[Federal Register: August 28, 2009 (Volume 74, Number 166)]
[Notices]
[Page 44379-44380]
From the Federal Register Online via GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov]
[DOCID:fr28au09-70]
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DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR
Fish and Wildlife Service
[FWS-R8-ES-2008-N0201; ABC Code: 1261-0000-80230-W2]
Sears Point Wetland and Watershed Restoration Project, Sonoma
County, CA
AGENCY: Fish and Wildlife Service, Interior.
ACTION: Notice of availability; request for comments: draft
environmental impact statement and environmental impact report.
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SUMMARY: We, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (Service) and the
California Department of Fish and Game (CDFG), in cooperation with the
Sonoma Land Trust (SLT), have prepared a draft environmental impact
report and environmental impact statement (DEIR/EIS) on the restoration
of approximately 2,300 acres (ac) of former farm land located in Sonoma
County, California near the San Pablo Bay. The proposed restoration
project, which would be implemented by the SLT, would restore natural
estuarine ecosystems on diked baylands, while providing public access
and recreational and educational opportunities compatible with
ecological and cultural resources protection. In accordance with
National Environmental Policy Act of 1969 (NEPA), this notice advises
other agencies, Tribes, and the public that the DEIR/EIS on the
proposed Sears Point Wetland and Watershed Restoration Project is now
available for review. We invite and encourage interested persons to
review the document and submit written comments to identify issues
related to the alternatives we address in the DEIR/EIS.
DATES: We must receive written comments at the address below on or
before October 13, 2009. You may submit comments by any one of the
methods we describe under ADDRESSES. We will hold a public meeting in
the fall of 2009, to solicit comments. See SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION
for more details.
ADDRESSES: The Draft EIS/EIR is available for review at:
Refuge Headquarters Office, San Pablo Bay National
Wildlife Refuge, 2100 Highway 37, Petaluma, CA 94954; (707) 769-4200.
San Francisco Bay National Wildlife Refuge Complex, 9500
Thornton Avenue, Newark, CA 94560; (510) 792-0222.
John F. Kennedy Public Library, 505 Santa Clara, Vallejo,
CA 94590.
http://www.sonomalandtrust.org.
Written comments and requests for information may be mailed to:
Christy Smith, Refuge Manager, San Pablo Bay National Wildlife Refuge,
7715 Lakeville Highway, Petaluma, California, 94954. Alternatively, you
may fax written comments to (707) 769-8106, or send them by electronic
mail to christy_smith@fws.gov. Please include the heading ``Sears
Point NEPA comments in your response.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Christy Smith, Refuge Manager, San
Pablo Bay NWR, (707) 769-4200 (phone); christy_smith@fws.gov (e-mail),
or John Brosnan, Baylands Program Manager, at (707) 526-6930 x109
(phone); john@sonomalandtrust.org (e-mail).
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
Location
The project site is located at Sears Point near the intersection of
Lakeville-Reclamation Road and State Route 37
[[Page 44380]]
(SR 37) in southern Sonoma County, California. The site is also
traversed from east to west by an inactive rail line owned by the
Sonoma-Marin Area Rail Transit (SMART) District.
The project site is a total of 2,327 ac owned by the Sonoma Land
Trust (SLT) and is comprised of two large properties, the North Point
Joint Venture (NPJV) parcel and the Dickson Ranch parcel, which are
situated on the edge of San Pablo Bay between the mouth of the Petaluma
River and Tolay Creek. The 1,679-ac NPJV parcel extends both north and
south of SR 37. It is bounded on the north by the Infineon Raceway
property, on the east by Cougar Mountain (north of SR 37) and Paradise
Vineyards (south of SR 37), on the south by the SMART rail line, and on
the west by Lakeville-Reclamation Road. The 648-ac Dickson Ranch parcel
is located entirely south of Highway 37, and is bounded on the north by
the SMART rail line, on the west by Tolay Creek, on the south by San
Pablo Bay, and on the west by the outboard levee as it veers bayward
from the SMART rail line. The entire Dickson Ranch parcel and 858 ac of
the NPJV parcel are located within the approved acquisition boundary of
the San Pablo Bay National Wildlife Refuge. The SLT proposes to
transfer a 350-acre parcel of this land bounded by Highway 37 and the
SMART rail line, to the Service, and the remainder of the land to CDFG.
Alternatives
We identified and analyzed a total of eight alternatives. The
alternatives were analyzed based on a set of criteria, including (1)
ability to meet the project purpose and need, (2) technical,
logistical, and financial feasibility, and (3) ability to avoid or
substantially reduce one or more significant impacts. We removed five
of these alternatives from further consideration because they did not
meet the purpose and need, were not feasible, or did not provide
substantial variation in environmental impacts. The lead agencies
carried forward three possible alternatives for environmental analysis:
the No-Action Alternative, the Partial-Tidal (Preferred) Restoration
Alternative, and the Full-Tidal Restoration Alternative.
No-Action Alternative
Under the No-Action Alternative, there would be no wetland
restoration or enhancement, no new trails, and no new habitat creation.
The Sonoma Land Trust (SLT) would still move forward with the transfer
of title of the Sears Point properties to the Federal and State
agencies. SLT will honor existing agricultural and commercial leases on
the property through June 2010.
Partial-Tidal (Preferred) Restoration Alternative
The Partial-Tidal Restoration Alternative would restore 970 acres
of tidal marsh; improve tidal exchange in Tolay Creek along the eastern
edge of the project boundary; preserve and enhance a 106-acre area of
non-tidal seasonal wetland while maintaining existing agriculture
between the SMART line and Highway 37; provide public recreation access
south and possibly north of Highway 37; enhance 40 acres of non-tidal
seasonal wetland north of Highway 37; and create 15.5 acres of
additional breeding habitat for the California red-legged frog,
including 0.5 acres of excavation in the floodplain near the northern
project boundary.
Full-Tidal Restoration Alternative
The Full-Tidal Restoration Alternative would restore 1,335 acres of
tidal marsh; improve tidal exchange in Tolay Creek along the eastern
edge of the project boundary; provide public recreation access south
and possibly north of Highway 37; enhance 40 acres of non-tidal
seasonal wetland north of Highway 37; and create 15.5 acres of
additional breeding habitat, including 0.5 acres of excavation in the
floodplain, for the California red-legged frog near the northern
project boundary.
NEPA Compliance
The entire Dickson Ranch parcel and 858 acres of the NPJV parcel
are located within the approved acquisition boundary of the San Pablo
Bay NWR. Federally owned lands within the Refuge boundary are adjacent
to these properties. In order to implement the action alternatives
described above, some activity (channel dredging and levee breaching)
within the San Pablo Bay NWR is necessary. We will use the EIR/EIS to
determine whether to authorize activities within the San Pablo Bay NWR
in order to accomplish project goals.
The EIR/EIS discusses the direct, indirect, and cumulative impacts
of the alternatives on biological resources, cultural resources, land
use, air quality, water quality, water resources, and other
environmental resources. It also identifies appropriate mitigation
measures for adverse environmental effects.
We are conducting public review of the EIR/EIS in accordance with
the requirements of NEPA, as amended (42 U.S.C. 4321 et seq. ), its
implementing regulations (40 CFR parts 1500-1508), other applicable
regulations, and our procedures for compliance with those regulations.
The EIR/EIS meets the requirements of both NEPA and the California
Environmental Quality Act (CEQA). The California Department of Fish and
Game is the CEQA lead agency. We provide this notice under regulations
implementing NEPA (40 CFR 1506.6).
Public Meeting
We will hold one public meeting to solicit comments on the DEIR/
EIS. We will mail a separate notice to the public and local
publications that identifies the time, date, and location of the
meeting.
Public Comments
We invite the public to comment on the DEIR/EIS during the comment
period. Before including your address, phone number, e-mail address, or
other personal identifying information in your comment, you should be
aware that your entire comment--including your personal identifying
information--may be made publicly available at any time. While you can
ask us in your comment to withhold your personal identifying
information from public review, we cannot guarantee that we will be
able to do so. We will use the comments to prepare a final EIR/EIS. A
decision will be made no sooner than 30 days after the publication of
the final EIR/EIS. We anticipate that a Record of Decision will be
issued by the Service in 2010.
Dated: August 20, 2009.
Margaret T. Kolar,
Acting Regional Director, Pacific Southwest Region.
[FR Doc. E9-20582 Filed 8-27-09; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4310-55-P