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Notice of Intent To Prepare an Environmental Impact Statement for the Mountain States Transmission Intertie Project in Montana and Idaho, Possible Land Use Plan Amendments, and Notice of Public Scoping Meetings 

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[Federal Register: August 20, 2008 (Volume 73, Number 162)]
[Notices]
[Page 49215-49216]
From the Federal Register Online via GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov]
[DOCID:fr20au08-78]

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DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR
Bureau of Land Management
[MT924-5101-ER-E044, MTM 97296; IDI 35970]

Notice of Intent To Prepare an Environmental Impact Statement for
the Mountain States Transmission Intertie Project in Montana and Idaho,
Possible Land Use Plan Amendments, and Notice of Public Scoping Meetings

AGENCY: Bureau of Land Management, Interior.
ACTION: Notice of Intent.

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SUMMARY: The Bureau of Land Management (BLM) gives notice of intent to
prepare an Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) to address potential
effects of a proposed project by NorthWestern Energy to build and
operate a new 500 kV electric transmission line requiring a special use
permit, right-of-way grant, and/or temporary use permit for
construction, operation, and maintenance of a 500kV electric
transmission line and associated substation, including new access
roads. The transmission line is known as the Mountain States
Transmission Intertie (MSTI) Project. NorthWestern Energy's three
project alternatives range from 390 to 430 miles in length, but
additional alternatives or variations on alternatives may be developed
through the environmental review process. Alternatives for the proposed
transmission line would pass over private, state, and federally managed
lands in Montana and Idaho. Federally managed lands include lands
administered by the BLM, U.S. Forest Service (USFS), Department of
Agriculture (USDA) Agricultural Research Service (ARS), U.S. Sheep
Experiment Station, and U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) Idaho National
Laboratory. Authorization of this proposal may require the amendment of
the BLM and the USFS land use plans (Forest Plans, Management Framework
Plans, and Resource Management Plans).

DATES: This notice initiates the public scoping process. Comments
concerning the scope of the analysis should be received by October 10,
2008. The BLM will host open houses in the following communities:

Montana

    • September 9, 2008--Copper King Hotel, 4655 Harrison
Avenue, Butte, Montana;
    • September 10, 2008--Three Forks High School, 210 East
Neal, Three Forks, Montana;
    • September 11, 2008--University of Montana Western, Lewis
and Clark Room, Dillon, Montana.

Idaho

    • September 16, 2008--Red Lion Canyon Springs, 1357 Blue
Lakes Boulevard N., Twin Falls, Idaho;
    • September 17, 2008--Arco/Butte Business Incubator Center,
159 N. Idaho Street, Arco, Idaho;
    • September 18, 2008--Hilton Garden Inn, 700 Lindsay
Boulevard, Idaho Falls, Idaho.
    All public meetings will be held 7 to 9 p.m. mountain daylight
savings time. Additional meeting announcements will be made by news
release to the media, individual letter mailings, and postings on the
project Web sites listed below.

ADDRESSES: You may submit comments or resource information by any of
the following methods:
    • Web site: http://blm.gov/mt/st/en/prog/lands_realty/
projects.htm.
    • E-mail: MT_MSTI@blm.gov.
    • Mail: Mark A. Mackiewicz, National Project Manager, Bureau
of Land Management, Washington Office, c/o Price Field Office, 125
South 600 West, Price, Utah 84501.
    • Courier or Hand Delivery: Mark A. Mackiewicz, National
Project Manager, Bureau of Land Management, Washington Office, c/o
Price Field Office, 125 South 600 West, Price, Utah 84501.
    Or
    • Web site: http://www.deq.mt.gov/MFS/MSTI/MSTIindex.asp.
    • E-mail: DEQQMSTI@mt.gov.

[[Page 49216]]

    • Mail: Greg Hallsten, EIS Coordinator, Director's Office,
Montana Department of Environmental Quality, P.O. Box 200901, Helena,
Montana 59620-0901.
    • Courier or Hand Delivery: Greg Hallsten, EIS Coordinator,
Director's Office, Montana Department of Environmental Quality, 1520
East Sixth Avenue, Helena, Montana 59620.
    Documents pertinent to the right-of-way application may be examined at:
    • http://www.deq.mt.gov/MFS/MSTI/MSTIindex.asp 
http://www.blm.gov/mt/st/en/prog/lands_realty/projects.htm.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: To receive information and/or to have
your name added to our mailing list, contact Mark A. Mackiewicz,
National Project Manager, Bureau of Land Management, Washington Office,
c/o Price Field Office, 125 South 600 West, Price, Utah 84501.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The BLM will hold public meetings to obtain
input on potential impacts, alternatives, and mitigation. To provide
the public an opportunity to review the proposal and project
information, the BLM expects to hold three meetings in Idaho and three
meetings in Montana along the proposed and alternative alignments. The
meetings will be conducted in an ``open house'' format where the BLM
staff and project proponents will be available to explain project
details and gather information from interested individuals or groups. A
period for formal comments will be provided. The draft EIS is scheduled
for release in late spring 2009, and the final EIS is scheduled for
completion in late fall 2009.
    For lands in Montana, NorthWestern Energy is preparing an
application for a Certificate of Compliance under the Montana Major
Facility Siting Act (MFSA), and the Montana Department of Environmental
Quality will then proceed with the environmental review under the
Montana Environmental Policy Act (MEPA) and MFSA. The BLM will develop
an EIS designed to meet the standards of analysis required for
compliance with both federal and state regulations. Each agency will
serve as the lead agency for ensuring compliance under their respective
jurisdictions. The EIS must comply with NEPA 1969, as amended by the
Environmental Quality Improvement Act of 1970, 42 U.S.C. 4371, et seq.
and all other applicable laws, executive orders, regulations, and
direction.
    The federal environmental review process described above will guide
the public and agency review in Idaho. The BLM will consult with state
and local agencies affected by the project. Construction cannot
commence until all local, state, and federal permits and regulatory
requirements are met. Applications for right-of-way and special use
permit have been submitted for the use and occupation of BLM- and USFS-
administered lands, respectively.
    The new transmission line would begin at the new Townsend
Substation, which would be constructed in southwestern Montana about
five miles southeast of the city of Townsend. As proposed, the line
would proceed southwest to an enlarged substation east of Anaconda,
Montana. The line would proceed south into southeastern Idaho,
connecting to Idaho Power's existing Midpoint Substation, 10 miles
north of Jerome, Idaho. The transmission line towers would be
constructed of lattice steel or tubular steel approximately 125 feet
high, with an average span of 1,400 feet. An approximate 220-foot-wide
right-of-way would be required. The BLM is responsible for issuance of
a right-of-way for the BLM federally managed lands by authority of the
Federal Land Policy Management Act (FLPMA). The BLM field offices and
National Forests that are likely to be involved are:
    • In Idaho: Burley Field Office, Shoshone Field Office,
Upper Snake Field Office, and Caribou-Targhee National Forest.
    • In Montana: Butte Field Office, Dillon Field Office,
Helena National Forest, and Beaverhead-Deerlodge National Forest.
    Cooperating agencies identified at this time include the USFS and
the Montana Department of Natural Resources and Conservation (MDNRC).
The ARS and the Department of Energy have been invited to participate
in the project as a cooperating agency.
    Through public scoping, the BLM expects to identify various issues,
potential impacts, mitigation measures, and alternatives to the
proposed action. At present, the BLM has identified the following
issues and concerns:
    • Location of residences and communities.
    • Agricultural lands.
    • Cultural and historic resources.
    • Park and recreational areas.
    • Visual impacts.
    • Water resources including lakes, streams, wetlands and floodplains.
    • Sensitive plants, animals, and habitats.
    • Socioeconomic effects including electric rate effects.
    • Public health and safety.
    The BLM will analyze the proposed action and no action
alternatives, as well as other possible alternatives to the proposed
power line location and access routes. The BLM encourages you to send
us your comments concerning the power line project as proposed and
feasible alternative locations, possible mitigation measures, and any
other information relevant to the proposed action.
    Authorization of this proposal may require amendment of one or more
BLM or USFS land use plans. By this notice, the BLM is complying with
requirements in 43 CFR 1610.2(c) and the USFS is complying with 36 CFR
219.9 to notify the public of potential amendments to land use plans.
If a Resource Management Plan, Management Framework Plan, or Forest
Plan Amendment is necessary, the BLM and the USFS will integrate the
land use planning process with the NEPA analysis process for this
project. The responsible official who will sign the Record of Decision
for the BLM will be Tim Bozorth, Field Manager, BLM Dillon Field
Office. The responsible official who will sign the Record of Decision
for the USFS will be Bruce Ramsey, Forest Supervisor, Beaverhead-
Deerlodge National Forest.
    Your input is important and will be considered in the environmental
analysis process. All comment submittals must include the commenter's
name and street address. Comments including the names and addresses of
the respondent will be available for public inspection at the above
offices during their business hours (7:45 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.), Monday
through Friday, except federal holidays.
    Any persons wanting to be added to a mailing list of interested
parties can call or write to the BLM as described in this notice.
Additional informational meetings may be conducted throughout the
process to keep the public informed of the progress of the EIS.
    Before including your address, phone number, e-mail address, or
other personal identifying information in your comment, you should be
aware that your entire comment--including your personal identifying
information--may be publicly available at any time. While you can ask
us in your comment to withhold your personal identifying information
from public review, we cannot guarantee that we will be able to do so.

    Dated: August 11, 2008.
Howard A. Lemm,
Acting State Director, Montana State Office.
[FR Doc. E8-19335 Filed 8-19-08; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4310-DN-P

 
 

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