Ruby Pipeline Project
Total Page:16
File Type:pdf, Size:1020Kb
BLM Final Supplemental Environmental Impact Statement DOI-BLM-NV-0000-2013-0001-EIS Ruby Pipeline Project Office NevadaState November 2013 U.S. Department of the Interior Bureau of Land Management Nevada State Office Reno, Nevada FINAL SUPPLEMENTAL ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT STATEMENT RUBY PIPELINE PROJECT DOI-BLM-NV-0000-2013-0001-EIS Lead Agency: U.S. Department of the Interior, Bureau of Land Management Nevada State Office, Reno, Nevada Cooperating Agencies: U.S. Forest Service, Fremont-Winema National Forest Nevada Department of Wildlife Utah Division of Wildlife Resources Wyoming Game and Fish Department Project Location: Lincoln & Uinta Counties, WY Box Elder, Cache & Rich Counties, UT Elko, Humboldt & Washoe Counties, NV Lake & Klamath Counties, OR Abstract: This Final Supplemental Environmental Impact Statement (SEIS) for the Ruby Pipeline Project was prepared by the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) in response to a ruling from the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals (case nos. 10-72356, 10-72552, 10-72762, 10-72768, and 10-72775). The ruling directed the BLM to undertake a revised cumulative effects analysis of the Ruby Pipeline Project Final Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) as it related to the cumulative loss of sagebrush steppe vegetation and habitat. This Final SEIS contains supplemental information about the original and present condition of the sagebrush steppe vegetation and habitat, and analyzes the cumulative impacts of the Ruby Pipeline Project based on the supplemental information and comments on the Draft SEIS from interested stakeholders. This Final SEIS tiers to and incorporates by reference the information and analyses contained in the Ruby Pipeline Project Final EIS. For Further Information Mark Mackiewicz, PMP, National Project Manager Contact: mail: BLM Price Field Office 125 South 600 West Price, Utah 84501 email: [email protected] phone: (435) 636-3616 FINAL SUPPLEMENTAL ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT STATEMENT RUBY PIPELINE PROJECT Lincoln & Uinta Counties, WY Box Elder, Cache & Rich Counties, UT Elko, Humboldt & Washoe Counties, NV Lake & Klamath Counties, OR U.S. Department of the Interior Bureau of Land Management Nevada State Office Reno, Nevada DOI-BLM-NV-0000-2013-0001-EIS November 2013 Final Supplemental Environmental Impact Statement Ruby Pipeline Project CONTENTS Introduction ....................................................................................................................................................... 1 Purpose and Need ............................................................................................................................................ 4 Decision to Be Made ........................................................................................................................................ 5 Cumulative Effects ............................................................................................................................................ 5 Cumulative Actions ............................................................................................................................ 5 Affected Environment (and the Influence of Past Actions on the Environment) ...............16 Environmental Effects (of Present and Reasonably Foreseeable Future Actions) ..............25 Summary of Impacts (of Past, Present, and Reasonably Foreseeable Future Actions) ......34 Consultation and Coordination ...................................................................................................................37 Native American Consultation ......................................................................................................37 Agency Consultation ........................................................................................................................40 Public Outreach .................................................................................................................................41 Libraries and Federal Offices that Received a Copy of the Ruby Draft and Final SEIS ...................42 References ........................................................................................................................................................45 Index ...............................................................................................................................................................55 List of Preparers ..............................................................................................................................................59 LIST OF TABLES Table 1 – Present and Reasonably Foreseeable Actions within the Cumulative Impact Area ........ 5 Table 2 – Cumulative Impact Acreages .....................................................................................................23 Table 3 – Native American Consultation ..................................................................................................34 LIST OF FIGURES Figure 1 – Project Location Map ................................................................................................................... 2 Figure 2 – Historic Extent of Sagebrush Steppe within the Cumulative Impact Area ....................17 Figure 3 – Current Extent of Sagebrush Steppe within the Cumulative Impact Area ....................18 APPENDICES Appendix A – Comment and Response Document i Final Supplemental Environmental Impact Statement Ruby Pipeline Project ACRONYMS AND ABBREVIATIONS BLM Bureau of Land Management Reclamation Bureau of Reclamation Certificate Certificate of Public Convenience and Necessity CEQ Council on Environmental Quality CFR Code of Federal Regulations EIS Environmental Impact Statement FERC Federal Energy Regulatory Commission Final EIS Final Environmental Impact Statement FWS U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service kV kilovolt NEPA National Environmental Policy Act PGH preliminary general habitat POD Plan of Development PPH preliminary priority habitat ROD Record of Decision Ruby Ruby Pipeline, L.L.C. SEIS Supplemental Environmental Impact Statement USFS U.S. Forest Service WWEC West-wide Energy Corridor ii Final Supplemental Environmental Impact Statement Ruby Pipeline Project INTRODUCTION This DraftFinal Supplemental Environmental Impact Statement (SEIS) for the Ruby Pipeline Project was prepared by the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) in response to a ruling from the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals (case nos. 10-72356, 10-72552, 10-72762, 10-72768, and 10-72775). The ruling directed the BLM to undertake a revised cumulative effects analysis of the Ruby Pipeline Project Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) as it related to the cumulative loss of sagebrush steppe vegetation and habitat. Because this cumulative effects analysis is intended to supplement only a specific part of the cumulative effects analysis in the Ruby Pipeline Project Final EIS, (Final EIS), it has been prepared in a manner consistent with that goal. This analysis tiers to and incorporates by reference the information and analyses contained in the Ruby Pipeline Project Final EIS. The Ruby Pipeline Project is a 678-mile-long, 42-inch-diameter interstate natural gas pipeline beginning near Opal, Wyoming, running through northern Utah and northern Nevada, and terminating near Malin, Oregon (see Figure 1). The project crosses about 368 miles of federal land. The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) is the federal agency responsible for evaluating applications to construct and operate interstate natural gas pipeline facilities. Certificates are issued under Section 7(c) of the Natural Gas Act if the FERC determines that the project is required for the public convenience and necessity. On January 27, 2009, Ruby Pipeline, L.L.C. (Ruby) filed an application with the FERC for a Certificate of Public Convenience and Necessity (Certificate) for its Ruby Pipeline Project. The FERC prepared an EIS to assess the environmental impact associated with the proposed project. The BLM, Bureau of Reclamation, (Reclamation), U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS), U.S. Forest Service, (USFS), Natural Resource Conservation Service, Army Corps of Engineers, Utah Public Lands Policy Coordination Office, and Lincoln County (Wyoming) Board of County Commissioners participated as cooperating agencies in the preparation of the EIS because of jurisdiction over part of the project area or because of special expertise with respect to environmental resources in the project area. The BLM adopted the EIS in accordance with Title 40, Code of Federal Regulations (CFR), Section 1506.3 to meet its responsibilities under the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA). The Ruby Pipeline Project was approved by the FERC on April 5, 2010 and the Right-of-Way Grant and Plan of Development (POD) were approved by a BLM Record of Decision (ROD) on July 12, 2010. The BLM Nevada State Director, as the designated federal official, signed the ROD and authorized the right-of-way for the construction, operation, maintenance, and termination of the pipeline and associated facilities across lands under jurisdiction of the BLM, the U.S. Forest Service, the Bureau ofUSFS, Reclamation, and the FWS in the Wyoming, Utah, Nevada, and Oregon. Construction started in the summer of 2010 and was completed in the summer of 2011. The pipeline went into service on July 28, 2011. 1 Final Supplemental Environmental Impact Statement Ruby Pipeline Project 2 Final Supplemental Environmental Impact Statement Ruby Pipeline Project 3 Final Supplemental Environmental Impact Statement Ruby Pipeline Project