Final joint environmental impact statement and environmental impact report for the Casa Diablo IV geothermal development project

2013·254.2 MB·English

by  United States. Bureau of Land Management. Bishop Field Office

BLM LIBRARY
88066785
United States Department of the Interior
Bureau of Land Management
United States Department of Agriculture
Forest Service
Great Basin Unified Air Pollution Control District
CASA DIABLO GEOTHERMAL
IV
DEVELOPMENT PROJECT
FINAL
JOINT ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT STATEMENT
AND ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT REPORT
Volume
1
ILUD11IACiAl1OTtMLIAWW*OMtATMIAUONOTUtMlIloe
June 2@13
DOI Control #: DES 12-21 & ^
Publication Index #: BLM/CA/ES-201 3/021 +3200+1 793
State Clearinghouse No. 201 1041008

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DOI Control No. DBS 12-21
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United States Department of the Interior
Bureau of Land Management
United States Department of Agriculture
Forest Service
Great Basin Unified Air Pollution Control District
Final
Joint Environmental Impact Statement
and Environmental Impact Report
for the
Casa Diablo IV Geothermal
Development Project
t
Volume
1
For the
BLM, Bishop Field Office
US Forest Service, Inyo National Forest
and
Great Basin Unified Air Pollution Control District
Bishop, California
June 2013
DOI Control #: DES 12-21
Publication Index #: BLM/CA/ES-2013/021 +3200+1793
State Clearinghouse No. 2011041008
United States Department ofthe Interior
BUREAU OF LAND MANAGEMENT
Bishop Field Office
351 Pacu Lane Suite 100
Bishop, California 93514
www.blm.gov/ca/bishop
July 2013
Casa Diablo IV Project
Final EIS/EIR
(CA-170.60) P
Dear Reader:
I am pleased to announce the availability ofthe Joint Final Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) and
Environmental Impact Report (EIR) for the Casa Diablo IV (CD-IV) Geothermal Development Project.
ORNI 50 LLC, a wholly-owned subsidiary ofOrmat Nevada Inc., (the Applicant) proposes to construct,
operate, maintain and decommission a new 33 megawatt (MW) geothermal power generating facility and
related infrastructure near Mammoth Lakes in Mono County, California.
The enclosed Joint Final EIS/EIR analyzes four alternatives, including: (1) the Proposed Project; (2) an
alternative plant site, located east ofthe existing Casa Diablo geothermal complex; (3) a modified
pipeline alignment; and (4) taking No Action.
The Joint Final EIS/EIR has been prepared in accordance with the National Environmental Policy Act of
1969, as amended (NEPA); the Federal Land Policy and Management Act of 1976, as amended; and the
California Environmental Quality Act of 1970 (CEQA). The document has been sent to organizations and
members ofthe public who either requested a copy or commented on the proposed project during the
environmental review process. The document has also been sent to pertinent local, state, tribal, and
federal government entities.
To initiate the environmental review process, the Applicant submitted an application to the BLM to
construct, operate, and following the expected 30-year useful life, decommission the CD-IV Project1. In
BLM
addition to authorizations required for the proposed project, the project also requires discretionary
permits from the United States Forest Service (USFS), Inyo National Forest, and the Great Basin Unified
Air Pollution Control District (GBUAPCD). The BLM is the lead federal agency responsible for the
environmental review under the NEPA and the USFS is a cooperating federal agency; the GBUAPCD is
the lead state agency responsible for the environmental review under the CEQA.
The Joint Draft EIS/EIR was circulated for a 75-day public comment period that began on November 16,
2012 and ended on January 30, 2013. Twenty-seven (27) comment letters were received during the
comment period and one (1) letter was received after the close ofthe comment period. All 28 comment
letters were considered and incorporated into the environmental review. Responses to all 28 letters are
The Applicant’s initial application was filed on February 17, 2010 by Mammoth Pacific, L.P. (MPLP). Since then. MPLP was
acquired by OrmatNevada Inc., which formed awholly owned subsidiary (ORNI 50, LLC) forthe CD-IV Project. ORNI 50,
LLC submitted a revised application to BLM in June 2012.
CARING FOR THE LAST VESTIGE OF WILD CALIFORNIA
CONSERVATION, EDUCATION, PARTNERSHIPS
provided in Appendix G ofthe Final EIS/EIR. Individual responses to each individual comment are
provided in Appendix H.
Following release ofthe Joint Draft EIS/EIR, two informational public meetings were held to provide an
overview ofthe environmental review process and to facilitate public comment on the draft EIS/EIR. The
first meeting was held in Mammoth Lakes, California on December 5th, 2012. The second meeting was
held in Crowley Lake, California on December 6th, 2012. One oral comment was received at these
meetings.
On behalfofthe BLM and cooperating agencies, I am pleased to provide this copy ofthe Joint Final
EIS/EIR foryour review and extend our appreciation for your cooperation and assistance during this
process. The document will also be available on the Internet at:
http://www.blm.gov/ca/st/en/fo/bishop.html.
Sincerely,
/s/ Steven Nelson
Steven Nelson
Bishop Field Manager
fOf,EST^ER''iCf
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News
Release
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For Immediate Release: July 5, 2013
BLM
Contact: - David Christy [phone], Inyo National Forest - Debra Schweizer [phone]
BLM
Announces Availability of Final Environmental Review of
Proposed Casa Diablo IV Geothermal Development Project
The Bureau ofLand Management today released the Final Environmental Impact Statement/
Environmental Impact Report (Final EIS/EIR) analyzing a proposal to develop geothermal resources
near Mammoth Lakes in Mono County.
Federal Register notices announcing the document’s release were published today and the Final
EIS/EIR is available for review at the BLM Bishop Field Office, 351 Pacu Lane, Suite 100, Bishop, CA
93514 and at the Mono County Library, 400 Sierra Park Road, Mammoth Lakes, CA 93546.
Additionally, CD-ROM versions ofthe Final EIS/EIR may be obtained by contacting the Bishop Field
Office. The document will also be available on the internet at www.blm.gov/ca/st/en/fo/bishop.html
.
The proposed Casa Diablo IV Geothermal Development Project would be built on the Inyo National
Forest and private lands within four existing federal geothermal leases. It would include construction of
a new geothermal power plant, up to 16 new production/injection wells, multiple pipelines and an
electric transmission line.
The Final EIS/EIR wasjointly prepared by the BLM, Inyo National Forest (INF), and Great Basin
Unified Air Pollution Control District (GBUAPCD) in compliance with the National Environmental
Policy Act (NEPA) and the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA). It considers a range of
alternatives, and responds to comments received on the Draft EIS/EIR that resulted in minor corrections
and clarifying text. As a result ofthis environmental analysis, the agencies have identified alternative 3
as the “preferred” (NEPA) and “environmentally superior” (CEQA) alternative. It differs from the
applicant's proposal in pipeline alignments and the location ofone well.
The BLM, INF, and GBUAPCD will be issuing separate decisions as described in the Final EIS/EIR.
The BLM and the INF will not issue their final decisions on the proposed project for a minimum of
30 days from today.
For more information or to get a copy ofthe document, contact Collin Reinhardt at [phone] or
email [email protected]
-BLM-
Central California District, 2800 Cottage Way, Sacramento, CA 95825

Theodore D. Schade
Air Pollution Control Officer
GREAT BASIN AIR POLLUTION CONTROL DISTRICT
157 Short Street Bishop, California 93514 [phone] fax [phone]
THE GREAT BASIN UNIFIED AIR POLLUTION
CONTROL DISTRICT WILL CONSIDER CERTIFYING
THE FINAL JOINT ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT REPORT
ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT STATEMENT (FEIR/FEIS)
/
FOR THE CASA DIABLO IV (CD IV) PROJECT AT THE
DISTRICT BOARD MEETING ON MONDAY, JULY
15,
2013 AT 10:30 AM AT THE ALPINE COUNTY
SUPERVISORS’ CHAMBER, 99 WATER STREET (CA
HWY 89) IN MARKLEEVILLE, CA
CD
The District is the lead agency for the IV project
environmental impact report. The project is for the
construction and operation ofa geothermal power plant and the
drilling ofnew wells and the construction and utilization of
pipelines. The project is located on the east and west sides of
US Hwy 395 at State Route 203 near Mammoth Lakes,
California.