Availability of a Draft Environmental Impact Statement for Kennecott Utah Copper Corporation's Proposed North Expansion Tailings Modernization Project in Salt Lake County, UT

DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE

Department of the Army

Corps of Engineers

Availability of a Draft Environmental Impact Statement for

Kennecott Utah Copper Corporation's Proposed North Expansion Tailings

Modernization Project in Salt Lake County, UT

AGENCY: U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, DOD.

ACTION: Notice of availability.

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SUMMARY: The Sacramento District, Utah Field Office of the U.S. Army

Corps of Engineers (Corps) has prepared a Draft Environmental Impact

Statement (DEIS) for the Kennecott Utah Copper Corporation (Kennecott)

proposed North Expansion Tailings Modernization Project (Project) in

Salt Lake County, Utah. The proposed Project provides tailings storage

capacity required for the next 25 to 30 years of Kennecott's operation.

The DEIS is available for public review and comment at the Salt Lake

City Library, Main Branch, 209 East 500 South and the Salt Lake County

Library System, Magna Branch, 8339 West 3500 South. Copies for

distribution are available from Mr. Michael A. Schwinn, Project

Manager, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Sacramento District, Utah Field

Office, 1403 South 600 West, Suite A, Bountiful, Utah 84010.

DATES: A public hearing will be held at 6:00 p.m. on May 31, 1995 at

the Main Auditorium, Utah Department of Natural Resources, 1636 West

North Temple Street, Salt Lake City, Utah for all interested parties to

comment on the DEIS. The 60-day comment period ends June 27, 1995.

ADDRESSES: To obtain a copy of the DEIS or to submit written comments

on the DEIS, contact Mr. Michael A. Schwinn, Project Manager, U.S. Army

Corps of Engineers, Sacramento District, Utah Field Office, 1403 South

600 West, Suite A, Bountiful, Utah 84010.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

Direct requests for a copy of the DEIS or questions to Mr. Michael A.

Schwinn, Project Manager, (801) 295-8380.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Kennecott is proposing to expand its

existing tailings impoundment by approximately 3500 acres. The proposed

Project site of 4325 acres is directly to the north and northwest of

the existing tailings impoundment. Kennecott has identified two primary

needs for the proposed Project. First, as the existing tailings

impoundment is nearing its operational capacity, Kennecott requires

approximately 1.9 billion tons of storage capacity to support mining

and concentrating operations for the next 25 to 30 years. Since only

approximately 0.3 to 0.4 billion tons of this material will be stored

in the existing impoundment, additional capacity is required. The

second need is for a seismic upgrade to the existing tailings

impoundment. As more information has recently become available

regarding the seismic nature of the Salt Lake Valley, Kennecott has

identified a need to upgrade the existing facility. Accordingly, the

proposed action includes various engineering measures to upgrade the

existing facility in the event of a large earthquake.

The proposed Project would provide approximately 3500 acres of

additional tailings storage area. Approximately 1.6 billion tons of

tailings would be stored in the proposed impoundment with an ultimate

height of approximately 250 feet. Site preparation activities would

include relocation of the Union Pacific Railroad mainline tracks,

relocation of the C-7 Ditch, relocation of utility lines, the

construction of a new bridge on Highway 202 over the relocated railroad

lines, and modification of the Interstate 80 on and off ramps at the

intersection with Highway 202.

Since the proposed action affects jurisdictional waters of the

United States, Kennecott submitted a Clean Water Act Section 404 Permit

Application to the Corps on June 10, 1994. The Corps determined that an

EIS was required prior to making a permit decision.

The Corps published a notice of intent to prepare a DEIS for the

proposed action on August 19, 1994 in the Federal Register. A public

scoping meeting was held on September 19, 1994 and the written comment

period remained open until November 7, 1994. Issues raised by

interested agencies and parties are addressed in the DEIS. The Corps is

coordinating the DEIS with the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency,

the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, and other Federal, state, and local

agencies, as well as other interested parties.

Twelve alternatives are identified and analyzed in accordance with

the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency section 404(b)(1) guidelines

for their technical, logistic, and economic practicability in the DEIS.

The North Expansion West, the North Expansion East, and the No Action

alternatives are carried forward for complete analysis in the DEIS.

The DEIS has been prepared in compliance with the National

Environmental Policy Act (NEPA), the Corps implementing procedures in

33 CFR 230, the Council for Environmental Quality regulations for

implementing [[Page 19574]] NEPA in 40 CFR 1500, and U.S. Environmental

Protection Agency (EPA) 404(b)(1) guidelines in 40 CFR 230.

The DEIS was filed with the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency

for publication of its availability for public review and comment.

Comments received on the DEIS will be considered in developing the

Final Environmental Impact Statement (FEIS). The FEIS is anticipated to

be available in August, 1995.

Gregory D. Showalter,

Army Federal Register Liaison Officer.

[FR Doc. 95-9582 Filed 4-18-95; 8:45 am]

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