Los Alamos Reporter

Camp May Water Pipeline Project Final EA And Draft Decision Notice Released

SFNF NEWS RELEASE

The Santa Fe National Forest (SFNF) has released a Final Environmental Assessment (EA) and Draft Decision Notice (DN) for the Camp May Water Pipeline Project. Individuals who submitted timely and specific written comments during the scoping period (February 16, 2018 through March 19, 2018) or Draft EA comment period (May 20, 2020 through June 18, 2020) will have eligibility to file an objection to the Draft DN under 36 CFR § 218.8. Note that this cover letter for the Final EA and Draft DN is a resubmittal of the cover letter previously released on November 26, 2021, which contained an incorrect email address to send objections to.

As identified in the Draft DN, the Selected Alternative involves the installation of an underground water pipeline, fiber optic conduit, and electrical conduit along Camp May Road to Pajarito under a Special Use Authorization and Right-of-Way agreement. It also includes the construction, operations, and maintenance of all necessary improvements associated with the proposed new water tank, water pipeline, four booster pump stations, and fiber optic and electrical conduit. The specific elements of the Selected Alternative, including a summary of disturbance on federal and private lands, are described in detail in the Draft DN and Chapter 2 of the Final EA. The entire Final EA and Draft DN are available for review on the SFNF website at: https://www.fs.usda.gov/project/?project=53328. An interactive summary of the Final EA and Draft DN is available online at https://arcg.is/0uKG4G.

The objection period provides the public with an additional opportunity to provide input on the project and will help guide the decision-making process. A final decision will be issued after the Responsible Official reviews the objections and considers information from the analysis, previous public comments, and staff recommendations. Prior to issuing a decision, the Responsible Official may host a resolution meeting or otherwise reach out to objectors to discuss the issues raised.

Objections must be submitted within 45 calendar days following the publication of the corrected legal notice in the Albuquerque Journal on December 2, 2021, instead of the previous notice released on November 26, 2021. The publication date in the newspaper of record is the exclusive means for calculating the comment period. Those wishing to object should not rely upon dates or timeframe information provided by any other source. The regulations prohibit extending the time to file an objection. It is the objector’s responsibility to ensure timely filing of a written objection with the reviewing officer pursuant to 36 CFR §218.9. 2

Objections, including attachments, must be filed via mail or email to: Michiko Martin, Regional Forester, 333 Broadway Blvd. SE, Albuquerque, NM, 87102; objections-southwestern-regional-office@usda.gov. Electronically filed objections may be submitted by email in word (.doc or .docx), rich text format (.rtf), text (.txt), portable document format (.pdf), and/or hypertext markup language (.html).

At a minimum, an objection must include the following (36 CFR § 218.8(d)):

  • the objector’s name and address, with a telephone number, if available;
  • a signature or other verification of authorship upon request (a scanned signature for email may be filed with the objection);
  • when multiple names are listed on an objection, identification of the lead objector;
  • and the name of the proposed project, the name and title of the Responsible Official, and the name(s) of the National Forest(s) and/or Ranger District(s) on which the proposed project will be implemented.

In addition, objectors must describe the parts of the proposed project they are objecting to, including the following: specific issues related to the proposed project if applicable; how the objector believes the environmental analysis or draft decision specifically violates law, regulation, or policy; suggested remedies that would resolve the objection; supporting reasons for the reviewing officer to consider. Objectors must also provide a statement that demonstrates connection between prior specific written comments on the particular proposed project or activity and the content of the objection.

Thank you for your interest and participation in this important project. To obtain additional information about this decision or the Camp May Water Pipeline project, please contact Bjorn Fredrickson, project leader, at bjorn.fredrickson@usda.gov or 505-438-5350.