[Federal Register: February 21, 2008 (Volume 73, Number 35)]
[Notices]
[Page 9517-9521]
From the Federal Register Online via GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov]
[DOCID:fr21fe08-35]
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DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE
Forest Service
Dixie National Forest, UT; Tropic to Hatch 138kV Transmission
Line Project
AGENCY: Forest Service, United States Department of Agriculture.
ACTION: Notice of intent to prepare an environmental impact statement.
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SUMMARY: The Forest Supervisor of the Dixie National Forest gives
notice of intent to prepare an Environmental Impact Statement to
address potential effects of a proposed project by Garkane Energy
Cooperative (Garkane) to construct, operate and maintain a 138 kilovolt
(kV) electric transmission line requiring a Special Use Authorization,
Grant of Right-of-Way, and/or Special Use Permit for a Right-of-Way.
The proposed project will include the construction of a 138kV
transmission line, associated substations, access roads and the removal
and reclamation of a portion of the existing transmission line. The
proposed action would cross lands administered by the Forest Service,
Bureau of Land Management, State and private. If approved, the proposed
project would require amending the Grand Staircase-Escalante National
Monument Management Plan to allow a utility right-of-way in the
primitive management zone adjacent to an existing utility right-of-way.
Dependant upon the final location of the transmission line
alignment, the Dixie National Forest Plan may need amending to adjust
or modify the scenic integrity objectives. The Dixie National Forest
will serve as the lead agency. The National Park Service and the Bureau
of Land Management Kanab Field Office and Grand Staircase-Escalante
National Monument will participate as cooperating agencies, and each
agency will issue separate decisions based on the analysis. The Utah
State Institutional Trust Lands have been invited as a cooperating
agency.
DATES: Comments concerning the scope of the analysis should be received
[[Page 9518]]
within 30 days from date of publication of this notice in the Federal
Register to be most useful. The Draft Environmental Impact Statement is
scheduled for release in spring 2009, and the Final Environmental
Impact Statement is scheduled for completion in summer 2009.
ADDRESSES: Send written comments to Ms. Susan Baughman, Dixie National
Forest, USDA Forest Service, Tropic to Hatch 138kV Transmission Line
Project EIS Project Leader, 1789 N. Wedgewood Lane, Cedar City, UT
84720. Phone: (435) 865-3700; Fax: (435) 865-3791; E-mail:
tropic_to_hatch_transmission_line_eis_comments@fs.fed.us. E-mailed comments
must be submitted in MS Word (*.doc) or rich text format (*.rtf) and
should include the project name in the subject line. Written comments
may also be submitted at the above address during regular business
hours of 8 a.m. to 5 p.m., Monday-Friday.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Ms. Susan Baughman, Tropic to Hatch
138kV Transmission Line Project, EIS Project Leader, Dixie National
Forest (contact information listed above).
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Garkane delivers propane and electric
service to more than 11,000 customers in northern Arizona and southern
Utah including the project area. Growth in Garfield and Kane counties
has increased electrical demand. Garkane, which owns, operates and
maintains the electric delivery systems in this area, has found the
existing system insufficient to meet electrical demand without the
operation of temporary diesel generators. The proposed project involves
the construction, operation and maintenance of a 138kV transmission
line from Tropic to Hatch in Garfield County, Utah, and a new
substation and expansion of the Hatch Substation to serve existing and
planned electric loads in the region. Currently a 138kV transmission
line provides connection from the Glen Canyon Dam to the Tropic area;
however, only a 69kV transmission line provides connection between the
Tropic and Hatch substations. The 69kV transmission system is Garkane's
main electrical supply to the area west of Tropic and is insufficent to
provide power equal to the electrical demand in that area. The existing
69kV electrical transmission system is operating at its capacity and
cannot be modified to carry higher voltages due to physical limitations
of the pole structures. The proposed 138kV electrical system
improvement would provide a cost-effective solution to adequately
address current demands and provide capacity for the foreseeable
future. A special use authorization and right-of-way must be acquired
or amended to allow the construction, maintenance and operation of the
new transmission line. Substations would be developed on private land
as part of the project.
The new transmission line will be a single 138kV circuit supported
by wood pole H-frame structures approximately 60 feet tall. The
proposed project involves the construction of access roads in portions
of the alignment where a suitable road is not available and where
development of an access road is permitted by the authorizing agency.
Access roads would be used for installation of wood transmission
structures, conductors, and overhead ground wires, removal of poles and
conductors, and for maintenance and inspection activities. In limited
areas where vehicle access is not feasible due to topographical
constraints and/or agency requirements, the alignment would be accessed
via helicopter, mule, horse, all-terrain vehicle, and/or foot. In order
to accomplish the planned activities, Garkane will require a 100 foot-
wide permanent right-of-way. In addition, temporary use permits would
be needed for several 125 by 400 foot pulling and splicing locations
and turning structure locations, and for approximately eight 200 by 600
foot temporary staging locations. Project construction activities and
overland access along the proposed project alignment will be conducted
within the proposed 100 foot-wide right-of-way and the temporary use
permit areas.
The proposed 138kV transmission line would originate at a proposed
East Valley Substation, located near Tropic, Utah and terminate at the
existing Hatch Substation near Hatch, Utah, along U.S. Route 89 and
would extend approximately 31 miles. The project would involve various
private land owners as well as jurisdictions managed by the State of
Utah; Dixie National Forest; and Bureau of Land Management's Kanab
Field Office and Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument.
Development of the proposed action would include the removal of the
existing transmission line between the Bryce Canyon Substation and
Hatch Mountain Switch Station through Red Canyon. One potential
alternative would parallel an existing line through Bryce Canyon
National Park.
The Bureau of Land Management planning regulations (43 CFR 1600)
require the preparation of planning criteria to guide the development
of resource management plan amendments. Planning criteria ensure that
plans are tailored to the identified issues and ensure that unnecessary
data collection and analysis are avoided.
These general planning criteria will be used to develop a Grand
Staircase-Escalante National Monument Management Plan amendment for the
Tropic to Hatch 138kV Transmission Line Project. The planning criteria
are as follows:
The plan amendment will only consider adding one new
utility right-of-way in the primitive zone adjacent to an existing
utility right-of-way.
It will be completed in compliance with the Federal Land
Policy and Management Act and all other applicable laws.
It will meet the intent of the Proclamation that
established Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument which protects
objects of geological, paleontological, archaeological, biological, and
historic values within the Monument.
Pursuant to Section 102(2)(c) of the National Environmental Policy
Act and 42 U.S.C. 4321 et seq., the Forest Service, Bureau of Land
Management and National Park Service will be directing a third-party
contractor in the preparation of the Environmental Impact Statement on
the impacts of the proposed action.
Purpose and Need for Action
Growth in Garfield and Kane counties has increased electrical
demand. The growth in this area has resulted in a 66 percent increase
in the electrical demand during the past five years. This has caused an
overloading of the transmission lines and a decrease in the reliability
of the electrical system. Garkane, which owns, operates and maintains
the electric delivery systems in this area, has found the existing
system insufficient to meet electrical demand without operation of
temporary diesel generators.
Currently a 138kV transmission line provides connection from the
Glen Canyon Dam to the Tropic area, however only a 69kV transmission
line provides connection between the Tropic and Hatch substations. The
69kV transmission system is Garkane's main electrical supply to the
area west of Tropic and is insufficient to provide power equal to the
electrical demand in that area. The existing 69kV electrical
transmission system is operating at its capacity and cannot be modified
to carry higher voltages due to physical limitations of the pole
structures. The proposed project is needed to bring this available
energy from the Tropic area to the Hatch area where the electric
demands are increasing. The proposed
[[Page 9519]]
electrical system improvement will provide a cost-effective solution to
adequately address both current demands and provide capacity for the
foreseeable future. A right-of-way must be acquired or amended to allow
the construction, maintenance and operation of the new transmission
line. Substations will be developed on private land as part of the
project. Special use authorizations and rights-of-way are needed to
allow Garkane to upgrade the current electrical service from Tropic to
Hatch, Garfield County, Utah to meet current and future electrical
demands.
Proposed Action
The Forest Supervisor of the Dixie National Forest and the Utah
State Director of the Bureau of Land Management propose to conduct
analysis and decide whether to grant the necessary Special Use
Authorization and Right-of-Way permits to Garkane to construct, operate
and maintain a 138kV transmission line and all associated features from
Tropic to Hatch in Garfield County, Utah. The proposed project would
require amending the Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument
Management Plan to allow a utility right-of-way in the primitive zone
adjacent to an existing utility right-of-way. Dependant upon the final
location of the transmission line alignment, the Dixie National Forest
Plan may need to be amended to adjust or modify the scenic integrity
objectives.
The proposed corridor originates on private land at the proposed
East Valley Substation and extends northeast following East Valley Road
to an existing Rocky Mountain Power 230kV transmission line corridor.
The project route then parallels the south side of the Rocky Mountain
Power 230kV Transmission Line to the northwest through Cedar Fork
Canyon. As the project route exits the Canyon on the Paunsaugunt
Plateau, it diverges from the Rocky Mountain Power 230kV Transmission
Line corridor and extends east across John's Valley for approximately
seven miles. At this point, the corridor turns south for approximately
two miles crossing State Route 12 near the Bryce Canyon Pines Motel.
The route then extends west through Johnson Bench until it intersects
Forest Service Road 1150, and then parallels Forest Service Road 1150
to the head of the Hillsdale Canyon. The project route continues
through a designated utility corridor west down the canyon to Forest
Road 223 and turns north for approximately 0.5 mile. At this point, the
project route leaves the road and extends due west across Long Valley
paralleling section lines, and eventually crossing U.S. Route 89 where
it then turns to the southwest for approximately two miles to the Hatch
Substation. The proposed line would cross approximately 15 miles of
National Forest, 3.67 miles of Grand Staircase-Escalante National
Monument, 3.53 miles of Bureau of Land Management Kanab Field Office,
7.27 miles of State, and 1.76 miles of private lands.
Legal description for the project route corridor is as follows:
Sections 27-29, 31, 32, 34, and 35, T35S, R3W; sections 34-36, T35S,
R4W; sections 7, 17, 18, 20, 28, 29, 32, and 33, T36S, R2W; sections 2,
11, and 12, T36S, R3W; sections 3, 4, and 7-9, T36S, R4W; sections 8,
9, and 11-16, T36S, R4.5W; and sections 11-16, and 21, T36S, R5W.
The new transmission line will be a single 138kV circuit supported
by wood pole H-frame structures approximately 60 feet tall. The
proposed project involves the construction of access roads in portions
of the alignment where a suitable road is not available and where
development of an access road is permitted by the authorizing agency.
Access roads would be used for installation of wood transmission
structures, conductors, overhead ground wires, removal of poles and
conductors, and for maintenance and inspection activities. In limited
areas where vehicle access is not feasible due to topographical
constraints and/or agency requirements, the alignment would be accessed
via helicopter, mule, horse, all-terrain vehicle, and/or foot. In order
to accomplish the planned activities, Garkane will require a 100 foot-
wide permanent right-of-way. In addition, temporary use permits will be
needed for 125 by 400 foot areas at pulling and splicing locations at
turning structures and for approximately eight 200 by 600 feet areas
for temporary staging activities. Project construction activities and
overland access along the proposed project alignment will be conducted
within the proposed 100 foot-wide right-of-way and temporary use permit
areas.
Development of the proposed action would include the removal and
reclamation of the existing transmission line between the Bryce Canyon
Substation and the Hatch Mountain Switch Station through Red Canyon.
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 Dixie National Forest Land and Resource Management Plan
(1986), Grand Staircase Escalante National Mounment Management Plan
(1999), Cedar, Beaver, Garfield, Antimony Resource Management Plan
(1986), and if necessary the Bryce Canyon National Park General
Management Plan (1987) and National Park Service Management Policies
(2006). Law requires evaluation of a ``no-action alternative.''
A possible alternative would be to build the transmission line
roughly parallel to the existing 69kV transmission line corridor. The
current 69kV line would need to remain in place until such time as the
upgraded line is energized. This alternative would originate at the
proposed East Valley Substation and extend generally west though
Tropic, Utah crossing State Route 12, continuing approximately three
miles through Bryce Canyon National Park with 1.2 miles of new
alignment onto the Paunsaugunt Plateau to the Bryce Substation near the
Ruby's Inn area. The route would then parallel the existing line across
the Paunsaugunt Plateau in a northwest direction to Red Canyon where it
would parallel the existing line through Red Canyon into Long Valley,
cross U.S. Route 89 to the Hatch Mountain Switch Station. From the
switch station, the route would parallel the existing line south to the
Hatch Substation. This alternative would remove and reclaim the portion
of the existing 69kV line between the Tropic Substation and Hatch
Mountain Switch Station. The Tropic and Bryce substations would need to
be expanded, and probably relocated. In limited areas where vehicle
access is not feasible due to topographical constraints and/or agency
requirements, the alignment would be accessed via helicopter, mule,
horse, all-terrain vehicle, and/or foot.
The legal description for the alternative corridor is as follows:
Sections 31 and 32, T35S, R4W; sections 26-28, 30, 35, and 36, T35S,
R4.5W; sections 25-27, 33, and 34, T35S, R5W; sections 31 and 32, T36S,
R2W; sections 16-18, 21-23, 25, 26, and 36, T36S, R3W; sections 3-5,
and 10-13, T36S, R4W; and sections 4, 9, 16, and 21, T36S, R5W.
Additional alternatives may be developed based on scoping comments.
Lead and Cooperating Agencies
The Forest Service is the lead agency. The Bureau of Land
Management and National Park Service will participate as cooperating
agencies. The Utah State Institutional Trust Lands have been invited to
be a cooperating agency.
Responsible Officials
Robert G. MacWhorter, Forest Supervisor, Dixie National Forest,
1789
[[Page 9520]]
N. Wedgewood Lane, Cedar City, Utah 84720.
Selma Sierra, Utah BLM State Director, P.O. Box 45155, Salt Lake
City, Utah 84145-0155.
Mike Snyder, Regional Director, National Park Service Regional
Office, 12795 West Alameda Pkwy, P.O. Box 25287, Lakewood, Colorado
80225.
Nature of Decisions To Be Made
The responsible officials will decide whether to adopt and
implement the proposed action, an alternative to the proposed action,
or take no action.
The Forest Supervisor, Dixie National Forest will decide whether to
issue a Special Use Authorization for the construction, operation and
maintenance of a 138kV transmission line from Tropic to Hatch, Utah.
The Forest Service may propose to amend the Forest Plan to adjust the
scenic integrity objective if necessary depending on route alignment
and impact analysis. The Bureau of Land Management State Director will
decide whether approve an amendment to the Grand Staircase-Escalante
National Monument Management Plan necessary to issue a right-of-way for
the construction operation and maintenance of a 138kV transmission line
from Tropic to Hatch, Utah.
The National Park Service Regional Director would decide whether to
issue a Special Use Permit for a right-of-way for the construction,
operation and maintenance of a 138kV transmission line through Bryce
Canyon National Park if an alternative through the park is selected.
Scoping Process
The first formal opportunity to comment on the Tropic to Hatch
138kV Transmission Line Project is during the scoping process (40 CFR
1501.7), which begins with the issuance of this Notice of Intent. Mail
comments to: Ms. Susan Baughman, Dixie National Forest, 1789 N.
Wedgewood Lane, Cedar City, Utah 84720. E-mail comments can be sent to:
tropic_to_hatch_transmission_line_eis_comment@fs.fed.us.
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 made 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.
The Forest Service is inviting Federal, State and local agencies,
the public, and other interested parties to provide comments,
suggestions and input regarding the nature and scope of the
environmental, social and economic issues, and possible alternatives
related to the Tropic to Hatch 138kV Transmission Line Project. The
scoping process for this Environmental Impact Statement will include
two public meetings for interested agencies and the public to submit
written concerns and issues they believe should be addressed. Comments
concerning the scope of the analysis should be received within 30 days
from date of publication of this notice in the Federal Register to be
most useful.
A series of public opportunities are scheduled to describe the
proposal and to provide an opportunity for public input. Two scoping
meetings are planned:
March 12, 2008: 6 p.m. to 8 p.m., Panquitch Library, 25 South 200
East, Panguitch, Utah 84759.
March 13, 2008: 6 p.m. to 8 p.m., Cannonville Visitor Center, 10
Center Street, Cannonville, Utah 84718.
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
Issues that may be analyzed in all alternatives include: Effects on
flora and fauna (e.g., threatened and endangered species, sensitive
species, and management indicator species); effects on scenic and
visual resources; effects on cultural and paleontological resources;
effects on upland vegetation; effects on Forest Service inventoried
roadless areas and Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument
primitive management zones; and effects on noxious weeds and invasive
species. Specific issues will be developed through review of public
comments and internal review.
Permits or Licenses Required
It is assumed applications will be filed with affected agencies as
necessary. Currently, alternative corridors cross lands managed by the
Forest Service, National Park Service, and Grand Staircase-Escalante
National Monument. The entitlements required from each Federal agency
are:
Forest Service--Special Use Authorization
Bureau of Land Management--Grant of Right-of-Way
Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument--Grant of
Right-of-Way
National Park Service--Special Use Permit for a Right-of-
Way, if applicable.
Comment Requested
This Notice of Intent initiates the scoping process which guides
the development of the environmental impact statement. Consequently
site-specific comments or concerns that are tied directly to the
proposed action are the most important types of information needed for
this Environmental Impact Statement.
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
will be at least 45 days from the date the Environmental Protection
Agency publishes the Notice of Availability in the Federal Register. If
a Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument Management Plan amendment
is required, the comment period would be 90 days.
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 the close of the 45 day comment period 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 on the Draft
Environmental Impact Statement should be as specific as possible. It is
also helpful if comments refer to specific pages or chapters of the
draft statement. Comments may also address the adequacy of the Draft
Environmental
[[Page 9521]]
Impact Statement or the merits of the alternatives formulated and
discussed in the statement. 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 these 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: February 14, 2008.
Robert G. MacWhorter,
Forest Supervisor.
[FR Doc. E8-3194 Filed 2-20-08; 8:45 am]
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