Availability

DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR

[CA-060-04-5440-10-B026; 2-00160]

Availability

AGENCY: Bureau of Land Management, Interior.

ACTION: Notice of availability.

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SUMMARY: Notice is hereby given that a joint draft Environmental Impact

Statement and Environmental Impact Report (EIS/EIR) has been prepared

by the Bureau of Land Management and the County of Imperial for the

proposed Mesquite Regional Class III Landfill. The proposed federal

action analyzes the environmental effects of a land exchange for

approximately 1,750 acres, rights of way for a railroad spur and a gas

pipeline plus an amendment to the California Desert Plan.

DATES: For Public Hearings and Comments: A 90-day public review period

has been established for this document. Comments concerning the

adequacy or accuracy of this document will be considered in preparation

of the Final EIS/EIR. Written comments on this document will be

accepted through July 6, 1994. Two public hearings will be held during

the public comment period to receive verbal testimony on the following

dates: 7 p.m. PDT, Wednesday, May 25, 1994, at the El Centro Community

Center, 375 South First Street, El Centro, California 92243, (619-337-

4555); 7 p.m. PDT, Thursday, May 26, 1994, at the Desert Expo Center,

Fine Arts Building, 46-350 Arabia Street, Indio, California 92201 (619-

863-8247).

ADDRESSES: Written comments must be filed no later than July 6, 1994,

reference BLM CA-29617, and should be addressed to Bureau of Land

Management, 1661 South 4th Street, El Centro, CA 92243.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

Thomas Zale, Multi-Resource Staff Chief, Bureau of Land Management, El

Centro Resource Area, 1661 South 4th Street, El Centro, California

92243.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Gold Fields Mining Co. (Gold Fields),

Western Waste Industries, and S.P. Environmental Systems have formed a

(Partnership) that would own and develop the landfill located

contiguous to the site of the currently operating Mesquite Gold Mine

and Ore Processing Facility (Mesquite Mine) in eastern Imperial County.

The project would include the unloading and loading of Municipal Solid

Waste (MSW) residue containers, placement of MSW into the landfill,

rail and equipment maintenance, landfill gas recovery and destruction

by flaring or utilization of energy recovery techniques, leachate

collection and processing and waste water treatment. Temporary storage

of recyclable materials from originating transportation operations (in

accordance with AB939) will also be provided.

The proposed project would involve 4,250 acres, of which 2,290

acres would be utilized for the landfill footprint and ancillary

facilities. The proposed landfill is designed to accommodate up to 600

million tons of MSW residue and would have an operational life of 100

years. MSW would be collected from population centers in Southern

California, including Imperial County, by local collection vehicles and

taken to existing or future transfer stations/material recovery

facilities (MRFs) where it would be sorted and processed to remove

recyclables, hazardous materials, and other unacceptable wastes in

accordance with AB939. From these locations, MSW residue would be

transferred to railroad loading intermodals where it would be loaded

for rail haulage to the Mesquite Regional Landfill project site. Truck

transfer of Imperial County MSW residue could also occur (based on

future decisions made by local officials) after processing at local

transfer stations/MRFs. The estimated rate of growth of daily MSW

volumes would be 4,000 tons per day (tpd) for Year 1 of operations,

increasing up to 20,000 tpd after Year 7. The estimated daily number of

trains that would be required would be one train during Year 1 (4,000

tpd), increasing to 5 trains after Year 7 (20,000 tpd). The proposed

maximum daily volume of MSW residue would be 20,000 tons per day

averaged over a two week, 12 day period. The actual rate of growth and

operational life of the landfill will depend upon market conditions for

MSW disposal in communities that choose to use the regional landfill.

In addition to the No Action Alternative, four alternatives to the

proposed action are considered in the EIS/EIR and include: Smaller

Landfill Footprint (Alternative I); Reduced Daily Volumes (Alternative

II); Alternative Mesquite Regional Landfill Site (Alternative III); and

Larger Project (increased daily MSW residue volumes and larger landfill

footprint) (Alternative IV). The EIS/EIR analyzes the effects of the

proposed action and alternatives on such environmental issues including

but not limited to: air quality, social and economic impacts, ground

and surface water quality, endangered and other special status plants

and animals, cultural or historical and visual resources.

Dated: April 1, 1994.

G. Ben Koski,

Area Manager.

[FR Doc. 94-7804 Filed 4-7-94; 8:45 am]

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