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Yellowstone Pipeline Missoula to Thompson Falls Reroute, Lolo and Idaho Panhandle National Forests; Mineral, Missoula, and Sanders Counties, Montana, and Shoshone County, ID

Note: EPA no longer updates this information, but it may be useful as a reference or resource.

 [Federal Register: March 30, 2000 (Volume 65, Number 62)]
[Notices]
[Page 16872-16873]
From the Federal Register Online via GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov]
[DOCID:fr30mr00-31]

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DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE

Forest Service


Yellowstone Pipeline Missoula to Thompson Falls Reroute, Lolo and
Idaho Panhandle National Forests; Mineral, Missoula, and Sanders
Counties, Montana, and Shoshone County, ID

AGENCY: Forest Service, USDA.

ACTION: Notice; revision of notice of intent to prepare an
environmental impact statement.

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SUMMARY: The Forest Service is revising previous notices of intent to
prepare an environmental impact statement (EIS) regarding Yellowstone
Pipe Line Company's proposals for a new petroleum products pipeline
between Missoula and Thompson Falls, Montana, and to renew a special-
use permit for an existing pipeline. The company has withdrawn its
request for a new pipeline and now only seeks renewal of its special-
use permit for its existing pipeline. In response, we have changed the
schedule, scope, responsible official, and cooperating agencies for
this EIS.

DATES: The final EIS should be released by July 2000.

ADDRESSES: Mail comments or inquiries regarding this notice to Terry
Egenhoff, Environmental Coordinator, Lolo National Forest, Bldg. 24
Fort Missoula, MT 59804 7297.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Terry Egenhoff, (406) 329 3833.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: This notice revises the Yellowstone Pipeline
EIS notice published in the Federal Register on Friday, December 20,
1996 (61 FR 67302-67303), and revised in a notice published in the
Federal Register on Thursday, May 20, 1999 (64 FR 27504-27505). The
changes involve schedule, scope, responsible official, and cooperating
agencies.

Background

    The Draft EIS for this proposal was released on September 17, 1999.
Since then, the Yellowstone Pipeline Company (YPL) has submitted two
key changes affecting this EIS: (1) On November 9, 1999 YPL proposed to
relocate five more miles of its existing line away from Prospect Creek
and the North Fork Coeur d'Alene River, increasing the total proposed
for relocation away from streams from the 3.5 miles YPL proposed in the
Draft EIS to 9.8 miles; and (2) on February 15, 2000 YPL withdrew its
application for a new pipeline route between Missoula and Thompson
Falls. In January 2000 YPL requested that the Forest Service stop all
work on the pending EIS. In February 2000 YPL requested that the Forest
Service resume work to complete the EIS, but only for renewing the
existing pipeline permit.
    The Lolo National Forest will complete a Final EIS to renew the
existing pipeline permit for National Forest System lands between
Thompson Falls, Montana and Coeur d'Alene, Idaho. The Final EIS will
focus on changes to the existing pipeline between Thompson Falls and
Kingston, Idaho. All alternatives studied in detail in the Final EIS
will assume that the current rail transportation of petroleum products
between Missoula and Thompson Falls will continue.
    Several alternatives in the Draft EIS released last September will
be eliminated from detailed study in the Final EIS. Those are all the
new-construction alternatives between Missoula and Thompson Falls and
between Missoula and Kingston.
    Schedule changes: The final EIS should be released by July 2000.
    Scope changes: The scope of the final EIS will be limited to cover
only modifications proposed to 60 miles of YPL's existing pipeline
between Thompson Falls and Kingston, Idaho. The primary modification
proposed is local relocation away from streams of about 10 miles of
pipe in several separate locations. This reduced scope will involve
only two counties: Sanders County, Montana and Shoshone County, Idaho.
The only Federal lands involved in the new scope are National Forest
System lands.
    Responsible official changes: The responsible official for the
decision resulting from this EIS is: Dale N. Bosworth, Regional
Forester, USDA Forest Service, Northern Region, P.O. Box 7669,
Missoula, MT 59807. No other Federal land management agencies are
involved in the reduced scope. Therefore, the Bureau of Land Management
no longer has any potential decision-making role.
    Cooperating Agency changes: Formal EIS cooperating agencies (40 CFR
1501.6) include the Corps of Engineers, and the Montana Department of
Environmental Quality (as lead agency for all Montana agencies). Other
agencies with permitting or consulting roles that are involved in the

[[Page 16873]]

preparation of this EIS include: USDOT Office of Pipeline Safety;
USEPA, USFWS; FHWA; Montana DRNC; Montana DOT; Montana Fish, Wildlife,
and Parks; Montana SHPO; Idaho DEQ; Idaho Dept. of Water Resources;
Idaho Fish and Game, Idaho SHPO; Confederated Salish and Kootenai
Tribes of the Flathead Nation; Sanders and Shoshone counties; and the
Green Mountain Conservation District. The Bureau of Land Management and
local agencies in Missoula and Mineral counties are no longer
cooperating agencies since the current scope does not include their
jurisdictions.

    Authority: 40 CFR 1501.7; Forest Service Handbook 1909.15, sec.
21.2.

    Dated: March 10, 2000.
Deborah L.R. Austin,
Forest Supervisor.
[FR Doc. 00-7896 Filed 3-29-00; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3410-11-M

 
 

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