[Federal Register Volume 91, Number 78 (Thursday, April 23, 2026)]
[Notices]
[Pages 21786-21788]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2026-07974]
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DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE
Forest Service
National Forests and Grasslands in Texas; Oil and Gas Leasing
Availability Analysis Environmental Impact Statement; Revised
AGENCY: Forest Service, Agriculture (USDA).
ACTION: Notice; revised.
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SUMMARY: A previous notice for this project was published in 2019 (84
FR 44843) when the National Forests and Grasslands in Texas (NFGT) was
also preparing for forest plan revision; however, the need for the
project, expected relationship to the forest plan, and responsible
official have changed since that publication. This notice is revising
the previous Notice of Intent to announce that the USDA Natural
Resources and Environment (NRE) Under Secretary proposes to prepare the
EIS for Oil and Gas Leasing Availability and issue the project
decision. The proposed action and alternatives will identify lands that
would be made available for future oil and gas leasing, any additional
stipulations applied to oil and gas activities on those lands, and if
the decision would require an amendment to the 1996 NFGT Revised Land
and Resource Management Plan (forest plan). The Planning,
Administrative Reviews, and Litigation System identification number for
the project is 56882.
DATES: Comments concerning the scope of the analysis must be received
by April 28, 2026. The environmental impact statement is expected in
spring or summer 2026. A schedule for the decision-making process and
additional information about the project can be found here: https://www.fs.usda.gov/r08/texas/projects/56882.
ADDRESSES:
Written Comments
Send written comments to Oil and Gas Leasing Availability, National
Forests and Grasslands in Texas, 2221 N Raguet Street, Lufkin, Texas
75904. Comments may also be submitted electronically through the
project website: https://cara.fs2c.usda.gov/Public/CommentInput?Project=56882 or by facsimile at 936-639-8588.
Written public comments will be accepted by 11:59 p.m. Eastern
Standard Time on April 28, 2026. Comments submitted after this date may
not be included in the analysis.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Juanita Garcia at
[email protected] or 936-639-8504.
Individuals who use telecommunication devices for the hearing-
impaired may call 711 to reach the Telecommunications Relay Service, 24
hours a day, every day of the year, including holidays.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
Purpose and Need for Action
The purpose of this project is to determine which NFS lands in
Texas, where the surface and mineral rights are both federal, would be
open to oil and gas development subject to standard terms and
conditions, open to oil and gas development with constraints in lease
stipulations, and which are closed to leasing by law and management
direction. This determination enables the NFGT to respond to the BLM
regarding expressions of interest to lease federal minerals under NFS
lands in Texas, as federally mandated by the Mineral Leasing Act of
1920, the Mineral Leasing Act for Acquired Lands of 1947, the Mining
and Minerals Policy Act of 1970, the Energy Security Act of 1980 and
Federal Onshore Oil and Gas Leasing Reform Act of 1987, with procedural
direction in 36 CFR 228 Subpart E. These laws state that NFS lands
shall be made available for oil and gas leasing unless closure is
necessary due to the inability to protect a sensitive resource through
constraints. Because of advancements in technology and environmental
changes since the 1996 forest plan, there is a need to reevaluate the
previous oil and gas leasing analysis to fulfill these congressional
mandates while complying with the forest plan and other laws and
regulations.
The most recent leasing availability analysis was incorporated into
the 1996 forest plan, but new information and changed circumstances
related to natural resource conditions, oil and gas technology, and
agency priorities warrant a new analysis and decision. Such an
evaluation is also necessary to
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determine what lease stipulations should apply to those lands to
protect resources. Once the Forest Service determines which NFGT lands
would be available for leasing, the BLM has the discretion whether to
include those lands in future competitive oil and gas lease sales. This
process aligns with the objectives of Executive Order 14154 by
promoting the responsible development of domestic energy resources and
supports Executive Order 14156 by addressing the national energy
emergency through strategic land use planning and resource management.
Proposed Action
The Forest Service, on behalf of the Under Secretary, proposes to
identify NFGT administered lands that would be available for future oil
and gas leasing; to identify which stipulations would be applied to
protect resources on lands available for future oil and gas leasing;
and to determine if the 1996 NFGT forest plan should be amended. The
Forest Service's analysis will not affect current valid leasing,
including the associated terms, conditions, and stipulations. The EIS
also would not affect the exercising of reserved and outstanding
mineral rights on NFS lands. The proposed changes would apply only to
new leases for federal minerals that may be issued.
Following an initial evaluation of the need to change current
direction, the following actions are being proposed to address those
areas and management directions that need to be clarified to comply
with forest plan standards for resource protection while also managing
the mineral resources. The decision area includes only those NFGT lands
(approximately 500,000 acres) where the Forest Service manages the
surface and the underlying mineral estate is federally managed by the
United States Department of Interior Bureau of Land Management (BLM).
The following elements will be included in the proposed action:
Both current management and the proposed action would
maintain 38,300 acres as closed for congressionally- designated
wilderness areas.
The proposed action would convert Controlled Surface Use
(CSU) stipulations to No Surface Occupancy (NSO) stipulations for
natural heritage botanical areas and reservoirs on the NFGT consistent
with forest plan standards. This would decrease the number of acres
with a CSU stipulation from approximately 73,100 to 63,100 acres and
increase the acres under NSO from approximately 11,100 to 28,000 acres.
The proposed action would remove the current turkey
nesting Timing Limitation (TL) stipulation.
The proposed action would add NSO stipulations to protect
natural heritage botanical areas, special status species, unique
prairie vegetation communities, inclusional wetlands, sensitive aquatic
areas, natural springs, and steep slopes.
Several NSO and CSU stipulations would require site-
specific surveys to identify areas where the stipulation applies. This
includes red-cockaded woodpecker (RCW) NSO and CSU stipulations for
cavity trees, cluster sites, and foraging habitat. These RCW
stipulations would apply in Management Area 2, which includes
approximately 226,700 acres of the decision area. Site-specific surveys
are also required to determine CSU areas for the protection of 100-year
floodplains and intermittent and perennial waterways.
Existing NSO and CSU stipulations related to erodible
soils, flood control structures, Research Natural Areas, developed
recreation sites, scenic areas and Lake Conroe would be updated to
improve implementability.
New stipulations to address invasive plants, restoration
seed mixes, and soil stability associated with well pad construction
would also be added.
Alternatives
The Forest Service will analyze the No Action Alternative (the
existing oil and gas leasing alternative), the Proposed Action
Alternative, and a No Leasing Alternative. Additional alternatives may
also be developed and considered to address issues raised during the
scoping process. These could add, change or clarify stipulations to
protect resources consistent with forest plan direction and other laws
and regulations. Except for the No Leasing Alternative, which would
administratively determine that no lands would be available for future
oil and gas leasing, alternatives will be developed that comply with
the current forest plan (i.e., no plan amendment is expected).
List of Substantive Issues and Expected Impacts
The following list of preliminary issues were identified in the
2019 NOI and will be addressed in this analysis:
Impacts on areas of the forest where air pollution levels
have not met the National Ambient Air Quality Standards for criteria
air pollutants and have been designated as nonattainment areas.
Impacts on greenhouse gas emissions.
Impacts on surface and subsurface water quantity and
quality, including public water supplies.
Impacts from well pad and steep slope erosion and sediment
transport into streams, wetlands, or other sensitive aquatic areas.
Impacts from noxious and invasive weed spread.
Impacts on rare plants and ecosystems.
Fragmentation, removal, or disturbances on wildlife
corridors, critical habitats, and other important or sensitive wildlife
habitats.
Impacts on threatened and endangered species, such as the
red-cockaded woodpecker and Louisiana pine snake, and species that have
been listed or proposed for listing since the 1996 oil and gas
availability decision.
Impacts on prescribed rangeland conservation burning and
reforestation management.
Traffic, noise, light pollution, and visual impacts on
nearby residents, visitors, and other forest users.
Impacts on royalty payments to counties associated with
any changes in oil and gas leasing.
Impacts on special designations and impacts on wilderness
character.
Impacts on recreationists and loss of recreation
opportunities.
Impacts on geologic features on the NFGT, including salt
domes, and potential for induced seismicity.
Additional issues may be identified based on comments received
during this public scoping period.
Anticipated Permits and Other Authorizations
The resulting consent decision will identify lands as open to
leasing (including both those subject to standard terms and conditions
of oil and gas lease forms and those subject to additional
stipulations) but does not commit the BLM to future leasing action.
When lands identified as available are scheduled for leasing, the
Forest Service shall review the specific lands for consistency with the
leasing consent decision pursuant to criteria in 36 CFR 228.103,
resulting in either confirmation of Forest Service consent or
withdrawal of consent for specific parcels.
Comments and the Objection Process
Scoping for an earlier version of this project was conducted in
2019 and included publication of an NOI describing the initial proposed
action and potential alternatives, opportunities for public comment
announced through a legal notice and the NFGT mailing list, and four
public meetings. Comments
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were received from Federal, state, and local agencies, elected
officials, Native American tribes, special interest groups, and
concerned citizens and they will be considered in development of the
EIS. This NOI provides an additional opportunity for public comments.
This notice of intent re-initiates the project and NEPA timeline.
In this process the Agency is requesting comments on potential
alternatives and impacts, and identification of any relevant
information, studies or analyses of any kind concerning impacts
affecting the quality of the human environment.
It is important that interested members of the public provide their
comments at such times and in such manner that they are useful to the
agency's preparation of the EIS. Therefore, written comments must be
provided prior to the close of the comment period and should clearly
articulate the commenter's concerns and contentions. Comments received
in response to this solicitation, including names and addresses of
those who comment, will be part of the public record for this proposed
action. Comments submitted anonymously will be accepted and considered.
Federal regulations (36 CFR 228.103(c)(2)) state that oil and gas
leasing consent decisions are subject to a predecisional objection
process conducted in accordance with the procedures set forth in 36 CFR
219 Subpart B. 36 CFR 219.51(b) states that ``Plans, plan amendments,
or plan revisions proposed by the Secretary of Agriculture or the Under
Secretary for Natural Resources and Environment are not subject to the
procedures set forth in this section. A decision by the Secretary or
Under Secretary constitutes the final administrative determination of
the U.S. Department of Agriculture.'' Because the Under Secretary for
NRE is the responsible official this project, it is not subject to the
36 CFR 219 Subpart B objection process.
Cooperating and Participating Agencies
The USDA Forest Service, National Forests and Grasslands in Texas,
is the lead agency and the USDI Bureau of Land Management, New Mexico
State Office, is a cooperating agency in this analysis.
Responsible Official
The responsible official is Michael Boren, Under Secretary of
Agriculture for Natural Resources and Environment.
Michael Boren,
Under Secretary of Agriculture for Natural Resources and Environment.
[FR Doc. 2026-07974 Filed 4-22-26; 8:45 am]
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