[Federal Register Volume 59, Number 151 (Monday, August 8, 1994)]
[Unknown Section]
[Page 0]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 94-19192]


[[Page Unknown]]

[Federal Register: August 8, 1994]


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DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE

Department of the Navy

 

Record of Decision To Upgrade the Wastewater Treatment System at 
Marine Corps Base, Camp Lejeune, NC

    Pursuant to Section 102(c) of the National Environmental Policy Act 
(NEPA) of 1969, and the Council of Environmental Quality Regulations 
(40 CFR parts 1500-1508), the Department of the Navy announces its 
decision to upgrade the wastewater treatment system at Marine Corps 
Base (MCB), Camp Lejeune, North Carolina. The upgrade involves the 
elimination of six treated effluent discharges (three from the most 
nutrient sensitive waters of the upper New River, two of which are in 
proximity to high quality shellfishing waters of the lower New River, 
and one discharge to the Atlantic Intracoastal Waterway). The existing 
wastewater treatment plants will be replaced with an advanced 
wastewater treatment facility to be constructed north of Frenchs Creek 
that will have a design capacity of 15 million gallons per day (MGD) 
and be capable of a high degree of nutrient removal. The new advanced 
wastewater treatment plant will be in operation by December 31, 1998, 
and will process all MCB Camp Lejeune wastewater, except for flows from 
Onslow Beach which will be processed at a new rapid infiltration 
facility to be constructed at that location.
    Upgrade of the wastewater treatment facilities will be divided into 
three phases. The first phase will require construction of 
approximately 35 miles of new wastewater transmission pipeline, and 
will consolidate flows from six treatment plants to an outfall located 
in the New River near the existing Hadnot Point treatment plant. The 
new pipeline will be constructed mostly along existing right-of-way and 
will require construction of seven new pump stations. During Phase I, 
the Hadnot Point Plant will be upgraded to include additional 
chlorination facilities to accommodate the increased flows. Shutdown of 
the Courthouse Bay and Rifle Range treatment plants will be 
incorporated into Phase I of the Project as well as construction of 
rapid infiltration facilities at Onslow Beach. Phases II and III will 
involve construction of a new advanced wastewater treatment plant north 
of Frenchs Creek, a new outfall diffuser pipe located approximately 13 
miles upstream from the mouth of the New River, and shutdown of 
existing treatment plants at Camp Geiger, Camp Johnson, Tarawa Terrace, 
and Hadnot Point.
    The North Carolina Division of Environmental Management determined 
that the New River is no longer able to absorb all of the nutrients 
being discharged to it. Thus, the State has established a goal to 
upgrade water quality in the region and is implementing a policy that 
will reduce the number of point source discharges and substantially 
limit the nutrient loading of effluent streams entering the New River. 
As a result of this policy initiative, the Marine Corps entered into a 
Special Order by Consent with the State agreeing to reduce the number 
of its outfalls and improve the quality of its treated waste 
discharges.
    A Wastewater Treatment Master Plan was prepared to identify 
alternatives for reducing the number of outfalls and improving treated 
outfall water quality. The analysis gathered information on existing 
treatment plants, base operations, future development, available 
treatment and disposal options, and environmental concerns. From this 
effort eight options were closely examined for the development of 
alternatives at each plant. From the evaluation of the eight options 
came the development of five scenarios that were evaluated over a 
twenty year life cycle. They were evaluated based on costs, land use 
impacts that could affect the MCB Camp Lejeune military mission, and 
environmental concerns. This analysis lead to the development of three 
build alternatives and the ``No Action'' alternative, which were 
addressed in the Draft Environmental Impact Statement (DEIS). These 
alternatives were (1) a new 15 MGD advanced treatment plant with a 
river discharge to accommodate all flows, (2) a new 15 MGD secondary 
treatment plant with an ocean outfall to accommodate all flows and (3) 
a combination of land application for the plants currently discharging 
to the lower New River (Rifle Range and Courthouse Bay Plants) and the 
Intracoastal Waterway (Onslow Beach Plant), and construction of a new 
13.7 MGD advanced wastewater treatment plant with river discharge for 
the remaining flows.
    Based on socio-economic, environmental and operational impacts of 
the three wastewater treatment system upgrade alternatives, the DEIS 
concluded that the alternative which combined river discharge and land 
application was the least desirable option from an environmental and 
operations perspective. This option would eliminate large tracts of 
critical training area on the Base (750 acres ) and would 
have potential adverse impacts to endangered species, floodplains and 
sites contaminated with hazardous materials. The advanced wastewater 
treatment of all effluent with river discharge and the ocean outfall 
options were determined to have comparable environmental impacts. With 
regard to nutrient loads to the New River system, the ocean outfall 
alternative would contribute the smallest amount. However, the 
potential permitting difficulties for an ocean outfall; the strict 
schedule of compliance outlined in the Special Order by Consent between 
MCB Camp Lejeune and the State of North Carolina; U.S. Environmental 
Protection Agency Region IV's general policy to discourage new ocean 
outfalls (as stated in their scoping response); and the lack of any 
North Carolina Division of Environmental Management policy regarding 
ocean outfalls resulted in the advanced wastewater treatment with river 
discharge alternative being identified as the preferred option in the 
DEIS.
    Several commentors on the DEIS suggested the Marine Corps did not 
fully study land application of wastewater flows, including off-base 
land application options. In response to these comments a Land 
Application Feasibility Study was undertaken to examine the potential 
for large-scale land application of wastewater flows. The study 
concluded that land application is not an economically feasible 
alternative for disposal of all MCB Camp Lejeune wastewater. An 
individual land application treatment facility was also studied for 
disposal of wastewater from the Rifle Range plant and was also 
determined not to be cost effective. However, the study did recommend 
that treated effluent from Onslow Beach be disposed of via rapid 
infiltration rather than being pumped to the new plant for treatment 
and discharge to the New River. As a result, the preferred alternative 
was modified, and as identified in the Final Environmental Impact 
Statement (FEIS), is a combination of a new advanced wastewater 
treatment facility located in the Frenchs Creek area of MCB Camp 
Lejeune with diffused discharge into the New River, and a new rapid 
infiltration facility at Onslow Beach. Under this alternative, a 
significant length of pipeline from Onslow Beach to the Frenchs Creek 
site will not be needed, and impacts to terrestrial vegetation, 
wildlife, wetlands and the Intracoastal Waterway will be minimized or 
eliminated.
    Construction of a new 15 MGD advanced wastewater treatment plant 
with river discharge and a rapid infiltration system at Onslow Beach 
will result in minor socio-economic and land use impacts. About 35 
miles of existing road right-of-way will be temporarily disturbed for 
placement of transmission lines, and approximately 25 acres 
will be used for the treatment plant site in the Frenchs Creek area. 
Construction of treatment facilities is not expected to impact 
population growth, but the local economy will benefit from the 
$80 million construction project through job stimulation. 
No impact to regional transportation systems will be felt, but traffic 
on MCB Camp Lejeune will likely experience delays during pipeline 
construction. Parks and recreation facilities on Base will not be 
impacted; however, there will be minor disruption at several picnic 
areas on MCB Camp Lejeune during pipeline construction. Proper site 
layout, engineering design and operation will minimize odor impacts to 
MCB Camp Lejeune recreational beaches. Existing utilities are adequate 
to support the proposed action.
    No cultural resources will be affected at the new plant site. Ten 
archaeological sites were located during the intensive survey of the 
proposed wastewater transmission line. Four sites required further 
testing to determine their National Register eligibility status. One of 
the sites was determined to be eligible. While pipeline construction 
impact to this site cannot be avoided, mitigation through data recovery 
will ensure no adverse effects occur to the site. Additional 
archeological testing will also be conducted at one other site which 
the North Carolina Department of Cultural Resources believes has the 
potential for being eligible. The Onslow Beach rapid infiltration 
facility site is located on a barrier island and has been frequently 
disturbed by training exercises and tracked vehicular movement; 
therefore, the probability of this site containing cultural resources 
is low. Consultation with the North Carolina Department of Cultural 
Resources is being completed to assure full compliance with the 
National Historic Preservation Act.
    Impact to topography, soils, geology, and groundwater will be 
minimal. Sedimentation and erosion control plans will be submitted to 
the North Carolina Division of Land Resources, Land Quality Section for 
review and approval. Floodplains will be crossed at several locations 
by transmission lines, but subsurface placement will eliminate any 
risks of increased flooding. Proper design and operation of the rapid 
infiltration system at Onslow Beach will minimize any potential impact 
to groundwater quality. The project will not encroach on any sites 
contaminated with hazardous materials.
    Water quality in the New River will be minimally impacted by 
constituents commonly found in treated domestic wastewater effluent. 
The Wasteload Allocation Study prepared by the North Carolina Division 
of Environmental Management indicates that dilution and dispersion of 
treated domestic wastewater effluent will be rapid. Concentration of 
various constituents anticipated in the treated wastewater effluent 
will pose only a minor impact on ambient conditions at the point of 
discharge and decrease quickly from that point. A multi-port diffuser 
will be used to achieve maximum initial dilution and other engineering 
techniques will improve plume velocity and mixing. Details of the 
diffuser design will be coordinated with the North Carolina Division of 
Environmental Management during the National Pollutant Discharge 
Elimination System (NPDES) permitting process. The impact of a fresh 
water discharge to the saline environment of the New River will be 
minimal and will not adversely affect the movement of aquatic life 
within the New River estuary. Water quality in the New River will be 
beneficially impacted since the discharged treated domestic wastewater 
effluent from the new advanced wastewater treatment plant will be of a 
higher quality than the effluent from existing MCB Camp Lejeune 
wastewater treatment plants. The much higher level of treatment will 
result in a 78 percent reduction of oxygen consuming substances as 
compared to the current situation. Nitrogen and phosphorus will be 
reduced by 87 percent and 80 percent, respectively, from existing 
conditions. Dechlorination facilities being constructed in Phase II 
will eliminate chlorine residuals in the effluent. Monitoring programs 
for influent and effluent will be established as part of the NPDES 
permit. Potential impacts to sediments will be mitigated through a 
monitoring program to address pre- and post-construction level of 
contaminants around the diffuser. Parameters for this testing (i.e., 
sample period, sample size, and toxicants monitored) will be 
established during the NPDES permitting process.
    The potential for spills will be minimized through operation of 
modern state-of-the-art monitoring equipment which allows early 
detection of abnormal conditions at remote sites. Additionally, a 
state-of-the-art advanced wastewater treatment facility with dual-path 
treatment systems, as required by North Carolina regulations, will 
mitigate the potential for spills more effectively than the existing 
facilities.
    Steps are being taken by MCB Camp Lejeune to reduce the wastewater 
flow requiring treatment. Construction and renovation projects are 
required to include water conservation devices. Studies have been 
undertaken to identify opportunities to recycle and reclaim wastewater. 
MCB Camp Lejeune has also recently conducted several Infiltration and 
Inflow studies of the base wastewater collection system. Improvements 
to the wastewater collection system underway and those planned in the 
near term, along with water conservation methods, will provide MCB Camp 
Lejeune the opportunity to eliminate unnecessary flows to the 
wastewater system.
    This action will have no impact upon ambient air quality or noise 
levels.
    A small amount of terrestrial habitat will be displaced by 
transmission line construction and vegetation will be removed from the 
25 acres needed for treatment plant construction and the two acres 
required for the rapid infiltration system at Onslow Beach. The tract 
at Onslow Beach to be used for the rapid infiltration system has been 
cleared for some time, therefore there will be minimal impact to the 
natural vegetation community.
    No permanent displacement of wetlands will occur at the plant site, 
rapid infiltration system site, or wetland crossings by the pipeline. 
By selecting pipeline routes along existing rights-of-way, impacts to 
wetlands have been minimized. Section 404 Nationwide Permit Numbers 12 
and 26 will apply for these crossings. Pipeline crossings of the New 
River near Camp Geiger, Northeast Creek, Bearhead Creek, and Wallace 
Creek will be accomplished using directional drilling techniques that 
will pass under these waterbodies and not disturb aquatic habitats or 
wetlands.
    No federally protected threatened or endangered species will be 
affected. Limiting construction of the underwater component of the 
project to certain months (1 September through 1 April) will further 
reduce the short-term impacts to primary nursery areas and alligator 
habitat.
    The proposed action has been evaluated with respect to 
environmental and social impacts, as well as access to public 
information and an opportunity for public participation in the NEPA 
process as mandated by Executive Order 12898, ``Federal Actions to 
Address Environmental Justices in Minority Populations and Low-Income 
Populations.'' The project is consistent with the goals and provisions 
of that Executive Order.
    A Coastal Consistency Determination was prepared for this project 
and it concluded that the proposed action is being carried out in a 
manner consistent, to the maximum extent practicable, with the 
enforceable policies of the North Carolina Coastal Management Plan. The 
North Carolina Division of Coastal Management concurs with this 
determination. Coordination will continue with the North Carolina 
Division of Coastal Management for pipeline crossings of wetlands.
    Preparation of the Environmental Impact Statement began with a 
public scoping process to identify issues that should be addressed in 
the document. Involvement in scoping was offered through a combination 
of documented public announcements and a meeting with State of North 
Carolina agencies. Public announcements were handled through scoping 
letters sent to Federal, State, and local governmental agencies, 
citizen groups and associations and the general public. Also, a Notice 
of Intent to prepare an Environmental Impact Statement was published in 
local newspapers and the Federal Register. Scoping took place between 
December 1991 and January 1992.
    The Notice of Availability of the DEIS appeared in the Federal 
Register on June 18, 1993. The DEIS was distributed to agencies and 
officials of Federal, State and local governmental agencies, citizens 
groups and associations, public libraries, and to other interested 
parties. The public review period for the DEIS was from June 13, 1993 
through August 2, 1993. During this period a public hearing was held on 
July 13, 1993 at Jacksonville Senior High School, Jacksonville, North 
Carolina. The FEIS was distributed to agencies and officials of 
Federal, State and local governmental agencies, citizens groups and 
associations, public libraries, and to other interested parties on June 
3, 1994.
    The Department of the Navy believes that there are no outstanding 
issues to be resolved with respect to this project. Questions regarding 
the Environmental Impact Statement prepared for this action may be 
directed to Mr. Robert Warren, Environmental Management Department, MCB 
Camp Lejeune, NC 28542, telephone (910) 451-5003.

    August 2, 1994.
Elsie L. Munsell,
Deputy Assistant Secretary of the Navy (Environmental and Safety).
[FR Doc. 94-19192 Filed 8-5-94; 8:45 am]
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