Final Environmental Impact Statement for the Windy Gap Firming Project, Colorado, 74074-74075 [2011-30827]

Agencies

• DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR
• Bureau of Reclamation

[Federal Register Volume 76, Number 230 (Wednesday, November 30, 2011)]
[Notices]
[Pages 74074-74075]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Printing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2011-30827]


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DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR

Bureau of Reclamation


Final Environmental Impact Statement for the Windy Gap Firming 
Project, Colorado

AGENCY: Bureau of Reclamation, Interior.

ACTION: Notice of availability.

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SUMMARY: The Final Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) for the Windy 
Gap Firming Project is available for public review. The Bureau of 
Reclamation (Reclamation) has evaluated comments and has identified 
Alternative 2 as the Preferred Alternative. The Preferred Alternative 
includes construction of Chimney Hollow Reservoir, pre-positioning of 
Colorado-Big Thompson (C-BT) water in the new reservoir, and a new 
pipeline to convey water to the reservoir from existing C-BT 
facilities.

DATES: Reclamation will not make a decision on the Proposed Action 
until at least 30 days after release of the Final EIS.

ADDRESSES: The Final EIS and related documents are available for review 
at https://www.usbr.gov/gp/ecao.
    To obtain a compact disk of the Final EIS, contact Lucy Maldonado 
at the Bureau of Reclamation, 11056 West County Rd. 18E, Loveland, CO 
80537-9711; (970) 962-4369, facsimile (970) 663-3212, 
lmaldonado@usbr.gov; or Kara Lamb at (970) 962-4326; klamb@usbr.gov.
    Refer to the SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION section for locations of 
libraries where paper and electronic copies of the Final EIS are 
available for reading.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Lucy Maldonado at (970) 962-4369, 
lmaldonado@usbr.gov; or Kara Lamb at (970) 962-4326, klamb@usbr.gov.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 
    Background: The Windy Gap Firming Project was proposed by the 
Municipal Subdistrict, Northern Colorado Water Conservancy District, 
acting by and through the Windy Gap Firming Project Water Activity 
Enterprise (Subdistrict). The Preferred Alternative (Proposed Action) 
described in the Final EIS includes:
     Construction of Chimney Hollow Reservoir (90,000 acre-
feet) by the Subdistrict;
     Pre-positioning of Colorado-Big Thompson (C-BT) water in 
the new reservoir;
     A new pipeline to convey water to the new reservoir from 
existing C-BT facilities.
    The Subdistrict completed the Windy Gap Project by 1985 following a 
final environmental statement and a Record of Decision prepared by 
Reclamation in 1981. The Windy Gap Project is neither federally owned 
nor operated, although Windy Gap Project water is conveyed through 
Reclamation's C-BT Project facilities.
    Reclamation allows the storage and transport of Windy Gap Project 
water in the C-BT Project through an excess capacity contract with the 
Subdistrict. The Windy Gap Project was originally planned to divert an 
estimated long-term annual average of 56,000 acre feet (AF) of water 
from the Colorado River. During actual operation, the Windy Gap Project 
has been unable to provide the expected yield due to its junior water 
right and periodic lack of excess capacity in the C-BT Project.
    The Subdistrict concluded that the firm yield (the amount it can 
guarantee annually) of the Windy Gap Project is actually zero because 
it is unable to deliver Windy Gap water to Colorado's Front Range 
community participants in all years. The purpose of the Windy Gap 
Firming Project is to increase the annual firm yield to about 30,000 
AF. This would be based upon a long-term average annual diversion of 
about 46,000 AF from the Colorado River basin. From 1985 to 2005, Windy 
Gap diverted an average annual 11,080 AF of water per year. However, 
demands among the participants have been increasing so that diversions 
for 1999 through 2008 have averaged 21,957 AF per year.
    The Subdistrict developed this proposal to improve their ability to 
deliver water from Windy Gap. The proposal is to construct Chimney 
Hollow Reservoir on the eastern slope near Carter Lake (C-BT Project), 
along with a connecting pipeline from C-BT Project facilities to 
deliver Windy Gap water to Chimney Hollow Reservoir. Reclamation's 
Preferred Alternative in the Final EIS is implementation of the 
Proposed Action. This new reservoir would be used to store and pre-
position Windy Gap Project water for delivery to participants along the 
Front Range. Under the pre-positioning proposal included in the 
Preferred Alternative, Chimney Hollow Reservoir would also store C-BT 
Project water when it is pre-positioned in Chimney Hollow Reservoir to 
make space in Granby Reservoir for Windy Gap water. The Preferred 
Alternative would continue to use C-BT Project facilities to deliver 
Windy Gap Project water to the Front Range.
    Reclamation is the lead agency in compliance under the National

[[Page 74075]]

Environmental Policy Act, while the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers 
(Corps), the Western Area Power Administration (Western), and the Board 
of County Commissioners, Grand County, Colorado (Grand County) helped 
prepare the EIS as cooperating agencies. Each agency has separate 
decision-making processes. Reclamation has the lead role because of its 
permitting authority in allowing the Subdistrict to use federal 
infrastructure. The Corps is involved due to the requirement for a 
Clean Water Act Section 404 permit. Western is involved due to an 
electric power line that would be affected by the project, while Grand 
County is involved because of its stated position on permitting 
authority under Colorado's 1041 regulations for matters of State 
interest.
    If selected in the Record of Decision, implementing the Preferred 
Alternative will require the following federal actions:
    (1) Reclamation would need to issue the Subdistrict a permit for 
the proposed connection to C-BT Project facilities and amend the 
existing Windy Gap Project excess capacity water contract, or provide a 
new contract.
    (2) The Corps would need to issue the Subdistrict a Clean Water Act 
Section 404 permit for fill to be placed in waters of the United States 
for dam construction and address any project impacts to waters of the 
United States and jurisdictional wetlands.
    (3) Western would need to relocate a segment of power line that 
would otherwise be inundated by Chimney Hollow Reservoir. Relocation of 
the power line including road access would require Western to obtain a 
right-of-way across private and county lands.
    Five alternatives presented in the Draft EIS were brought forward 
into the Final EIS. The five alternatives evaluated in the EIS include:
     Alternative 1 (No Action)--Continuation of existing 
operations and agreements between Reclamation and the Subdistrict for 
conveyance of Windy Gap water through C-BT facilities.
     Alternative 2 (Preferred Alternative)--Chimney Hollow 
Reservoir (90,000 AF) with pre-positioning.
     Alternative 3--Chimney Hollow Reservoir (70,000 AF) and 
Jasper East Reservoir (20,000 AF).
     Alternative 4--Chimney Hollow Reservoir (70,000 AF) and 
Rockwell/Mueller Creek Reservoir (20,000 AF).
     Alternative 5--Dry Creek Reservoir (60,000 AF) and 
Rockwell/Mueller Creek Reservoir (30,000 AF).
    All action alternatives include development of 90,000 AF of new 
storage either in a single reservoir on the east slope or a combination 
of east and west slope reservoirs. All of the action alternatives 
require a connection to C-BT facilities. Alternative 2 is the 
Subdistrict's Proposed Action and Reclamation's Preferred Alternative.
    Reclamation expects to complete the National Environmental Policy 
Act process with a Record of Decision no sooner than 30 days after the 
Final EIS is made available to the public. The Record of Decision will 
document Reclamation's selection of an alternative for the Windy Gap 
Firming Project and discuss the factors, including C-BT water rights, 
considered in making that decision. If the selected alternative 
includes issuing a water contract, Reclamation intends to determine 
whether the proposed contract complies with Senate Document 80 and 
other applicable authorities before execution of the proposed contract.
    Public Comments: Copies of the Draft EIS were distributed to 
Members of Congress; Native American Tribal governments; Federal, 
State, and local officials; and organizations and individuals 
interested in or affected by the proposed project. A Notice of 
Availability announcing the release of the Draft EIS was published in 
the Federal Register on August 29, 2008 (73 FR 50999). The public 
comment period was open from August 29, 2008, through December 29, 
2008. Two public hearings were held: One on October 7, 2008, in 
Loveland, Colorado, and one on October 9, 2008, in Granby, Colorado. 
Reclamation considered all comments received during the comment period, 
and the Final EIS contains revisions and new information based in part 
on these comments. The comments and Reclamation's responses to these 
comments are included in the Final EIS.

Locations in Colorado Where Hard Copies and Electronic Copies of the 
Final EIS May Be Reviewed

 Berthoud, Berthoud Public Library, 236 Welch Avenue
 Broomfield, Mamie Eisenhower Public Library, 3 Community Park 
Road
 Ft. Collins, Ft. Collins Public Library, 201 Peterson Street
 Ft. Collins, Morgan Library, Colorado State University, 501 
University Avenue
 Ft. Lupton, Ft. Lupton Public Library, 425 South Denver Avenue
 Granby, Granby Branch Library, 13 East Jasper Avenue
 Grand Lake, Juniper Library, 316 Garfield Street
 Greeley, Centennial Park Branch, Weld Library District, 2227 
23rd Avenue
 Greeley, Farr Branch, Weld Library District, 1939 61st Avenue
 Greeley, Lincoln Park Branch, Weld Library District, 919 7th 
Street
 Hot Sulphur Springs, Hot Sulphur Springs Branch Library, 105 
Moffat
 Kremmling, Kremmling Branch Library, 300 South 8th Street
 Littleton, Corps of Engineers, 9307 South Wadsworth Blvd.
 Longmont, Longmont Public Library, 409 4th Avenue
 Louisville, Louisville Public Library, 950 Spruce Street
 Loveland, Bureau of Reclamation, 11056 W. County Rd. 18E
 Loveland, Loveland Public Library, 300 North Adams Avenue
 Lyons, Lyons Depot Library, 5th and Broadway

    Dated: November 23, 2011.
 John F. Soucy,
Deputy Regional Director, Great Plains Region.
[FR Doc. 2011-30827 Filed 11-29-11; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4310-MN-P