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mitigated through a state required water augmentation plan. The base of the lower aquifer, in contact with saline minerals, would increase by approximately 10 percent within the lease tracts. Other resource impacts would be similar, although greater than those addressed under the No Action Alternative, because of the 30-year project Life. Potential surface subsidence of less than 1 foot would also occur under this alternative. 500,000 TPY Alternative This alternative would involve construction and operation of a 30-year solution mine producing 500,000 tpy of sodium bicarbonate. It would involve: substantial expansion of the approved pilot project well field and plant site (affecting up to 818 additional acres), additional evaporation ponds (affecting up to 88 .additional acres), a commercial transmission power line into the plant Site, bulk product loading and handling facilities on-site and at Lacy Station, and a coal-fired generator and associated facilities. Impacts to all resources would be greatest under this alternative. Potentially significant impacts would occur to air quality, groundwater quantity and quality, cultural resources, and riparian-wetland habitat along Yellow Creek. The environmentally preferred alternative is the No Action Alternative. BLM's Fpreferred alternative: is the Proposed Action. MANAGEMENT CONSIDERATIONS The terms and conditions contained within WRC's four sodium leases have focused and constrained BLM's analysis and final approval of their commercial-scale mine plan. These sodium leases, C-0118326, C-0118327, C-0119986, and C-37470, give the lessee (WRC) the right to develop the sodium minerals within the leases subject to certain terms and conditions. The BLM can only deny approval of their Hine Plan if it is not in conformance with the terms and conditions of the leases. Approval of WRC's Hine Plan (the Proposed Action), subject to the stipulations contained in Appendix A, is in conformance with the :>odium lease terms and conditions. MITIGATION AND MONITORING All practicable means to avoid or minimize environmental harm from WRC's proposal (Proposed Action) have been adopted. AL1 of the stipulations contained in Appendix A are applied by BLH to the approved action. These stipulations were developed as the result of a comprehensive, interdisciplinary analysis, and technical evaluation of WRC's five volume mine plan (with numerous revisions), numerous technical reports, and various information submittals. These stipulations represent the minimum amount of mitigation deemed necessary, at this time, in order to ensure that WRC's Mine Plan is in compliance with existing sodium lease terms and conditions, which explicitly require protection of groundwater and oil shale resources. It is important to note that many of these stipulations, especially those within the Well Drilling, Completion and Abandonment; Monitoring; and Submittals 3