[Federal Register Volume 87, Number 164 (Thursday, August 25, 2022)]
[Notices]
[Pages 52411-52413]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2022-18287]
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DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR
[FWS-R4-ES-2022-N043; FVHC98220410150-XXX-FF04H00000]
Louisiana Trustee Implementation Group; Deepwater Horizon Oil
Spill Draft Phase 2 Restoration Plan/Environmental Assessment #7.1:
Terrebonne HNC Island Restoration Project
AGENCY: Department of the Interior.
ACTION: Notice of availability; request for public comments.
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SUMMARY: In accordance with the Oil Pollution Act of 1990 (OPA), the
National Environmental Policy Act of 1969 (NEPA), the Deepwater Horizon
Oil Spill Final Programmatic Damage Assessment Restoration Plan and
Final Programmatic Environmental Impact Statement (Final PDARP/PEIS),
Record of Decision and the Consent Decree, the Federal and State
natural resource trustee agencies for the Louisiana Trustee
Implementation Group (LA TIG) have prepared the Draft Phase 2
Restoration Plan/Environmental Assessment #7.1: Terrebonne HNC Island
Restoration Project (RP/EA #7.1). RP/EA #7.1 proposes design
alternatives for construction of one project to help restore bird
species injured in the Louisiana Restoration Area as a result of the
Deepwater Horizon (DWH) oil spill: the Terrebonne HNC Restoration
Project (HNC Island project). The project was approved for engineering
and design (E&D) in a 2020 restoration plan entitled Louisiana Trustee
Implementation Group Final Restoration Plan #7: Wetlands, Coastal, and
Nearshore Habitats and Birds (RP/EA #7). RP/EA #7.1 analyzes a
reasonable range of design alternatives for the project and proposes a
preferred design alternative, HNC design alternative 7A, for
construction. A No Action alternative is also analyzed for the project.
We invite comments on the Draft RP/EA #7.1.
DATES:
Submitting Comments: We will consider public comments on the Draft
RP/EA #7.1 received on or before September 26, 2022.
Public Webinar: The LA TIG will host a public webinar on September
8, 2022, starting at 2 p.m. Central Time, followed immediately by the
LA TIG's annual meeting. Members of the public may remain online at the
close of the RP/EA #7.1 webinar to attend the annual meeting. The
public may register for the webinar at https://www.gulfspillrestoration.noaa.gov/restoration-areas/louisiana. After
registering, participants will receive a confirmation email with
instructions for joining the webinar. Instructions for commenting will
be provided during the webinar. Shortly after the webinar is concluded,
the presentation material will be posted on the web at https://www.gulfspillrestoration.noaa.gov/restoration-areas/louisiana.
ADDRESSES: Obtaining Documents: You may download the Draft RP/EA #7.1
at https://www.gulfspillrestoration.noaa.gov/restoration-areas/louisiana. Alternatively, you may request a CD-ROM containing the Draft
RP/EA #7.1 (see FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT). Hard copies are also
available for review during the public comment period at the locations
listed in the following table.
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Library Address City Zip
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St. Tammany Parish Library.............. 310 W. 21st Avenue........ Covington................. 70433
Terrebonne Parish Library............... 151 Library Drive......... Houma..................... 70360
New Orleans Public Library, Louisiana 219 Loyola Avenue......... New Orleans............... 70112
Division.
East Baton Rouge Parish Library......... 7711 Goodwood Boulevard... Baton Rouge............... 70806
Jefferson Parish Library, East Bank 4747 W. Napoleon Avenue... Metairie.................. 70001
Regional Library.
Jefferson Parish Library, West Bank 2751 Manhattan Boulevard.. Harvey.................... 70058
Regional Library.
Plaquemines Parish Library.............. 8442 Highway 23........... Belle Chasse.............. 70037
St. Bernard Parish Library.............. 1125 E. St. Bernard Chalmette................. 70043
Highway.
St. Martin Parish Library............... 201 Porter Street......... St. Martinville........... 70582
Alex P. Allain Library.................. 206 Iberia Street......... Franklin.................. 70538
Vermilion Parish Library................ 405 E. St. Victor Street.. Abbeville................. 70510
Martha Sowell Utley Memorial Library.... 314 St. Mary Street....... Thibodaux................. 70301
South Lafourche Public Library.......... 16241 E. Main Street...... Cut Off................... 70345
Calcasieu Parish Public Library Central 301 W. Claude Street...... Lake Charles.............. 70605
Branch.
Iberia Parish Library................... 445 E. Main Street........ New Iberia................ 70560
Mark Shirley, LSU AgCenter.............. 1105 West Port Street..... Abbeville................. 70510
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Submitting Comments: You may submit comments on the Draft RP/EA
#7.1 by one of the following methods:
internet: http://www.gulfspillrestoration.noaa.gov/restoration-areas/louisiana.
U.S. Mail: US Fish and Wildlife Service Gulf Restoration
Office, 1875 Century Blvd., Atlanta, GA 30345. To be considered, mailed
comments must be postmarked on or before the comment deadline given in
DATES.
During the public webinar: Written comments may be
provided by the public during the webinar. Webinar information is
provided in DATES.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Nanciann Regalado, at
nanciann_regalado@fws.gov or 678-296-6805. Individuals in the United
States who are deaf, deafblind, hard of hearing, or have a speech
disability may dial 711 (TTY, TDD, or TeleBraille) to access
telecommunications relay services. Individuals outside the United
States should use the relay services offered within their country to
make international calls to the point-of-contact in the United States.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
[[Page 52412]]
Introduction
On April 20, 2010, the mobile offshore drilling unit Deepwater
Horizon, which was being used to drill a well for BP Exploration and
Production, Inc. (BP), in the Macondo prospect (Mississippi Canyon 252-
MC252), experienced a significant explosion, fire, and subsequent
sinking in the Gulf of Mexico, resulting in an unprecedented volume of
oil and other discharges from the rig and from the wellhead on the
seabed. The DWH oil spill is the largest offshore oil spill in U.S.
history, discharging millions of barrels of oil over a period of 87
days. In addition, well over 1 million gallons of dispersants were
applied to the waters of the spill area in an attempt to disperse the
spilled oil. An undetermined amount of natural gas was also released
into the environment as a result of the spill.
The Trustees conducted the natural resource damage assessment
(NRDA) for the DWH oil spill under the Oil Pollution Act 1990 (OPA; 33
U.S.C. 2701 et seq.). Pursuant to OPA, Federal and State agencies act
as trustees on behalf of the public to assess natural resource injuries
and losses and to determine the actions required to compensate the
public for those injuries and losses. The OPA further instructs the
designated trustees to develop and implement a plan for the
restoration, rehabilitation, replacement, or acquisition of the
equivalent of the injured natural resources under their trusteeship to
baseline (the resource quality and conditions that would exist if the
spill had not occurred). This includes the loss of use and services
provided by those resources from the time of injury until the
completion of restoration.
The DWH Trustees are:
U.S. Department of the Interior (DOI), as represented by
the National Park Service, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, and Bureau
of Land Management;
National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), on
behalf of the U.S. Department of Commerce;
U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA);
U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA);
State of Louisiana Coastal Protection and Restoration
Authority, Oil Spill Coordinator's Office, Department of Environmental
Quality, Department of Wildlife and Fisheries, and Department of
Natural Resources;
State of Mississippi Department of Environmental Quality;
State of Alabama Department of Conservation and Natural
Resources and Geological Survey of Alabama;
State of Florida Department of Environmental Protection
and Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission; and
State of Texas: Texas Parks and Wildlife Department, Texas
General Land Office, and Texas Commission on Environmental Quality.
On April 4, 2016, the United States District Court for the Eastern
District of Louisiana entered a consent decree resolving civil claims
by the Trustees against BP arising from the DWH oil spill: United
States v. BPXP et al., Civ. No. 10-4536, centralized in MDL 2179, In
re: Oil Spill by the Oil Rig Deepwater Horizon in the Gulf of Mexico,
on April 20, 2010 (E.D. La.) (http://www.justice.gov/enrd/deepwater-horizon). Pursuant to the consent decree, restoration projects in the
Louisiana Restoration Area are chosen and managed by the LA TIG. The LA
TIG is composed of the following Trustees: State of Louisiana Coastal
Protection and Restoration Authority, Oil Spill Coordinator's Office,
Departments of Environmental Quality, Wildlife and Fisheries, and
Natural Resources; DOI; NOAA; EPA; and USDA.
Background
The Final PDARP/PEIS provides for TIGs to propose phasing
restoration projects across multiple restoration plans. A TIG may
propose in a draft restoration plan conceptual projects to fund for an
information-gathering planning phase, such as E&D (phase 1). This
allows TIGs to develop information needed to fully consider a
subsequent implementation phase in a later restoration plan (phase 2).
In the final RP/EA #7, the LA TIG selected three conceptual projects
for E&D, using funds from the ``Wetlands, Coastal and Nearshore
Habitats'' and ``Birds'' restoration types, as provided for in the DWH
Consent Decree. One of the projects selected for E&D in the final RP/EA
#7 under the ``Birds'' restoration type, the Terrebonne HNC Island
project, has design alternatives that are now at a stage where proposed
construction alternatives (phase 2) may be analyzed under the OPA NRDA
regulations and NEPA. Therefore, in the Draft RP/EA #7.1, the Louisiana
TIG is proposing to implement their preferred design alternative to
construct the Terrebonne HNC Island project.
Overview of the LA TIG Draft RP/EA #7.1
The Draft RP/EA #7.1 is being released in accordance with OPA NRDA
regulations found in the Code of Federal Regulations (CFR) at 15 CFR
part 990, NEPA and its implementing regulations found at 40 CFR parts
1500-1508, the Final PDARP/PEIS, and the Consent Decree. The RP/EA #7.1
provides OPA, NRDA, and NEPA analyses for a reasonable range of design
alternatives for the Terrebonne HNC Island project and identifies the
LA TIG's preferred design alternative for the project.
The preferred design alternative, HNC design alternative 7A, would
increase the acreage of the island from 27.6 acres to approximately
41.4 acres of shrub nesting, ground nesting, and marsh habitat. An
existing, degraded perimeter rock dike would be restored, and
breakwaters could be constructed on the northeast side of the island to
provide further protection as well as calm water for loafing. The
approximate cost to implement the preferred alternative is $34 million.
A second design alternative, HNC design alternative 7, is also
evaluated in the restoration plan, as well as a No Action alternative.
Next Steps
As described above in DATES, the Trustees will host a public
webinar to facilitate the public review and comment process. After the
public comment period ends, the Trustees will consider and address the
comments received before issuing a final RP/EA #7.1.
Public Availability of Comments
Before including your address, phone number, email 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.
Administrative Record
The documents comprising the Administrative Record for the RP/EA
#7.1 can be viewed electronically at https://www.doi.gov/deepwaterhorizon/adminrecord.
Authority
The authority for this action is the Oil Pollution Act of 1990 (33
U.S.C. 2701 et seq.), its implementing Natural Resource Damage
Assessment regulations found at 15 CFR part 990, and the National
Environmental Policy Act of 1969 (42 U.S.C. 4321 et seq.) and its
[[Page 52413]]
implementing regulations found at 40 CFR parts 1500-1508.
Mary Josie Blanchard,
Department of the Interior, Director of Gulf of Mexico Restoration.
[FR Doc. 2022-18287 Filed 8-24-22; 8:45 am]
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