Long-Term Monitoring Plan Approved for Ruby Pipeline Project

Organization:

BLM

BLM Office:

Nevada State Office

Media Contact:

Mark Mackiewicz

The U.S. Department of Interior's Bureau of Land Management signed a decision amending the Right-of-Way Grant (ROW) and Plan of Development (POD) for the Ruby Pipeline Project on July 27, 2012. The changes are in consideration of agency comments and with the concurrence of the Fremont-Winema, Uinta Wasatch-Cache National Forests, and the Bureau of Reclamation. The changes include amending the ROW to include documents that reflect the final pipeline as built and the approval and inclusion of The Long Term Monitoring Plan in the POD.The Ruby Pipeline is a 678-mile, 42-inch diameter interstate natural gas pipeline. It crosses 368 miles of Federal land beginning near Opal, Wyoming, extending through northern Utah and northern Nevada, and terminating near Malin, Oregon.The Ruby Pipeline was approved by the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission April 5, 2010 and the ROW Grant and Plan of Development were approved by a Record of Decision (ROD) issued by the BLM on July 12, 2010. Potential effects of the pipeline were analyzed in an Environmental Impact Statement, released in January 2010. The BLM issued multiple Notices to Proceed for each segment after Ruby demonstrated that all conditions and stipulations had been met for a given segment.The pipeline went into service on July 28, 2011. Construction restoration, stabilization, and final clean-up are not expected to be completed until later in 2012. The FERC and the BLM will continue to closely monitor and evaluate restoration progress along the entire pipeline ROW for several years.Copies of the Decision, as well as the original ROD, are available on the on the Internet at: www.blm.gov/nv/st/en/info/nepa/ruby_pipeline_project.html.Questions about the Decision to Amend the Right-of-Way Grant may be directed to: Mark A. Mackiewicz, PMP, BLM National Project Manager, c/o125 South 600 West, Price, UT 84501.


The BLM manages more than 245 million acres of public land located primarily in 12 western states, including Alaska, on behalf of the American people. The BLM also administers 700 million acres of sub-surface mineral estate throughout the nation. Our mission is to sustain the health, diversity, and productivity of America’s public lands for the use and enjoyment of present and future generations.