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Las Vegas RMP/Silver State Solar South Project EIS and FSEIS/Plan Amendment

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Las Vegas RMP/Silver State Solar South Project EIS and FSEIS/Plan Amendment Director’s Protest Resolution Report Las Vegas RMP/Silver State Solar South Project EIS and FSEIS/Plan Amendment February 14, 2014 1 Contents Reader’s Guide................................................................................................................................ 3 List of Commonly Used Acronyms ................................................................................................ 4 Protesting Party Index ..................................................................................................................... 5 Issue Topics and Responses ............................................................................................................ 6 NEPA .............................................................................................................................................. 6 Purpose and Need ........................................................................................................................ 6 Range of Alternatives .................................................................................................................. 8 Impacts Analysis ....................................................................................................................... 14 Segmentation of NEPA Analysis .............................................................................................. 20 FLPMA and Plan Conformance.................................................................................................... 21 Administrative Procedure Act....................................................................................................... 25 Areas of Critical Environmental Concern (ACEC) ...................................................................... 26 Special Status Species ................................................................................................................... 32 Endangered Species Act (ESA) Section 7 Interagency Cooperation ............................................ 34 Visual Resources Management (VRM) ........................................................................................ 36 Special Recreation Management Act (SRMA) Impacts Analysis ................................................ 38 Wildlife Impacts Analysis............................................................................................................. 40 2 Reader’s Guide How do I read the Report? The Director’s Protest Resolution Report is divided into sections, each with a topic heading, excerpts from individual protest letters, a summary statement (as necessary), and the Bureau of Land Management’s (BLM) response to the summary statement. Report Snapshot Topic heading Issue Topics and Responses NEPA Submission number Issue Number: PP-CA-ESD-08-0020-10 Protest issue number Organization: The Forest Initiative Protesting organization Protester: John Smith Protester’s name Direct quote taken from the submission Issue Excerpt Text: Rather than analyze these potential impacts, as required by NEPA, BLM postpones analysis of renewable energy development projects to a future case-by-case analysis. Summary General statement summarizing the issue excerpts (optional). There is inadequate NEPA analysis in the PRMP/FEIS for renewable energy projects. Response BLM’s response to the summary statement or issue excerpt if there is no summary. Specific renewable energy projects are implementation-level decisions rather than RMP-level decisions. Upon receipt of an application for a renewable energy project, the BLM would require a How do I find my Protest Issues and Responses? 1. Find your submission number on the protesting party index which is organized alphabetically by protester’s last name. 2. In Adobe Reader search the report for your name, organization or submission number (do not include the protest issue number). Key word or topic searches may also be useful. 3 List of Commonly Used Acronyms ACEC Area of Critical Environmental IB Information Bulletin Concern IM Instruction Memorandum BA Biological Assessment ISEGS Ivanpah Solar Electric BLM Bureau of Land Management Generating Station BO Biological Opinion KOP Key Observation Points CEQ Council on Environmental MW Megawatt of electricity Quality NEPA National Environmental Policy CFR Code of Federal Regulations Act of 1969 DEIS Draft Environmental Impact OHV Off-Highway Vehicle (has also Statement been referred to as ORV, Off DM Departmental Manual Road Vehicles) (Department of the Interior) PRMPA Proposed Resource DOI Department of the Interior Management Plan Amendment EA Environmental Assessment RMP Resource Management Plan EIR Environmental Impact Report ROD Record of Decision EIS Environmental Impact Statement ROW Right-of-Way EPA Environmental Protection SRMA Special Recreation Management Agency Area ESA Endangered Species Act T&E Threatened and Endangered FEIS Final Environmental Impact USACE US. Army Corps of Engineers Statement USC United States Code FSEIS Final Supplemental USFWS U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service Environmental Impact Statement USGS U.S. Geological Survey FLPMA Federal Land Policy and VRM Visual Resource Management Management Act of 1976 WA Wilderness Area FO Field Office (BLM) WSA Wilderness Study Area FWS U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service GIS Geographic Information Systems 4 Protesting Party Index Protester Organization Submission Number Determination Peter J. Kirsch on behalf of Denied; issues Kaplan Kirsch & Rockwell PP-NV-Silver State-01 Clark County, and comments Nevada Edward L. Denied; issues Desert Tortoise Council PP-NV-Silver State-02 LaRue and comments Kristin Las Vegas Metro Chamber of Dismissed; PP-NV-Silver State-03 McMillan Commerce comments only Dismissed; Ken Freeman Individual PP-NV-Silver State-04 comments only Thomas D. Driggs on Cotton, Driggs, Walch, Holley, Dismissed; behalf of The PP-NV-Silver State-05 Woloson & Thompson comments only Primadonna Company Natural Resources Defense Denied; issues Helen O’Shea PP-NV-Silver State-06 Council and comments Sarah K. Denied; issues Sierra Club PP-NV-Silver State-07 Friedman and comments Michael J. Denied; issues Western Watersheds project PP-NV-Silver State-08 Connor and comments Denied; issues Kim Delfino Defenders of Wildlife PP-NV-Silver State-09 and comments Lisa T. Denied; issues Center for Biological Diversity PP-NV-Silver State-10 Belenky and comments Shaun Denied; issues Individual PP-NV-Silver State-11 Gonzales and comments Kevin Emmerich and Denied; issues Basin and Range Watch PP-NV-Silver State-12 Laura and comments Cunningham 5 Issue Topics and Responses NEPA Purpose and Need right of way to construct, operate, maintain and decommission a solar generation power Issue Number: PP-NV-SilverState-13-06-3 plant and ancillary facilities. This purpose Organization: Natural Resources Defense and need statement fails to even reference Council BLM's statutory, regulatory and policy Protester: Helen O'Shea responsibilities for management of public lands and their resources in a sustained- Issue Excerpt Text: yield, multiple-use manner, and especially BLM has acted arbitrarily and capriciously those responsibilities related to conservation by developing a purpose and need statement and recovery of the desert tortoise through so narrow as to limit consideration of a true protection of its habitat and ecosystems range of reasonable alternatives. upon which it depends. As such, the purpose Significantly, the purpose and needs and need statement of the FSEIS fails to statement fails even to reference, let alone to satisfy applicable legal requirements and to include, BLM's statutory, regulatory and help ensure that the proposed project is an policy responsibilities for managing the environmentally acceptable project. public lands and their resources in a sustained-yield, multiple use manner, and especially those responsibilities related to Issue Number: PP-NV-SilverState-13-08-3 conservation and recovery of the desert Organization: Western Watersheds Project tortoise through protection of its habitat and Protester: Michael Connor the ecosystems upon which it depends. As Issue Excerpt Text: such, the purpose and need statement of the FSEIS fails to satisfy applicable legal But the BLM is also responding to an ACEC requirements and to help ensure that the nomination in this FSEIS. The need to proposed project is an environmentally respond to the ACEC nomination should acceptable project that can not only be have been incorporated into the purpose and permitted but constructed without need statement itself and not relegated to unnecessary delays. some subsidiary process consequent to granting a ROW application. The BLM has defined its purpose and need Issue Number: PP-NV-SilverState-13-07-4 simply to process a ROW application rather Organization: Sierra Club than presenting a purpose and need Protester: Sarah Friedman statement that reflects the larger multiple use Issue Excerpt Text: mandates of FLPMA and the BLM’s duty to avoid unduly degrading public lands. In BLM states that its purpose and need in doing so, it has ensured that other means of analyzing the proposed project is to respond achieving renewable energy goals that better to the project proponent's application for a 6 protect and conserve important public Significantly, the purpose and needs resources are ignored and not evaluated. statement fails to include BLM’s statutory, regulatory and policy responsibilities for management of public lands and their Issue Number: PP-NV-SilverState-13-09-5 resources in a sustained-yield,
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