[Federal Register Volume 62, Number 148 (Friday, August 1, 1997)]
[Notices]
[Pages 41336-41338]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 97-20336]
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DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE
Rural Utilities Service
Notice of Intent To Prepare an Environmental Impact Statement for
the Jackson County Water Association, Jackson County Lake Project and
Notice of Public Scoping Meeting
AGENCY: Rural Utilities Service, USDA.
ACTION: Notice of intent and notice of meeting.
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SUMMARY: The Rural Utilities Service (RUS), announces its intent to
prepare an Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) pursuant to the
National Environmental Policy Act of 1969 (NEPA) (U.S.C. 4231 et seq.)
in accordance with the Council on Environmental Quality regulations for
implementing the procedural provisions of NEPA (40 CFR 1500-1508) and
Agency regulations 7 CFR 1940-G. The primary scope of the EIS is to
evaluate the environmental impacts of and alternatives to the Jackson
County Water Association's applications for financial assistance to
provide water supply for the residents of Jackson and surrounding
counties. This project, known as the Jackson County Lake (Project), is
one of the initiatives developed for the Kentucky Highlands Empowerment
Zone. The project proposes to construct a 115 foot tall dam on the
Laurel Fork of the Rockcastle River in Jackson County, Kentucky
creating a 640 acre lake, storing approximately 28,440 acre feet of
water. Included in the proposal is a raw water intake, pumps, water
treatment plant upgrade from 1.0 million gallons per day (MGD) to 2.0
MGD, and pipelines necessary for transporting raw water to the Jackson
County Water Association's water treatment plant for treatment and
distribution to residents in Jackson County and portions of Lee,
Madison, Owsley, and Rockcastle Counties. In addition to improving the
water supply of the areas specified above, the Project will serve to
meet a stated goal of the Kentucky Highland Empowerment Zone's
Strategic Plan for increasing local recreational and tourism
opportunities in the Jackson County area.
The RUS has received two pre-applications from the Jackson County
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Water Association for the (1) Phase IV Water Plant Expansion Project
and (2) Jackson County Lake Project. The first application requests
financial assistance solely from RUS and the second application
requests financial assistance from the RUS, Appalachian Region
Commission, Kentucky Department of Transportation, Kentucky Highland
Empowerment Zone, and Housing and Urban Development (HUD). In
accordance with 40 CFR 1501.5, Lead Agencies, the RUS will be the lead
Agency for the EIS and under consideration and negotiation for
cooperating agencies are the U.S. Forest Service; the Department of the
Army, Corps of Engineers, Nashville District; Jackson County EZ
Community, Incorporated; and the Jackson County Water Association, as
recipient for Community Development Block Grant funds. Since the
activities encompassed by both applications are so interconnected, the
Project shall be, for the purposes of the National Environmental Policy
Act, considered as one action.
With this notice, RUS invites any affected Federal, State, and
local Agencies and other interested persons to comment on the scope,
alternatives, and significant issues to be analyzed in depth in the
EIS. The public scoping meeting will be held on August 21, 1997, at the
Jackson County Courthouse, McKee, KY, at 7:00 pm.
Public participation is an integral component of the environmental
review process for Federal actions. Public participation will be
especially important during the scoping phase of the project. RUS and
the cooperating agencies will be seeking information, comments, and
assistance from Federal, State, and local agencies and other
individuals who may be interested in or affected by the proposed
action. This input will be used in preparing the draft EIS. Comments
submitted during the scoping process should be in writing. The comments
should describe as clearly and completely as possible any issues the
commenter has with the proposal.
The draft EIS (DEIS) will be filed with the U. S. Environmental
Protection Agency (USEPA) and will be available for public comment by
the Summer or Fall of 1998. At that time, the USEPA will publish a
notice of the availability of the DEIS in the Federal Register and the
applicant and EZ officials will publish notices in local newspapers.
The comment period will be 45 days from the date the USEPA publishes
their Federal Register notice of the availability of the DEIS.
RUS and the cooperating agencies, believe it is important to give
reviewers notice of several court rulings related to public
participation in the environmental review process. First, reviewers of
the DEIS must structure their participation in the environmental review
of the proposal so that it is meaningful and alerts the agencies to the
reviewer's position and contentions, Vermont Yankee Nuclear Power Corp.
v. NRDC. 435 U.S. 519. 553(1978). Also environmental objections that
could be raised at the DEIS stage but that are not raised until after
the completion of the final EIS may be waived or dismissed by the
courts, City of Angoon v. Hodel, 803 F. 2d 1016 1022 (9th Circuit,
1986) and Wisconsin Hertitage, Inc. v. Harris, 490 F. Supp. 1334, 1338
(E.D.Wis. 1980). Because of these court rulings, it is very important
that those interested in this proposed action participate at each
opportunity for public involvement so that substantive comments and
objectives are made available to the Federal agencies involved at a
time when they can meaningfully consider them and respond to them
accordingly.
To assist the involved Federal agencies in identifying and
considering issues and concerns on the proposed action, comments on the
DEIS should be as specific as possible. It is also helpful if the
comments refer to the specific pages or chapters of the DEIS. Comments
may also address the adequacy of the DEIS or the merits of the
alternatives formulated and discussed in the statement. Reviewers may
wish to refer to the Council on Environmental Quality Regulations for
implementing the procedural provisions of the National Environmental
Policy Act at 40 CFR 1503.3 in addressing these points.
After the comment period ends on the DEIS, the comments will be
analyzed, considered, and responded to by the agencies involved in
preparing the final EIS (FEIS). The FEIS is scheduled to be completed
approximately 30 days after the end of the comment period on the DEIS.
The public will again have the opportunity to review and comment on the
FEIS. Upon completion of a 45 day public comment period, the RUS will
document its decision regarding the Project and reasons for the
decision in a Record of Decision.
Those persons who choose not to comment on the scope of the
document at this time but desire a copy of the DEIS should send their
names and addresses to Mark S. Plank at the address listed below.
DATES: Written comments on the scope of the EIS will be accepted 15
days after the public scoping meeting is held.
ADDRESSES: Comments should be sent to Mark S. Plank, USDA, Rural
Utilities Service, Engineering and Environmental Staff, Stop 1571,
Washington, D.C., 20250-1571, telephone (202) 720-1649 or fax (202)
720-0820 or Thomas G. Fern, State Director, USDA, Rural Development
State Office, 771 Corporate Drive, Suite 200, Lexington, KY 40503,
(606) 224-7300 or fax (606) 224-7340.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Jim Letcher, Vernon Brown, or Ken
Slone, USDA, Rural Development State Office, 771 Corporate Drive, Suite
200, Lexington, KY 40503, (606) 224-7300 or Mark S. Plank, at the
address and telephone number above.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Pursuant to Subchapter C, Part I
(Empowerment Zones, Enterprise Communities and Rural Development
Investment Areas) of Title XIII of the Omnibus Budget Reconciliation
Act of 1993, Jackson County, Kentucky, is located in an area designated
as an Empowerment Zone/Enterprise Community (EZ/EC) (see Federal
Register Vol. 60, No. 24, February 6, 1995). The purpose of the EZ/EC
initiative is to empower rural communities and their residents to
create opportunities for economic development as part of a Federal-
State-local and private sector partnership. The proposed action is an
integral component of the EZ/EC initiative as identified in the
Kentucky Highland Empowerment Zone's Strategic Plan. The proposed
action will improve the area's water supply necessary for promoting
economic development in the area. At the present time the water supply
for the area consists of the existing Tyner Lake. Water withdrawals
from Tyner Lake are at near capacity and raw water emergency situations
occur during periods of low rainfall.
Prior to submitting applications to RUS and other Federal and state
agencies for financial assistance, local and Jackson County Empowerment
Zone officials held a series of public meetings exploring alternative
project sites for the Project, which has been an ongoing proposal since
the early to mid 1980s. Project sites that have been at one time or
another considered are as follows: Horse Lick Site No. 1; Laurel Fork/
Indian Creek Site No. 1; Laurel Fork/Highway 290 Bridge Site No. 2; War
Fork Site No. 1; War Fork/Hughes Fork Site No. 2; South Fork/ Highway
89 Site No. 4 (small lake); South Fork/Highway 89 Bridge Site No. 4
(large lake); South Fork/War Fork Site No. 3A
[[Page 41338]]
(small lake); and South Fork/War Fork No. 3A (large lake). Preliminary
studies concluded that the Horse Lick and Water Fork watershed should
be preserved due to environmental sensitivities. Of the sites
previously considered, local officials are proposing that the preferred
alternative sites for an impoundment structure are located within the
Laurel Fork watershed. There are two primary dam sites to be
considered--(1) Laurel Fork near the confluence with Indian Creek and
(2) Laurel Fork near the Highway 290 Bridge. The EIS proposes to
document the extensive analyses already performed and evaluate in
detail the two sites that have been designated as preferred
alternatives by local officials. Which ever site is chosen, the
applicant and Empowerment Zone officials will be required to secure a
construction permit from the Kentucky Department for Environmental
Protection, Division of Waters and a Section 10, Rivers and Harbor Act
permit from the Department of the Army, Corps of Engineers.
Dick Mansfield,
Assistant Administrator, Water and Environmental Programs.
[FR Doc. 97-20336 Filed 7-31-97; 8:45 am]
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