Intent To Prepare a Draft Supplemental Environmental Impact Statement (Supplement 2) for the Mississippi River, Baton Rouge to the Gulf of Mexico, Mississippi River-Gulf Outlet, Louisiana, New Industrial Canal Lock and Connecting Channels Project, New Orleans, LA, 4911-4912 [2015-01674]
Download as PDF
<![CDATA[
Federal Register / Vol. 80, No. 19 / Thursday, January 29, 2015 / Notices
estimated ton-miles of each commodity
carried or shipped on the inland
waterways system in a recent year (or
years), using the waterway regions and
commodity categories previously listed.
(2) State the region(s) to be
represented.
(3) State whether the nominated
representative organization is a carrier,
shipper or both.
(4) Provide the name of an individual
to be the principle person representing
the organization and information
pertaining to their personal
qualifications, to include a bio or a
resume.
Previous nominations received in
response to notices published in the
Federal Register in prior years will not
be retained for consideration.
Renomination of representative
organizations is required.
e. Deadline for Nominations. All
nominations must be received at (see
ADDRESSES) no later than February 20,
2015.
Brenda S. Bowen,
Army Federal Register Liaison Officer.
[FR Doc. 2015–01712 Filed 1–28–15; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3720–58–P
DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE
Department of the Army; Corps of
Engineers
Intent To Prepare a Draft Supplemental
Environmental Impact Statement
(Supplement 2) for the Mississippi
River, Baton Rouge to the Gulf of
Mexico, Mississippi River-Gulf Outlet,
Louisiana, New Industrial Canal Lock
and Connecting Channels Project, New
Orleans, LA
Department of the Army, U.S.
Army Corps of Engineers, DoD.
ACTION: Notice of intent.
AGENCY:
The U.S. Army Corps of
Engineers (Corps), New Orleans District
intends to prepare a Draft Supplemental
Environmental Impact Statement (EIS),
integrated with a General Reevaluation
Report, for the Mississippi River, Baton
Rouge to the Gulf of Mexico Mississippi
River-Gulf Outlet, Louisiana New
Industrial Canal Lock and Connecting
Channels Project, hereinafter referred to
as ‘‘the Project’’. This project is
sometimes referred to as the Inner
Harbor Navigation Canal (IHNC) Lock
Replacement Project. This will be the
second supplemental EIS prepared for
this project.
DATES: A public scoping meeting is
scheduled for Wednesday, February 4,
2015. An open house will be held at
mstockstill on DSK4VPTVN1PROD with NOTICES
SUMMARY:
VerDate Sep<11>2014
18:16 Jan 28, 2015
Jkt 235001
6:00 p.m. followed by the scoping
meeting at 6:30 p.m.
ADDRESSES: The scoping meeting will be
held at Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.
Charter School for Science and
Technology, 1617 Caffin Avenue, New
Orleans, LA.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:
Questions about the Project and the
supplemental EIS should be addressed
to: Mr. Richard Boe or Mr. Mark Lahare,
U.S. Army Corps of Engineers,
Environmental Compliance Branch, P.O.
Box 60267, New Orleans, LA 70160–
0267, by email to Richard.e.boe@
usace.army.mil or Mark.h.lahare@
usace.army.mil, or by telephone at (504)
862–1505 or (504) 862–1344.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
1. Project Background and
Authorization. The existing Industrial
Canal Lock, hereinafter referred to as the
‘‘existing lock’’, located in Orleans
Parish, Louisiana, connects the
Mississippi River to Lake Pontchartrain,
the Gulf Intracoastal Waterway (GIWW),
and the remaining authorized six miles
of the Mississippi River—Gulf Outlet
(MRGO) between the Industrial Canal
and the Michoud Slip. The existing
lock, located between the St. Claude and
Claiborne Avenue (Judge Seeber)
Bridges in New Orleans, was
commissioned and constructed by nonfederal interests in 1923 to allow vessel
traffic from the Mississippi River to
Lake Pontchartrain and to permit
industrial development away from the
river. The federal government
purchased the existing lock at a later
date.
The Project was authorized by an act
of Congress entitled ‘‘AN ACT to
authorize construction of the
Mississippi River-Gulf outlet [sic]’’,
approved on March 29, 1956, as Chapter
112 of Public Law 455, of the 84th
Congress as an amendment to the
existing Mississippi River, Baton Rouge
to the Gulf of Mexico to provide for the
construction of the Mississippi RiverGulf Outlet substantially in accordance
with the report and recommendation of
the Chief of Engineers in House
Document No. 245 of the 82nd
Congress, and to authorize the Chief of
Engineers, when economically justified
by the obsolescence of the existing
industrial canal lock or by increased
traffic, to replace the existing lock or an
additional lock in the vicinity of
Meraux, Louisiana, together with
suitable connecting channels, said
replacement lock and connecting
channels to be constructed in
accordance with the type, dimensions,
and cost estimates approved by the
Chief of Engineers. The 1956
PO 00000
Frm 00059
Fmt 4703
Sfmt 4703
4911
authorization was later amended by
Section 844 of the Water Resources
Development Act of 1986, Public Law
99–662, and Section 326 of the Water
Resources Development Act of 1996,
Public Law 104–303.
The original EIS and project
evaluation report for the Project was
finalized in March 1998. A Record of
Decision was signed on December 18,
1998, selecting a construction method
and location for a replacement lock
north of the Claiborne Avenue Bridge,
replacement of the St. Claude Avenue
Bridge, modification of the Claiborne
Avenue Bridge, extension of the
Mississippi River flood protection
levees and floodwalls, a community
impact mitigation plan, and a fish and
wildlife mitigation plan.
In 2003, the Corps’ decision to
construct a new lock was challenged in
United States District Court, Eastern
District of Louisiana (Case No. 2:03–cv–
00370). In October 2006, the Court
enjoined the Corps from continuing
with the Project until additional
compliance with the National
Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) was
completed.
In accordance with the provisions of
Section 7013 of the Water Resources
Development Act of 2007, Public Law
110–114, that portion of the MRGO from
Mile 60 on the southern bank of the Gulf
Intracoastal Waterway to the Gulf of
Mexico was deauthorized effective upon
the June 5, 2008 submittal by the
Assistant Secretary of the Army (Civil
Works) to Congress of the Report of the
Chief of Engineers dated January 29,
2008 recommending partial
deauthorization of the MRGO. In July
2009, in accordance with the 2008
MRGO Chief’s Report, the Corps
completed construction of a rock
closure structure on the MRGO at Bayou
LaLoutre. Aids to navigation have been
removed.
In 2007, the Corps initiated
preparation of a Supplemental
Environmental Impact Statement (SEIS)
for the Project to address changes in the
existing conditions after Hurricane
Katrina, further analyze anticipated
impacts associated with construction of
the new lock and determine if any
significant changes to the previouslyrecommended plan were necessary. The
final SEIS considered three deep-draft
lock alternatives and the no-action
alternative (i.e., continued operation
and maintenance of the existing lock),
two dredging alternatives for the
excavation that would be necessary for
the construction of a new deep-draft
lock, and three disposal alternatives for
the dredged sediment. On May 20, 2009,
a Record of Decision was signed,
E:\FR\FM\29JAN1.SGM
29JAN1
mstockstill on DSK4VPTVN1PROD with NOTICES
4912
Federal Register / Vol. 80, No. 19 / Thursday, January 29, 2015 / Notices
recommending the float-in-place plan
for construction of the lock, the
hydraulic dredging method for
excavation of sediment from the canal,
and a dredged material disposal plan
that included three locations for
disposal of excavated sediments.
In 2010, the Corps’ decision to
construct a new lock was again
challenged in United States District
Court, Eastern District of Louisiana in a
case that was subsequently consolidated
with the 2003 case. On September 9,
2011, the Court found that the 2009
SEIS failed to sufficiently consider the
impact of the closure of the MRGO to
deep-draft traffic and the effect of that
closure on the depth of the new lock
and potentially how that depth may
affect dredging and disposal alternatives
for the Project.
2. Proposed Action. The purpose of
the General Reevaluation Report and
SEIS is to determine if construction of
a more efficient navigational lock to
replace the existing lock is economically
justified and environmentally
acceptable. The need for the Project
arises from long navigation delays in
passage through the Industrial Canal
due to an increase in volume of vessel
traffic and the small size and
inefficiencies of the current lock. This
supplemental EIS will evaluate (and/or
reevaluate, as appropriate) existing
conditions, alternative lock designs, and
provide environmental analysis of
anticipated project impacts associated
with lock construction, dredging and
disposal alternatives. The analyses
associated with the handling of dredged
material generated during project
construction, the engineering design of
confined disposal areas, and several
other aspects of the Project, evaluated in
the original 1998 EIS and the 2009 SEIS,
will also be updated as appropriate.
3. Alternatives. An evaluation of
alternatives, including a no action
alternative will be included. In this
supplemental EIS, the no action
alternative will be the continued
operation and maintenance of the
existing lock. Other alternatives will be
determined through scoping, but are
anticipated to include shallow-draft
versus deep-draft lock alternatives.
Previous evaluations of alternative
dredging methods, dredged material
handling and disposal alternatives, and
construction of the lock by a cast-inplace method versus a float-in
construction method evaluated in the
1998 EIS and 2009 SEIS will also be
updated and/or re-evaluated as
appropriate.
4. Scoping. The Council on
Environmental Quality regulations at 40
CFR 1501.7 require an early and open
VerDate Sep<11>2014
18:16 Jan 28, 2015
Jkt 235001
process for determining the scope of an
EIS and for identifying significant issues
related to the proposed action. The
public will be involved in the scoping
and evaluation process through
advertisements, notices, and other
means. Federal, state and local agencies,
and other interested groups will also be
involved. Meetings to address discrete
issues or parts or functions of the
Project may be held. All parties are
invited to participate in the scoping
process by identifying any additional
concerns on issues, studies needed,
alternatives, procedures, and other
matters related to the scope of this
supplemental EIS.
A. The Corps will provide additional
notification of the public scoping
meeting time and location through
newspaper advertisements and other
means (see DATES). Following a short
presentation, verbal and written
comments on the scope of this
supplemental EIS will be accepted. A
transcript of verbal comments will be
generated to ensure accuracy.
B. Issues. Issues identified for the
Project include, but are not limited to
the level of existing and forecasted
vessel traffic through the existing lock,
changes in socio-economics (i.e.,
property values, population, land use,
public/community facilities and
services) since the 2009 SEIS,
evaluation of direct and indirect social
and cultural impacts of the Project on
certain Congressionally identified
affected communities and the
appropriate and practicable mitigation
measures to address those impacts, lock
construction methods (i.e., cast-in-place
versus float-in), lock depth, and reevaluation of reasonable dredging and
disposal alternatives and associated
impacts. This list is preliminary and is
intended to facilitate public comment
on the scope of the SEIS. Concurrent
with the NEPA process, the Corps will
ensure that compliance will be achieved
and/or maintained with all applicable
environmental laws, regulations, and
executive orders governing issues such
as Federally-listed threatened and
endangered species, essential fish
habitats, health and safety, general
environmental concerns, wetlands and
other aquatic resources, historic
properties, fish and wildlife values,
flood hazards, navigation, recreation,
water quality, and environmental
justice. In making its decision, the Corps
will consider, in general, the needs and
welfare of the community, the effect of
the closure of the MRGO on existing
conditions and the alternatives under
evaluation, and other issues identified
through scoping, public involvement,
stakeholder views, and interagency
PO 00000
Frm 00060
Fmt 4703
Sfmt 4703
coordination. The Corps expects to
better define the issues of concern and
define the methods that will be used to
evaluate those issues through the
scoping process.
C. Environmental Review and
Consultation. The proposed action will
involve an evaluation for compliance
with all applicable guidelines pursuant
to section 404(b) of the Clean Water Act.
This review will involve a detailed
reevaluation of all practicable
alternatives to the handling and
disposal of the dredged material
generated from the Project. The Corps
will provide extensive information on
the resources to be impacted, mitigation
measures, and alternatives. Although
the Corps does not plan to invite any
Federal agencies to be cooperating
agencies, we expect to receive input and
critical information from the U.S.
Environmental Protection Agency, the
U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and other
Federal, state, and local agencies.
5. Public Scoping Meeting Special
Accommodations. The public scoping
meeting place is physically accessible to
people with disabilities. Requests for
sign language interpretation or other
auxiliary aids should be directed to
Mark Lahare, (504) 862–1344 (voice), or
email at Mark.h.lahare@usace.army.mil,
at least 5 business days prior to the
meeting date.
6. Estimated Date of Availability. It is
estimated that this draft supplemental
EIS will be available to the public in
June 2016. At least one public hearing
will be held at that time, during which
the public will be provided the
opportunity to comment on the draft
supplemental EIS before it becomes
final.
Dated: January 20, 2015.
Richard L. Hansen,
Colonel, U.S. Army, District Commander.
[FR Doc. 2015–01674 Filed 1–28–15; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3720–58–P
DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY
Commission To Review the
Effectiveness of the National Energy
Laboratories
Department of Energy.
Notice of open meeting.
AGENCY:
ACTION:
This notice announces an
open meeting of the Commission to
Review the Effectiveness of the National
Energy Laboratories (Commission). The
Commission was created pursuant
section 319 of the Consolidated
Appropriations Act, 2014, Public Law
113–76, and in accordance with the
SUMMARY:
E:\FR\FM\29JAN1.SGM
29JAN1
]]>Agencies
[Federal Register Volume 80, Number 19 (Thursday, January 29, 2015)]
[Notices]
[Pages 4911-4912]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Printing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2015-01674]
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE
Department of the Army; Corps of Engineers
Intent To Prepare a Draft Supplemental Environmental Impact
Statement (Supplement 2) for the Mississippi River, Baton Rouge to the
Gulf of Mexico, Mississippi River-Gulf Outlet, Louisiana, New
Industrial Canal Lock and Connecting Channels Project, New Orleans, LA
AGENCY: Department of the Army, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, DoD.
ACTION: Notice of intent.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
SUMMARY: The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (Corps), New Orleans District
intends to prepare a Draft Supplemental Environmental Impact Statement
(EIS), integrated with a General Reevaluation Report, for the
Mississippi River, Baton Rouge to the Gulf of Mexico Mississippi River-
Gulf Outlet, Louisiana New Industrial Canal Lock and Connecting
Channels Project, hereinafter referred to as ``the Project''. This
project is sometimes referred to as the Inner Harbor Navigation Canal
(IHNC) Lock Replacement Project. This will be the second supplemental
EIS prepared for this project.
DATES: A public scoping meeting is scheduled for Wednesday, February 4,
2015. An open house will be held at 6:00 p.m. followed by the scoping
meeting at 6:30 p.m.
ADDRESSES: The scoping meeting will be held at Dr. Martin Luther King
Jr. Charter School for Science and Technology, 1617 Caffin Avenue, New
Orleans, LA.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Questions about the Project and the
supplemental EIS should be addressed to: Mr. Richard Boe or Mr. Mark
Lahare, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Environmental Compliance Branch,
P.O. Box 60267, New Orleans, LA 70160-0267, by email to
Richard.e.boe@usace.army.mil or Mark.h.lahare@usace.army.mil, or by
telephone at (504) 862-1505 or (504) 862-1344.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
1. Project Background and Authorization. The existing Industrial
Canal Lock, hereinafter referred to as the ``existing lock'', located
in Orleans Parish, Louisiana, connects the Mississippi River to Lake
Pontchartrain, the Gulf Intracoastal Waterway (GIWW), and the remaining
authorized six miles of the Mississippi River--Gulf Outlet (MRGO)
between the Industrial Canal and the Michoud Slip. The existing lock,
located between the St. Claude and Claiborne Avenue (Judge Seeber)
Bridges in New Orleans, was commissioned and constructed by non-federal
interests in 1923 to allow vessel traffic from the Mississippi River to
Lake Pontchartrain and to permit industrial development away from the
river. The federal government purchased the existing lock at a later
date.
The Project was authorized by an act of Congress entitled ``AN ACT
to authorize construction of the Mississippi River-Gulf outlet [sic]'',
approved on March 29, 1956, as Chapter 112 of Public Law 455, of the
84th Congress as an amendment to the existing Mississippi River, Baton
Rouge to the Gulf of Mexico to provide for the construction of the
Mississippi River-Gulf Outlet substantially in accordance with the
report and recommendation of the Chief of Engineers in House Document
No. 245 of the 82nd Congress, and to authorize the Chief of Engineers,
when economically justified by the obsolescence of the existing
industrial canal lock or by increased traffic, to replace the existing
lock or an additional lock in the vicinity of Meraux, Louisiana,
together with suitable connecting channels, said replacement lock and
connecting channels to be constructed in accordance with the type,
dimensions, and cost estimates approved by the Chief of Engineers. The
1956 authorization was later amended by Section 844 of the Water
Resources Development Act of 1986, Public Law 99-662, and Section 326
of the Water Resources Development Act of 1996, Public Law 104-303.
The original EIS and project evaluation report for the Project was
finalized in March 1998. A Record of Decision was signed on December
18, 1998, selecting a construction method and location for a
replacement lock north of the Claiborne Avenue Bridge, replacement of
the St. Claude Avenue Bridge, modification of the Claiborne Avenue
Bridge, extension of the Mississippi River flood protection levees and
floodwalls, a community impact mitigation plan, and a fish and wildlife
mitigation plan.
In 2003, the Corps' decision to construct a new lock was challenged
in United States District Court, Eastern District of Louisiana (Case
No. 2:03-cv-00370). In October 2006, the Court enjoined the Corps from
continuing with the Project until additional compliance with the
National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) was completed.
In accordance with the provisions of Section 7013 of the Water
Resources Development Act of 2007, Public Law 110-114, that portion of
the MRGO from Mile 60 on the southern bank of the Gulf Intracoastal
Waterway to the Gulf of Mexico was deauthorized effective upon the June
5, 2008 submittal by the Assistant Secretary of the Army (Civil Works)
to Congress of the Report of the Chief of Engineers dated January 29,
2008 recommending partial deauthorization of the MRGO. In July 2009, in
accordance with the 2008 MRGO Chief's Report, the Corps completed
construction of a rock closure structure on the MRGO at Bayou LaLoutre.
Aids to navigation have been removed.
In 2007, the Corps initiated preparation of a Supplemental
Environmental Impact Statement (SEIS) for the Project to address
changes in the existing conditions after Hurricane Katrina, further
analyze anticipated impacts associated with construction of the new
lock and determine if any significant changes to the previously-
recommended plan were necessary. The final SEIS considered three deep-
draft lock alternatives and the no-action alternative (i.e., continued
operation and maintenance of the existing lock), two dredging
alternatives for the excavation that would be necessary for the
construction of a new deep-draft lock, and three disposal alternatives
for the dredged sediment. On May 20, 2009, a Record of Decision was
signed,
[[Page 4912]]
recommending the float-in-place plan for construction of the lock, the
hydraulic dredging method for excavation of sediment from the canal,
and a dredged material disposal plan that included three locations for
disposal of excavated sediments.
In 2010, the Corps' decision to construct a new lock was again
challenged in United States District Court, Eastern District of
Louisiana in a case that was subsequently consolidated with the 2003
case. On September 9, 2011, the Court found that the 2009 SEIS failed
to sufficiently consider the impact of the closure of the MRGO to deep-
draft traffic and the effect of that closure on the depth of the new
lock and potentially how that depth may affect dredging and disposal
alternatives for the Project.
2. Proposed Action. The purpose of the General Reevaluation Report
and SEIS is to determine if construction of a more efficient
navigational lock to replace the existing lock is economically
justified and environmentally acceptable. The need for the Project
arises from long navigation delays in passage through the Industrial
Canal due to an increase in volume of vessel traffic and the small size
and inefficiencies of the current lock. This supplemental EIS will
evaluate (and/or reevaluate, as appropriate) existing conditions,
alternative lock designs, and provide environmental analysis of
anticipated project impacts associated with lock construction, dredging
and disposal alternatives. The analyses associated with the handling of
dredged material generated during project construction, the engineering
design of confined disposal areas, and several other aspects of the
Project, evaluated in the original 1998 EIS and the 2009 SEIS, will
also be updated as appropriate.
3. Alternatives. An evaluation of alternatives, including a no
action alternative will be included. In this supplemental EIS, the no
action alternative will be the continued operation and maintenance of
the existing lock. Other alternatives will be determined through
scoping, but are anticipated to include shallow-draft versus deep-draft
lock alternatives. Previous evaluations of alternative dredging
methods, dredged material handling and disposal alternatives, and
construction of the lock by a cast-in-place method versus a float-in
construction method evaluated in the 1998 EIS and 2009 SEIS will also
be updated and/or re-evaluated as appropriate.
4. Scoping. The Council on Environmental Quality regulations at 40
CFR 1501.7 require an early and open process for determining the scope
of an EIS and for identifying significant issues related to the
proposed action. The public will be involved in the scoping and
evaluation process through advertisements, notices, and other means.
Federal, state and local agencies, and other interested groups will
also be involved. Meetings to address discrete issues or parts or
functions of the Project may be held. All parties are invited to
participate in the scoping process by identifying any additional
concerns on issues, studies needed, alternatives, procedures, and other
matters related to the scope of this supplemental EIS.
A. The Corps will provide additional notification of the public
scoping meeting time and location through newspaper advertisements and
other means (see DATES). Following a short presentation, verbal and
written comments on the scope of this supplemental EIS will be
accepted. A transcript of verbal comments will be generated to ensure
accuracy.
B. Issues. Issues identified for the Project include, but are not
limited to the level of existing and forecasted vessel traffic through
the existing lock, changes in socio-economics (i.e., property values,
population, land use, public/community facilities and services) since
the 2009 SEIS, evaluation of direct and indirect social and cultural
impacts of the Project on certain Congressionally identified affected
communities and the appropriate and practicable mitigation measures to
address those impacts, lock construction methods (i.e., cast-in-place
versus float-in), lock depth, and re-evaluation of reasonable dredging
and disposal alternatives and associated impacts. This list is
preliminary and is intended to facilitate public comment on the scope
of the SEIS. Concurrent with the NEPA process, the Corps will ensure
that compliance will be achieved and/or maintained with all applicable
environmental laws, regulations, and executive orders governing issues
such as Federally-listed threatened and endangered species, essential
fish habitats, health and safety, general environmental concerns,
wetlands and other aquatic resources, historic properties, fish and
wildlife values, flood hazards, navigation, recreation, water quality,
and environmental justice. In making its decision, the Corps will
consider, in general, the needs and welfare of the community, the
effect of the closure of the MRGO on existing conditions and the
alternatives under evaluation, and other issues identified through
scoping, public involvement, stakeholder views, and interagency
coordination. The Corps expects to better define the issues of concern
and define the methods that will be used to evaluate those issues
through the scoping process.
C. Environmental Review and Consultation. The proposed action will
involve an evaluation for compliance with all applicable guidelines
pursuant to section 404(b) of the Clean Water Act. This review will
involve a detailed reevaluation of all practicable alternatives to the
handling and disposal of the dredged material generated from the
Project. The Corps will provide extensive information on the resources
to be impacted, mitigation measures, and alternatives. Although the
Corps does not plan to invite any Federal agencies to be cooperating
agencies, we expect to receive input and critical information from the
U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife
Service and other Federal, state, and local agencies.
5. Public Scoping Meeting Special Accommodations. The public
scoping meeting place is physically accessible to people with
disabilities. Requests for sign language interpretation or other
auxiliary aids should be directed to Mark Lahare, (504) 862-1344
(voice), or email at Mark.h.lahare@usace.army.mil, at least 5 business
days prior to the meeting date.
6. Estimated Date of Availability. It is estimated that this draft
supplemental EIS will be available to the public in June 2016. At least
one public hearing will be held at that time, during which the public
will be provided the opportunity to comment on the draft supplemental
EIS before it becomes final.
Dated: January 20, 2015.
Richard L. Hansen,
Colonel, U.S. Army, District Commander.
[FR Doc. 2015-01674 Filed 1-28-15; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3720-58-P
