submitted electronically through the BLM 
ePlanning project website as described earlier. Protests submitted 
electronically by any means other than the ePlanning project website 
protest section will be invalid unless a protest is also submitted in 
hard copy. Protests submitted by fax will also be invalid unless also 
submitted either through ePlanning project website protest section or 
in hard copy.
    Before including your phone number, email 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, 40 CFR 1506.10, 43 CFR 1610.2, 43 CFR 
1610.5)

Danielle Chi,
Deputy State Director, Fire and Resources.
[FR Doc. 2019-09599 Filed 5-9-19; 8:45 am]
 BILLING CODE 4310-40-P