Draft environmental impact statement, environmental impact report for the proposed Mesquite Regional Landfill v. 1

674 Pages·1994·139.3 MB·English

by  United States. Bureau of Land Management. California Desert District

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J2)5^^45'3^f PRTIADEK E IN
United States Department of the Interior ajjeric^
BUREAU OF LAND MANAGEMENT
El Centro Resource Area
IN REPLY REFER TO:
1661 South 4th Su^eet 2000
El Centto, California 92243-4561 T O
Aprils, 1994 Mesquite Landfill
(C-067.00)
Dear Reader:
We are pleased to provide this Draft Environmental Impact Statement and Environmental Impact
Report (EIS/EIR) for the proposed Mesquite Regional Landfill for your review and comment. The
proposed project would be located adjacent to the existing Mesquite Gold Mine and Ore Processing
Facility in eastern Imperial County. The purpose of this document is to provide information to the
public, as well as Cooperating and Responsible agencies regarding the environmental consequences
of establishing the proposed Class III sanitary landfill. Various technical reports have been prepared
which have been used in the preparation of this Draft EIS/EIR. Copies of the technical reports are
available for review at the libraries listed herein, the Imperial County Planning/Building Department
and Bureau of Land Management (BLM) office in El Centro, CA.
To facilitate review, this document has been prepared as an Environmental Impact Statement (EIS)
in compliance with the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) and implementing regulations.
The Bureau of Land Management is the lead agency for the purpose of compliance with the
requirements of NEPA for the proposed project.
This document has also been prepared as an Environmental Impact Report (EIR) in compliance with
the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) and implementing regulations and guidelines. The
County of Imperial is the lead agency for the purpose of compliance with the requirements of CEQA
for the proposed project.
Comments concerning the adequacy or accuracy of this document will be considered in preparation
of the Final EIS/EIR. A 90-day public review period has been established for this document. In
addition, two public hearings will be held during the public comment period to receive verbal
testimony on the following dates: 7 p.m. PDT, Wednesday, May 25, 1994, at the El Centro
Community Center, 375 South First Street, El Centro, California 92243, (619-337-4555); 7 p.m.
PDT, Thursday, May 26, 1994, at the Desert Expo Center, Fine Arts Building, 46-350 Arabia
Street, Indio, California 92201 (619-863-8247). Written comments on this document will be
accepted through July 6, 1994, and should be addressed to: ^
Bureau of Land Management ^^A/L/'-S ^^OA fi/'l^^^^
E1l 6 6C1en t Sroo,u t hC A 4 t 9h 2 2S43 treet J''^ ^ ^O^jtPp- SQ
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For information concerning the Federal aspects of the project, including comments 'orr't-Hec^$§&p^
contact Thomas Zaie of the BLM at (619) 353-1060. For information concerning the non-federal
aspects of the project, including comments on the EIR, contact Jurg Heuberger, AlCP at (619) 339
4236, Extension 310.
Respectfully submitted,
G. Ben Koski
^ubDeirrgeecrt,o r AlCP, CE
Area Manager
El Centro Resource Area Jdunty of Imperial
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DRAFT
ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT STATEMENT
ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT REPORT
for the
PROPOSED MESQUITE REGIONAL LANDFILL
State Clearinghouse No. 92051024
BLM No. CA.060-5440-10-B026
Applicant
Arid Operations, Inc.
Prepared By
U.S. Department of the Interior County of Imperial
Planning and Building Department
'' u reau of Land Management
Henri R. Bisson Date Jurg Heuberger Date
District Manger April 1, 1994 Planning Director April 1, 1994
California Desert District
County of Imperial

Mesquite Regional Landfill Project, Imperial County, California
Federal Land Exchange and Right-of-Way Approval
Imperial County Conditional Use Permit,
General Plan Amendment, and Change of Zone
Draft Environmental Impact Statement/Environmental Impact Report
Lead Agencies:
U.S. Department of the Interior County of Imperial
Bureau of Land Management El Centro, California
California Desert District
El Centro Resource Area
Prepared By:
The Butler Roach Group, Inc.
For Information Contact:
Thomas Zale Jurg Heuberger
Bureau of Land Management Imperial County Planning and
1661 S. 4th Street Building Department
El Centro, CA 9223 939 Main Street
El Centro, CA 92243
(619) 353-1060
(619) 339-4236
Abstract: contain desirable quality wildlife habitat on
the Chuckwalla Bench and high quality
The Mesquite Regional Landfill Project scenic resources in the Santa Rosa
(Proposed Action) is a proposed Class III Mountains National Scenic Area. Also, a
non hazardous solid waste landfill adjacent
FLPMA right-of-way would be issued for
to the active Mesquite Gold Mine and Ore
the approximately 4- to 5 -mile rail spur to
Processing Facility in eastern Imperial be constructed between the existing
County, California. The proposed site is Southern Pacific Railroad tracks and the
located in the California Desert Conservation
proposed site and for a future gas pipeline
Area. The site is comprised of
within the existing SP right-of-way and
approximately 4,250 acres of private and proposed rail spur right of way between the
public land. Under the Federal Land Policy
proposed site and Niland.
and Management Act (FLPMA), about 1,750
acres of Bureau of Land Management In addition, an Amendment to the California
(BLM) lands would be transferred to Arid Desert Conservation Area Plan would be
Operations, Inc., in exchange for land owned required to change the classification of that
by Arid Operations, Inc. The BLM Lands portion of the Singer Geoglyphs ACEC
are necessary for the operation of the located north of SR 78 to Multiple Use
proposed landfill and the offered lands Class M. There are no cultural resources
the ACEC north of SR 78. The Mesquite By providing for the landfilling of solid
Regional Landfill General Plan Amendment, waste outside of the South Coast Air Basin, it
Rezone, and Conditional Use Permit amends is expected that the amounts of ozone
the Imperial County General Plan and transported to the Southeast Desert Air Basin
Zoning Ordinance and Map to facilitate and the Imperial County Air Basin would be
initiation of a landfill operation at the reduced. The Proposed Action would create
proposed site. jobs, income, and revenues in Imperial
County. These would be beneficial effects
The landfill itself would comprise 2,290 of the Proposed Action.
acres. At full-scale operations, the landfill
would accept an inflow of up to 20,000 tons Other Federal, State, and Local Actions
of solid waste per day from throughout
Southern California for approximately 100 Endangered Species Act, Section 7
Consultation between BLM and U.S. Fish
years. Most of this total would be shipped in
and Wildlife Service; the California
enclosed containers by rail along the
Southern Pacific main line. Department of Fish and Game will be party
to this consultation
The design of the landfill includes the use of
National Historic Preservation Act, Section
a "triple composite" liner on the bottom, a
106 Consultation between the BLM and the
leachate collection and recovery system, and
State of California Office of Historic
a landfill gas collection system. Treatment
Preservation
systems for leachate and other contaminated
water and landfill gas (LFG) would be
Solid Waste Facilities Permit from the
provided on-site. Once economically
feasible, LFG would be converted to energy Imperial County Department of Health
Services, Division of Environmental Health
through a boiler-powered generator or the
(Local Enforcement Agency) and
LFG would be cleaned and either piped off-
certification by the California Integrated
site as methane gas or compressed and
Waste Management Board
hauled off-site in rail cars as liquefied
methane gas.
Waste Discharge Requirements from the
Lower Colorado River Regional Water
The Proposed Action incorporates
mitigation measures such that most impacts Quality Control Board
to the human environment would not be
Authority to Construct and Permit to
significant. The proposed landfill would
Operate from the Imperial County Air
strongly contrast with the existing visual
Pollution Control District
setting, and visual impacts would be
significant and unmitigable. Emissions of
Encroachment Permit from the California
particulates (PMio) during periods when
Department of Transportation for the new
background PM lo standards are not met
access road from SR 78
would be cumulatively significant. State
Route 78, in the vicinity of Glamis, is very Solid Waste Plan Modification from the
congested during the period beginning the
Imperial County Department of Public
afternoon before and ending the morning Works
after weekends and holidays from October
1st to May 31st. Employee vehicle trips Solid Waste Facility Approval by the
would not avoid these periods. Therefore, majority of the cities with the majority of the
traffic impacts from employee vehicle trips populafion in Imperial County
during these periods would be cumulatively
significant.
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