[Federal Register Volume 81, Number 137 (Monday, July 18, 2016)]
[Notices]
[Page 46659]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2016-16920]
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DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE
Department of the Army, Corps of Engineers
Intent To Prepare an Environmental Impact Statement for the Lake
Okeechobee Watershed Project, Okeechobee, Highlands, Charlotte, Glades,
Martin and St. Lucie Counties, Florida
AGENCY: Department of the Army, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, DOD.
ACTION: Notice of intent.
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SUMMARY: The Jacksonville District, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers
(Corps) is beginning preparation of a National Environmental Policy Act
assessment for the Lake Okeechobee Watershed Project (LOWP). The
Everglades ecosystem, including Lake Okeechobee, encompasses a system
of diverse wetland landscapes that are hydrologically and ecologically
connected across more than 200 miles from north to south and across
18,000 square miles of southern Florida. In 2000, the U.S. Congress
authorized the Federal government, in partnership with the State of
Florida, to embark upon a multi-decade, multi-billion dollar
Comprehensive Everglades Restoration Plan (CERP) to further protect and
restore the remaining Everglades ecosystem while providing for other
water-related needs of the region. CERP involves modification of the
existing network of drainage canals and levees that make up the Central
and Southern Florida Flood Control Project. One of the next steps for
implementation of CERP is to identify opportunities to restore the
quantity, quality, timing and distribution of flows into Lake
Okeechobee. The LOW Project preliminary project area, where placement
of features will be considered, covers a large portion of the Lake
Okeechobee Watershed north of the lake. Water inflows into Lake
Okeechobee greatly exceed outflow capacity, thus many times there is
too much water within Lake Okeechobee that needs to be released in
order to ensure integrity of the Herbert Hoover Dike. At other times,
there may be too little water within Lake Okeechobee. Lake levels that
are too high or too low, and inappropriate recession and ascension
rates, can adversely affect native vegetation, and fish and wildlife
species that depend upon the lake for foraging and reproduction. The
volume and frequency of undesirable freshwater releases to the east and
west lowers salinity in the estuaries, severely impacting oysters, sea
grasses, and fish. Additionally, high nutrient levels adversely affect
in-lake water quality, estuary habitat, and habitat throughout the
Greater Everglades. The objectives of the LOW Project are to improve
the quality, quantity, timing and distribution of water entering Lake
Okeechobee, provide for better management of lake water levels, reduce
damaging releases to the Caloosahatchee and St. Lucie estuaries
downstream of the lake and improve system-wide operational flexibility.
ADDRESSES: U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Planning and Policy Division,
Environmental Branch, P.O. Box 4970, Jacksonville, FL 32232-0019.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Gretchen Ehlinger at 904-232-1682 or
email at [email protected]. Additional information is
also available at http://bit.ly/LakeOWatershed.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
a. Since 2000, much progress has been made on CERP projects.
Construction has begun on the first generation of CERP project
modifications already authorized by Congress. These include the
Picayune Strand Restoration, the Indian River Lagoon South and Site 1
Impoundment Projects. Congressional authorization has been received for
the second generation of CERP projects, including Biscayne Bay Coastal
Wetlands-Phase 1, the Broward County Water Preserve Areas, the
Caloosahatchee River (C-43) West Basin Storage Reservoir, and the C-111
Spreader Canal Western Project which are already under construction or
are operational, and the Broward County Water Preserve Areas which is
currently being designed. The Central Everglades Planning Project is
currently awaiting congressional authorization. All of these CERP
projects contribute significant ecological benefits to the system and
the specific regional habitats in which they are located.
b. The objectives of the LOWP are to improve the quality, quantity,
timing and distribution of water entering Lake Okeechobee, provide for
better management of lake water levels, reduce damaging releases to the
Caloosahatchee and St. Lucie estuaries downstream of the lake and
improve system-wide operational flexibility.
c. A scoping letter will be used to invite comments from Federal,
State, and local agencies, affected Indian Tribes, and other interested
private organizations and individuals.
d. A scoping meeting will be held July 26th, 2016 from 6:00 to 8:00
p.m. at the Okeechobee Auditorium, 3800 NW., 16th Boulevard, Suite A,
Okeechobee, FL 34972.
e. All alternative plans will be reviewed under provisions of
appropriate laws and regulations, including the Endangered Species Act,
Fish and Wildlife Coordination Act, Clean Water Act, and Farmland
Protection Policy Act.
f. The Draft Environmental Impact Assessment is expected to be
available for public review in late 2017.
Dated: July 7, 2016.
Eric P. Summa,
Chief, Planning and Policy Division.
[FR Doc. 2016-16920 Filed 7-15-16; 8:45 am]
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