Notice of Intent To Prepare an Environmental Impact Statement for the Proposed Panels F and G Lease and Mine Plan Modification Project at Smoky Canyon Mine, Caribou County, ID

Samenvatting

In compliance with the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) of 1969, the Federal Land Policy and Management Act (FLPMA) of 1976, and the Mineral Leasing Act of 1920, as amended, notice is hereby given that the U.S. Department of the Interior, Bureau of Land Management (BLM), Pocatello Field Office, and the U.S. Department of Agriculture, Forest Service (USFS), Caribou-Targhee National Forest (CTNF), will jointly prepare an environmental impact statement (EIS) to determine and analyze the effects of approving a proposed phosphate mine lease and mine plan modifications (the Proposed Action) on Federal mineral leases held by the J.R. Simplot Company (Simplot), in southeastern Idaho. The EIS will tier to the Final EIS prepared by the BLM and USFS for Panels F and G at Smoky Canyon Mine in 2007 and will consider the effects of the proposed lease and mine plan modifications.