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~ r < ... 'l n..) . '" ':; ,) ;,,' __,. U._ SUMMARY INTRODUCTION The Utah Division of Water Resources filed a right- of-way application with the Bureau of Land Manage- ment (BLM) on August 4. 1975, The applicant has applied for 3,402 acres (1.377 ha) of public land admi- nistered by the BLMto facilitate construction of an earthen dam across the White River and create a 11.7-mile-long reservoir (19 km) (13.5 river miles) with 1.980 surface acres (801 halo The reservoir would have an active storage capacity of 70,700 acre-feet and a sediment reserve capacity of 38,550 acre-feet, for a total of 109.250 acre-feet. Also proposed are a 15-megawatt (MW) hydroelectric power plant, power transmission system. recreational facilities. and ac- cess roads, The proposed White River Dam Project would be located 40 miles (64 km) southeast of Vernal. in Uintah County. Utah, The basic purpose of the project would be to supply water for energy develop- ment with potential users as foliows: The White River Shale Project. sponsored jointly by three companies (Phillips Petroleum. Sunoco Energy Development. and Sbhio Petroleum), has an esti- mated water requirement of about 28,000 acre-feet per year at the 100.000 barrels-per-day (bpd) oil pro- duction level. The companies' oil shale tracts of about 10.000 acres (4.047 ha) are on leased Federal land located adjacent to and south of the proposed White River Dam. Five companies. Tosco. Paraho. Syntana-Utah (Phase I). Magic Circle Energy, and Enercor-Mono. which expect to reach their projected production by 1990. have a combine.d water requirement of approx- imately 25.000 acre-fe.et. This amount. combined with the White River Shale Project's projected develop- ment. would bring the annual depletion from the White River Dam Project up to 53,000 acre-feet by 1990 (US Department of Interior [USDI]. BLM 1982), Ultimate depletion (consumptive use) from the project could be as much as 75.000 acre-feet per year. as a result of the partial refill capacity'of the 70.700 active storage capacity. Also. a small quantity of water (4-5 cubic feet per second [cfs]) would bewithdrawn from the reservoir to replace the Town of Bonanza's existing supply for domestic use and gilsonite processing. In addition, water may be needed for other energy development projects which may occur in this region of high oil shale and tar sand development potential. The project proposal was explained to the public in accordance with Council on Environmental Quality regulations implementing the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969, as amended (NEPA). A notice was published in the Federal Register. September 17, 1979 announcing the October 1979 public scoping meetings which were held at the BLM Vernal District Office and BLM State Office in Salt Lake City. Since these scoping meetings. numerous contacts have been made with Federal. State. local agencies and others to solicit their concerns and ex- pertise. A Draft EIS was then prepared which included issues identified during public hearings and com- ments. Several issues and environmental concerns were identified by the various individuals and groups. Those of most significance are noted below: Three species of rare endemic fish (Colorado squawfish, humpba.ck chub, and bony tail chub) have been observed in portions of the White River in Utah and are Federally listed as endangered, The razor- back sucker, currently listed as a sensitive species, has been reported and may occasionally enter the White River from the Green River. One sensitive plant species. Penstemon albifluvis. occurs in the reservoir impoundment area. Other threatened. endangered, and sensitive species found within the region include the bald eagle, golden eagle. peregrine falcon. and Uinta Basin hookless cactus. Early in 1980, BLM initi- ated Section 7 consultation on these species with the US Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS). The Utah Division of Water Resources requested on AUgust 13, 1980. that BLM extend the consultation period on this project required under the Endangered Species Act. There- fore. the FWS has provided a formal Biological Opin- ion regarding the impacts of the project on threatened and endangered species (included as Appendix 4 in this Final EIS). The Nation's energy situation relates to the White F1iver Dam Project in several ways. There are strong views which indicate that increased energy production from oil shale and tar sand would significantly assist in reducing our dependency upon foreign oil while help- ing to satisfy regional needs. Water is required in the conversion processes of oil shale. electrical power generation. and other energy development projects, The Utah Division of Water Resources wants to provide water for energy deveiopment by using a por- tion of the 1965 water right filing heid by the Utah Board of Water Resources on the White River. Water has become an important issue in eastern Utah because of expanding needs, its limitedavailabil- ity. problems associated with water quality. and the potential impacts of cumulative water depletions to water-related ecosystems. .. . The Ute Indian Tribe of Fort Duchesne, Utah has prime water rights on the White River under the Win- ters Doctrine with a potential to irrigate 12.833 acres (5.193 ha) of land (McKee and Morgan 1978). Depletions of river flows along with water return from increased acreages of irrigated land cause con- cern over raised salinity concentrations in the Green River and downstream into the Colorado River, 1 ~ . ~.,~