[Federal Register Volume 77, Number 33 (Friday, February 17, 2012)]
[Notices]
[Pages 9635-9637]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2012-3751]
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DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE
Department of the Army; Corps of Engineers
Notice of Availability of a Draft Environmental Impact Statement
in Cooperation With the North Carolina Department of Transportation for
the Improvement of a 27.3 Mile Segment of US Highway 64 in Tyrrell and
Dare Counties, NC
AGENCY: Department of the Army, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, DoD.
ACTION: Notice of Availability.
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SUMMARY: The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (COE), Wilmington District,
Wilmington Regulatory Division is issuing this notice to advise the
public that a State of North Carolina funded Draft Environmental Impact
Statement (DEIS) has been prepared for the improvement of US 64 to a
multilane facility, and replacement of the Lindsay C. Warren bridge, in
Tyrrell and Dare Counties, North Carolina (TIP Projects R-2544 and R-
2545).
DATES: Written comments on the DEIS will be received until April 2,
2012.
ADDRESSES: Bill Biddlecome, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Washington
Regulatory Field Office, 2407 West 5th Street, Washington, NC 27889 or
Gregory J. Thorpe, Ph.D., Project Development and Environmental
Analysis Unit, North Carolina Department of Transportation, 1548 Mail
Service Center, Raleigh, North Carolina 27699-1548.
[[Page 9636]]
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Questions about the proposed action
and the DEIS can be directed to Mr. Bill Biddlecome, COE--Regulatory
Project Manager, telephone: (910) 251-4558 or Mr. Ted Devens, Project
Development Engineer, telephone: (919) 707-6018.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The COE in cooperation with the North
Carolina Department of Transportation (NCDOT) has prepared a Draft
Environmental Impact Statement (DEIS) on a proposal to make
transportation improvements to a 27.3 mile segment of existing US
Highway 64 in Tyrrell (TIP No. R-2545) and Dare (TIP No. R-2544)
Counties, North Carolina, from a two-lane to a multiple-lane roadway,
including replacement of the Lindsay C. Warren Bridge over the
Alligator River.
The purpose of the proposed project is to reduce US 64 hurricane
evacuation time to better meet state clearance goals in the project
study area, to insure consistency with North Carolina's Strategic
Highway Corridor Plan (which seeks long-term interconnectivity of
consistent transportation corridors in North Carolina) and the
Intrastate Highway System, and to maintain a bridge across the
Alligator River that meets the needs of highway users.
This project is being reviewed through a Merger 01 process that is
designed to streamline the project development and permitting
processes; the process was mutually developed by NCDOT, COE, the North
Carolina Department of Environment and Natural Resources (Division of
Water Quality and Division of Coastal Management), the Federal Highway
Administration (not applicable for this project), and supported by
other stakeholder agencies and local units of government. Other
partnering agencies on this project's Merger 01 team include the: U.S.
Environmental Protection Agency; U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service;
National Marine Fisheries Service, U.S. Coast Guard, N.C. Wildlife
Resources Commission; N.C. Department of Cultural Resources, N.C.
Division of Marine Fisheries, and the Alligator River National Wildlife
Refuge. During the NEPA/SEPA decision-making phase of transportation
projects, the Merger process provides a forum for appropriate agency
representatives to discuss and reach consensus on the identification
and selection of project alternatives that meet project purpose and
need requirements, as well as the regulatory requirements of Section
404 of the Clean Water Act.
In 1989, US 64 was designated as part of the State's Intrastate
System under Chapter 136 of the North Carolina General Statutes. In
January 1999, NCDOT initiated a study to improve US 64 to a multi-lane
facility from Columbia in Tyrrell County east to US 64/US 264 in Dare
County. A series of meetings were held with local officials and
residents of East Lake and Manns Harbor. There was general support for
the project from local officials and residents.
In 2002, the project was presented to Federal and State Resource
and Regulatory Agencies to gain concurrence on the purpose and need for
the project. Following the meeting, it was agreed that further work on
the US 64 project would be postponed pending completion of a revised
Hurricane Evacuation study. The hurricane model revisions were
completed in 2005. Model development was accomplished in conjunction
with an Oversight Committee consisting of representatives from NCDOT,
FHWA, numerous state and federal environmental resource and regulatory
agencies, and Emergency Management officials from North Carolina's
coastal counties. It was agreed that an 18-hour standard for clearance
times would be applied to a Category 3 storm with 75 percent tourist
occupancy of the Outer Banks. The 18-hour goal was adopted by the North
Carolina Legislature in 2005. Following the completion of the new
Hurricane Evacuation Study, the project was reinitiated as a State
funded Environmental Impact Statement.
A scoping meeting was conducted on February 6, 2007 followed by a
Public Officials Meeting and Citizens Informational Workshop on March
14, 2007. Public officials from Tyrrell and Dare Counties and the Towns
of Columbia and Manteo attended the public officials meeting. There was
unanimous support for the project from all local officials. A NEPA/404
Merger 01 Purpose and Need meeting was conducted on June 14, 2007. The
Merger Team agreed that a suitable Purpose and Need exists for the
project.
NEPA/404 Merger 01 meetings to determine Alternatives to be Studied
were held on June 19 and August 21, 2008. Concurrence was not reached
by the Merger Team. The Team provided issue briefs to the next-level
Merger Management Team, which includes representatives from COE, North
Carolina Department of Environment and Natural Resources Division of
Water Quality, Federal Highway Administration, and NCDOT. At a meeting
on October 16, 2008, the Merger Management Team agreed on the
alternatives to be studied in detail in the DEIS, including lane,
shoulder, and median widths; bridge navigation height, and corridor
locations. On October 20, 2008, the full Merger Team concurred on
typical sections in Tyrrell County and Tyrrell and Dare county corridor
locations. They further concurred that additional environmental
analysis would be conducted to determine alignments to be evaluated in
detail in the DEIS within the selected corridors.
Upon completion of the DEIS, NCDOT submitted a request to COE to
solicit comment from the public in order to identify the Least
Environmentally Damaging Practicable Alternative (LEDPA) for the
project. The Merger Team will meet again during late 2012 to select a
LEDPA; however multiple meetings are anticipated which results in a
concurrence expectation of late 2012 or early 2013.
Citizen public hearings are being scheduled by NCDOT for early
spring 2012, at which time citizens will be able to voice their
opinions on the current alternatives under study. Citizen input will be
considered during LEDPA deliberations by the Merger Team. After a LEDPA
decision is made, the recommended alternative(s) will be reported in a
Final Environmental Impact Statement (FEIS), along with any
supplementary studies or additional information that is collected after
the DEIS.
The DEIS is electronically available on the COE's Web site at:
http://www.saw.usace.army.mil/Wetlands/Projects/US 64Improvements and
also available on the NCDOT Web site at: http://www.ncdot.gov/projects/us64improvements/. Any person having difficulty viewing the document
online can contact the COE project manager or the NCDOT project manager
for a CD copy of the document. Hardcopies of the DEIS are available at
the NCDOT's Resident Engineer's Office in Manteo, public libraries in
Manteo and Columbia, and county offices in Manteo and Columbia.
After distribution and review of the DEIS and Final Environmental
Impact Statement, the Applicant (NCDOT) understands that COE, in
coordination with NCDOT, will issue a Record of Decision (ROD) for the
project. The ROD will document the completion of the EIS process and
will serve as a basis for permitting decisions by federal and state
agencies.
To ensure that the full range of issues related to this proposed
action is addressed and all significant issues are identified, comments
and suggestions are invited from all interested parties. Comments or
questions concerning this proposed action and the EIS should be
directed to COE at the address provided.
[[Page 9637]]
The Wilmington District will periodically issue Public Notices
soliciting public and agency comment on the proposed action and
alternatives to the proposed action as they are developed.
Dated: February 8, 2012.
Henry M. Wicker,
Acting Chief, Wilmington Regulatory District.
[FR Doc. 2012-3751 Filed 2-16-12; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3720-58-P