[Federal Register Volume 79, Number 50 (Friday, March 14, 2014)]
[Notices]
[Pages 14534-14535]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2014-05683]
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DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR
Bureau of Ocean Energy Management
[Docket No. BOEM-2014-0009]
Notice of Intent To Prepare an Environmental Assessment for
Proposed Wind Energy-Related Research Activities on the Atlantic Outer
Continental Shelf Offshore Virginia and Notice of Public Scoping
Meeting MMAA104000
AGENCY: Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM), Interior.
ACTION: Notice of Intent.
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SUMMARY: In compliance with the National Environmental Policy Act
(NEPA) of 1969, as amended (42 U.S.C. 4231 et seq.), BOEM intends to
prepare an Environmental Assessment (EA) to consider the reasonably
foreseeable environmental consequences associated with the approval of
wind energy-related research activities offshore Virginia as proposed
by the Virginia Department of Mines, Minerals and Energy (DMME). BOEM
is seeking public input regarding important environmental issues and
the identification of reasonable alternatives that should be considered
in the EA.
In addition to the request for written comments, BOEM is holding a
public scoping meeting to solicit comments on the scope of the EA. The
meeting will be held from 5:00 p.m.-8:00 p.m. EDT on Thursday, April 3,
2014, at the Virginia Aquarium and Marine Science Center, 717 General
Booth Boulevard, Virginia Beach, Virginia 23451.
Authority: The Notice of Intent to prepare an EA is published
pursuant to 43 CFR 46.305.
DATES: Comments should be submitted no later than April 14, 2014.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Michelle Morin, BOEM, Environment
Branch for Renewable Energy, 381 Elden Street, HM 1328, Herndon,
Virginia 20170-4817; (703) 787-1340 or [email protected].
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
1. Background
On December 9, 2013, BOEM published a Determination of No
Competitive Interest (78 FR 73882) for a research lease requested by
DMME. BOEM may issue DMME a research lease. A lease issued to DMME
would be considered under BOEM's Finding of No Significant Impact
(FONSI) and EA for Lease Issuance and Site Assessment Activities on the
Atlantic Outer Continental Shelf Offshore New Jersey, Delaware,
Maryland and Virginia, which can be found at http://www.boem.gov/Renewable-Energy-Program/Smart-From-The-Start/index.aspx. DMME has
submitted a Research Activities Plan (RAP) to BOEM. The RAP describes
the proposed construction, operation, maintenance, and decommissioning
of the Virginia Offshore Wind Technology Advancement Project (VOWTAP),
and includes the results of site characterization studies, such as
geophysical, geotechnical, archaeological, and biological surveys. The
RAP can be found at the following URL: http://www.boem.gov/Renewable-Energy-Program/State-Activities/Virginia.aspx.
DMME's proposed project, VOWTAP, would consist of two 6-MW wind
turbine generators (WTGs), a 34.5-kilovolt (kV) alternating current
(AC) submarine cable interconnecting the WTGs (inter-array cable), a
34.5 kV AC submarine transmission cable (export cable), and a 34.5 kV
underground cable (onshore interconnection cable) that would connect
the VOWTAP with existing infrastructure located in the City of Virginia
Beach. Interconnection with the existing infrastructure also would
require an onshore switch cabinet, an underground fiber optic cable,
and a new interconnection station to be located entirely within the
boundaries of the Camp Pendleton State Military Reservation (Camp
Pendleton), in the City of Virginia Beach.
The offshore components of the VOWTAP, including the WTGs and
inter-array cable, would be located on the Outer Continental Shelf
approximately 24 nautical miles offshore Virginia Beach, Virginia,
while the export cable would traverse both
[[Page 14535]]
Federal and state submerged lands. The onshore components, including
the onshore interconnection cable, fiber optic cable, switch cabinet,
and interconnection station would be located entirely within the
boundary of Camp Pendleton. Construction would be supported by
construction staging area(s) and a construction port. Onshore support
facilities would be located at existing waterfront industrial or
commercial sites in the cities of Virginia Beach, Norfolk, and/or
Newport News, Virginia.
2. Proposed Action and Scope of Analysis
The proposed action that will be the subject of the EA is the
approval of the RAP. In addition to the no action alternative
(disapproval of the RAP), other alternatives may be considered, such as
exclusion of certain areas from project siting or modification of
project activities. The EA will consider the reasonably foreseeable
environmental consequences associated with the proposed project,
including the impacts of the construction, operation, maintenance, and
decommissioning of the WTGs and cables, including the impacts of noise,
presence of structures, bottom disturbance, vessel traffic, and onshore
activities.
This notice starts the scoping process for the EA and solicits
information regarding important environmental issues and alternatives
that should be considered in the EA. Additionally, BOEM will use the
scoping process to identify and eliminate from study issues that are
not significant or issues that have been analyzed by prior
environmental reviews.
It is BOEM's intention to prepare an EA that informs all Federal
decisions, including those by the Department of Energy and the U.S.
Army Corps of Engineers, which are needed to determine whether and, if
so, how the proposed action will proceed (40 CFR 1501.6).
BOEM will use responses to this notice and the EA public input
process to satisfy the public involvement requirements of the National
Historic Preservation Act (16 U.S.C. 470f), as provided in 36 CFR
800.2(d)(3), and is seeking information from the public on the
identification of historic properties that might be impacted by VOWTAP.
The analyses contained within the EA also will support compliance with
other environmental statutes (e.g., Endangered Species Act, Magnuson-
Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act, and Marine Mammal
Protection Act).
3. Cooperating Agencies
BOEM invites Federal, state, and local government agencies, as well
as tribal governments, to consider becoming cooperating agencies in the
preparation of this EA. Council on Environmental Quality (CEQ)
regulations implementing the procedural provisions of NEPA define
cooperating agencies as those with ``jurisdiction by law or special
expertise'' (40 CFR 1508.5). Potential cooperating agencies should
consider their authority and capacity to assume the responsibilities of
a cooperating agency and remember that an agency's role in the
environmental analysis neither enlarges nor diminishes the final
decisionmaking authority of any other agency involved in the NEPA
process.
Upon request, BOEM will provide potential cooperating agencies with
a draft Memorandum of Agreement that includes a schedule with critical
action dates and milestones, mutual responsibilities, designated points
of contact, and expectations for handling pre-decisional information.
Agencies should also consider the ``Factors for Determining Cooperating
Agency Status'' in Attachment 1 to CEQ's January 30, 2002, Memorandum
for the Heads of Federal Agencies: Cooperating Agencies in Implementing
the Procedural Requirements of the NEPA. A copy of this document is
available at: http://ceg.hss.doe.gov/nepa/regs/cooperating/cooperatingagenciesmemorandum.html and at: http://ceg.hss.doe.gov/nepa/regs/cooperating/cooperatingagencymemofactors.html.
BOEM, as the lead agency, will not provide financial assistance to
cooperating agencies. Even if an organization is not a cooperating
agency, opportunities will exist to provide information and comments to
BOEM during the normal public input phases of the NEPA/EA process.
4. Comments
Federal, State, local government agencies, tribal governments, and
other interested parties are requested to send their written comments
on the important issues to be considered in the EA by either of the
following methods:
1. Federal eRulemaking Portal: http://www.regulations.gov. In the
entry titled ``Enter Keyword or ID,'' enter BOEM-2014-0009, and then
click ``search.'' Follow the instructions to submit public comments and
view supporting and related materials available for this notice;
2. By U.S. Postal Service or other delivery service, send your
comments and information to the following address: Bureau of Ocean
Energy Management, Office of Renewable Energy Programs, 381 Elden
Street, HM 1328, Herndon, Virginia 20170-4817; or
3. In person at the EA public scoping meeting.
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 comments to withhold your personal identifying
information from public review, we cannot guarantee that we will be
able to do so.
Dated: March 3, 2014.
Tommy P. Beaudreau,
Director, Bureau of Ocean Energy Management.
[FR Doc. 2014-05683 Filed 3-13-14; 8:45 am]
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