[Federal Register Volume 87, Number 120 (Thursday, June 23, 2022)]
[Notices]
[Pages 37524-37526]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2022-13394]


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DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR

Bureau of Land Management

[LLCO933000.L16100000. LXSILITI0000.DO0000.22X]


Notice of Intent To Prepare a Supplemental Environmental Impact 
Statement for the Colorado River Valley Field Office and Grand Junction 
Field Office Resource Management Plans, Colorado

AGENCY: Bureau of Land Management, Interior.

ACTION: Notice of intent.

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SUMMARY: In compliance 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) 
Colorado River Valley Field Office (CRVFO), Silt, Colorado, and Grand 
Junction Field Office (GJFO), Grand Junction, Colorado, intend to 
prepare a supplemental environmental impact statement (EIS) for the 
CRVFO and GJFO Resource Management Plans (RMPs). This notice announces 
the beginning of the scoping process to solicit public involvement and 
identify issues.

DATES: This notice initiates the public scoping process for the 
supplemental

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EIS. Comments concerning the scope of analysis, potential alternatives, 
and identification of relevant issues may be submitted in writing until 
July 25, 2022. All comments must be received by July 25, 2022. Scoping 
meetings will be held virtually and will be announced at least 15 days 
in advance through local media, newspapers and the BLM website at: 
https://go.usa.gov/xtrgf.

ADDRESSES: You may submit comments related to this planning effort 
electronically via the ePlanning website at https://go.usa.gov/xtrgf. 
Comments may also be sent to BLM Upper Colorado River District, Attn: 
Supplemental EIS, 2518 H Road, Grand Junction, CO 81506. Documents 
pertinent to this proposal may be examined online at https://go.usa.gov/xtrgf.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Bruce Krickbaum, Project Manager, 
email [email protected], telephone 970-240-5399; or at the mailing 
address shown earlier (see ADDRESSES). Persons in the United States who 
are deaf, deafblind, hard of hearing, or have a speech disability may 
dial 711 (TTY, TDD, or TeleBraille) to access telecommunications relay 
services. Individuals outside the United States should use the relay 
services offered within their country to make international calls to 
the point-of-contact in the United States.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: This document provides notice that the BLM 
CRVFO and GJFO intend to prepare a joint supplemental EIS for their 
respective RMPs. The planning area is in Garfield, Mesa, Eagle, Pitkin, 
Routt, Rio Blanco and Montrose counties, Colorado, and encompasses 
approximately 1.56 million acres of public land and 1.95 million acres 
of Federal mineral estate.

Purpose and Need

    The purpose of the supplemental EIS is to supplement the EISs 
completed in 2014 for the CRVFO RMP and 2015 for the GJFO RMP by 
considering one or more additional alternatives with respect to the 
lands that are allocated as open or closed to oil and gas leasing in 
the planning decision areas, and to provide additional analysis of 
greenhouse gas emissions associated with the fluid mineral management 
alternatives considered in the final EISs and the supplemental EIS.
    The need for this supplemental EIS is to address the issues 
identified by the court in litigation involving the Colorado River 
Valley RMP (Wilderness Workshop v. BLM, 16-cv-01822), as described in 
settlement agreements in that case and a related oil and gas leasing 
case (Wilderness Workshop v. BLM, 18-cv-00987), and to revisit the 
Grand Junction RMP, as described in BLM's motion for voluntary remand 
in litigation involving that RMP (Center for Biological Diversity v. 
BLM, 19-cv-02869).

Preliminary Alternatives

    The BLM has identified the following preliminary issues that may 
arise in the consideration of alternatives with different acreages 
potentially eligible for oil and gas leasing and is accepting public 
input during the scoping period consistent with 43 CFR 1610.4-1: 
environmental consequences of downstream combustion of the oil and gas 
resources; economic impacts; impacts to affected biological, physical, 
and heritage resources, resource uses, and special designations; and 
impacts to recreation. A potential new alternative for each RMP would 
have no future oil and gas leasing in areas with no-known, low, and 
moderate fluid mineral potential. Under the potential new alternative, 
high and very high fluid mineral potential areas would remain open for 
oil and gas leasing, except for areas that were considered for closure 
in the conservation alternative (alternative C) from the proposed RMP/
final EISs. Apart from oil and gas management planning, this potential 
alternative would retain existing management as described in the 2015 
CRVFO and GJFO RMP Records of Decision and applicable amendments. The 
supplemental EIS will include an updated analysis of greenhouse gas 
emissions associated with fluid mineral management planning decisions. 
The BLM welcomes comments on the potential new alternative as well as 
suggestions for additional alternatives.

Planning Criteria

    The BLM has identified the following preliminary planning criteria 
and is accepting public input during the scoping period consistent with 
43 CFR 1610.4-2(c):
     The supplemental EIS will comply with NEPA, FLPMA, and 
other applicable laws, executive orders, regulations, and policy;
     Lands covered in the supplemental EIS will be Federal 
lands where BLM makes mineral leasing eligibility decisions and split-
estate lands with Federal minerals;
     The supplemental EIS will address the issues identified by 
the court in Wilderness Workshop v. BLM, 16-cv-01822, by considering 
whether lands will be open or closed to Federal fluid mineral leasing 
(``reasonable alternatives to oil and gas leasing'') and analyzing the 
effects that combustion of oil and gas produced in the planning 
decision area may have on greenhouse gas emissions, as well as related 
mitigation;
     The scope of analysis will be appropriate to the planning 
scale and in accordance with Bureau-wide standards and program 
guidance; and
     The BLM will consider Tribal, State, and local plans that 
are germane in the development of land use plans for public lands, and 
specifically, the planning decisions considered in the supplemental 
EIS, to the extent the plans are consistent with the purposes, 
policies, and programs of Federal laws and regulations applicable to 
public lands.

Summary of Expected Impacts

    The supplemental EIS will evaluate impacts from potential oil and 
gas leasing and future development to the extent they are reasonably 
foreseeable at the planning stage. Impacts are not known at this time 
except as described in the 2014 and 2015 final EISs. The analysis in 
the supplemental EIS may consider potential effects on wildlife, 
threatened and endangered species habitat, recreation, visual 
resources, water resources, air quality, cultural resources, special 
designations, social and economic conditions, fluid minerals, and other 
resources and uses. The BLM will use an interdisciplinary approach that 
incorporates the expertise of specialists in the relevant resource 
fields.

Schedule for the Decision-Making Process

    The BLM will provide additional opportunities for public 
participation consistent with the NEPA and land use planning processes, 
including a 90-day comment period on the draft supplemental EIS and a 
30-day public protest period and a 60-day Governor's consistency review 
on the final supplemental EIS. The draft supplemental EIS is 
anticipated to be available for public review in Spring 2023 and the 
final supplemental EIS is anticipated to be available for public 
protest in Winter 2023/2024 with a Record of Decision in Spring 2024.

Public Scoping Process

    The BLM encourages comments concerning the scope of the analysis in 
the supplemental EIS, the potential new alternative, other potential 
alternatives, identification of issues for analysis, and any other 
information relevant to this project. You may submit comments by using 
one of the methods listed in the

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ADDRESSES section of this Notice. Public scoping meetings will be 
conducted virtually to explain project details. Representatives from 
BLM will be available to answer questions. All comments must be 
received by the date shown in the DATES section.

Lead and Cooperating Agencies

    The BLM is the lead Federal agency for the supplemental EIS. The 
BLM has invited the following to participate as cooperating agencies: 
the seven counties that are entirely or partially in the planning area, 
municipalities that participated as cooperating agencies during the 
RMPs/EISs, Colorado Department of Natural Resources, Colorado Parks and 
Wildlife, Colorado River Water Conservation District, U.S. Fish and 
Wildlife Service, and U.S. Bureau of Reclamation.

Responsible Official

    The Colorado State Director is the deciding official for this 
planning effort.

Nature of Decision To Be Made

    The nature of the decision to be made will be the State Director's 
selection of land use planning decisions for managing BLM-administered 
lands under the principles of multiple use and sustained yield in a 
manner that best addresses the purpose and need. The decision resulting 
from this supplemental EIS will specify which areas are allocated as 
open or closed to oil and gas leasing in the decision area.

Additional Information

    The BLM will identify, analyze, and consider mitigation to address 
the reasonably foreseeable impacts to resources from all reasonable 
alternatives and, in accordance with 40 CFR 1502.14(f), include 
appropriate mitigation measures not already included in the 
alternatives. Mitigation may include avoidance, minimization, 
rectification, reduction, or elimination over time, and compensation; 
and may be considered at multiple scales, including the landscape 
scale.
    The BLM will utilize and coordinate the NEPA and land use planning 
processes for this planning effort to help support procedural 
requirements under the Endangered Species Act (16 U.S.C. 1536) and 
Section 106 of the National Historic Preservation Act (54 U.S.C. 
306108) as provided in 36 CFR 800.2(d)(3), including public involvement 
requirements of Section 106. The information about historic and 
cultural resources and threatened and endangered species within the 
area potentially affected by the proposed plan will assist the BLM in 
identifying and evaluating impacts to such resources.
    The BLM will consult with Indian Tribes on a government-to-
government basis in accordance with Executive Order 13175, BLM Manual 
section 1780, and other Departmental policies. Tribal concerns, 
including impacts on Indian trust assets and potential impacts to 
cultural resources, will be given due consideration. Federal, State, 
and local agencies, along with Tribes and stakeholders that may be 
interested in or affected by the supplemental EIS that the BLM is 
evaluating, are invited to participate in the scoping process and, if 
eligible, may request or be requested by the BLM to participate in the 
development of the environmental analysis as a cooperating agency.
    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.

(Authority: 40 CFR 1501.7 and 43 CFR 1610.2)

Stephanie Connolly,
Acting BLM Colorado State Director.
[FR Doc. 2022-13394 Filed 6-22-22; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4310-JB-P