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<br />Authorizing Actions and Agency Involvement <br />The Bureau of Land Management in response to the application sut~mitted by <br />Western Fuels-Utah Incorporated is responsible for the Following sections. <br />1) Preliminary evaluation of the application to determine if it meets <br />the criteria far an emergency bypass lease. <br />2) Notification of the Governor of the State of Colorado and the <br />Chairman of the Green River-Hams Fork Regional Coal Team of the <br />application. <br />3) Preparation of the Environmental Analysis, Fair Harket Value, and <br />Haximum Economic Recovery Report. <br />4) And iE appropriate preparation for lease sale, holding of the lease <br />sale and issuance of the lease. <br />The Office of Surface Mining Reclamation and Enforcement (OSMRE) has <br />agreed to cooperate in preparing this EA. In addition, USMRE has <br />jurisdiction in recommending approval of any mining plan that might result <br />from BLH's leasing decision. <br />The Surface Mining Control and Reclamation Act of 1977 (SMCRA) gives OSMRE <br />primary responsibility to administer programs that regulate surface coal <br />mining operations on federal lands and the surface effects of underground <br />coal mining operations on federal lands. Pursuant to Section 503 of <br />SHCRA, the Colorado Mined Land Reclamation Division (NERD) developed, and <br />the Secretary of the Interior approved, a permanent program authorizing <br />Colorado MLRD to regulate surface coal mining operations and surface <br />effects of underground coal mining on non-federal lands within the State <br />of Colorado. In September 1982, pursuant to Section 523(c) of SMCRA, <br />Colorado HERD entered into a cooperative agreement with the Secretary of <br />the Interior authorizing Colorado MLRD to regulate surface coal mining <br />operations and surface effects of underground mining on federal lands <br />within the state. <br />Pursuant to the cooperative agreement, federal coal lease holders in <br />Colorado must submit permit application packages to OSHRE and Colorado <br />HERD for proposed mining and reclamation operations on federal lands in <br />the State. Colorado MLRD reviews the packages to ensure that the permit <br />application complies with the permitting requirements and that the coal <br />mining operation will meet the approved permanent program's environmental <br />performance standards; if it does comply, Colorado HERD issues the lessee <br />a state permit to conduct coal mining operations. OSHRE and other federal <br />agencies review the permit application packages to ensure that it complies <br />with the terms of the coal lease; the operation, and reclamation <br />requirements of the Hineral Leasing Act of 1920, as defined in SMCRA; the <br />National Environmental Policy Act of 1969; and other federal laws and <br />their attendant regulations. OSMRE recommends approval, approval with <br />conditions, or disapproval of the mining plan contained in the packages to <br />the Assistant Secretary - Land and Minerals Management. BLM and the <br />surface-managing agency (if other than BEM) must concur with the <br />recommendation, based on their review of the permit application package. <br />2 <br />