[Federal Register Volume 88, Number 52 (Friday, March 17, 2023)]
[Notices]
[Pages 16418-16419]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2023-05501]


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DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE

Department of the Army, Corps of Engineers


Notice of Intent To Prepare a Draft Environmental Impact 
Statement for the Proposed East Tailings Expansion Project (Project), 
Near Magna, Salt Lake County, Utah

AGENCY: Department of the Army, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, DoD.

ACTION: Notice of intent.

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SUMMARY: The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Sacramento District (USACE), 
intends to prepare an Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) in 
accordance with the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) for the 
proposed Project. The Project is proposed due to the planned expansion 
of the Bingham Canyon Mine (Mine), a commercial open pit copper mining 
operation near Magna, Salt Lake County, Utah. Kennecott Utah Copper LLC 
(Applicant) has applied for a Department of the Army (DA) permit for 
discharges of dredged or fill materials into 44.86 acres of waters of 
United States, including wetlands, to construct the Project. This 
notice opens the public scoping phase and invites interested parties to 
identify issues and reasonable alternatives to the proposed action that 
should be considered in the EIS.

DATES: Written comments for consideration in the development of the 
scope of the NEPA EIS are due to the addresses below no later than 
April 17, 2023.

ADDRESSES: Please send written comments to Nicole Fresard, U.S. Army 
Corps of Engineers, Sacramento District, Bountiful Regulatory Field 
Office, 533 West 2600 South, Suite 150, Bountiful, Utah 84010; email at 
[email protected].

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Questions about the proposed action 
and EIS can be answered by Nicole Fresard, (801) 295-8380 extension 
8321; email: [email protected]. Please refer to 
identification number SPK-2009-01213-UO.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The Applicant has applied for a DA permit 
under Section 404 of the Clean Water Act to construct the East Tailings 
Expansion with related infrastructure and to buttress the east slope of 
the historic South Tailings Impoundment.
    The Applicant is developing an updated mine plan for the Bingham 
Canyon Mine that would extend the open pit life of mine to 
approximately year 2038 and would generate an additional 1.2 to 1.7 
million tons (Mt) of copper equivalent product. To fully implement the 
updated mine plan, the Applicant has stated that it needs to expand the 
eastern portion of the historic south impoundment to provide an 
additional 100 Mt of tailings storage that cannot be met using existing 
storage capacity. In addition, studies have shown that the east slope 
of the historic South Tailings Impoundment is potentially susceptible 
to earthquake-induced tailing flows resulting from impoundment failure. 
The Project would buttress the east slope of the historic South 
Tailings Impoundment to improve seismic stability and reduce the risk 
of runout caused by a seismic event to a level as low as reasonably 
practicable.
    The Project purpose is to increase tailings storage capacity for 
continued mining operations at the Bingham Canyon mine until 
approximately 2038 and to improve seismic stability of the east slope 
of the historic South Tailings Impoundment.
    The project is located approximately ten miles west of Salt Lake 
City near the community of Magna, Utah. The additional infrastructure 
would include: new access roads; a new drainage system including finger 
drains; relocation of the clarification canal; a new 50-foot electrical 
corridor; relocation of Outfall 002 (which discharges to the C-7 
ditches); installation of tailings and water piping, pumps, and valve 
stations required to operate the Project; and a dust control system. 
Construction of the Project infrastructure is planned to begin in 2024 
and extend through 2026.
    The project would impact approximately 539 acres, including 327 
acres within the footprint of the existing South Tailings Impoundment, 
39 acres of the existing clarification canal and the closed 
sedimentation pond (industrial process waters), and 173

[[Page 16419]]

acres on land without previous tailings deposition. In an approved 
jurisdictional determination and a preliminary jurisdictional 
determination dated May 2022, USACE reviewed a 351-acre survey area 
within and adjacent to the Project along the southeast boundary of the 
existing tailings impoundment and determined that 38.78 acres are 
industrial process waters, and 9.85 acres are artificial wetlands not 
subject to regulation under Section 404 of the Clean Water Act or 
Section 10 of the Rivers and Harbors Act. In addition, USACE determined 
that 54.93 acres of aquatic resources are potentially subject to 
Section 404 of the Clean Water Act. The project proposes to impact 
44.86 acres of these potentially jurisdictional aquatic resources, 
including wetlands.
    USACE anticipates that the draft EIS will be made available for 
public comments in November 2023. At that time, a minimum 45-day public 
review period will be provided for individuals and agencies to review 
and comment on the Draft EIS. USACE anticipates the Final EIS will be 
published in July 2024. At that time, a minimum 30-day public review 
period will be provided for individuals and agencies to review and 
comment on the Final EIS. A Record of Decision is anticipated in 
September 2024.
    Alternatives. The EIS will include an evaluation of a reasonable 
range of alternatives. Currently, the following alternatives are 
expected to be analyzed in detail: (1) The no action alternative (no 
permit issued) and (2) the Proposed Action (Project). The no action 
alternative assumes that the Applicant would continue to operate the 
mine in its existing footprint; no changes to existing infrastructure 
would occur, with all potential waters of the U.S. avoided. In addition 
to the Proposed Action, USACE anticipates evaluating additional on-site 
and off-site alternatives for potential detailed analysis. As part of 
this notice, USACE requests comments on any additional on-site and off-
site alternatives, information, and analyses relevant to the proposed 
action. All reasonable alternatives to the proposed federal action that 
meet the purpose and need will be considered in the Draft EIS.
    Scoping. The USACE scoping process for the EIS includes a public 
involvement program with several opportunities to provide oral and 
written comments. In addition to public meetings and notifications in 
the Federal Register, USACE will issue public notices when the draft 
and final EIS are available.
    Affected federal, state, and local agencies, Native American 
tribes, and other interested private organizations and parties are 
invited to participate. Potentially significant issues to be analyzed 
in the EIS include, but are not limited to impacts to waters, 
hydrology, water supply, water quality, cultural resources, biological 
resources, traffic and transportation, and air quality.
    The USACE is the lead federal agency for preparation of the EIS 
under the requirements of NEPA. USACE has invited the following Tribes 
and federal and state agencies to participate as cooperating agencies 
for the EIS: Ute Indian Tribe of The Uintah & Ouray Reservation, Utah, 
Northwestern Band of the Shoshone Nation, Skull Valley Band of Goshute 
Indians of Utah, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, U.S. Fish and 
Wildlife Service, Utah Department of Natural Resources, and Utah 
Department of Environmental Quality.
    Other environmental review and consultation requirements for the 
proposed action include the need for the Applicant to obtain water 
quality certification under Section 401 of the Clean Water Act from the 
Utah Division of Water Quality. The proposed project will not affect 
any federally listed threatened or endangered species; however, it may 
affect state-listed special status species. USACE will consult with the 
State Historic Preservation Officer under Section 106 of the National 
Historic Preservation Act concerning properties listed, or potentially 
eligible for listing, on the National Register of Historic Places.
    Interested parties may register for the USACE public notice email 
notification lists at: https://www.spk.usace.army.mil/Missions/Regulatory/Permitting/Request-for-Public-Notice-Notification/.
    Public Scoping Meetings. USACE will hold in-person public scoping 
meetings in Magna, Utah at the Webster Community Center, 8952 West 
Magna Main Street, from 6 to 8 p.m. MT on April 4, 2023, and in Kearns, 
Utah at the Element Event Center, 5624 South Cougar Lane, Kearns, Utah 
84118 from 6 to 8 p.m. MT on April 5, 2023. Interested parties can 
provide oral and written comments at the meetings. Interested parties 
may also submit written comments on this notice. Scoping comments may 
be submitted at any time prior to publication of the Draft EIS, which 
is anticipated in November 2023.

Antoinette R. Gant,
Brigadier General, USA, Commanding.
[FR Doc. 2023-05501 Filed 3-16-23; 8:45 am]
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