[Federal Register Volume 74, Number 55 (Tuesday, March 24, 2009)]
[Notices]
[Pages 12306-12307]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: E9-6346]
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DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE
Forest Service
Notice of Availability (NOA) Record of Decision (ROD) for the
Designation of Energy Corridors on Federal Land in the 11 Western
States, Including Proposed Amendments to Selected Land Management Plans
AGENCY: Forest Service, USDA.
ACTION: Notice of availability of record of decision.
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SUMMARY: In accordance with the National Environmental Policy Act
(NEPA, 42 U.S.C. 4321 et seq.) and the National Forest Management Act
(NFMA, 16 U.S.C. 1600-1614 et seq.), the Forest Service announces the
[[Page 12307]]
decision to amend selected Land Management Plans. Specifically, the ROD
amends 38 Land Management Plans for National Forests in 10 of the 11
Western States. The United States Department of the Interior and the
Bureau of Land Management (BLM) are expected to concurrently announce a
similar decision amending their respective Resource Management Plans.
Section 368 of the Energy Policy Act of 2005 (EPAct 2005), Public
Law 109-58, directs the Secretaries of Agriculture, Defense, Energy,
and the Interior to designate corridors on Federal land in the 11
Western States for oil, gas, and hydrogen pipelines, as well as
electricity transmission and distribution facilities, and incorporate
the designated corridors into relevant agency land use and resource
management plans or equivalent plans.
The 11 Western States are Arizona, California, Colorado, Idaho,
Montana, Nevada, New Mexico, Oregon, Utah, Washington, and Wyoming. The
Forest Service is not designating any corridors in the State of New
Mexico.
DATES: Effective Date: This decision is effective April 23, 2009.
ADDRESSES: The ROD is available on the internet at http://www.corridoreis.anl.com. Printed copies will be available at one of the
involved National Forest supervisor or district ranger offices in the
10 Western States.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Glen Parker, Realty Specialist, Lands,
202-205-1196 or Ron Pugh, Planning Specialist, Ecosystem Management
Coordination, 202-205-0992. USDA Forest Service, L; (Glen Parker); 1400
Independence Ave., SW, Mailstop Code: 1124; Washington, DC 20050-1124.
Individuals who use telecommunication devices for the deaf (TDD)
may call the Federal Information Relay Service (FIRS) at 1-800-877-8339
between 8 a.m. and 8 p.m., Eastern Standard Time, Monday through
Friday.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: In October 2008, the BLM released a final
Programmatic Environmental Impact Statement (PEIS) to designate
corridors for future oil, gas, and hydrogen pipelines, as well as
electricity transmission and distribution facilities, and to
incorporate the designated corridors into the relevant agencies' land
use and resource management plans or equivalent plans. Section 368
directs the involved agencies to take into account the need for
upgraded and new infrastructure and to take actions to improve
reliability, relieve congestion, and enhance the capability of the
national grid to deliver energy. This action only pertains to the
designation of corridors for potential facilities on Federal lands
located within the 11 Western States.
Designation of Section 368 energy corridors is an important step in
addressing critical energy needs in the West. Energy corridors on
Federal lands provide pathways for future long-distance energy
transmission that will help to relieve congestion, improve reliability,
and enhance the national electric grid. Future use of corridors should
reduce the proliferation of rights-of-way (ROWs) across the landscape
and minimize the environmental footprint of future development.
Section 368 energy corridors are located to avoid, to the maximum
extent possible, significant, known environmental resources. The
corridors are designated considering potential renewable energy
development in the West, which is currently constrained in part by a
lack of transmission capacity. The coordinated, interagency permitting
and environmental compliance processes, evaluated in the PEIS and
adopted by this ROD, will foster long-term, systematic planning for
energy transportation development and offer a consistent and improved
interagency permitting process. The amendment of the land management
plans is responsive to USDA's responsibilities under Section 368 of the
Act and represents a forward-looking proactive response to the Nation's
energy needs and the sustainable management of NFS lands.
The ROD is intended to improve coordination among the agencies to
increase the efficiency of using designated corridors. In many areas of
the United States, including the West, the infrastructure required to
deliver energy has not always kept pace with growth in energy demand.
The agencies hope to improve the delivery of energy, while enhancing
the electric transmission grid for the future, by establishing a
coordinated network of Section 368 energy corridors on Federal lands in
the West. The final PEIS analyzes the environmental impacts of
designating Section 368 energy corridors in 11 Western States and
incorporating those designations into relevant agency land use and
resource management plans or equivalent plans.
The Agencies prepared this PEIS at the designation stage because
they believe it is an appropriate time to examine environmental
concerns at the programmatic level. Impacts that affect the quality of
the environment will only occur after specific proposals are submitted,
analyzed through the NEPA process, and approved by the land management
agency. The agencies expect that the PEIS will assist subsequent site-
specific analyses for individual project proposals.
These energy corridors comprise a comprehensive, coordinated
network of preferred locations for future energy projects that could be
developed to satisfy demand for energy. This ROD designates
approximately 990 miles of energy corridors on National Forest System
lands in 10 of the 11 Western States as the preferred location for oil,
natural gas, and hydrogen pipelines as well as electricity transmission
and distribution lines. Environmental, engineering, and land use
screening criteria were applied during the development of the proposed
action to reduce potential environmental and land use conflicts. The
energy corridors will typically be 3,500 feet wide, although the width
may vary in certain areas due to environmental, topographic, or
management requirements.
The policies and Interagency Operating Procedures (IOPs) developed
under the proposed action establish requirements for the management of
future individual energy transportation projects. The IOPs identify
required management procedures to be incorporated into the analysis of
future project-specific energy transportation development proposals.
The ROD amends a total of 38 Forest Service land management plans
in 10 of the 11 Western States. The land use plan amendments designate
the Section 368 energy corridors identified in the final ROD. The plan
amendments do not eliminate the need for site-specific NEPA analyses of
individual development proposals.
Readers should note this decision was signed by the Under Secretary
of Agriculture for Natural Resources and the Environment; therefore, no
administrative review of the Record of Decision under 36 CFR part 217
is available.
Reference to previously published Federal Register documents: 73 FR
72521, November 28, 2008; 73 FR 2905, January 16, 2008; 72 FR 64591,
November 16, 2007; and 70 FR 56647, September 28, 2005.
Dated: March 12, 2009.
Ann Bartuska,
Acting Deputy Under Secretary, Natural Resources and Environment.
[FR Doc. E9-6346 Filed 3-23-09; 8:45 am]
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