Engineers Corps November 2007 – Federal Register Recent Federal Regulation Documents

The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE), Detroit District, is issuing this notice to announce the availability for public review and feedback of the final bi-national report for the Great LakesSt. Lawrence Seaway (GLSLS) Study. This study was conducted jointly with Canada and was overseen by a steering committee that included representatives from the United States Department of Transportation, Transport Canada, United States Fish and Wildlife Service, Environment Canada, the St. Lawrence Seaway Development Corporation, the United States Army Corps of Engineers, and the St. Lawrence Seaway Management Corporation. The study evaluated the commercial navigation infrastructure needs of the GLSLS as it is currently configured, and does not make any recommendations related to the implementation of any physical project modifications. The study assessed ongoing maintenance and long-term capital requirements to ensure the continuing viability of the system, targeting the engineering, economic and environmental implications of those needs as they pertain to the marine transportation infrastructure upon which commercial navigation depends. The public is invited to provide feedback which will be provided to the above noted partner agencies for their consideration as each assess the study findings related to future system's operation and maintenance.

The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE), Wilmington District, Wilmington Regulatory Field Office has received a request for Department of the Army authorization, pursuant to Section 404 of the Clean Water Act and Section 10 of the Rivers and Harbors Act, from the Town of Topsail Beach to conduct a one-time emergency beach fill project to protect oceanfront development and infrastructure until such time that a federally authorized shore protection project can be implemented. At this time, the construction date for the Federal project is uncertain. A Draft General Reevaluation Report Environmental Impact Statement (GRR-EIS) has been prepared by the USACE and was released for public review and comment in June 2006 (USACE, 2006). Given the current status of the GRR-EIS and the need for Congressional authorization, funding, preparation of plans and specifications, and right-of-way acquisition, the Federal project may not be implemented until Fiscal Year 2010, or possibly later.

The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Los Angeles District (Regulatory Division), in coordination with the Port of Long Angeles, has completed a Final Environmental Impact Statement/Environmental Impact Report (EIS/EIR) for the Berths 136-147 [TraPac] Container Terminal Project. The Port of Los Angeles requires authorization pursuant to Section 404 of the Clean Water Act and Section 10 of the River and Harbor Act to expand and modernize the container terminal at Berths 136-147 [TraPac], including: Expanding, redeveloping, and constructing container terminal facilities and a new on-dock rail facility; constructing 500 space parking lot for union workers; wharf work including dredging 295,000 cubic yards, renovating 2,900 feet of existing wharf, and constructing 705 feet of new wharf; installing five new gantry cranes to replace six existing gantry cranes; relocating the existing PHL Pier A switcher yard to Rear Berth 200; widening Harry Bridges Boulevard and constructing a new 30-acre landscaped buffer area between ``C'' Street and Harry Bridges Boulevard; and filling the 10- acre Northwest Slip, constructing backlands facilities on the fill, and constructing a new 400-foot wharf along the edge of the fill. In addition, the Port of Los Angeles is considering transporting and discharging at ocean disposal sites excess clean material generated by the dredging activities, which would require authorization pursuant to Section 103 of the Marine Protection, Research, and Sanctuaries Act.

The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (Corps) Omaha District has prepared a Final Supplemental Environmental Impact Statement (SEIS) to analyze the direct, indirect and cumulative effects of enlarging the currently permitted Rueter-Hess Reservoir in Parker, CO. The Draft SEIS was published in the Federal Register on July 27, 2007 (72 FR 41300). The Final SEIS includes responses to comments received on the Draft SEIS. The current project was authorized in February 2004 with Department of the Army Permit No. 199980472 (Section 404 Permit). The basic purpose of the Proposed Action would allow the reservoir to serve as a regional water management facility for multiple water providers in northern Douglas County; enable them to meet peak demands; greatly enhance water management in the region; and help extend the yield of the Denver Basin aquifers, a non-renewable water source and the primary source of water for the South Metro area. Expansion of the reservoir would result in direct impacts to an additional 0.21 acres of wetlands and 4 miles of intermittent stream channel (in addition to the 6.7 acres of wetlands and 5 miles of other waters of the U.S. permitted as part of the 16,200-acre-foot [AF] reservoir). This action requires authorization from the Corps under Section 404 of the Clean Water Act. The Permittee and Applicant is the Parker Water and Sanitation District (PWSD). The Final SEIS was prepared in accordance with the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) of 1969, as amended, and the Corps' regulations for NEPA implementation (33 Code of Federal Regulations [CFR] parts 230 and 325, Appendices B and C). The Corps, Omaha District, Regulatory Branch is the lead federal agency responsible for the Final SEIS and information contained in the SEIS serves as the basis for a decision regarding issuance of a Section 404 Permit modification. It also provides information for local and state agencies having jurisdictional responsibility for affected resources.

The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (COE), Wilmington District, Regulatory Division has been reviewing the request for Department of the Army authorization, pursuant to Section 404 of the Clean Water Act and Section 10 of the Rivers and Harbors Act, from Potash Corporation of Saskatchewan Phosphate Division (PCS) for the continuation of its phosphate mining operation near Aurora, Beaufort County, NC. PCS proposes to expand its existing open pit phosphate mining operation into a 3,412 acre tract immediately adjacent to the current mine. This expansion would impact 2,408 acres of waters of the U.S. including wetlands adjacent to the Pamlico River and South Creek. The Notice of Availability of the Draft Environmental Impact Statement for this action was published in the Federal Register on Friday, October 20, 2006 (71 FR 61962).