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Fiber Optic Trunk Line Bluff to Mexican Hat, Utah

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Fiber Optic Trunk Line Bluff to Mexican Hat, Utah U.S. Department of the Interior Bureau of Land Management Fiber Optic Trunk Line Bluff to Mexican Hat, Utah Monticello Field Office February 2021 ENVIRONMENTAL ASSESSMENT: DOI-BLM-UT-Y020-2021-0022-EA EA Cost: Mission Statement To sustain the health, diversity, and productivity of the public lands for the use and enjoyment of present and future generations. Right-of-Way: UTU-94764 DOI-BLM-UT-Y020-2021-0022-EA ENVIRONMENTAL ASSESSMENT EA NUMBER: DOI-BLM-UT-Y020-2021-0022-EA Chapter 1 Introduction: BLM Office: Monticello Field Office Right-of-Way Number: UTU-94764 Proposed Action Title / Type: Fiber Optic Trunk Line Bluff to Mexican Hat, Utah Applicant: Emery Telcom Location of Proposed Action: Salt Lake Meridian, San Juan County, Utah, Township (T.) 40-42 South (S.), Range (R.) 19-21 East (E.), various sections. Background This Environmental Assessment (EA) has been prepared to disclose and analyze potential environmental effects that would result from the construction and maintenance of a proposed fiber optic trunk line in San Juan County, Utah. The proposed action would consist of the construction and maintenance of a new fiber optic telecommunication cable and appurtenances designed to upgrade existing facilities serving subscribers from Bluff to Mexican Hat, Utah. The line would cross the San Juan River onto Navajo Nation Tribal Lands where it would terminate. Emery Telcom (Emery) has submitted an Application for Transportation and Utility Systems on Public Lands (SF-299) to the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) Monticello Field Office (MTFO), requesting permission to construct, operate, maintain, and terminate the fiber optic telecommunications line under a right-of-way (ROW) authorization. The proposed route would begin approximately a tenth of a mile east of mile post (MP) 25 on US Highway 163/Main Street on the west side of Bluff, Utah and proceed west and southwest mostly in a Utah Department of Transportation (UDOT) ROW for approximately twenty-five (25) miles before entering Navajo Nation Tribal Lands at Mexican Hat. The line would extend an additional four miles south to the community of Halchita where it would terminate (See Appendix A: Map 1). The project would cross BLM administered public lands (including the Bears Ears National Monument (BENM)), Utah School and Institutional Trust Lands Administration lands (SITLA), private land, and Navajo Nation lands. The project represents Phase 2 of a general plan sponsored by the Utah Education and Telehealth Network (UETN) to bring broadband to southern San Juan County. A previously analyzed Phase 1 project would install fiber optic lines from Blanding to White Mesa, Bluff, and Montezuma Creek and would be funded primarily through a Federal Communications Commission program called the Universal Service Schools & Libraries, or E-rate Program. The E-rate Program is funded through a tax paid by telephone and internet customers to expand broadband to rural and low- income areas. UETN, Utah Navajo Trust Fund, Utah Navajo Health System and Utah Department of Transportation all contributed matching funds to the project. Purpose and Need The purpose of this project is to respond to the needs of southern San Juan County residents by delivering an essential fiber optic "backbone" or trunk line which could carry large volumes of 1 high-speed communications data and provide higher capacity resources to meet ever-growing increased bandwidth demands. The proposed route was selected to follow an existing, previously disturbed ROW so that minimal new disturbance would occur. The need for the action is established per BLM’s responsibility under the Federal Land Policy and Management Act of 1976 (FLPMA) to respond to a request for a ROW grant for legal access. Decision to be Made The BLM will decide whether to grant the ROW, grant the ROW with modifications, or deny the proposed ROW grant. The BLM may include any conditions it determines to be in the public interest and may include modifying the proposed use or changing the route or location of the proposed facilities (43 CFR 2805.10(a)(1)). In the decision process, the BLM will consider how resource management goals, objectives, opportunities, or conflicts relate to this non-federal use of public lands. Public Participation, Scoping, and Issues Internal scoping, which included an interdisciplinary review of the project, revealed one potential issue. No external scoping was conducted. Issues Identified and Analyzed in Detail Issue 1: Would the construction, operation, and maintenance the proposed fiber optic trunk line provide an important beneficial service to one or more Environmental Justice (EJ) populations? Chapter 2 Proposed Action and Alternatives No Action Alternative This alternative would deny the approval of the proposed application and no fiber optic cable would be installed in the proposed locations. Current land and resource uses would continue to occur in the proposed project area. Proposed Action On March 19, 2019, Emery (the Applicant) submitted an application to the MtFO for a ROW (assigned UTU-94764) under the authority of Title V of the Federal Land Policy and Management Act of 1976. Emery proposes to construct, operate, and maintain a fiber optic cable from Bluff to Mexican Hat, Utah crossing the San Juan River onto Navajo Nation Tribal Lands where it would terminate at Halchita. The total proposed fiber optic line would be approximately 154,042 feet (29.17 miles) in length with approximately 95,112 feet (18.01 miles) of the proposed fiber optic line crossing public lands administered by the BLM. The rest the line would cross two parcels of SITLA land, UDOT, Navajo Nation Tribal Lands, and private lands. Approximately 20,181 feet (3.82 miles) of line on BLM administered public and SITLA or UDOT lands would be buried adjacent to Highway 163 within the BENM (See Appendix A for map). 2 Of the total 154, 042 feet of line, approximately 44,236 feet (8.38 miles) would be aerially installed on approximately 95 poles. Approximately 108,969 feet (20.64 miles) of the line would be buried alongside existing road ROWs. The remaining 839 feet (0.16 miles) would be designated as drop lines and will supply residential homes a direct connection. Table 1 below shows only the lengths of those portions of the optic fiber line that is within BLM administered public lands. Table 1- Proposed Fiber Optic line in BLM Administered public lands. Type of Fiber Line Length (ft) Buried- Within BENM 11,577 Buried 55,305 Aerial (about 85 new poles) 27,956 Drop 274 The project alignment is within a BLM designated utility corridor or follows Highway 163 within a UDOT ROW. SITLA has already accepted the Emery easement application. Cultural resource clearance surveys have been performed for the majority of the proposed route. A portion of the proposed line, where it passes over Comb and Lime Ridge had to be rerouted and this along with some added drop lines are in process of being surveyed. This paragraph will be updated once the surveys and the ongoing Tribal and SHPO consultation is complete. Since the reroute will be in the existing highway and because of the below listed Design Features we do not anticipate impacts to cultural sites. The Applicant would obtain the necessary permits and approvals prior to beginning construction activities. Encroachment permits would be secured from UDOT, SITLA, Navajo Tribal Utility Authority, and the Navajo DOT. Pole attachment agreements have been entered into with Rocky Mountain Power (PacifiCorp) and the Navajo Tribal Utility Authority. All Occupational Safety and Health Administration regulations would be followed during construction operations for the entire project. Construction operations would begin as soon as possible after securing the applicable permits and issuance of the ROW. Cable installation is expected to last four to six months, beginning in the spring of 2021 barring unforeseen circumstances relating to unfavorable weather conditions and availability of materials. A crew of ten or fewer personnel would commute to the construction site from the nearby communities of Bluff, Monticello, or Blanding. A preconstruction meeting would be held to ensure that personnel would be knowledgeable of operational procedures and permit conditions. Construction operations would require a temporary 25-foot-wide corridor. As described above, the fiber optic cable would be aerially installed on up to 95 new poles located on BLM administered public and private lands or buried in a trench parallel and adjacent to Highway 163 (Appendix A Map 1). Construction methods would include plowing, trenching, and directional boring for the buried portions of the fiber optic cable. Blading or grading the surface would not be performed. A cable plow would be pulled behind a tracked utility tractor to create a ripped trench for the 3 placement of a 1.25-inch conduit, which would be carried on a reel on the front of the machine, fed over the top, then down a chute into the trench. Design Features • Site specific avoidance measures would be required at cultural sites. • A cultural monitor would be present for all construction-related ground disturbance (i.e. blading, grading, ripping, excavating, pole removal/replacement, vault installation, etc.) to ensure that unanticipated discoveries would be quickly identified and avert any potential damage. • Any cultural resources (historic or prehistoric site or object, or human remains) discovered by Emery or their contractor will be immediately reported to the authorized BLM officer; all operations will be suspended in the immediate area of such discovery until written authorization to proceed is issued by the BLM. • Removal of soil and native vegetation shall be kept to the minimum amount necessary to fulfill project activities. • Federal and state water quality standards and toxic effluent standards will be implemented to minimize potential adverse effects from discharges into Waters of the US. • Any unexpected encounters with a protected species will be immediately reported to BLM and US Fish and Wildlife Service, as appropriated.
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