[Federal Register Volume 89, Number 144 (Friday, July 26, 2024)]
[Notices]
[Pages 60652-60653]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2024-16258]
[[Page 60652]]
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DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR
Bureau of Land Management
[BLM_NV_FRN; MO4500179291]
Notice of Availability of the Final Environmental Impact
Statement for the Libra Solar Project, Lyon and Mineral Counties,
Nevada
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 (NEPA), and the Federal Land Policy and Management Act
of 1976, as amended (FLPMA), the Bureau of Land Management (BLM)
announces the availability of the Final Environmental Impact Statement
(EIS) for the Libra Solar Project, Lyon and Mineral Counties, Nevada.
DATES: The BLM will not issue a decision on the proposal for a minimum
of 30 days after the date the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA)
publishes its Notice of Availability (NOA) of the Final EIS in the
Federal Register. The EPA usually publishes its NOAs on Fridays.
ADDRESSES: The Final EIS and documents pertinent to this proposal are
available for review on the BLM National NEPA Register website at
https://eplanning.blm.gov/eplanning-ui/project/2022592/570.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Lisa Ross, Public Affairs Specialist,
telephone: (775) 885-6107; address: 5665 Morgan Mill Road, Carson City,
NV 89701; email [email protected]. 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 Ms. Ross. 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:
Purpose and Need for the Proposed Action
The BLM's purpose and need is to respond to the right-of-way (ROW)
application submitted by the Applicant under FLPMA Title V (43 U.S.C.
1761). The need for this action is to fulfill the BLM's responsibility
under FLPMA and its ROW regulations to manage the public lands for
multiple uses, including the generation of electric energy. FLPMA, as
amended, established a multiple-use mandate for the BLM's management of
Federal lands, including ``systems for generation, transmission, and
distribution of electric energy, except that the proponent shall also
comply with all applicable requirements of the Federal Energy
Regulatory Commission under the Federal Power Act, including part I
thereof (41 Stat. 1063, 16 U.S.C. 791a-825r).'' (43 U.S.C. 1761(a)(4)).
The BLM must consider compliance with FLPMA, BLM ROW regulations, the
BLM NEPA Handbook, Department of the Interior NEPA regulations, and
other applicable Federal and State laws and policies.
Proposed Action and Alternatives
Under the Proposed Action, the Applicant would construct, operate,
maintain, and decommission a 700-megawatt alternating current (MW ac)
solar photovoltaic (PV) power generating facility with battery storage
and associated components on approximately 5,141 acres of public lands
administered by the BLM Stillwater and Sierra Front Field Offices in
the Carson City District Office. The proposal also includes the
development of a 24.1-mile-long generation tie-line, of which 22.9
miles would be located on BLM managed lands, to connect the solar site
to the Fort Churchill Substation in Lyon County, as well as improvement
of a largely-existing access road on BLM lands providing access to the
solar site. The total ROW requested for the project is 5,778 acres. The
Project would result in the permanent disturbance of approximately
3,420 acres within the 5,778-acre ROW. Under the Proposed Action, the
Applicant would reclaim surface disturbances and prevent unnecessary or
undue degradation of the lands. The final reclamation would occur at
the end of the 30-year ROW grant term, if it is not renewed.
The three action alternatives analyzed in the Final EIS are as
follows: Action Alternative 1: Major Drainage Avoidance, Fenced
Corridors, and Vegetation and Topography Maintenance; Action
Alternative 2: Alternative Supplemental Access During Construction; and
Action Alternative 3: Alternative Gen-tie Connecting to the Proposed
Greenlink West Transmission Line. Action Alternative 1 includes the use
of specific construction methods to reduce impacts to vegetation,
drainage, and topography within the solar array areas. Action
Alternative 2 focuses on reduction of impacts associated with East
Walker Road (the project's mostly unpaved access road) by providing
supplemental access during construction. Action Alternative 3 entails
connecting the generation tie-line from the project to the proposed
Greenlink West Transmission Project through a new switching station
under the proposed Greenlink West line, which would reduce impacts to
air, vegetation, soils, wildlife, visual resources, and other resource
areas from the 24.1-mile-long generation tie-line under the Proposed
Action.
Under the No Action Alternative, the solar facility, generation
tie-line, battery storage, substation, and associated facilities would
not be developed because the BLM would not issue the ROW grant.
Based on the analyses contained in the Final EIS for the proposed
Libra Solar Project, and after carefully considering input from the
public and cooperating agencies, the BLM has selected a modification of
the Proposed Action that combines Action Alternative 1 and Action
Alternative 2; it requires the use of specific construction methods and
provides supplemental access to reduce total traffic on East Walker
Road during construction. An overlay of Alternative 1 and Alternative 2
is the preferred alternative since it reduces many of the resource
impacts, including to vegetation communities, wildlife, and hydrology.
It also allows for faster and more successful restoration at
decommissioning, allowing for future uses of the land under multiple
use.
Public Participation
In addition to making the Draft EIS available for public comment
and review, the BLM hosted one virtual and one in-person public meeting
in Yerington, Nevada, during the public comment period. The agency
received 23 written comments, some of which were verbally presented and
recorded during the meeting. The responses were incorporated in the
Final EIS, as appropriate. The BLM hosted additional meetings in
response to comments received from Native American Tribes to discuss
construction practices and methods. The BLM will continue to consult
with Indian Tribal Nations on a government-to-government basis in
accordance with Executive Order 13175, BLM MS 1780, and other
Departmental policies. Public comments received on the Draft EIS were
considered and incorporated as appropriate into the Final EIS. Public
comments and internal BLM review resulted in the addition of clarifying
text but did not significantly change the impact analyses.
[[Page 60653]]
Schedule for the Decision-Making Process
The BLM anticipates releasing a Record of Decision in the third
quarter of 2024. The BLM will decide whether or not to approve and
issue the ROW to build the project on 5,778 acres of public lands as
proposed or with modifications.
(Authority: 40 CFR 1506.6, 40 CFR 1506.10)
Kimberly D. Dow,
District Manager, Carson City District.
[FR Doc. 2024-16258 Filed 7-25-24; 8:45 am]
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