Draft Environmental Impact Statement (DEIS) for the Proposed Cabazon Resource Recovery Park, Cabazon Indian Reservation, Indio, CA

DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR

Bureau of Indian Affairs

Draft Environmental Impact Statement (DEIS) for the Proposed

Cabazon Resource Recovery Park, Cabazon Indian Reservation, Indio, CA

AGENCY: Bureau of Indian Affairs, Interior.

ACTION: Notice of availability of DEIS and public hearing and public

comment dates.

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SUMMARY: This notice advises the public that the Draft Environmental

Impact Statement (DEIS) for a proposed general plan and master lease of

approximately 590 acres held in trust by the Federal Government for the

Cabazon Band of Mission Indians in Riverside County, California is now

available for public review and comment. The DEIS describes a proposed

resource recovery park and industrial area for the recycling, reuse and

transformation of waste streams of various types. This DEIS was

prepared by the Bureau of Indian Affairs, in cooperation with the

Cabazon Band of Mission Indians and their environmental consultants. A

description of the proposed project location and of the environmental

issues addressed in the DEIS are provided in the Supplementary

Information. This notice also announces a public hearing to receive

public comments on the DEIS.

This notice is published pursuant to Sec. 1503.1 of the Council on

Environmental Quality Regulations (40 CFR parts 1500 through 1508)

implementing the procedural requirements of the National Environmental

Policy Act of 1969, as amended (42 U.S.C. 4321 et seq.), and the

Department of the Interior Manual (516 DM 1-6), and is in the exercise

of authority delegated to the Assistant Secretary--Indian Affairs by

209 DM 8.

DATES: Written comments must be received on or before August 14, 1998.

All correspondence should show the following caption on the first page:

``DEIS Comments, Cabazon Resource Recovery Park, Cabazon Indian

Reservation, Indio, California.'' The public hearing will be held on

July 23, 1998 at the location shown below. We will consider all

comments sent during this period, or submitted at the hearing, in

preparing the Final Environmental Impact Statement.

ADDRESSES: Address comments to Ronald M. Jaeger, Area Director,

Sacramento Area Office, Bureau of Indian Affairs, 2800 Cottage Way,

Sacramento, CA 95825-1846. The public hearing will be held from 6:00

p.m. to 8:00 p.m. on July 23, 1998, at the Cabazon Band Council

Chambers, 84245 Indio Springs Dr., Indio, CA 92203. This hearing will

be co-hosted by the Bureau of Indian Affairs and the Cabazon Band of

Mission Indians.

The DEIS is available for review at the Cabazon Band of Mission

Indians Administrative Offices, 84245 Indio Springs Dr., Indio, CA

92203. To obtain a copy of the DEIS, please write or call William

Allan, Environmental Protection Specialist, Sacramento Area Office,

Bureau of Indian Affairs, 2800 Cottage Way, Sacramento, CA 95825-1846,

telephone (916) 979-2575, extension 254.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: William Allan, 916-979-2575.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The proposed action would approve a general

plan of development for the majority of Section 6 and a master lease of

the land from the Cabazon Band of Mission Indians to a tribally owned

corporation. The full development project is entitled the ``Cabazon

Resource Recovery Park'' (CRRP). The industrial and commercial

facilities planned for the CRRP are intended to be environmentally

responsible industries which individually and collectively implement

practical solutions to environmental and waste management problems of

several types. The integrated nature of the various types of facilities

planned is such that the output of some facilities would provide input

to others, enhancing the overall efficiency and effectiveness of both

the waste management and manufacturing projects. Existing projects and

those in development or proposed include a biomass power plant, a

biosolids recycling plant, a contaminated soil recycling plant, a tire

recycling and remanufacturing plant, a nickel wire recycling and

manufacturing plant, a waste food and green waste recycling facility,

an aquaculture facility, a materials recovery facility, a gasification

facility, a metals reclamation facility, a used oil recovery refinery,

a catalytic converter platinum recovery facility, construction and

demolition materials recovery facility, a fuels and chemicals storage

and distribution facility, a plant making speciality glass products

from reclaimed glass, a hazardous waste and hazardous commodity

processing and transfer facility, and associated support infrastructure

(railyards, sewage treatment, etc.). The project will meet all

applicable environmental standards and regulations.

The project is located in the Coachella Valley approximately one

mile northwest of the unincorporated town of

[[Page 32239]]

Mecca. Section 6 is characterized by smooth topography and ranges in

elevation from 180 feet below to 146 feet below mean sea level. Section

6 is adjacent to, on its west and south sides, the Coachella Valley

Enterprise Zone; a 27,000 acre area established by the California

Legislature to create jobs and economic development.

The DEIS addresses the issues identified during scoping.

Alternatives to the proposed project that are considered in the DEIS

include the no action alternative. The environmental issues addressed

in the DEIS include land and water resources, air quality, living

resources, cultural and socioeconomic resources, land use, traffic,

noise, public safety and health, and visual resources.

Dated: June 4, 1998.

Kevin Gover,

Assistant Secretary--Indian Affairs.

[FR Doc. 98-15628 Filed 6-11-98; 8:45 am]

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