[Federal Register Volume 84, Number 202 (Friday, October 18, 2019)]
[Notices]
[Pages 55976-55978]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2019-22778]
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DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR
[FWS-R4-ES-2019-N140; FVHC98220410150-XXX-FF04H00000]
Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill Draft Phase 2 Restoration Plan 1.2
and Environmental Assessment: Barataria Basin Ridge and Marsh Creation
Project Spanish Pass Increment and Lake Borgne Marsh Creation Project
Increment One; Louisiana Trustee Implementation Group
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 Final
Programmatic Damage Assessment Restoration Plan and Final Programmatic
Environmental Impact Statement (Final PDARP/PEIS), and the Consent
Decree, the Federal and State natural resource trustee agencies for the
Louisiana Trustee Implementation Group (LA TIG) have prepared a
Louisiana Trustee Implementation Group Draft Restoration Plan/
Environmental Assessment #1.2: Barataria Basin Ridge and Marsh Creation
Project Spanish Pass Increment and Lake Borgne Marsh Creation Project
Increment One (Phase 2 RP/EA #1.2), proposing construction activities
for the restoration of wetlands, coastal, and nearshore habitats
injured in the Louisiana Restoration Area as a result of the Deepwater
Horizon (DWH) oil spill. The two projects are components of larger
marsh restoration strategies, and were approved for engineering and
design (E&D) in a 2017 restoration plan entitled Louisiana Trustee
Implementation Group Final Restoration Plan #1: Restoration of
Wetlands, Coastal, and Nearshore Habitats; Habitat Projects on
Federally Managed Lands; and Birds (Phase 1 RP #1). The Phase 2 RP/EA
#1.2 analyzes design alternatives for the two projects, and proposes a
preferred design alternative for construction of each. We invite
comments on the draft Phase 2 RP/EA #1.2.
DATES:
Submitting Comments: We will consider public comments on the draft
Phase 2 RP/EA #1.2 received on or before November 18, 2019.
Public Webinar: The LA TIG will host a public webinar on October
28, 2019, at 4:00 p.m. Central Standard Time. The public may register
for the webinar at https://attendee.gotowebinar.com/register/4633351197181038605. After registering, participants will receive a
confirmation email with instructions for joining the webinar. The
presentation material will be posted on the web shortly after the
webinar is concluded at https://www.gulfspillrestoration.noaa.gov/restoration-areas/louisiana.
ADDRESSES:
Obtaining Documents: You may download the draft Phase 2 RP/EA #1.2
from either of the following websites:
https://www.doi.gov/deepwaterhorizon
https://www.gulfspillrestoration.noaa.gov/restoration-areas/louisiana
Alternatively, you may request a CD of the draft Phase 2 RP/EA #1.2
(see FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT). A hard copy of the Phase 2 RP/EA
#1.2 is also available for review during the public comment period at
repositories located across the region. Locations are 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 Highway Chalmette................. 70043
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
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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 Phase 2
RP/EA #1.2 by one of the following methods:
Via the Web: https://www.gulfspillrestoration.noaa.gov/restoration-areas/louisiana.
Via U.S. Mail: U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, P.O. Box
29649, 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, via email at
nanciann_regalado@fws.gov, via telephone at 678-296-805, or via the
Federal Relay Service at 800-877-8339.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
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 conceptual projects to fund for an information-gathering
planning phase, such as E&D, in a restoration plan (phase 1). This
would allow the TIG to develop information needed to fully consider a
subsequent implementation phase of that project in a later restoration
plan (phase 2). In the final Phase 1 RP #1, the LA TIG selected six
conceptual projects for E&D, using funds from the wetlands, coastal,
and nearshore habitats restoration type, as provided for in the DWH
Consent Decree. Two of those projects selected to undergo E&D are the
Barataria Basin Ridge and Marsh Creation Project Spanish Pass Increment
(Spanish Pass project) and the Lake Borgne Marsh Creation Project
Increment One (Lake Borgne project). The design alternatives developed
during E&D are currently at a stage where proposed construction
activities may be analyzed under OPA and NEPA. Therefore, in the draft
Phase 2 RP/EA #1.2, the Louisiana TIG is proposing to finalize and
implement their preferred design alternatives to construct the Spanish
Pass and Lake Borgne projects.
Overview of the LA TIG Draft Phase 2 RP/EA #1.2
The draft Phase 2 RP/EA #1.2 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 1500-508, the Final PDARP/PEIS, and the Consent Decree. The Phase
2 RP/EA #1.2 provides OPA and NEPA analyses for a reasonable range of
design alternatives for the Spanish Pass and Lake Borgne projects, and
identifies the LA TIG's preferred design alternatives.
The proposed Spanish Pass project is a component of an overall
large-scale restoration strategy for the Barataria Basin that would
reestablish, through multiple increments, ridge and intertidal marsh
habitats degraded due to sea level rise, land subsidence, diminished
sediment supply, and storm events. The total cost for the proposed
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Spanish Pass project is approximately $99,396,000.
The proposed Lake Borgne project is a component of an overall
large-scale restoration strategy for the southwestern shoreline of Lake
Borgne that would reestablish, through multiple increments, the bay rim
and intertidal marsh habitat. The estimated total cost for this
proposed increment is $108,814,700.
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 Phase 2 RP/EA #1.2.
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 Phase 2
RP/EA #1.2 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
implementing regulations found at 40 CFR parts 1500-1508.
Mary Josie Blanchard,
Director of Gulf of Mexico Restoration, Department of Interior.
[FR Doc. 2019-22778 Filed 10-17-19; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4333-15-P