2020-10-27_PERMIT FILE - C1981035 (23)

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ENVIRONMENTAL ASSESSMENT 1.3 RELATIONSHIP TO STATUTES AND REGULATIONS The coal mining and related operations proposed by GCCE will be subject to all applicable federal and State statutes, regulations, permits, and policies, and LPC ordinances and GCCE's Conditional Class II Land Use Permit (Project#2012-0089). Details on these can be found in Section 1.8 of the Lease Modification EA(BLM and OSMRE 2017). 1.4 DECISIONS TO BE MADE Based on the information in this EA, the BLM will decide whether to lease the federal coal reserves. The decision may be to: • Issue a FONSI and Decision Record to lease the federal coal reserves; • Issue a FONSI and Decision Record to lease the federal coal reserves with special stipulations; • Issue a FONSI and Decision Record to disapprove leasing the federal coal reserves; or • Not issue a FONSI and analyze the potential effects of the proposed project in an EIS; Based on the information in this EA, and if GCCE is issued the federal coal lease, the regulations require the OSMRE to provide a mining plan modification recommendation for mining the federal coal to the ASLM. To assist with assuring compliance with other federal laws, regulations, and EOs, the OSMRE also reviews other relevant documents before making its recommendation to the ASLM. The ASLM then reviews the Mining Plan Decision Document (MPDD) and decides whether to approve the mining plan modification, and if approved, what, if any, conditions may be needed. Colorado Division of Reclamation Mining and Safety (CDRMS) normally also has a permitting role under SMCRA to fulfill for approval of mining privately owned coal in Colorado. In this instance, because the area of private coal that would be mined is relatively small and physically separated from the existing State permit area,the State and OSMRE are preparing a Memorandum of Understanding for OSMRE to conduct the permitting for the mining of privately-owned coal in the LBA area under one OSMRE's SMCRA permit. 1.5 PLAN CONFORMANCE The action alternatives are in conformance with the TRFO RMP and Record of Decision (ROD) (BLM 2015). The RMP at Chapter 3, page 11-128 states that: "...all TRFO lands made available for lease are subject to standard lease terms,which require operators of leases, as well as leasable mineral permits and licenses, to minimize adverse impacts to air, water, land, visual, cultural, and biological resources. Special lease stipulations are applied to a lease if additional restrictions on the rights of lessees are required to protect environmental resources." This EA addresses site-specific resource conditions and impacts that are not covered within the RMP and would be used to justify special stipulations for the new coal lease, if it is issued. Other than BLM land use planning, no other federal land use plans apply to the Proposed Action, Action Alternative and No Action Alternative presented in Chapter 2. The State of Colorado does not maintain planning documents, nor does it conduct planning processes relating to the alternatives. However, the alternatives would be consistent with the Colorado legislative Dunn Ranch Area Coal Lease by Application COC-78825 and Mine Plan Modification EA 1-5