Draft environmental impact statement : West Antelope II coal lease application, Converse and Campbell Counties, Wyoming

2008·150.5 MB·English

by  EDE Consultants

BLM LIBRARY
88067509
DRAFT
Environmental Impact Statement for the
West Antelope Coal Lease Application
II
WYW1
63340
Wyoming
State
Office
-
Casper
Field
Office
February 2008
MISSION STATEMENT
It isthe mission ofthe Bureau ofLand Managementto sustain the health, diversity,
and productivity of the public lands for the use and enjoyment of present and
future generations.
BLM/WY/PL-08/009+1320
United States Department ofthe Interior
BUREAU OF LAND MANAGEMENT TAKE PRIDE*
n^M
ERICA
WyomingStateOffice
P.O. Box 1828
IN REPLY REFERTO: Cheyenne,Wyoming 82003-1828
3425 (LBA)
WYW1
63340
WY922 (Janssen)
PhoneNo: 307-775-6206
FAXNo: 307-775-6203
January 11, 2008
Dear Reader:
The Bureau ofLand Management (BLM) has prepared this Draft Environmental Impact
Statement (EIS) to document and disclose the results ofan environmental analysis ofan
BLM
application received by to lease a tract ofFederal coal, the West Antelope II tract, to the
Antelope Mine in the Wyoming Powder River Basin. A copy ofthis document is provided for
your review and comments. The Draft EIS may also be reviewed on the following website:
http://www.blm.gov/wy/st/en/info/NEPA/cfodocsAVest_Antelope_II.html. Copies ofthe Draft
BLM
EIS are also available for public inspection at the following offices:
Bureau ofLand Management Bureau ofLand Management
Wyoming State Office Casper Field Office
5353 Yellowstone Road 2987 Prospector Drive
Cheyenne, Wyoming 82009 Casper, Wyoming 82604
A
formal public hearing on this application to lease Federal coal will be held at 7 p.m. on
March 24, 2008, at the Best Western Douglas Inn, 1450 Riverbend Drive, Douglas, Wyoming.
The purpose ofthe hearing is to receive comments on the proposed coal lease sale, on the fair
market value, and on the maximum economic recovery ofthe Federal coal resources included in
the tract.
BLM
will accept public comments on this Draft EIS, for sixty (60) days commencing on the date
the Environmental Protection Agency publishes a Notice ofAvailability in the Federal Register
.
Comments received after the end ofthe 60-day comment period will be considered in preparation
BLM
ofthe Final EIS as time permits. is also publishing a Notice ofAvailability and Notice of
Hearing in the Federal Register
.
Ifyou wish to comment on the Draft EIS, your comments should relate directly to the document.
We request that you make your comments as specific as possible and that you cite the location or
locations in the document on which you are commenting. The agencies involved in preparing
this Draft EIS are required to respond in the Final EIS to all substantive comments submitted on
the Draft EIS. Substantive comments should: (1) give any new infonnation that could alter
3425 (LBA)
WYW1
63340
WY922 (Janssen)
Page2
conclusions; (2) show why or how analysis or assumptions in the Final EIS are flawed; (3) show
errors in data, sources, or methods; or (4) request clarifications that bear on conclusions.
Opinions or preferences will not receive a formal response. However, they will be considered
BLM
and included as part ofthe decision making process.
This Draft EIS was prepared pursuant to the National Environmental Policy Act and applicable
regulations, and other applicable statutes, to address possible environmental and socioeconomic
impacts that could result from this project. This Draft EIS is not a decision document. Its
purpose is to inform the public and the agency decision makers ofthe impacts ofleasing the
West Antelope II tract ofFederal coal to the existing Antelope Mine in the Wyoming Powder
River Basin and to evaluate alternatives to leasing the Federal coal included in the tract as
applied for.
Comments, including names and street addresses ofrespondents, will be available for public
review at the address listed below during regular business hours (7:45 a.m. - 4:30 p.m.), Monday
through Friday, except holidays, and will be published as part ofthe Final EIS. Individual
respondents may request confidentiality. Ifyou wish to withhold your name or street address
from public review or from disclosure under the Freedom ofInformation Act, you must state this
prominently at the beginning ofyour written comment. Such requests will be honored to the
extent allowed by law. All submissions from organizations or businesses, and from individuals
identifying themselves as representatives or officials oforganizations or businesses, will be made
available for public inspection in their entirety.
Please send written comments to Bureau ofLand Management, Casper Field Office,
WY
Attn: Sarah Bucklin, 2987 Prospector Drive, Casper, 82604. Written comments may also
be e-mailed to the attention ofSarah Bucklin at “[email protected]”. E-mail comments
must include the name and mailing address ofthe commentor to receive consideration. Written
comments may also be faxed to [phone].
Ifyou have any questions or would like to obtain additional copies ofthis DEIS, please contact
Sarah Bucklin at [phone], or at the above address.
Sincerely,
Robert A. Bennett
State Director
DRAFT ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT STATEMENT
WEST ANTELOPE COAL LEASE APPLICATION
II
CONVERSE AND CAMPBELL COUNTIES, WYOMING
ABSTRACT
Lead Agency: USDI Bureau of Land Management
Casper Field Office
Casper, Wyoming
Cooperating Agencies USDI Office of Surface Mining Reclamation and Enforcement
:
Western Region
Denver, Colorado
USDA
Forest Service
Medicine Bow-Routt National Forests and Thunder Basin
National Grassland
Douglas, Wyoming
Wyoming Department of Environmental Quality
Land Quality Division and Air Quality Division
Cheyenne, Wyoming
Converse County Board of Commissioners
Douglas, Wyoming
For Further Information Contact Sarah Bucklin
:
Bureau of Land Management, Casper Field Office
2987 Prospector Drive
WY
Casper, 82604
[phone]
Abstract: This Draft Environment Impact Statement (EIS) assesses the environmental consequences of
decisions to hold a competitive, sealed-bid sale and issue a lease for a tract of federal coal located
adjacent to an existing surface coal mine in Converse and Campbell Counties, Wyoming, subject to
standard and special lease stipulations. The West Antelope II Lease by Application (LBA) tract, as applied
for by Antelope Coal Company, includes approximately 4,108.6 acres containing approximately 429.7
million tons of in-place federal coal. Antelope Coal Company, the operator of the adjacent Antelope Mine,
proposes to mine the tract as a maintenance lease for the existing mine, if a lease sale is held and they
acquire the lease.
This Draft EIS describes the physical, biological, cultural, historic, and socioeconomic resources in and
around the existing mine and the LBA tract. The alternatives in the Draft EIS consider the impacts of
leasing the tract as it was applied for, leasing a reconfigured tract in order to avoid bypassing federal coal
or to increase competitive interest in the tract, and not leasing the tract. The focus for the impact analysis
was based upon resource issues and concerns identified during previous coal leasing analyses and
public scoping conducted for this lease application. Potential concerns related to development include
impacts to groundwater, air quality, wildlife, and cumulative impacts related to ongoing surface coal
mining and other proposed development in the Powder River Basin of Wyoming.
Other Environmental Review or Consultation Requirements
:
This Draft EIS, in compliance with Section 7(c) of the Endangered Species Act (as amended), identifies
any endangered or threatened species which are likely to be affected by the Proposed Action.

WEST ANTELOPE COAL LEASE APPLICATION
II
DRAFT ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT STATEMENT
Prepared by
EDE Consultants
Sheridan, Wyoming
Under the Direction of
U.S. Department of the Interior
Bureau of Land Management
Casper Field Office
Casper, Wyoming
and
Cooperating Agencies
U.S. Department of Interior
Office of Surface Mining
Reclamation and Enforcement
Western Region
Denver, Colorado
U.S. Department of Agriculture
Forest Service
Medicine Bow-Routt National Forests and
Thunder Basin National Grassland
Douglas, Wyoming
Wyoming Department of Environmental Quality
Land Quality Division and Air Quality Division
Cheyenne, Wyoming
Converse County Board of Commissioners
Douglas, Wyoming
February 2008

Executive Summary
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
On April 6, 2005, ACC1 filed an application with the BLM for a maintenance
tract of federal coal adjacent to ACC’s Antelope Mine in Campbell and Converse
Counties, Wyoming (Figures ES-1 and ES-2). The application, which was
WYW
assigned case file number 163340, is referred to as the West Antelope II
LBA coal lease application. As currently applied for, the West Antelope II LBA
tract includes approximately 4,109 acres and ACC estimates that it includes
465.1 million tons of in-place federal coal. The lands applied for in this
application are located approximately 20 miles southeast of the town of Wright,
Wyoming.
This lease application was reviewed by the Division of Mineral and Lands at the
BLM Wyoming State Office, who determined that the application and the lands
involved met the requirements of the regulations governing coal leasing on
application at 43 CFR 3425.1. The PRRCT reviewed this lease application at a
public meeting held on April 27, 2005 in Gillette, Wyoming. The PRRCT
recommended that the BLM process the West Antelope lease application.
II
In order to process an LBA, the BLM must evaluate the quantity, quality,
maximum economic recovery, and fair market value of the federal coal and
fulfill the requirements of the NEPA by evaluating the environmental
consequences of leasing the federal coal.
To evaluate the environmental impacts of leasing and mining the coal, the BLM
must prepare an EA or an EIS to evaluate the site-specific and cumulative
environmental and socioeconomic impacts of leasing and developing the federal
coal in the application area. The BLM made a decision to prepare an EIS for
this lease application. BLM does not authorize mining by issuing a lease for
federal coal, but the impacts of mining the coal are considered in this EIS
because it is a logical consequence of issuing a maintenance lease to an
existing mine.
The EPA will publish a notice announcing the availability of the Draft EIS in
the Federal Register. A 60-day comment period on the Draft EIS will
commence with publication of the EPA’s notice of availability. The BLM will
publish a Notice of Availability/Notice of Public Hearing in the Federal Register.
The BLM’s Federal Register notice will announce the date and time of a public
hearing to be held during the 60-day comment period. The purpose of the
public hearing will be to solicit public comments on the Draft EIS and on the
fair market value, the maximum economic recovery, and the proposed
competitive sale of federal coal from the LBA tract. The BLM will also publish a
notice of public hearing in the Gillette News-Record and in the Douglas Budget
newspapers. All substantive written comments received on the DEIS will be
included, with agency responses, in the FEIS.
1 Refer to page xv for a list of abbreviations and acronyms used in this document.
Draft EIS, West Antelope II Coal Lease Application ES-1
Executive Summary
LEGEND
ExistingCoalLeases(PriortoDecertification)
LBA’sIssued
LBA'sPending
LBATractAsApplied For(ThisEIS)
UrbanArea
CountyBoundary
Figure ES-1. General Location Map with Federal Coal Leases and LBATracts.
ES-2 Draft EIS, West Antelope II Coal Lease Application