[Federal Register Volume 88, Number 159 (Friday, August 18, 2023)]
[Notices]
[Pages 56649-56652]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2023-17779]


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DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR

Bureau of Land Management

[BLM_NV_FRN_MO4500169100]


Notice of Intent To Prepare an Environmental Impact Statement for 
the Proposed Robertson Mine Project, Lander County, Nevada

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) Mount 
Lewis Field Office, Battle Mountain, Nevada intends to prepare an 
Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) to consider the effects of Nevada 
Gold Mines LLC's (NGM's) Robertson Mine Project (Project) in Lander 
County, Nevada. This notice announces the beginning of the scoping 
process to solicit public comments and identify issues and 
alternatives; it also serves to initiate public consultation, as 
required, under the National Historic Preservation Act (NHPA).

DATES: This notice initiates the public scoping process for the EIS, 
which will run through September 18, 2023. Scoping comments may be 
submitted in writing until September 18, 2023. The date(s) and 
location(s) of the scoping meetings will be announced at least 15 days 
in advance through local media and newspapers and the project's website 
at https://eplanning.blm.gov/eplanning-ui/project/2023088/510. In order 
to be considered during the preparation of the Draft EIS, all scoping

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comments must be received prior to the close of the 30-day scoping 
period or 15 days after the last public meeting, whichever is later. 
The BLM will provide additional opportunities for public participation 
upon publication of the Draft EIS.

ADDRESSES: You may submit comments related to the Robertson Mine 
Project by any of the following methods:

 Website: https://eplanning.blm.gov/eplanning-ui/project/2023088/510.
 Email: [email protected].
 Fax: (775) 635-4034.
 Mail: BLM Battle Mountain District Office, Attn: Robertson 
Mine Project, 50 Bastian Road, Battle Mountain, NV 89820.

    Documents pertinent to this proposal may be examined online at 
https://eplanning.blm.gov/eplanning-ui/project/2023088/510 and at the 
Mount Lewis Field Office.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Gene Gilseth, Project Manager, 
telephone (775) 635-4020; address BLM Battle Mountain District Office, 
Attn: Robertson Mine Project, 50 Bastian Road, Battle Mountain, NV 
89820; email [email protected]. Contact Mr. Gilseth to have your name 
added to our mailing list. Individuals 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 for contacting Mr. Gilseth. 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: Based on the submitted proposed Plan of 
Operations, NGM is proposing to construct, operate, close, and reclaim 
a new surface mine within the Shoshone Range approximately 58 miles 
southeast of Battle Mountain, Nevada, and 70 miles southwest of Elko, 
Nevada.
    The proposed Robertson Mine Plan of Operations boundary would 
encompass 5,990 acres. The total disturbance associated with the 
proposed action, including existing, reclassified, and exploration, 
would be 4,306 acres, with 4,127 acres on land administered by the BLM 
and 179 acres on private land. The proposed surface mining activities 
for the Robertson Mine would include:
     Three open pits (Gold Pan, Porphyry, and Altenburg Hill) 
and associated haul roads;
     A waste rock facility;
     A heap leach facility including a lined pad, process 
solution ponds and vaults, and a carbon-in-column plant;
     Ancillary facilities including a three-stage crushing 
system with associated conveyors; ore stockpiles; growth media 
stockpiles; a gravel borrow source; secondary roads; stormwater 
controls and diversions; truck scale; power lines and electrical 
substations; water production, dewatering, and monitoring wells; water 
pipelines and loadouts; ready lines; fuel and reagent storage; fueling 
facilities; laydown yards; wildlife and range fencing; an assay 
laboratory; trailers; buildings; and communications sites;
     Shared facilities with the Pipeline Complex at the Cortez 
Mine, including but not limited to haul roads; a potable water well; 
water pipelines; warehousing and maintenance shops; hazardous waste 
storage; a petroleum-contaminated soils facility; ore stockpiles; the 
Pipeline Mill; carbon handling; refinery; laboratory; and Pipeline Area 
28 tailings storage facility; and
     Modifying the authorized Robertson Exploration Plan (NVN-
067688) (Exploration Plan) boundary.
    Additionally, the proposed action would result in changes to the 
boundaries of the authorized Exploration Plan boundary, the Cortez Mine 
Plan boundary, and the Pipeline-South Pipeline-Gold Acres Exploration 
Plan boundary. These authorized plans would be modified subsequent to 
the approval of the Project Plan.
    The project would employ a contractor workforce of approximately 
150 employees during the initial two-year construction period, and 
approximately 415 full-time employees, comprised of approximately 370 
existing Cortez Mine employees and 45 new hires, for the operations 
period.
    The proposed project would operate 24 hours per day, 365 days per 
year. The total life of the project would be 15 years, including nine 
years of mining, three additional years of ore processing, and three 
additional years of reclamation. Reclamation of disturbed areas 
resulting from mining operations would be completed in accordance with 
BLM and Nevada Division of Environmental Protection regulations. 
Concurrent reclamation would take place where practicable and safe.

Purpose and Need for the Proposed Action

    The BLM's purpose is to respond to NGM's proposal as described in 
the Plan of Operations and to analyze the environmental effects 
associated with the proponent's proposed action and alternatives to the 
proposed action, consider reasonable alternatives, and develop and 
consider mitigation when necessary to mitigate environmental impacts. 
The NEPA mandates that the BLM evaluate the effects of the proposed 
action and develop alternatives and mitigation, when necessary, to 
lessen any effects to environmental resources.
    The need for the action is established by the BLM's 
responsibilities under the Mining Law of 1872, Section 302 of FLPMA, 
and the BLM Surface Management Regulations at 43 CFR 3809. Under these 
statutes and regulations, BLM is required to review the Project and 
ensure that the NGM activities include appropriate reclamation and do 
not cause unnecessary or undue degradation of the public lands.

Preliminary Proposed Action and Alternatives

    The proposed action consists of the Plan of Operations as submitted 
by NGM. Additional alternatives to be considered include the No Action 
Alternative and a Partial Pit Backfill Alternative.
    The Partial Pit Backfill Alternative would include a partial 
backfill of the Gold Pan pit to prevent a pit lake from forming while 
maintaining a terminal pit lake system through capillary evaporation 
from the backfill surface. Approximately 16 million tons of additional 
waste rock would be moved from the waste rock facility back into the 
Gold Pan pit. No additional disturbance is anticipated to be required 
for this alternative, and backfilling would occur during final 
reclamation but is not anticipated to increase the reclamation 
schedule.
    Under the No Action Alternative, the development of the Robertson 
Mine Project would not be authorized, and NGM would not construct, 
operate, and close a new surface mine. Modifications to the Exploration 
Plan boundary, the Cortez Mine Plan boundary, and the Pipeline-South 
Pipeline-Gold Acres Exploration Plan boundary would not occur.
    The BLM welcomes comments on all preliminary alternatives as well 
as suggestions for additional alternatives.

Summary of Expected Impacts

    Primary impacts from the Robertson Mine Project that will be 
analyzed in the EIS include potential impacts to surface and 
groundwater resources (water quality and quantity), aesthetics (visual 
and noise), air quality including greenhouse gases and climate change, 
cultural resources and historic properties, wildlife resources 
including special status species, vegetation and soil resources, 
livestock grazing, and

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traffic generation. A summary of potential impacts include:
     Cultural Resources Native American Concerns: Up to 17 
National Register of Historic Places-eligible or unevaluated cultural 
properties would be physically altered, resulting in an adverse effect 
to these cultural sites. Vegetation communities important to Native 
American traditional values may be impacted by the proposed action.
     Wildlife Resources: Potential impacts include habitat 
change, habitat loss, alterations to water sources, fatalities as a 
result of collisions with vehicles, displacement due to human activity 
and disturbance, and impediments to movement through corridors.
     BLM Sensitive Species: For greater sage-grouse, the 
proposed action would remove a total of 2,514 acres of the mapped 
habitat, including 486 acres of General Habitat Management Areas, 1,983 
acres of Other Habitat Management Areas, and 3,521 acres of Non-
habitat. For golden eagles, the proposed action would result in the 
removal of approximately 3,998 acres of foraging habitat. Additionally, 
one golden eagle territory occurs within one mile of the proposed 
project disturbance and blasting area.
     Aesthetics (visual and noise): Potential impacts to visual 
resources include the addition of form, line, texture, and color to the 
existing landscape. Potential impacts include an increase in noise 
generation.
     Air Quality: Air quality modeling has determined that 
impacts from the proposed action would not exceed National Ambient Air 
Quality Standards for PM10, PM2.5, CO, 
NOX, and SO2. Total facility-wide Hazardous Air 
Pollutants (HAP) are estimated to be 10.32 tons per year (tpy), with 
3.24 tpy of the highest single HAP, hydrogen cyanide. The facility-wide 
HAP emissions are within U.S. Environmental Protection Agency 
thresholds. Greenhouse gas emissions from operations, including off-
site ore transport, are estimated to be 148,542 tpy CO2e. 
Mercury emissions are estimated to be 2.87 pounds per year.
     Water Resources (Surface and Groundwater): Potential 
impacts to seep, spring, and stream flow may occur from proposed 
dewatering operations if the source of the water is connected to the 
regional aquifer. Dewatering operations would also result in a lowering 
of the local groundwater table, and a pit lake would form post mining 
in the Gold Pan pit. Sedimentation and erosion may also occur due to 
project-related disturbance.
     Traffic: Traffic on transportation routes within the area 
of analysis would potentially increase by up to 300 Annual Average 
Daily Traffic (AADT) during construction, 190 AADT during operations, 
and 20 AADT during closure. The addition of project traffic is not 
anticipated to lower the level of service of the roadways and 
intersections.
     Livestock Grazing: The proposed action would result in new 
surface disturbance of 4,606 acres, which would impact forage utilized 
by livestock. Approximately 219 Animal Unit Months would be impacted in 
the Carico Lake Allotment.
     Vegetation and Soils: The proposed action would result in 
disturbance to soil and removal of vegetation on 3,998 acres.

Schedule for the Decision-Making Process

    The BLM will provide additional opportunities for public 
participation consistent with the NEPA process, including a 45-day 
comment period on the Draft EIS. The Draft EIS is anticipated to be 
available for public review Fall 2023 and the Final EIS is anticipated 
to be released in Spring 2024 with a Record of Decision in Spring 2024.

Public Scoping Process

    This notice of intent initiates the scoping period. The BLM will be 
holding two virtual public scoping meetings. The specific dates and 
times of these scoping meetings will be announced in advance through 
local newspaper publications and the BLM National NEPA Register project 
page at https://eplanning.blm.gov/eplanning-ui/project/2023088/510.

Lead and Cooperating Agencies

    The BLM Mount Lewis Field Office is serving as the lead federal 
agency for preparing the EIS. Cooperating agencies for this analysis 
include the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, U.S. Fish and 
Wildlife Service, Nevada Department of Wildlife, Eureka County, and 
Lander County.

Responsible Official

    Douglas W. Furtado, District Manager, Battle Mountain District 
Office

Nature of Decision To Be Made

    The BLM's decision relative to the EIS that will be prepared for 
the Robertson Mine Project will consider the following: (1) approval of 
the proposed Project Plan to authorize the proposed activities without 
modifications or additional mitigation measures; (2) approval of the 
proposed Project Plan with additional mitigation measures that the BLM 
deems necessary to prevent unnecessary or undue degradation of public 
lands; (3) approval of the Robertson Mine Project Plan of Operations 
with one of the alternatives analyzed in the EIS; or (4) denial of the 
proposed Project Plan and associated activities.

Additional Information

    The BLM will identify, analyze, and consider mitigation to address 
the reasonably foreseeable impacts to resources from the proposed 
action and all analyzed reasonable alternatives and, in accordance with 
40 CFR 1502.14(e), include appropriate mitigation measures not already 
included in the proposed action or 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 process to help 
support compliance with applicable procedural requirements under the 
Endangered Species Act (16 U.S.C. 1536) and Section 106 of the NHPA (54 
U.S.C. 306108) as provided in 36 CFR 800.2(d)(3), including public 
involvement requirements of Section 106. 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 Tribal Nations on a government-to-
government basis in accordance with Executive Order 13175, BLM MS 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 Indian Tribal Nations and other stakeholders that may be 
interested in or affected by the proposed Robertson Mine Project 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

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

(Authority: 40 CFR 1501.9)

Douglas W. Furtado,
District Manager, Battle Mountain District.
[FR Doc. 2023-17779 Filed 8-17-23; 8:45 am]
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