[Federal Register Volume 59, Number 10 (Friday, January 14, 1994)]
[Unknown Section]
[Page 0]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 94-984]


[[Page Unknown]]

[Federal Register: January 14, 1994]


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DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR
Bureau of Reclamation

 

Coachella Canal Lining Project, Riverside and Imperial Counties, 
CA

AGENCY: Bureau of Reclamation, Interior.

ACTION: Notice of availability of the draft environmental impact 
statement/draft environmental impact report: INT DES-94-03.

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SUMMARY: Pursuant to section 102(2)(c) of the National Environmental 
Policy Act of 1969, as amended, and section 21002 of the California 
Environmental Quality Act, Reclamation and the Coachella Valley Water 
District (Coachella) have issued a joint draft environmental impact 
statement/draft environmental impact report (DEIS/DEIR) on a proposed 
canal lining project. The project involves lining the remaining unlined 
sections of the 70-foot-wide Coachella Canal between Siphons 7 and 14, 
and Siphons 15 and 32, while the canal continues to deliver irrigation 
water. The canal, which delivers Colorado River water to Coachella, 
lies in Riverside and Imperial Counties. The preferred alternative in 
the DEIS/DEIR is to line the existing canal while diverting the 
waterflow around the construction area by temporary pipes.
    Public Law 100-675 authorizes the Secretary of the Interior 
(Secretary) to allow lining the unlined sections of canal in order to 
make the conserved water available in California. No Federal funds have 
been authorized for the project. In accordance with Public Law 100-675, 
Coachella and the Metropolitan Water District of Southern California 
may provide non-Federal funding for the project under contract with the 
Secretary. Lining the canal would reduce seepage by approximately 
31,000 acre-feet per year.
    Mitigation of impacts to wetlands habitat could require 
approximately 5,000 acre-feet per year from the canal, resulting in a 
net amount of approximately 26,000 acre-feet of conserved water per 
year.

DATES: A 60-day public review period commences with the publication of 
this notice. Written comments on the document may be submitted to the 
regional director at the address below within the 60-day review period.

ADDRESSES: Single copies of the DEIR/DEIS may be obtained on request to 
the regional director at the address below:
     Regional Director, Bureau of Reclamation, Lower Colorado 
Region, PO Box 61470, Attention: LC-150, Boulder City, NV 89006-1470; 
telephone: (702) 293-8560.
    Copies of the DEIS/DEIR are also available for public inspection 
and review at the following locations:
     Bureau of Reclamation, Technical Liaison Division, U.S. 
Department of the Interior, 1849 C Street, NW., Washington, DC 20240; 
telephone: (202) 208-4662.
     Bureau of Reclamation, Denver Office Library, Building 67, 
room 167, Denver Federal Center, 6th and Kipling, Denver, CO 80225; 
telephone: (303) 236-6963.
     Bureau of Reclamation, Yuma Projects Office, 7301 Calle 
Agua Salada, Yuma, AZ 85366; telephone: (602) 343-8100.
     Metropolitan Water District of Southern California, 1111 
Sunset Boulevard, Los Angeles, CA 90012; telephone: (213) 250-6518.
     Coachella Valley Water District, corner of Highway 111 and 
Avenue 52, Coachella, CA 92236; telephone: (618) 398-2651.
    Libraries: Public libraries located in Coachella, El Centro, 
Imperial, Indio, San Diego, Brawley, and Los Angeles (Main Library), 
California; and in Yuma, Arizona.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:
Regional Environmental Officer, Bureau of Reclamation, Lower Colorado 
Region, PO Box 61470, Attention: LC-150, Boulder City, NV 89006-1470; 
telephone: (702) 293-8510, or Dr. Richard Thiery, Coachella Valley 
Water District, PO Box 1058, Coachella, CA 92236; telephone: (619) 398-
2651.


    Dated: December 23, 1993.
Donald R. Glaser,
Deputy Commissioner.
[FR Doc. 94-984 Filed 1-13-94; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4310-94-M