![[logo] US EPA](http://www.epa.gov/epafiles/images/logo_epaseal.gif){kind=logo}
Fishlake National Forest, Utah, EIS for Oil and Gas Leasing
Note: EPA no longer updates this information, but it may be useful as a reference or resource.
[Federal Register: July 7, 2006 (Volume 71, Number 130)]
[Notices]
[Page 38602-38604]
From the Federal Register Online via GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov]
[DOCID:fr07jy06-36]
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE
Forest Service
Fishlake National Forest, Utah, EIS for Oil and Gas Leasing
AGENCY: Forest Service, USDA and Bureau of Land Management, USDI.
ACTION: Notice of intent to prepare an environmental impact statement.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
SUMMARY: The Forest Service of the Fishlake National Forest gives
notice of the intent to prepare an environmental impact statement (EIS)
to document the analysis and disclose the environmental and human
effects of oil and gas leasing on lands administered by the Fishlake
National Forest. The Federal Onshore Oil and Gas Leasing Reform Act of
1987 (FOOGLRA) requires the Forest Service to evaluate National Forest
System lands for potential oil and gas leasing.
As the agency responsible for lease issuance and administration,
the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) will participate as a cooperating
agency.
DATES: Comments concerning the scope of the analysis should be received
by August 10, 2006 to be most helpful. The draft environmental impact
statement is scheduled for completion by the winter of 2006, and the
final environmental impact statement is expected before summer of 2007.
ADDRESSES: Send written comments to: Carter Reed, Oil and Gas Team
Leader, Fishlake National Forest, 115 East 900 North, Richfield, UT
84701; phone: (435) 636-3547; fax: (435) 896-0347; e-mail
comments-intermtn-fishlake@fs.fed.us. Please include ``Oil and Gas Leasing
Analysis Project'' on the subject line.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Davida Carnahan, Public Affairs
Officer, 115 East 900 North, Richfield, UT 84701; phone: (435) 896-1070.
For technical information contact: Carter Reed, Oil and Gas Team
Leader, (435) 636-3547.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
Purpose and Need for Action
FOOGLRA requires the Forest Service to evaluate National Forest System
[[Page 38603]]
(NFS) lands for potential oil and gas leasing and establishes Forest
Service consent authority for leasing prior to the BLM offering NFS
lands for lease. Since the FOOGLRA was signed into law, there has been
little industry interest in leasing the lands administered by the
Fishlake National Forest, and no leasing has been authorized by the
Fishlake National Forest; however, interest has recently escalated due
to the increased demand for oil and gas, high prices, and discoveries
of oil and gas reserves in other areas with similar geologic
conditions. The BLM Utah State Office has received numerous Expressions
of Interest for leasing portions of the Fishlake National Forest.
Proposed Action
The Forest Supervisor of the Fishlake National Forest and Utah
State Director, Bureau of Land Management propose to conduct the
analysis and decide which lands to make available for oil and gas
leasing. The analysis area includes lands administered by the Fishlake
National Forest. As part of the analysis, the Forest Service will
identify those areas that would be available for leasing subject to the
terms and conditions of the standard oil and gas lease form, or subject
to constraints that would require the use of lease stipulations such as
those prohibiting surface occupancy. The analysis will also: (1)
Identify alternatives to the proposed action, including that of not
allowing leasing (no action), (2) project the type/amount of post-
leasing activity that is reasonably foreseeable, and (3) analyze the
reasonably foreseeable impacts of projected post-leasing activity [36
CFR 228.102(c)].
Possible Alternatives
All alternatives studied in detail must fall within the scope of
the purpose and need for action and will generally tier to and comply
with the Fishlake forest plan. Law requires evaluation of a ``no-action
alternative''. Under the No Action/No Lease alternative, no oil and gas
leasing would occur. Alternatives to be evaluated would range from the
No Action/No Lease alternative (most restrictive) to the Standard Lease
Terms alternative (least restrictive) where all lands legally open to
leasing would be made administratively available for leasing with only
the standard BLM terms and conditions contained on BLM Lease Form 3100-
11. Other alternatives which fall somewhere between the No Action/No
Leasing alternative and Lease with Standard Terms alternative would
also be developed and evaluated, which would involve making some lands
unavailable for leasing and other lands available for leasing with
lease stipulations for the protection of other resources and interests.
The Forest is expecting that the public input will generate either
thematic concerns or area-specific issues that may be addressed by
modifying the proposed action to create a new alternative or alternatives.
Lead and Cooperating Agencies
The Forest Service is the lead agency. The Bureau of Land
Management will participate as a cooperating agency.
Responsible Officials
Mary Erickson, Forest Supervisor, Fishlake National Forest, 115
East 900 North, Richfield, UT 84701, Acting Utah State Director, Bureau
of Land Management.
Nature of Decision To Be Made
The Forest Supervisor, Fishlake National Forest, will decide which
lands administered by the Fishlake National Forest will be
administratively available for oil and gas leasing, along with
associated conditions or constraints for the protection of non-mineral
interests [36 CFR 228.102(d)]. The Forest Supervisor will also
authorize the BLM to offer specific lands for lease, subject to the
Forest Service ensuring that the required stipulations are attached to
the leases [36 CFR 228.102(e)].
The BLM is responsible for issuing and administration of oil and
gas leases under the Mineral Leasing Act of 1920, as amended, and
Federal Regulations in 43 CFR 3101.7. The BLM Utah State Director must
decide whether or not to offer for lease specific lands authorized for
leasing by the Fishlake National Forest and with what stipulations.
Scoping Process
The first formal opportunity to comment on the Fishlake National
Forest Oil and Gas Leasing Analysis Project is during the scoping
process (40 CFR 1501.7), which begins with the issuance of this Notice
of Intent.
Mail comments to: Carter Reed, Oil and Gas Team Leader, Fishlake
National Forest, 115 East 900 North, Richfield, UT 84701.
The Forest Service requests comments on the nature and scope of the
environmental, social, and economic issues, and possible alternatives
related to oil and gas leasing on lands administered by the Fishlake
National Forest.
A series of public opportunities are scheduled to describe the
proposal and to provide an opportunity for public input. Six scoping
meetings are planned.
July 17: 7 p.m. to 9 p.m., Beaver Ranger District, 575 South Main,
Beaver, Utah.
July 18: 7 p.m. to 9 p.m., Piute Event Center, 180 W. 500 N.,
Junction, Utah.
July 19: 7 p.m. to 9 p.m., Loa Civic Center, 95 W. Center, Loa, Utah.
July 20: 7 p.m. to 9 p.m., Millard High School, 35 N. 200 W.,
Fillmore, Utah.
August 1: 7 p.m. to 9 p.m., Snow College, Room 147C, Richfield, Utah.
August 2: 7 p.m. to 9 p.m., American Legion Hall, 50 S. State St.,
Salina, Utah.
Written comments will be accepted at these meetings. The Forest
Service will work with tribal governments to address issues that would
significantly or uniquely affect them.
Preliminary Issues
Important goals for the project are to meet the legal requirements
for evaluating National Forest System lands and make the required
decisions. The intent of the applicable laws and regulations (see
Summary) are to lease appropriate National Forest System lands and
provide a reasonable opportunity to explore for, discover, and produce
economic oil and gas reserves from available Federal lands, while
meeting the requirements of environmental laws and protecting other
resources and interests not compatible with such activities. Issues are
anticipated to involve potential effects to wildlife, water,
vegetation, recreation, public safety, roadless character, visual
resources, cultural and paleontological resources, and social and
economic settings. Specific issues will be developed through review of
public comments and internal review.
Comment Requested
This Notice of Intent initiates the scoping process which guides
the development of the environmental impact statement. The Forest has
also received substantial input at public meetings held for the Forest
Plan revision, including issues relative to mineral exploration and
development. Through these efforts the Forest has an understanding of
the broad range of perspectives on the resource issues and social
values attributed to resource activities on the Fishlake National
Forest. Consequently site-specific comments or concerns are the most
important types of information needed for this EIS. Because the Oil and
Gas Leasing EIS is a stand-alone document, only public comment letters
which address relevant issues and concerns
[[Page 38604]]
will be considered and formally addressed in an appendix in the FEIS.
Early Notice of Importance of Public Participation in Subsequent
Environmental Review
A draft environmental impact statement will be prepared for
comment. The comment period on the draft environmental impact statement
is expected to be 45 days from the date the Environmental Protection
Agency publishes the notice of availability in the Federal Register.
The Forest Service believes, at this early stage, it is important to
give reviewers notice of several court rulings related to public
participation in the environmental review process. First, reviewers of
draft environmental impact statements must structure their
participation in the environmental review of the proposal so that it is
meaningful and alerts an agency to the reviewer's position and
contentions. Vermont Yankee Nuclear Power Corp. v. NRDC, 435 U.S. 519,
553 (1978). Also, environmental objections that could be raised at the
draft environmental impact statement stage but that are not raised
until after completion of the final environmental impact statement may
be waived or dismissed by the courts. City of Angoon v. Hodel, 803 F.2d
1016, 1022 (9th Cir. 1986) and Wisconsin Heritages, Inc. v. Harris, 490
F. Supp. 1334, 1338 (E.D. Wis. 1980). Because of these court rulings,
it is very important that those interested in this proposed action
participate by providing comments during scoping comment period and
during the comment period following the draft EIS so that substantive
comments and objections are made available to the Forest Service at a
time when it can meaningfully consider them and respond to them in the
final environmental impact statement.
To assist the Forest Service in identifying and considering issues
and concerns on the proposed action, comments should be as specific as
possible. Reviewers may wish to refer to the Council on Environmental
Quality Regulations for implementing the procedural provisions of the
National Environmental Policy Act at 40 CFR 1503.3 in addressing their
points.
Comments received, including the names and addresses of those who
comment, will be considered part of the public record on this proposal
and will be available for public inspection.
(Authority: 40 CFR 1501.7 and 1508.22; Forest Service Handbook
1909.15, Section 21.)
Dated: June 27, 2006.
Mary C. Erickson,
Fishlake Forest Supervisor.
[FR Doc. 06-5950 Filed 7-6-06; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3410-11-M