PUBLIC MEETINGS TO BE HELD ON DRAFT ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT STATEMENT FOR PROPOSED DAM AND LAKE AT BRUSHY CREEK

The U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service (Service) and Iowa Department of Natural Resources (DNR), are holding two public metings for the purpose of accepting comments on the Draft Environmental Impact Statement (DEIS) for a proposed dam and lake at Brushy Creek State Recreation Area in Webster County, Iowa. The meetings will be held at the Holiday Inn on Highway 169 South, in Fort Dodge, at 2 p.m. and 7 p.m., Wednesday, February 19.

An informal information exchange and exhibit review will be provided for one hour preceding each meeting. Anyone interested in providing oral comments or statements at the meeting is urged to arrive early and sign up during this preliminary period.

The DEIS examines the impacts of construction of a 690-acre-lake (Service and DNR preferred alternative). Other alternatives considered in detail include the construction of a complex of three smaller tributary lakes, and a "no action" alternative.

Specific comments are being sought which address either the adequacy of the DEIS or the merits of the alternatives discussed, or both.

Written comments on the DEIS are also being sought and will be accepted until March 17. Written comments should be addressed to: Regional Director, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Bishop Henry Whipple Federal Building, 1 Federal Drive, Fort Snelling, Minnesota 55111-4056.

The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service is the principal Federal agency responsible for conserving, protecting and enhancing fish, wildlife and plants and their habitats for the continuing benefit of the American people. The Service manages the 93-million-acre National Wildlife Refuge System which encompasses more than 530 national wildlife refuges, thousands of small wetlands and other special management areas. It also operates 66 national fish hatcheries, 64 fishery resource offices and 78 ecological services field stations. The agency enforces Federal wildlife laws, administers the Endangered Species Act, manages migratory bird populations, restores nationally significant fisheries, conserves and restores wildlife habitat such as wetlands, and helps foreign governments with their conservation efforts. It also oversees the Federal Aid program that distributes hundreds of millions of dollars in excise taxes on fishing and hunting equipment to state fish and wildlife agencies. For further information about the programs and activities of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service in the Great Lakes-Big Rivers Region, please visit our home page at: http://midwest.fws.gov