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

The Neuse River Basin is the third largest basin in North Carolina, encompassing a total area of about 6,235 square miles. The Neuse River originates in north central North Carolina and flows southeasterly until it reaches tidal waters of Pamlico Sound. Water quality in the Neuse River Basin has become degraded from multiple causes, including: Rapidly expanding urban growth with increasingly rapid runoff from storm events; deforestation; expanding high-density livestock operations; and aging wastewater infrastructure. Fish and wildlife populations have suffered declines in diversity and vigor; and waterborne fish diseases have now become apparent, especially Pfiesteria. The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Wilmington District, in cooperation with the State of North Carolina Division of Water Resources has initiated the Neuse River Basin Feasibility Study in North Carolina. The purpose of the feasibility study is to develop and evaluate basin wide alternatives to improve water quality, restore anadromous fish passage, wetlands, stream, riparian buffer, and oyster habitat. We will also investigate flood damage reduction. The focus of this study is to identify resource problems, needs, and opportunities and develop solutions. The feasibility study is being carried out under the Corps of Engineers General Investigation Program and is being conducted in response to a congressional resolution adopted July 23, 1997.

In 1999, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service issued a Final Biological Opinion for the Modified Water Deliveries to Everglades National Park Project (MWD Project), the C-111 Project, and the Experimental Water Deliveries to Everglades National Park Project. FWS concluded that the operations, if continued, would likely jeopardize the continued existence of the endangered Cape Sable seaside sparrow and adversely modify its critical habitat. In response, the Corps implemented an Interim Structural and Operational Plan (ISOP) in March 2000, followed by the Interim Operating Plan (IOP) in July 2002. These operations were designed to protect the sparrow pending completion of construction of the MWD Project and the C-111 Project. Because of the urgency to implement IOP in time for the next sparrow breeding season, the IOP Final Environmental Impact Statement (FEIS) was completed prior to conclusion of modeling that supported the selected plan. Pursuant to a March 2006 order by the United States District Court for the Southern District of Florida, the Corps will be preparing a supplement to the IOP FEIS. The Supplemental Environmental Impact Statement (SEIS) will update the FEIS with the modeling for the selected alternative, which was completed in November 2002, as well as actual data collected since the May 2002 FEIS. In addition the SEIS will update its analysis of the default condition for the reservoirs.

Pursuant to the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA), the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (Corps), Huntington District will prepare an Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) to disclose potential impacts to the natural, physical, and human environment resulting from modifications to Dover Dam. This high hazard dam does not conform to current design standards related to stability and sliding during a probable maximum flood. Modifications will be performed so the Dam will meet these standards.

The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (Corps), Seattle District, announces the availability of the Final Environmental Impact Statement (FEIS) for Upper Columbia Alternative Flood Control and Fish Operations. The U.S. Bureau of Reclamation (Reclamation) is a cooperating agency for this FEIS. The document describes and analyzes the environmental impacts of alternative flood control operations at Libby Dam on the Kootenai River and at Hungry Horse Dam on the South Fork Flathead River. Both dams are located in northwestern Montana. The overall goal of the FEIS is to evaluate effects of alternative dam operations to provide better reservoir and flow conditions at and below Libby and Hungry Horse Dams for anadromous and resident fish listed as threatened or endangered under the Endangered Species Act (ESA), consistent with authorized project purposes, including maintaining the current level of flood control benefits. Two new alternatives for Libby Dam were added in the FEIS and the Corps is particularly interested in any comments on those alternatives which are described in Section 2.2 and evaluated in Section 3.3 of the FEIS.

The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Seattle District (Corps) and the Washington State Department of Ecology (Ecology) will serve as joint lead agencies in the preparation of an environmental impact statement (EIS) pursuant to the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) and State Environmental Policy Act (SEPA) to evaluate proposed approaches to TransAlta Centralia Mining LLC's (TCM) completion of mining in Pit 7, a current mining operation at its Centralia Mine. The Corps will use the EIS in making its decision whether to issue a Section 404 permit under the Clean Water Act. Ecology will use the EIS in making its decision whether to issue a Section 401 Water Quality Certification under the Clean Water Act.

In accordance with the requirements of the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA), the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) Huntington District, in cooperation with U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, the Office of Surface Mining and the West Virginia Department of Environmental Protection, has prepared a Draft Environmental Impact Statement (DEIS). This DEIS evaluates potential impacts to the natural, physical and human environment as a result of the proposed mining activities associated with Mingo Logan Coal Company's (Mingo Logan) Spruce No. 1 Mine. The USACE regulates this proposed project pursuant to Section 404 of the Clean Water Act. The proposed activity would involve the discharge of dredged and fill material into waters of the United States associated with the proosed construction and operation of a surface bituminous coal mine.

Pursuant to section 102(2)(C) of the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) of 1969, as amended, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (Corps) will prepare an environmental impact statement (EIS) for a proposed seawall rehabilitation project along the Elliott Bay shoreline in Seattle, WA. The seawall, known as the Alaskan Way Seawall, is experiencing significant decay and deterioration, leading to structural instability along the Seattle waterfront and central business district. Seawall structural instability is putting a tremendous amount of public and private infrastructure, development, and transportation linkages at risk of damage due to wave and tidal erosion, and hence potential for undermining and collapse. In addition, the failure of the seawall would result in a high risk to public safety and substantial environmental degradation. The purpose of the proposed rehabilitation effort is to protect the public facilities and economic activities along the Elliott Bay shoreline from storm damages associated with failure of the existing seawall.

The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (the Corps) and the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) are proposing to revise regulations governing compensatory mitigation for activities authorized by permits issued by the Department of the Army. The proposed regulations are intended to establish performance standards and criteria for the use of permittee-responsible compensatory mitigation and mitigation banks, and to improve the quality and success of compensatory mitigation projects for activities authorized by Department of the Army permits. The proposed regulations are also intended to account for regional variations in aquatic resource types, functions, and values, and apply equivalent standards to each type of compensatory mitigation to the maximum extent practicable. The proposed rule includes a watershed approach to improve the quality and success of compensatory mitigation projects in replacing losses of aquatic resource functions, services, and values resulting from activities authorized by Department of the Army permits. We are proposing to require in-lieu fee programs, after a five-year transition period, to meet the same standards as mitigation banks.

Pursuant to the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA), the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (Corps), Huntington District will prepare a Supplemental Environmental Impact Statement (SEIS). The SEIS will evaluate potential impacts to the natural, physical, and human environment as a result of utilizing soil borrow material for construction of the selected plan for the proposed flood damage reduction measures for the area at the City of Milton, Cabell County, WV (lower Mud River Project). The Corps is soliciting public concerns/ issues to be evaluated during the study process.

In accordance with Section 10(a)(2) of the Federal Advisory Committee Act (Pub. L. 92-463), announcement is made of the following committee meeting: Name of Committee: Coastal Engineering Research Board (CERB). Date of Meeting: April 26, 2006. Place: Sheraton Gateway Atlanta Airport Hotel, 1900 Sullivan Road, Atlanta, GA 30337. Time: 8:30 a.m. to 3 p.m.

This notice of intent (NOI) is for the Louisiana Coastal Protection and Restoration (LACPR) Project. This notice of intent addresses the coastal area of southern Louisiana from the state boundary of Louisiana and Mississippi at the Pearl River in the east to the state boundary of Louisiana and Texas at the Sabine River in the west as identified in the Coast 2050 coastal Louisiana restoration plan.

The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (Corps), Jacksonville District, intends to prepare an integrated Project Implementation Report/Draft Environmental Impact Statement (PIR/DEIS) for the Everglades National Park (ENP) Seepage Management Project. The study is a cooperative effort between the Corps and the South Florida Water Management District (SFWMD), which is also a cooperating agency for this DEIS. The project seeks to reduce eastward water seepage from the Everglades system for the benefit of wetland communities within ENP. The ENP Seepage Management Project is comprised of three components that were recommended as a part of the Central and Southern Florida (C&SF) Project Comprehensive Review Study Feasibility Report and Integrated Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) dated April 1999 (Restudy), and is part of the Comprehensive Everglades Restoration Plan (CERP). The project includes an aboveground recharge area, a wetland buffer area, relocation and enhancement of levee L-31N, a sheetflow delivery system, and other features located adjacent to ENP in Miami- Dade County.

Ispat Inland Mining (Ispat) has applied to the St. Paul District, Corps of Engineers (Corps) for a permit to discharge dredged or fill material into wetlands to facilitate the construction and operation of a taconite mine consisting of two conventional open pits in a deposit known as the East Reserve (formerly known as the J&L East Reserve) between Biwabik and McKinley in St. Louis County, MN. The combined area of the two open pits would be 364 acres. The proposed pits contain an estimated 116,000,000 long tons of ore. The ore would be hauled by truck approximately 1.9 miles on a proposed new haul road spur and then an additional 5.5 miles on an existing haul road to Ispat's currently permitted and operating Minorca taconite processing facility north of Virginia, MN. Tailing waste would be disposed of in Ispat's currently permitted and operating Minorca and Upland tailings basins. The mining process would require the construction of overburden, waste rock, and lean ore stockpiles on the north side of the proposed pits. The total stockpile area would cover approximately 375 acres. Project plans call for the mining of an average of just over six million long tons of crude ore per year over the proposed 18-year life of the mine. The project would allow mining operations and taconite processing at the Minorca Plant to continue until 2024. The project would require the discharge of dredged or fill material into approximately 75.7 acres of wetlands. While some of the wetlands may be isolated, the majority of the wetlands are adjacent to an unnamed tributary to the Embarrass River, which is a tributary to the St. Louis River, which is a navigable water of the U.S., or the wetlands are adjacent to an unnamed tributary to the Pike River, which is a navigable water of the United States. Ispat proposes to utilize wetland credits from the existing Ispat Inland wetland mitigation bank in Aitkin County, MN to compensate for the lost wetland functions and values that would be caused by the proposed project. The discharge of dredged or fill material into waters of the United States requires a permit issued by the Corps under Section 404 of the Clean Water Act. The final environmental impact statement will be used as a basis for the permit decision and to ensure compliance with the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA).

The study area is located within the Los Angeles Basin on a broad alluvial plain flanked by the Santa Monica Mountains, to the west, and by the San Gabriel Mountains to the northeast. The Los Angeles River flows from the headwaters of Bell Creek and Calabasas Creek in the San Fernando Valley community of Canoga Park southeast through the San Fernando Valley some 35 miles to downtown Los Angeles. From there it continues in a southerly direction until it empties into the Pacific Ocean at Long Beach. The specific study area comprises the 32 miles of the River within the City of Los Angeles that extends from Owensmouth Avenue, in the upper reaches of northwest San Fernando Valley, to the border of the City of Vernon, at the southern end of Downtown Los Angeles. The study proposes to consider a range of activities to restore riparian and aquatic habitat, and related habitat functions, in and adjacent to the Los Angeles River. Compatible activities to conserve cultural resources, and to provide recreational and interpretive amenities, will also be considered. Purpose: The purpose of this study is to identify a range of opportunities to improve the general environment of the Los Angeles River through ecosystem restoration and related measures. The study area includes several locations where potential exists for restoring a more natural riverine environment along the Los Angeles River, while maintaining and improving levels of flood protection. Creation of treatment wetlands in and around the river, to treat effluent river flows and to restore missing linkages of fragmented habitat, would also be pursued. Restored areas would provide natural riparian habitat to support indigenous wildlife and avifauna along a corridor transecting most of the San Fernando Valley, and extending into downtown Los Angeles. Other purposes include provision of public access to the river, identification of incidental recreation space, and delineation of trails. Site-specific Environmental Impact Statement-Environment Impact Reports (EIS/EIR) would be prepared in the future to evaluate and document individual projects that may result from this study.

The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers is issuing this notice to advise the public that the Final Supplement II to the Final Environmental Impact Statement has been completed for the City of Marion, Illinois, and is available for review and comment.

In accordance with the requirements of the National Environmental Policy Act, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE), Baltimore District has prepared a Final Tiered Environmental Impact Statement (FTEIS) and Dredged Material Management Plan (DMMP) to analyze dredged material placement for the Port of Baltimore for 20 years of maintenance and new work dredging. USACE is making the document available to the public through a Notice of Availability published in the Federal Register. The overall goal of the DMMP is to develop a plan to maintain, in an economically and environmentally sound manner, channels necessary for navigation for the Port of Baltimore, conduct dredged material placement in the most environmentally sound manner, and maximize the use of dredged material as a beneficial resource. The recommendations which will provide a minimum of 20 years of dredged material placement capacity for the Port of Baltimore are: Continued maintenance dredging of the Virginia channels and use of the existing open-water placement sites in Virginia (Dam Neck Open Water Placement; Rappahannock Shoal Deep Alternate Open Water Placement; and Wolf Trap Alternate Open Water Placement). Continued maintenance dredging of the Maryland channels and use of the existing sites in Maryland including Pooles Island Open Water Site, Hart-Miller Island Dredged Material Containment Facility (HMI DMCF), Cox Creek Confined Disposal Facility (CDF) (+36 ft dike height), and Poplar Island Environmental Restoration Project (PIERP). Multiple confined disposal facilities for harbor material in Patapsco River. PIERP Expansion in Talbot County, Maryland. Large Island Restoration in Middle Chesapeake Bay, Maryland. Wetland Restoration in Dorchester County, Maryland. Continue to pursue opportunities to innovatively use dredged material.

In accordance with the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) and the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA), the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (Corps), Sacramento District, is preparing a Draft Supplemental Environmental Impact Statement/Environmental Impact Report (SEIS/EIR) to reevaluate the previously authorized plan and other alternatives to reduce flood damages and restore riparian and aquatic habitat in the lower Yuba River Basin, part of the Feather River Basin, and the city of Marysville, in Yuba County, CA. This notice replaces the one previously published in the Federal Register on March 17, 2004 (69 FR 12646). The general reevaluation is needed because recent technical, environmental, and economic studies have indicated that additional refinement and reformulation are needed to determine the feasibility and extent of Federal and non-Federal interest in the project. The basic study authority for the Yuba River Basin study was provided under the Flood Control Act of 1962.

The purpose of this study is to evaluate the Westminster watershed ecosystem and look for multipurpose recommendations for how to more effectively manage its natural resources. There is a need for both flood control improvements as well as ecosystem habitat restoration. The study area is located in western Orange County, CA, approximately 25 miles southeast of the City of Los Angeles. The Westminster watershed lies on a flat coastal plain, is approximately 90 square miles in area, and is almost entirely urbanized with residential and commercial development. There are two main channel systems that collect runoff from portions of urbanized areas in the cities of Anaheim, Stanton, Cypress, Orange, Santa Ana, Garden Grove, Westminster, Fountain Valley, Los Alamitos, Seal Beach, and Huntington Beach. The East Garden Grove-Wintersburg Channel (EGGW), with its principal tributary, the Ocean View Channel (OV), drains into Bolsa Bay. Two retarding basins (Haster and West Street) exist at the upstream reach of the EGGW channel. Bolsa Bay includes the Bolsa Chica Lowlands and Ecological Reserve, and is a major environmental resource in southern California. The Bay has been designated as an area of national significance, and is host to a wide assemblage of resident and migratory waterfowl and marine species including over 30 Federal and/or State listed sensitive species that utilize the wetlands during all or part of their annual cycle. The Bolsa Chica Flood Control Channel (BCFC), with its principal tributaries, the Anaheim-Barber City Channel and Westminster Channel, drains to Huntington Harbour. The BCFC Channel drains the western portion of the study area, with a significant portion of property adjacent to the Seal Beach Naval Weapons Station of the U.S. Navy and 1.5 miles runs through and adjacent to the Los Alamitos Armed Forces Training Base. Aside from the military facilities, this portion of the watershed is almost entirely urbanized. Agriculture is still practiced under leases granted by the Navy on portions of their property. The BCFC Channel outlets into Huntington Harbour, but unlike EGGW, does not outlet into Bolsa Bay. The sole ocean outlet for both Bolsa Bay and Huntington Harbour is to the north at Anaheim Bay and the Seal Beach National Wildlife Refuge. Tidal influence in the lowermost portion of the BCFC and East Garden Grove-Wintersburg Channels extended approximately 2 miles inland.

Pursuant to the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) of 1969, as amended, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (Corps) and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) intend to prepare a joint project- level integrated Environmental Impact Statement (EIS)/Environmental Impact Report (EIR)/Feasibility Report, hereafter called the Report, to address the potential impacts of the first Interim Feasibility Study component of the South San Francisco Bay Shoreline Study, San Francisco Bay, CA. This study is closely interrelated with the ongoing South Bay Salt Ponds Restoration Project, discussed in the Notice of Intent dated November 9, 2004. It will function as a project-level EIS/EIR tiered under that programmatic EIS/EIR and will be issued subsequently to the programmatic document. The California State Coastal Conservancy (Conservancy) will be the lead agency under the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA). Federal Lead Agencies Proposed Actions and Related Programmatic EIS/EIR. The Corps, in cooperation with the USFWS, is proposing to study flood protection and ecosystem restoration for the Alviso portion of the South San Francisco Bay (South Bay) Salt Ponds and adjacent areas to determine whether there is a federal interest in constructing a project with flood protection and/or ecosystem restoration components in this area, and if so, to determine the optimum project to recommend to Congress for authorization. The Report will recommend a plan which will provide for long-term restoration for these salt ponds and adjacent areas as well as flood protection and recreation components, if these actions are justified under Federal criteria. The Report and its alternatives will be tiered to the programmatic EIS/EIR for the South Bay Salt Ponds Restoration Project. One public scoping meeting will be held to solicit comments on the environmental effects of the range of potential projects and the appropriate scope of the Report. The public is invited to comment during this meeting on environmental issues to be addressed in the Report.

The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (Corps) is considering an application for Section 404 and Section 10 permits to conduct dredge and fill activities to redevelop and consolidate two existing container terminals for the construction of a 342-acre marine terminal including redevelopment of 294 acres of existing land and the placement of dredged material in open water to create 48 acres of new land. The primary reason for the revised notice of intent is because the proposed terminal expansion project has been modified to utilize additional existing land to reduce the amount of fill in open water by approximately 20 acres. The primary Federal concern is the dredging and discharging of materials within waters of the Unites States and potential significant impacts to the human environment. Therefore, in accordance with the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA), the Corps is requiring the preparation of an Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) prior to consideration of any permit action. The Corps may ultimately make a determination to permit or deny the above project, or permit or deny modified versions of the above project. Pursuant to the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA), the Port of Long Beach will serve as Lead Agency for the preparation of an Environmental Impact Report (EIR) for its consideration of development approvals within its jurisdiction. The Corps and the Port of Long Beach have agreed to jointly prepare a Draft EIS/EIR in order to optimize efficiency and avoid duplication. The Draft EIS/EIR is intended to be sufficient in scope to address both the Federal and the State and local requirements and environmental issues concerning the proposed activities and permit approvals.

On November 10, 2005, the Corps of Engineers and the Bureau of Reclamation, Interior, issued a Notice of Availability of a Draft Environmental Impact Statement (DEIS) and Notice of Public Hearings (see 70 CFR 68409). The due date for comments period provided in the DATES section of that notice was incorrectly identified as December 27, 2005. The correct due date for comments is January 3, 2006 (45 days from the November 18, 2005, Federal Register publication date of the EPA weekly notice of DEIS availability).

The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (Corps) Omaha District is preparing a Supplemental Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) to analyze the direct, indirect and cumulative effects of enlarging the Rueter-Hess Reservoir, currently under construction in Parker, CO. The current project was authorized in February 2004 with Corps Permit 199980472. The basic purpose of the proposed action is the same as defined in the original EIS, which is to provide a safe, adequate and sustainable municipal water supply to Parker Water and Sanitation District (PWSD), Parker, CO that is capable of meeting the peak demands for the District's service area for the next 50 years. In addition, the purpose for enlarging the reservoir is to provide peaking storage of Denver Basin groundwater for selected South Metro Denver area water providers and to assist in sustaining the Denver Basin Aquifer. The construction of the proposed project would result in additional temporary and permanent impacts to wetlands and other Waters of the United States, requiring a new section 404 permit. To familiarize the public and interested organizations with the project and potential environmental issues that may be involved; the Corps has prepared a Scoping Document for the project. This document includes a project description, preliminary list of alternatives and various environmental/resource issues that will be addressed in the Supplemental EIS. Copies of the Scoping Document will be available at the public scoping meetings or can be requested by mail. The Supplemental EIS will be prepared according to the Corps' procedures for implementing the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) of 1969, as amended, 42 U.S.C. 4332(2)(C), and consistent with the Corps' policy to facilitate public understanding and review of agency proposals.

In accordance with the requirements of the National Environmental Policy Act, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE), Seattle District, and the Bureau of Reclamation (Reclamation), Pacific Northwest Region, have prepared a Draft Environmental Impact Statement (DEIS) to evaluate the effects of alternative flood control at Libby Dam on the Kootenai River and at Hungry Horse Dam on the South Fork Flathead River in western Montana. USACE and Reclamation are making the document available to the public for review and comment through a Notice of Availability published in the Federal Register. The overall goal of the DEIS is to evaluate effects of alternative dam operations that are intended to provide reservoir and flow conditions at and below Libby and Hungry Horse Dams for anadromous and resident fish listed as threatened or endangered under the Endangered Species Act (ESA), consistent with authorized project purposes, including maintaining the current level of flood control benefits.