Notice of Availability of Final Environmental Impact Statement for the Proposed Folsom South of U.S. Highway 50 Specific Plan Project, in Sacramento County, CA, Corps Permit Application No. SPK-2007-02159, 30679-30680 [2011-13050]

Agencies

• DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE
• Department of the Army, Corps of Engineers

[Federal Register Volume 76, Number 102 (Thursday, May 26, 2011)]
[Notices]
[Pages 30679-30680]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Printing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2011-13050]


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DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE

Department of the Army, Corps of Engineers


Notice of Availability of Final Environmental Impact Statement 
for the Proposed Folsom South of U.S. Highway 50 Specific Plan Project, 
in Sacramento County, CA, Corps Permit Application No. SPK-2007-02159

AGENCY: Department of the Army, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, DoD.

ACTION: Notice of availability.

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SUMMARY: Pursuant to the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA), the 
U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE), Sacramento District has prepared 
a Final Environmental Impact Statement (FEIS) for the Folsom South of 
U.S. Highway 50 Specific Plan Project, a proposed master-planned, mixed 
use development within southeastern Sacramento County.
    On July 2, 2010, USACE published a notice in the Federal Register 
(75 FR

[[Page 30680]]

38500), informing the public of the availability of the Draft 
Environmental Impact Statement (DEIS) that analyzes the potential 
effects of implementing each of six (6) on-site land-use and eleven 
(11) off-site water supply alternative scenarios for a mixed-use 
development in the approximately 3,502-acre Folsom South of U.S. 
Highway 50 Specific Plan Project Area.
    The FEIS has been prepared to respond to comments received from 
agencies, organizations, and members of the public on the 2010 DEIS, 
and to present corrections, revisions, and other clarifications and 
amplifications of the 2010 DEIS, including minor project modifications 
made in response to these comments and as a result of the applicants' 
ongoing planning efforts.
    The FEIS has been prepared as joint documents with the City of 
Folsom (City). The City is the local agency responsible for preparing 
an Environmental Impact Report in compliance with the California 
Environmental Quality Act (CEQA). The USACE is the lead Federal agency 
responsible for the FEIS and information contained in the DEIS and FEIS 
serves as the basis for a decision regarding issuance of an individual 
permit under Section 404 of the Clean Water Act. It also provides 
information for Federal, state and local agencies having jurisdictional 
responsibility for affected resources. All incoming comments on the 
FEIS will be considered by USACE and responses will be provided for 
substantive issues raised which have not been addressed in the DEIS or 
FEIS.

DATES: All written comments must be postmarked on or before June 26, 
2011.

ADDRESSES: Comments may be submitted in writing to: Lisa M. Gibson, 
U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Sacramento District, Regulatory Division; 
650 Capitol Mall, Suite 5-200, Sacramento, CA 95814, or via e-mail to 
Lisa.M.Gibson2@usace.army.mil.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Lisa M. Gibson, (916) 557-5288, or via 
e-mail at Lisa.M.Gibson2@usace.army.mil.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The South Folsom Property Owners Group, the 
project applicants, are seeking adoption by the City of the proposed 
SPA project and associated entitlements. The City and the South Folsom 
Property Owners Group are also seeking authorization from USACE for the 
placement of dredged or fill material into waters of the United States 
pursuant to Section 404 of the Clean Water Act. The Proposed Project 
includes 10,210 residential units at various densities on a total of 
1,477.2 acres; 362.8 acres designated for commercial and industrial 
use, including a regional shopping center; public/quasi-public uses; 
elementary, middle, and high schools on 179.3 acres; 121.7 acres of 
community and neighborhood parks; stormwater detention basins; 1,053.1 
acres of open-space areas and open-space preserves; and major roads 
with landscaping. In addition, the proposed project includes the 
construction of several off-site infrastructure facilities, including 
intersection expansions to allow access to and from U.S. 50 and the 
SPA, an overpass of U.S. 50, two roadway connections and sewer 
pipelines from the SPA into El Dorado Hills, a sewer force main 
connection to the existing City system, a detention basin and water 
pipelines and facilities. The SPA contains approximately 84.94 acres of 
waters of the U.S. The proposed land-use plan would involve the 
discharge of fill material into approximately 39.50 acres of waters of 
the U.S., and indirect impacts to 0.29 acres of waters of the U.S. 
resulting from fragmentation of existing waters. In addition, the 
proposed land-use plan involves the preservation of approximately 44.19 
acres of waters of the U.S., concentrated primarily on the Alder Creek 
corridor and adjacent tributaries and wetlands.
    For the proposed off-site water supply/alignment for the SPA, the 
City is proposing off-site water facilities that would involve the 
permanent assignment to the City of the contractual entitlements to 
Central Valley Project (CVP) contract entitlement water, totaling not 
more than 8,000 acre-feet per year (AFY) from the Natomas Central 
Mutual Water Company (NCMWC), diverting the water supply from the 
Sacramento River and conveying the water to the SPA. The proposed water 
supply would also involve the City purchasing dedicated capacity within 
the Freeport Regional Water Project (Freeport Project) from Sacramento 
County Water Agency (SCWA), which would serve as the point of diversion 
(POD) on the Sacramento River and partial conveyance pathway for not 
more than 6,000 AFY purchased from NCMWC. The City proposes to add the 
Freeport POD to the assigned CVP water to facilitate the diversion of 
these supplies at the existing Freeport Project diversion. The City 
proposes to pump and convey the assigned NCMWC CVP water supply through 
the Freeport Project diversion facility and conveyance pipeline to the 
point where SCWA and East Bay Municipal Utility District pipelines 
split. The City would then construct new water supply conveyance 
infrastructure from the bifurcation point to the SPA within an 
approximately 200-foot corridor. The corridor for the proposed 
construction of the water line and the proposed location for water 
treatment plants contains approximately 50.7 acres of waters of the 
U.S. The estimate of waters of the U.S. within the proposed water 
supply corridor was determined based on aerial photographs and National 
Wetland Inventory maps, and has not been field delineated or verified 
by USACE. Because the City has not yet completed project specific 
engineering details for the proposed off-site water supply/alignment, 
the exact impacts to waters of the U.S. cannot be determined. However, 
construction of the water supply infrastructure is expected to occur 
within an area of less than 100 feet in width, and, depending on which 
side of the corridor construction would occur, would impact an 
estimated 5.7 acres or 6.8 acres of waters of the U.S.
    An electronic version of the FEIS may be viewed at the USACE, 
Sacramento District Web site: https://www.spk.usace.army.mil/organizations/cespk-co/regulatory/EISs/EIS-index.html: In addition, a 
hardcopy of the FEIS may also be reviewed at the Folsom Public Library, 
Georgia Murray Building, 411 Stafford Street, Folsom, California 95630.

    Dated: May 12, 2011.
Andrew B. Kiger,
Lieutenant Colonel, U.S. Army, District Engineer.
[FR Doc. 2011-13050 Filed 5-25-11; 8:45 am]
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