Intent To Prepare a Draft Environmental Impact Statement To Evaluate Improvements to the Federal Deep-Draft Pascagoula Harbor Navigation Channel in Jackson County, MS, 5768-5769 [2010-2392]
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Federal Register / Vol. 75, No. 23 / Thursday, February 4, 2010 / Notices
Supporting documentation may also be
included as needed to establish the
appropriate historical context and to
provide any necessary background
information.
Individuals submitting a written
statement may submit their statement to
the Board at 801 N. Quincy Street, Suite
600, Arlington, VA 22203, at any time.
However, if a written statement is not
received at least 10 calendar days prior
to the meeting, which is the subject of
this notice, then it may not be provided
to or considered by the Veterans’
Advisory Board on Dose Reconstruction
until its next open meeting.
The Chairperson will review all
timely submissions with the Designated
Federal Officer, and ensure they are
provided to members of the Veterans’
Advisory Board on Dose Reconstruction
before the meeting that is the subject of
this notice. After reviewing the written
comments, the Chairperson and the
Designated Federal Officer may choose
to invite the submitter of the comments
to orally present their issue during an
open portion of this meeting or at a
future meeting.
Public Comments
The March 4, 2010, meeting is open
to the public. One, approximately halfhour session will be reserved for public
comments on issues related to the tasks
of the Veterans’ Advisory Board on Dose
Reconstruction. Speaking time will be
assigned on a first-come, first-served
basis. The amount of time per speaker
will be determined by the number of
requests received, but is nominally five
minutes each. All persons who wish to
speak at the meeting must sign in
legibly at the registration desk. Speakers
who wish to expand on their oral
statements are invited to submit a
written statement to the Veterans’
Advisory Board on Dose Reconstruction
at 801 N. Quincy Street, Suite 600,
Arlington, VA 22203.
Dated: February 1, 2010.
Mitchell S. Bryman,
Alternate OSD Federal Register Liaison
Officer, Department of Defense.
[FR Doc. 2010–2368 Filed 2–3–10; 8:45 am]
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DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE
Department of the Army; Corps of
Engineers
Intent To Prepare a Draft
Environmental Impact Statement To
Evaluate Improvements to the Federal
Deep-Draft Pascagoula Harbor
Navigation Channel in Jackson
County, MS
AGENCY: Department of the Army, U.S.
Army Corps of Engineers, DOD.
ACTION: Notice of intent.
SUMMARY: The Mobile District, U.S.
Army Corps of Engineers (Corps)
intends to prepare a Draft
Environmental Impact Statement (DEIS)
to address the potential impacts
associated with improving the Federal
Pascagoula Harbor Navigation Channel
Project in Jackson County, MS. The
DEIS will be used as a basis for ensuring
compliance with the National
Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) and
evaluating alternative plans including
the ‘‘No Action’’. Alternatives which
will be evaluated include widening the
Lower Pascagoula Channel and Bayou
Casotte Channel by 50-foot increments
to a total width of 150 feet on one side
or both sides of the channel.
DATES: A public scoping meeting will be
held on Thursday, February 25, 2010
from 5:30 p.m. to 7:30 p.m.
ADDRESSES: The scoping meeting will be
held at the Pascagoula Public Library,
3214 Pascagoula Street, Pascagoula, MS
39567.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:
Questions about the DEIS should be
addressed to Ms. Jennifer Jacobson,
Coastal Environment Team, Mobile
District, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers,
P.O. Box 2288, Mobile, AL 36628 by
telephone (251) 690–2724 or e-mail her
at jennifer.l.jacobson@usace.army.mil.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
1. The March 1985 Pascagoula Harbor,
MS Feasibility Report investigated
increased widths and depths in the
Pascagoula and Bayou Casotte
navigation channels. Of the plans
initially formulated, five were selected
for detailed study along with the ‘‘No
Action’’ alternative. All plans
considered for detailed study included
deepening all the channels in
Mississippi Sound to 42 feet and the
Entrance channel to 44 feet; widening of
the Entrance channel to 550 feet;
widening of the Bayou Casotte channel
to 350 feet; and providing a 1,400-foot
diameter turning basin just inside the
mouth of Bayou Casotte. The 1985
Feasibility Report recommended
deepening and widening the Gulf
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Entrance channel to 44 feet by 550 feet
from the 44-foot depth contour in the
Gulf of Mexico to the bend at the
southern end of Horn Island Pass,
deepening and widening Horn Island
Pass to 44 feet by 600 feet between the
bends at the southern and northern ends
of that pass, for a distance of about 4
and 1⁄2; miles; reconfiguring the
impoundment basin in Horn Island Pass
to provide a section within the channel
limits 1,500 feet long with a total depth
of 56 feet to facilitate maintenance by
hopper dredge, and allowing for future
realignment of the Horn Island Pass
reach as natural conditions warrant. In
addition, deepening the Lower
Pascagoula channel to 42 feet from the
bend at the north end of Horn Island
Pass, through Mississippi Sound and
into the Pascagoula River, and
terminating about 500 feet south of the
grain elevator for a total distance of
about 10 miles; widening the bend at
the junction with the Bayou Casotte
channel from the present 150 feet to 250
feet to provide a total width at the bend
of 600 feet and widening the bend at the
mouth of Pascagoula River by 280 feet
to provide a total width at the bend of
630 feet. Finally, widening and
deepening the Bayou Casotte channel to
42 feet by 350 feet from the junction
with the main channel to the mouth of
Bayou Casotte, a distance of about 3 and
c miles; with additional widening at the
mouth to provide a turning basin with
a total turning diameter of 1,150 feet,
including the channel width; relieving
the northern portion of the area between
the junction with the main ship channel
from the present 500 feet to 1,000 feet,
and widening the bend at the mouth of
Bayou Casotte from the present 50 feet
to 100 feet to provide a total width at
the bend of 450 feet. A Final
Environmental Impact Statement (EIS)
for the Designation of an Ocean Dredged
Material Disposal Site (ODMDS) located
offshore Pascagoula, MS was prepared
in July 1991. Construction of all phases
of the improvements, except for the
Entrance channel being widened to 550
feet, reconfiguring the Horn Island Pass
impoundment basin, and the Pascagoula
Upper channel being deepened to 42
feet, were completed in 1999. A Final
Supplemental EIS entitled Pascagoula
Harbor Navigation Channel is scheduled
to be released for public comment this
year. This Final Supplemental EIS
addresses construction of all those
unconstructed navigational features.
The project is conducted under the
authority of Public Law 84–99, Flood
and Coastal Storm Emergencies (33
U.S.C.701n) (69 Stat. 186).
Appropriations for construction of the
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Federal Register / Vol. 75, No. 23 / Thursday, February 4, 2010 / Notices
project was received by Public Law
109–359, making Appropriations for the
Department of Defense for the Fiscal
Year Ending September 30, 2006, and
for Other Purposes (December 18, 2005).
The original Final EIS was reviewed and
any new conditions that were not
addressed in the 1989 Final EIS were
evaluated as part of the Final
Supplemental EIS to ensure compliance
with all environmental laws and
regulations.
2. Alternative scenarios to be
considered in the DEIS include the ‘‘No
action’’ alternative and an array of 50foot wide increment alternatives to
widen the Federal Lower Pascagoula
Channel and Bayou Casotte Channel up
to a total width of 150 feet on either one
side or both sides of the Channel(s). In
addition, an array of disposal options
are also being evaluated for the new
work as well as for the maintenance
material including upland disposal
site(s), littoral zone disposal, beneficial
use, disposal in the existing Pascagoula
ODMDS, and disposal in existing openwater disposal sites.
3. Scoping: a. The Corps invites full
public participation to promote open
communication on the issues
surrounding the proposal. All Federal,
State, and local agencies, and other
persons or organizations that have an
interest are urged to participate in the
NEPA scoping process. Public meetings
will be held to help identify significant
issues and to receive public input and
comment.
b. The DEIS will analyze the potential
social, economic, and environmental
impacts to the local area resulting from
improvements to the Federal Pascagoula
Harbor Navigation Project. Specifically,
the following major issues will be
analyzed in depth in the DEIS:
Hydrologic and hydraulic regimes,
threatened and endangered species,
essential fish habitat and other marine
habitat, air quality, cultural resources,
transportation systems, alternatives,
secondary and cumulative impacts,
socioeconomic impacts, environmental
justice (effect on minorities and lowincome groups) (Executive Order
12898), and protection of children
(Executive Order 13045).
c. The Corps will serve as the lead
Federal agency in the preparation of the
DEIS. It is anticipated that the following
agencies will be invited and will accept
cooperating agency status for the
preparation of the DEIS: U.S.
Environmental Protection Agency, U.S.
Fish and Wildlife Service, National
Marine Fisheries Service, Mississippi
Department of Environmental Quality,
Mississippi Department of Marine
Resources, Jackson County Port
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Authority, Mississippi Secretary of
State, National Park Service, Minerals
Management Service, Mississippi
Museum of Natural Science, and
Mississippi Department of Archives and
History.
4. A public scoping meeting will be
held (see DATES AND ADDRESSES). Actual
time(s) and place(s) for subsequent
meetings or workshops will be
announced by the Corps by issuance of
a public notice and/or notices in the
local media.
5. It is anticipated that the DEIS will
be made available for public review in
November 2012.
Curtis M. Flakes,
Chief, Planning and Environmental Division.
[FR Doc. 2010–2392 Filed 2–3–10; 8:45 am]
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DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE
Department of the Army
Inland Waterways Users Board;
Request for Nominations
Department of the Army, DOD.
Notice.
AGENCY:
ACTION:
SUMMARY: Section 302 of Public Law 99–
662 established the Inland Waterways
Users Board. The Board is an
independent Federal advisory
committee. The Secretary of the Army
appoints its 11 members. This notice is
to solicit nominations for appointments
or reappointments to two-year terms
that will begin after July 1, 2010.
ADDRESSES: Headquarters, U.S. Army
Corps of Engineers, Civil Works
Directorate, Attention: Inland
Waterways Users Board Nominations
Committee, Mr. Mark Pointon, 441 G
Street, NW., Washington, DC 20314–
1000.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:
Headquarters, U.S. Army Corps of
Engineers, Civil Works Directorate,
(202) 761–4691.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The
selection, service, and appointment of
Board members are covered by
provisions of Section 302 of Public Law
99–662. The substance of those
provisions is as follows:
a. Selection. Members are to be
selected from the spectrum of
commercial carriers and shippers using
the inland and intracoastal waterways,
to represent geographical regions, and to
be representative of waterborne
commerce as determined by commodity
ton-miles statistics.
b. Service. The Board is required to
meet at least semi-annually to develop
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5769
and make recommendations to the
Secretary of the Army on waterways
construction and rehabilitation
priorities and spending levels for
commercial navigation improvements,
and report its recommendations
annually to the Secretary and Congress.
c. Appointment. The operation of the
Board and appointment of its members
are subject to the Federal Advisory
Committee Act (Pub. L. 92–463, as
amended) and departmental
implementing regulations. Members
serve without compensation, but their
expenses due to Board activities are
reimbursable. The considerations
specified in Section 302 for the
selection of the Board members, and
certain terms used therein, have been
interpreted, supplemented, or otherwise
clarified as follows:
(1) Carriers and Shippers. The law
uses the terms ‘‘primary users and
shippers.’’ Primary users have been
interpreted to mean the providers of
transportation services on inland
waterways such as barge or towboat
operators. Shippers have been
interpreted to mean the purchasers of
such services for the movement of
commodities they own or control.
Individuals are appointed to the Board,
but they must be either a carrier or
shipper, or represent a firm that is a
carrier or shipper. For that purpose a
trade or regional association is neither a
shipper nor primary user.
(2) Geographical Representation. The
law specifies ‘‘various’’ regions. For the
purpose of selecting Board members, the
waterways subjected to fuel taxes and
described in Public Law 95–502, as
amended, have been aggregated into six
regions. They are (1) the Upper
Mississippi River and its tributaries
above the mouth of the Ohio; (2) the
Lower Mississippi River and its
tributaries below the mouth of the Ohio
and above Baton Rouge; (3) the Ohio
River and its tributaries; (4) the Gulf
Intracoastal Waterway in Louisiana and
Texas; (5) the Gulf Intracoastal
Waterway east of New Orleans and
associated fuel-taxed waterways
including the Tennessee-Tombigbee,
plus the Atlantic Intracoastal Waterway
below Norfolk; and (6) the ColumbiaSnake Rivers System and Upper
Willamette. The intent is that each
region shall be represented by at least
one Board member, with that
representation determined by the
regional concentration of the
individual’s traffic on the waterways.
(3) Commodity Representation.
Waterway commerce has been
aggregated into six commodity
categories based on ‘‘inland’’ ton-miles
shown in Waterborne Commerce of the
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[Federal Register Volume 75, Number 23 (Thursday, February 4, 2010)]
[Notices]
[Pages 5768-5769]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Printing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2010-2392]
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE
Department of the Army; Corps of Engineers
Intent To Prepare a Draft Environmental Impact Statement To
Evaluate Improvements to the Federal Deep-Draft Pascagoula Harbor
Navigation Channel in Jackson County, MS
AGENCY: Department of the Army, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, DOD.
ACTION: Notice of intent.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
SUMMARY: The Mobile District, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (Corps)
intends to prepare a Draft Environmental Impact Statement (DEIS) to
address the potential impacts associated with improving the Federal
Pascagoula Harbor Navigation Channel Project in Jackson County, MS. The
DEIS will be used as a basis for ensuring compliance with the National
Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) and evaluating alternative plans
including the ``No Action''. Alternatives which will be evaluated
include widening the Lower Pascagoula Channel and Bayou Casotte Channel
by 50-foot increments to a total width of 150 feet on one side or both
sides of the channel.
DATES: A public scoping meeting will be held on Thursday, February 25,
2010 from 5:30 p.m. to 7:30 p.m.
ADDRESSES: The scoping meeting will be held at the Pascagoula Public
Library, 3214 Pascagoula Street, Pascagoula, MS 39567.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Questions about the DEIS should be
addressed to Ms. Jennifer Jacobson, Coastal Environment Team, Mobile
District, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, P.O. Box 2288, Mobile, AL 36628
by telephone (251) 690-2724 or e-mail her at
jennifer.l.jacobson@usace.army.mil.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
1. The March 1985 Pascagoula Harbor, MS Feasibility Report
investigated increased widths and depths in the Pascagoula and Bayou
Casotte navigation channels. Of the plans initially formulated, five
were selected for detailed study along with the ``No Action''
alternative. All plans considered for detailed study included deepening
all the channels in Mississippi Sound to 42 feet and the Entrance
channel to 44 feet; widening of the Entrance channel to 550 feet;
widening of the Bayou Casotte channel to 350 feet; and providing a
1,400-foot diameter turning basin just inside the mouth of Bayou
Casotte. The 1985 Feasibility Report recommended deepening and widening
the Gulf Entrance channel to 44 feet by 550 feet from the 44-foot depth
contour in the Gulf of Mexico to the bend at the southern end of Horn
Island Pass, deepening and widening Horn Island Pass to 44 feet by 600
feet between the bends at the southern and northern ends of that pass,
for a distance of about 4 and \1/2\; miles; reconfiguring the
impoundment basin in Horn Island Pass to provide a section within the
channel limits 1,500 feet long with a total depth of 56 feet to
facilitate maintenance by hopper dredge, and allowing for future
realignment of the Horn Island Pass reach as natural conditions
warrant. In addition, deepening the Lower Pascagoula channel to 42 feet
from the bend at the north end of Horn Island Pass, through Mississippi
Sound and into the Pascagoula River, and terminating about 500 feet
south of the grain elevator for a total distance of about 10 miles;
widening the bend at the junction with the Bayou Casotte channel from
the present 150 feet to 250 feet to provide a total width at the bend
of 600 feet and widening the bend at the mouth of Pascagoula River by
280 feet to provide a total width at the bend of 630 feet. Finally,
widening and deepening the Bayou Casotte channel to 42 feet by 350 feet
from the junction with the main channel to the mouth of Bayou Casotte,
a distance of about 3 and [frac12] miles; with additional widening at
the mouth to provide a turning basin with a total turning diameter of
1,150 feet, including the channel width; relieving the northern portion
of the area between the junction with the main ship channel from the
present 500 feet to 1,000 feet, and widening the bend at the mouth of
Bayou Casotte from the present 50 feet to 100 feet to provide a total
width at the bend of 450 feet. A Final Environmental Impact Statement
(EIS) for the Designation of an Ocean Dredged Material Disposal Site
(ODMDS) located offshore Pascagoula, MS was prepared in July 1991.
Construction of all phases of the improvements, except for the Entrance
channel being widened to 550 feet, reconfiguring the Horn Island Pass
impoundment basin, and the Pascagoula Upper channel being deepened to
42 feet, were completed in 1999. A Final Supplemental EIS entitled
Pascagoula Harbor Navigation Channel is scheduled to be released for
public comment this year. This Final Supplemental EIS addresses
construction of all those unconstructed navigational features. The
project is conducted under the authority of Public Law 84-99, Flood and
Coastal Storm Emergencies (33 U.S.C.701n) (69 Stat. 186).
Appropriations for construction of the
[[Page 5769]]
project was received by Public Law 109-359, making Appropriations for
the Department of Defense for the Fiscal Year Ending September 30,
2006, and for Other Purposes (December 18, 2005). The original Final
EIS was reviewed and any new conditions that were not addressed in the
1989 Final EIS were evaluated as part of the Final Supplemental EIS to
ensure compliance with all environmental laws and regulations.
2. Alternative scenarios to be considered in the DEIS include the
``No action'' alternative and an array of 50-foot wide increment
alternatives to widen the Federal Lower Pascagoula Channel and Bayou
Casotte Channel up to a total width of 150 feet on either one side or
both sides of the Channel(s). In addition, an array of disposal options
are also being evaluated for the new work as well as for the
maintenance material including upland disposal site(s), littoral zone
disposal, beneficial use, disposal in the existing Pascagoula ODMDS,
and disposal in existing open-water disposal sites.
3. Scoping: a. The Corps invites full public participation to
promote open communication on the issues surrounding the proposal. All
Federal, State, and local agencies, and other persons or organizations
that have an interest are urged to participate in the NEPA scoping
process. Public meetings will be held to help identify significant
issues and to receive public input and comment.
b. The DEIS will analyze the potential social, economic, and
environmental impacts to the local area resulting from improvements to
the Federal Pascagoula Harbor Navigation Project. Specifically, the
following major issues will be analyzed in depth in the DEIS:
Hydrologic and hydraulic regimes, threatened and endangered species,
essential fish habitat and other marine habitat, air quality, cultural
resources, transportation systems, alternatives, secondary and
cumulative impacts, socioeconomic impacts, environmental justice
(effect on minorities and low-income groups) (Executive Order 12898),
and protection of children (Executive Order 13045).
c. The Corps will serve as the lead Federal agency in the
preparation of the DEIS. It is anticipated that the following agencies
will be invited and will accept cooperating agency status for the
preparation of the DEIS: U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, U.S.
Fish and Wildlife Service, National Marine Fisheries Service,
Mississippi Department of Environmental Quality, Mississippi Department
of Marine Resources, Jackson County Port Authority, Mississippi
Secretary of State, National Park Service, Minerals Management Service,
Mississippi Museum of Natural Science, and Mississippi Department of
Archives and History.
4. A public scoping meeting will be held (see DATES AND ADDRESSES).
Actual time(s) and place(s) for subsequent meetings or workshops will
be announced by the Corps by issuance of a public notice and/or notices
in the local media.
5. It is anticipated that the DEIS will be made available for
public review in November 2012.
Curtis M. Flakes,
Chief, Planning and Environmental Division.
[FR Doc. 2010-2392 Filed 2-3-10; 8:45 am]
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