Department of the Army, Corps of Engineers April 27, 2017 – Federal Register Recent Federal Regulation Documents

The Coastal Protection and Restoration Authority of Louisiana (CPRA) has requested approval from the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, New Orleans District (USACE-MVN) to construct, maintain, and operate a sediment diversion structure off the right descending bank of the Mississippi River, at approximately 60.7 miles above ``Head of Passes'' in Plaquemines Parish, Louisiana. The proposed project, referred to as the Mid-Barataria Sediment Diversion (MBSD), would be designed to deliver sediment, freshwater, and nutrients from the Mississippi River into Barataria Basin. USACE-MVN intends to serve as the lead federal agency in preparing an Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) in accordance with the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA). At this time, Cooperating Agencies on the EIS includes the: Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), Department of the Interior (DOI), National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS), U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS), and U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA). The EIS for CPRA's proposed MBSD project will inform a permit decision for a Department of Army (DA) permit pursuant to Section 404 of the Clean Water Act (Section 404) and Section 10 of the Rivers and Harbors Act of 1899 (Section 10), and permissions under Section 14 of the Rivers and Harbors Act of 1899 (Section 408). In addition to informing USACE-MVN's decisions, the EIS will inform decisions made by the Deepwater Horizon Natural Resource Damage Assessment Louisiana Trustee Implementation Group (NRDA LA TIG) regarding restoration evaluation and related funding decisions relevant to the Deepwater Horizon natural resource damage settlement, any decision by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration's National Marine Fisheries Service (NOAA NMFS) that may be required under the Marine Mammal Protection Act (MMPA), and any additional regulatory or permit processes that may be required for the MBSD Project, to the extent practicable. USACE-MVN filed an original Notice of Intent (NOI) to prepare a DEIS for the MBSD project which was published in the Federal Register on October 4, 2013 (78 FR 61843). This Supplemental NOI serves to supplement the original NOI to update the MBSD project details, contact information for the proposed MBSD project, scoping provisions, and other pertinent information.