BLM Haiwee Geothermal Leasing Area Draft Environmental Impact Statement and Draft Proposed Amendment to the California Desert Conservation Area Plan RidgecrestField Office Prepared for and under the direction of Bureau of Land Management Ridgecrest Field Office April 2012 DOI No. 12-6 BLM MISSION STATEMENT It is the mission of the Bureau of Land Management to sustain the health, diversity, and productivity of the public lands for the use and enjoyment of present and future generations. BLM/CA/ES-2012-005+1793 DOI No. 12-6 United States Departlnent of the Interior BUREAU OF LAND MANAGEMENT Ridgecrest Field Office 300 S. Richmond Rd . Ridgecrest, CA 93555 www.ca.blm.gov In reply, refer to: 320011610(P) CAD05000 April 2, 2012 Dear Reader: I am pleased to announce the availability of the Haiwee Geothermal Leasing Area (HGLA) Draft Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) and Draft Proposed Amendment to the California Desert Conservation Area (CDCA) Plan. The EIS evaluates five alternatives, including the No Action and No Plan Amendment alternative, to address the potential environmental impacts of: (1) opening approximately 22,805 acres of Bureau of Land Management (BLM) managed federal mineral estate to geothermal exploration, development, and leasing; and (2) leasing approximately 4,460 acres of federal mineral estate for geothermal energy testing and development. A pending non-competitive geothermal leasing application could be approved consistent with the terms and conditions of the current CDCA Plan. If a lease application is approved, geothermal energy development would be assessed under a separate National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) document. This Draft EIS I Draft CDCA Proposed Plan Amendment has been prepared in accordance with the Federal Land Policy and Management Act (FLPMA) and NEPA. Public meetings to provide an overview of the document, respond to questions, and take public comments will be announced through the local media, BLM's website, andlor public mailings at least 15 days in advance of the meetings. Comments may be submitted electronically at: [email protected], or by fax at: (951) 697­ 5299. Comments may also be submitted by mail to: California Desert District, 22835 Calle San Juan De Los Lagos, Moreno Valley, CA 92553, Attn: Peter Godfrey. To facilitate analysis of comments and information submitted, we encourage you to submit comments in an electronic format. Comments must be received within 90 days of the Environmental Protection Agency's publication of the Notice of Availability in the Federal Register to assure they are considered in the Final EIS. Your review and comments on the content of this document are critical to the success of this planning effort. If you wish to submit comments on the Draft EIS I Draft Proposed Plan Amendment, we request that you make your comments as specific as possible. Comments will be more helpful if they include suggested changes, sources, or methodologies, and reference to a section or page number. Comments containing only opinion or preferences will be considered and included as part of the decision making process, although they will not receive a formal response from the BLM. Before including an address, phone number, email address, or other personal identifying information in your comment, be advised 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 Draft EIS has been sent to members of the public who requested a copy and to pertinent local, state, tribal, and federal government entities. CDs of the Draft EIS may be requested through any of the options previously listed above. You may also view the Draft EIS on our web page at http://www.blm.gov/calstlenlfo/ridgecrest/haiwee geothermal.html. For additional information or clarification regarding this document or the planning process, please contact the Project Manager, Peter Godfrey, at (951) 697-5385. We extend our appreciation for your cooperation, assistance, and continued participation. <72o £4/,. Michael Reiland Acting Field Manager Haiwee Geothermal Leasing Area Draft EIS Executive Summary EXECUTIVE SUMMARY INTRODUCTION The United States Department of the Interior, Bureau of Land Management (BLM) has prepared this Draft Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) and Draft Proposed Amendment to the California Desert Conservation Area (CDCA) Plan to evaluate the feasibility and potential environmental impacts of opening for lease approximately 22,805 acres of federal mineral estate for geothermal energy exploration and development. This Draft EIS analyzes the potential impacts of opening public lands to geothermal leasing and potential development of federally-owned geothermal resources in the Haiwee Geothermal Leasing Area (HGLA) in southwestern Inyo County, California. The HGLA is located east of the Inyo National Forest, west of the China Lake Naval Air Weapons Station, South of the South Haiwee Reservoir, and north of Little Lake. The BLM has the delegated authority to issue geothermal leases on federal mineral estate; specifically these federal mineral resources administered by the BLM. A geothermal lease is for the conversion of geothermal energy into electric power. The BLM is authorized to enter into these leases as the manager of the geothermal resources included in the federal mineral estate. Leasing geothermal resources by the BLM vests with the lessee an exclusive right to future exploration and to produce and use of the geothermal resources within the lease area subject to existing laws, regulations, formal orders, and the terms, conditions and stipulations in or attached to the lease form or included as conditions of approval in permits. Lease issuance alone does not authorize any ground-disturbing activities. To explore for or develop geothermal resources, site-specific approval is required for any planned activities. Such approval could only be acquired following site and project specific National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) and other environmental review. PURPOSE OF AND NEED FOR ACTION The purpose and need for amending the CDCA Plan is to establish a management framework for appropriate exploration and development of geothermal resources, based upon evaluation of the various social, land use, and environmental resources within the HGLA. The BLM’s purpose and need for approving the pending lease applications for approximately 4,500 acres of federal mineral estate is to facilitate appropriate exploration and development of geothermal resources in the HGLA, consistent with the BLM’s management of other important resources in the HGLA. April 2012 PAGE ES-i Haiwee Geothermal Leasing Area Draft EIS Executive Summary More specifically, the purpose of the action is to consider the role of geothermal energy and its use in responding to policy directives and congressional direction regarding (1) development of clean renewable energy, (2) meet the increasing energy demands of the nation, (3) reducing reliance on foreign energy imports, (4) reduce greenhouse gas emissions, and (5) improving national security. The purpose also includes responding to the increasing interest in geothermal leasing opportunities on federal land by “prescreening” land in the Haiwee geothermal leasing area. The purpose includes support of Executive Order 13212, the Energy Act of 2005, Secretarial Order 3285, and California State’s Renewable Portfolio Standards (RPS) Policy. In May of 2001, then-President Bush signed Executive Order 13212, Actions to Expedite Energy- Related Projects, which directed executive departments and agencies to increase production and transmission of energy in an environmentally safe manner. Congress passed the Energy Policy Act of 2005, which encourages the leasing and development of geothermal resources on federal lands and requires the Secretary of the Interior to establish a program for reducing the backlog of geothermal lease applications by 90 percent by August 8, 2010. The Secretary of the Department of the Interior issued Order 3285 to establish the development of renewable energy as a priority for the department. The State of California has adopted an aggressive RPS policy that demonstrates a commitment to shifting its electrical generation portfolio to the production and use of renewable energy sources. California’s RPS requires that 20% of energy generated and distributed in the state is from renewable energy sources by the year 2010; by the year 2020, that requirement grows to 33% The need for federal action and this EIS arises from three non-competitive lease applications that are currently pending with BLM for approximately 4,460 acres of federal mineral estate within the proposed HGLA. These applications were submitted prior to the passage of the Energy Act of 2005 and continue to be part of the backlog of applications that need to be acted upon. In evaluating these applications a need was also identified to allocate a broader area of designated lands (see Figures 1.1-3 and 2.2-1) as closed, open, or open with constraints to geothermal leasing. This need was accompanied by the need to consider appropriate constraints, stipulations, best management practices, and procedures to conserve resources and other uses that may be proposed for consideration by the BLM in the future. The need for action includes consideration of a Plan Amendment to the CDCA Plan 1980 as