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Chapter 8

CONSULTATION AND COORDINATION

The consultation and coordination efforts made by the DOE/NV during the preparation of this Final NTS EIS are summarized in this chapter. Meetings, briefings, and consultations were conducted with federal agencies and governments, state, county, tribal, and local. Some actions taken by the DOE/NV were mandated by regulations; other actions were initiated by the DOE/NV to further encourage participation in the National Environmental Policy Act process. Consulting and cooperating agencies have reviewed the Draft NTS EIS prior to and after its issuance, and provided comments which the DOE has addressed.

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8.1 Cooperating Agencies

Four federal agencies and one county government served as cooperating agencies with the DOE/NV in accordance with Title 40 CFR Parts 1501.5 and 1501.6. The DOE/NV sought their cooperation to identify potential impacts to lands owned, administered, or managed by these agencies as a result of implementing its alternatives. Furthermore, the DOE/NV did not want its alternatives to be in conflict with the programs and policies of other agencies. And finally, specific areas of expertise within these agencies were critical to the DOE/NV for the evaluation of its alternatives. General functions applicable to all cooperating agencies were to:

• Provide land-use plans, National Environmental Policy Act documents, and other reference documents which could assist in the analysis

• Coordinate internal reviews and provide one set of comments for rough draft portions and all of the NTS EIS to assure consistency

• Ensure that ecosystem management concepts were applied to land-use impact analysis, where appropriate

• Attend and participate in periodic meetings of the technical working group, executivemanagement group, and other appropriate groups; EIS scoping meetings, public meetings and hearings, and interagency meetings related to the NTS EIS; and assist, where applicable, with response to public comments.

The following briefly describes the specific contributions of the five cooperating agencies:

1. DoD, U.S. Air Force, Nellis Air Force Base: Provide noise analysis for the NTS EIS, as necessary, and serve as the subject matter expert for aircraft and airspace issues. Assist with impact analysis of remediation and monitoring activities of contaminated or potentially contaminated surface or groundwater as it might affect portions of the NAFR Complex.

2. DoD, Defense Nuclear Agency: Provide information on current and planned projects that are managed by the Defense Nuclear Agency, and assist with impact analysis.

3. Department of the Interior, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service: To fulfill its obligations under the Endangered Species Act, the DOE/NV requested threatened and endangered species lists for the Central Nevada Test Area, Project Shoal Area, Tonopah Test Range/ Double Tracks and the Nevada Test Site at the beginning of the NTS EIS process. These lists are valid for 90 days and were periodically reauthorized throughout the NTS EIS process.
   In November 1995, the DOE/NV initiated formal Section 7 consultation with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service regarding effects of activities and programs proposed in the Draft NTS EIS on listed species. The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service provided a Draft Biological Opinion on May 5, 1996, that concluded that the proposed activities were not likely to jeopardize the continued existence of the threatened Mojave population of the desert tortoise. No critical habitat will be destroyedor adversely modified. The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service concurred with the DOE/NV that the programs will not affect the bald eagle or peregrine falcon. The DOE/NV has asked the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service for a similar concurrence in the Final Biological Opinion that the programs will not affect Ash Meadows or Devils Hole.

4. Department of the Interior, Bureau of Land Management: Assist the DOE/NV in evaluating the adequacy of the existing DOE land withdrawals as they relate to the NTS EIS alternatives.

5. Nye County: Provide information regarding planning objectives and other information on long-term objectives of future Nye County planning initiatives. Provide information to assist in the evaluation of socioeconomic impacts of the NTS EIS alternatives.

8.2 American Indians

During the week of March 17, 1995, the DOE/NV met with the Consolidated Group of Tribes and Organizations to discuss American Indian involvement in the preparation of this EIS. The Consolidated Group of Tribes and Organizations recommended that two representatives from the Owens Valley Paiute, Western Shoshone, and Southern Paiute tribes be appointed to write an American Indian perspective for the NTS EIS. It was also recommended that the DOE/NV provide these representatives with funding and technical assistance. The DOE/NV agreed, and the American Indian Writers Subgroup (AIWS) was formed.

The Subgroup held its first meeting the week of May 1, 1995, in Las Vegas, Nevada, to develop a writing strategy, draft an outline of writing tasks, and begin preparing draft text. Subsequent meetings were held the week of May 22, 1995, and from June 9 through 12, 1995, to continue preparation and to finalize the draft text. At the June meeting, the development of the Resource Management Plan was outlined and continued American Indian involvement was discussed. A draft of American Indian Comments for the NTS EIS (Appendix G) was received by the DOE/NV June 15, 1995. The appendix provided an overview of the cultural basis for the viewpoints presented by the Consolidated Group of Tribes and Organizations’ members in the Draft NTS EIS.

Two subgroup meetings were held in Las Vegas, Nevada, after the public review period for the Draft NTS EIS. The purpose of these meetings was to review and edit the Draft American Indian Comments, to respond to the public comments on the Draft document, and to prepare additional text for inclusion in the NTS EIS. On March 20 and 21, 1996, the Subgroup met with DOE/NV management officials to discuss the current American Indian involvement in the NTS EIS as well as other consultation issues. A brief presentation of the Resource Management Plan was also given by the DOE/NV.

On April 15 through 17, 1996, DOE/NV again consulted with Consolidated Group of Tribes and Organizations’ representatives to update them on the changes, final schedule, and public comments for the NTS EIS. This meeting was held at the NTS. The AIWS presented a report of activities and a status of writing tasks completed. The Consolidated Group of Tribes and Organizations reviewed and commented on the additional text developed by the Subgroup and provided suggestions for expanding sections of the text.

On April 18 through 21, 1996, the Subgroup met in Las Vegas to incorporate the Consolidated Group of Tribes and Organizations’ comments, to complete and edit the additional text, to focus writing efforts on the Transportation Study and the Resource Management Plan, and to complete an expanded inventory of American Indian traditional-use plants and animals. On April 21, 1996, the Subgroup completed all additional text for Appendix G as well as sections to be incorporated into Volumes 1 and 2 of the NTS EIS. The final additions for the American Indian Assessments for the NTS EIS (Appendix G) were submitted to DOE/NV.

8.2.1 American Indian Consultation Procedures

American Indian tribes are sovereign nations that acknowledge the U.S. Government and expect that, in return, the U.S. Government recognize tribal sovereignty. In a memorandum dated April 29, 1994, President William J. Clinton wrote, "I am strongly committed to building a more effective day-to-day working relationship reflecting respect for the rights of self-government due the sovereign tribal rights. " American Indian governments expect that federal agencies and state officials will honor President Clinton’s explicit commitment to building such a relationship and following his mandate (Executive Orders 12875 and 12866). Accordingly, government officials must implement comprehensive consultation policies that take into consideration the vast cultural, social, and political diversity of American Indians as well as the needs, concerns, and impacts that are shared by our nations.

American Indian tribes are not considered as, nor do they fit the definition of, businesses or stakeholders. Formal government-to-government consultation with tribal governments require diplomacy. U.S. Government officials that are in charge of maintaining friendly and productive day-to-day relationships with foreign countries, such as Japan, Mexico, or Germany, must acquire knowledge on the languages, culture, and politics of those countries in order to best represent the interests of the United States, and to achieve success in international, economic, and political negotiations. Yet, there is little or no interest among government officials to educate themselves as to how American Indians living in their own country organize themselves culturally and politically. How, we ask, are federal agencies and state officials going to succeed in following President Clinton’s mandate, if they do not work at improving their knowledge of American Indian life ways?

The American Indian Writers Subgroup (AIWS), which represents the concerns of the CGTO for the Nevada Test Site Environmental Impact Statement would like to suggest a series of procedures for implementing a comprehensive day-to-day consultation relationship with the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE). The Environmental Protection Division of the U.S. Department of Energy, Nevada Operations Office (DOE/NV) has maintained its commitment to consultation and established a working relationship with culturally affiliated American Indian tribes regarding cultural resources at Yucca Mountain and the NTS since 1985. There are, however, numerous other areas of great concern for tribal governments that are currently addressed in the NTS EIS but have not been explored nor systematically subjected to consultation with tribal governments. Some of these areas are:

• Land use

• Risk assessment

• Socioeconomic issues

• Nuclear waste transportation

• Environmental justice and equity

• Environmental restoration

• Mitigation.

The AIWS is aware that presently there are programmatic EISs taking place without the direct involvement of Indian people. This lack of involvement is a source of great concern for culturally affiliated tribes. The gravity of past and proposed future nuclear and defense-related programs and activities at the NTS and other areas withdrawn by the DOE calls for a broadening of the scope of American Indian consultation programs. As stated in the American Indian Policy (April 29, 1994), the DOE must identify and seek to remove impediments to working directly and effectively with tribal governments on DOE programs and activities. The DOE has already recognized that there may be certain procedural impediments which limit or restrict the ability to work effectively and consistently with American Indian tribes. In keeping with the American Indian Policy, which requires government-to-government consultation, this federal agency must make every effort to remove such impediments.

The AIWS reviewed and edited the Consultation Model produced for the DOE Legacy Project (Stoffle et al., 1994). A detailed version of this American Indian Consultation Model, which has been tailored to meet current DOE/NV consultation procedures, is included in Attachment C of Appendix G.

The consultation procedures are drawn both from past and current consultation relationships between DOE/NV and the CGTO. Furthermore, these procedures reflect the need for adjustments on consultation strategies for future DOE programs and activities that may potentially impact the traditional culture and contemporary well-being of Indian people. Therefore, discussions presented in Appendix G not only highlight the accomplishments of DOE/NV consultation with tribal governments, but also points out procedures that have yet to be developed and implemented in the future. Because the NTS EIS will be read by government officials from sister DOE facilities and perhaps by other federal and state agencies as well, the AIWS expects that the consultation procedures will serve as a model for future interaction between tribal governments and federal and state agencies.

It is important to note that specific consultation procedures should be approved by tribal governments at the onset of each consultation process.

8.3 Other Meetings

Additional meetings were held with local governments, advisory boards, the Nevada State Clearinghouse, the DOE/NV Operations Office Environmental Management Community Advisory Board, affected units of local government, and the South-Central Nevada Federal Complex Advisory Board. Several work-group meetings with local and county governments took place, many of which were specific to transportation issues. These meetings are summarized in Table 8-1.

Table 8-1. Summary of meetings held on the NTS EIS and Transportation Study

Host Organization	Date	Location
Environmental Impact Statement Transportation Study Meetings
Local or County Government	August 22, 1994	U.S. Department of Energy Nevada Operations Office 2753 S. Highland Las Vegas, NV 89109
University of Nevada, Las Vegas	November 15, 1994	University of Nevada, Las Vegas Harry Reid Center 4505 S. Maryland Parkway Las Vegas, NV 89154
Transportation Risk Working Group Meetings
DOE Nevada Operations Office	May 16, 1995	U.S. Department of Energy Nevada Operations Office 2753 S. Highland Las Vegas, NV 89109
DOE Nevada Operations Office	June 15, 1995	IT Corporation 4330 S. Valley View, #114 Las Vegas, NV 89103
Draft Implementation Plan Meetings
Community Advisory Board for the NTS Programs	February 1, 1995	Holiday Inn Crowne Plaza 4225 Paradise Road Las Vegas, NV 89109
DOE Nevada Operations Office	February 7, 1995	University of Nevada, Las Vegas 4505 S. Maryland Parkway Las Vegas, NV 89154
DOE Nevada Operations Office	February 9, 1995	University of Nevada 9th and N. Virginia Reno, NV 89557
DOE Nevada Operations Office	March 7, 1995	U.S. Department of Energy Nevada Operations Office 2753 S. Highland Las Vegas, NV 89109
DOE Nevada Operations Office	March 9, 1995	Reno-Sparks Convention and Visitors Authority 4590 S. Virginia St. Reno, NV 89501
Scoping Period Meetings
DOE Nevada Operations Office	September 7, 1994	Fallon Convention Center 100 Campus Way Fallon, NV 89046
DOE Nevada Operations Office	September 8, 1994	Carson City Community Center 851 E. Williams Street Carson City, NV 89701
DOE Nevada Operations Office	September 13, 1994	Dixie Center Convention Facilities 425 South 700 East St. George, UT 84770
DOE Nevada Operations Office	September 15, 1994	Tonopah Convention Center 301 Brougher Tonopah, NV 89049
DOE Nevada Operations Office	September 20, 1994	Cashman Field Convention Center 850 Las Vegas Boulevard No. Las Vegas, NV 89101
DOE Nevada Operations Office	September 21, 1994	Bob Ruud Community Center Highway 93 Caliente, NV 89008
DOE Nevada Operations Office	October 4, 1994	Henderson Convention Center 200 S. Water Street Henderson, NV 89015
Other Information Meetings
State of Nevada Clearinghouse	August 30, 1994	State Clearinghouse II Capitol Complex Carson City, NV 89710
Environmental Management Community Advisory Board	October 5, 1994	Holiday Inn Crowne Plaza 4225 Paradise Road Las Vegas, NV 89109
Affected Units of Local Government	October 21, 1994	White Pine County Convention Center 150 6th Street Ely, NV 89301
South-Central Nevada Federal Complex Advisory Board	October 28, 1994	Tonopah Convention Center 301 Brougher Tonopah, NV 89049
Air and Waste Management Association	December 14, 1994	Palace Station Hotel & Casino 2411 West Sahara Las Vegas, NV 89102
State of Nevada Clearinghouse	December 19, 1994	Nevada State Library Capitol Complex Carson City, NV 89710
Affected Units of Local Government	February 24, 1995	Tonopah, NV 89049
CGTO	March 17 - 19, 1995	Nevada Test Site Mercury, NV 89023
State of Nevada Clearinghouse	April 19, 1995	Nevada State Library Capitol Complex Carson City, NV 89710
Affected Units of Local Government	May 25, 1995	Pioche Fire Department Pioche, NV 89043
Community Technical Representative Program	July 31 - August 4, 1995	Brian Head Hotel 223 W. Hunter Ridge Drive Brian Head, UT 84719
Environmental Management Community Advisory Board	August 2, 1995	Community College of Southern Nevada Cheyenne Campus North Las Vegas, NV 89030
Transportation Study Group	August 9, 1995	Desert Research Institute 755 E. Flamingo Road Las Vegas, NV 89119
State of Nevada Clearinghouse	August 29, 1995	Nevada State Library Capitol Complex Carson City, NV 89710
Environmental Management Community Advisory Board	October 8, 1995	Community College of Southern Nevada Cheyenne Campus North Las Vegas, NV 89030
Public Hearings, Workshops, and Other Meetings
Environmental Management Community Advisory Board	February 7, 1996	Durango High School 7100 W. Dewey Drive Las Vegas, NV
NTS EIS Public Hearing	March 5, 1996	Dixie College Smith Convention Center 425 South 700 East St. George, UT 84770
NTS EIS Public Hearing	March 13, 1996	Town of Pahrump Bob Rudd Community Center 50 North Highway 160 Pahrump, NV 89041
NTS EIS Public Hearing	March 19, 1996	University of Nevada ASUN Auditorium Reno, NV 89557-0089
NTS EIS Public Hearing	March 26, 1996	Cashman Field Center 850 Las Vegas Blvd. No. Las Vegas, NV 89101
NV State Clearinghouse Meeting	April 10, 1996	Nevada State Library 100 Stewart Avenue Carson City, NV 89710
NTS Transportation Big Group	April 11, 1996	Bechtel Nevada Facilities Bldg. C-1, Auditorium 2621 Losee Road North Las Vegas, NV 89030
Public Hearings, Workshops, and Other Meetings
NTS EIS CORE Workshops	April 8, 1996	Boulder City Hall Bldg. 401 California Avenue Boulder City, NV 89005
NTS EIS CORE Workshops	April 16, 1996	Caliente Train Station 100 Depot Avenue Caliente, NV 89008
NTS EIS CORE Workshops	April 23, 1996	Tonopah Courthouse Commissioners Chambers W. P. Beko Justice Chambers 101 Radar Road Tonopah, NV 89049
NTS EIS CORE Workshops	April 25, 1996	West Las Vegas Arts Center 947 W. Lake Mead North Las Vegas, NV

8.4 References

REGULATION, ORDER, LAW
40 CFR Part 1501.5	U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), "Protection of the Environment: Lead Agencies," Code of Federal Regulations, Office of the Federal Register, National Archives and Records Administration, U.S. Government Printing Office, Washington, DC, 1995.
40 CFR Part 1501.6	EPA, "Protection of the Environment: Cooperating Agencies," Code of Federal Regulations, Office of the Federal Register, National Archives and Records Administration, U.S. Government Printing Office, Washington, DC, 1995.
EO 12866	Executive Order, "Regulatory Planning and Review," Office of the President, Washington, DC, 1993.
EO 12875	Executive Order, "Enhancing the Intergovernmental Partnership," Office of the President, Washington, DC, 1993.
GENERAL
Stoffle, et al., 1994	Stoffle, R.W., M.J. Evans, D.B. Halmo, M.E. Dufort, and B.K. Fulfrost, Native American Cultural Resources on Pahute and Rainier Mesas, Nevada Test Site, Desert Research Institute Technical Report No. 84, Bureau of Applied Research in Anthropology (BARA), University of Arizona, Tucson, AZ, 1994.