Idaho Power and Rocky Mountain Power have applied to the BLM for a right-of-way grant to use public lands for portions of the Gateway West Transmission Line Project. The companies have also applied for a special use permit to the Medicine Bow and Caribou-Targhee National Forests, as the proposed line also crosses these federally-managed lands.

The BLM and national forests use the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) process (40 CFR 1500) to assist their decision-making. The BLM is the lead federal agency for the NEPA process and will prepare an environmental impact statement (EIS) in compliance with NEPA and other federal laws.

To learn more about the NEPA process, check out A Citizen's Guide to NEPA (PDF).

The draft environmental impact statement (EIS) was released on July 29, 2011. The public comment period ran from July 29 through October 28 and is now closed. The draft EIS will continue to be available for viewing on the BLM website and BLM Field Offices, or you may request a CD. To learn more about the draft EIS visit the draft EIS page on this website.