[Federal Register Volume 64, Number 15 (Monday, January 25, 1999)]
[Notices]
[Pages 3688-3689]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 99-1570]
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DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE
Department of the Army
Intent To Prepare a Draft Environmental Impact Statement (DEIS)
for Waukegan Harbor, Lake County, Illinois as Part of the Comprehensive
Dredging Management Plan (CDMP)
AGENCY: U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Department of Defense.
ACTION: Notice of intent.
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SUMMARY: The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Chicago District maintains
Waukegan Harbor, a Federally authorized, commercial deep-draft
navigation project on Lake Michigan. Maintenance dredging has not been
performed on inner portions of the harbor since 1971, due to elevated
levels of contaminants in the sediment, particularly polychlorinated
biphenyls (PCBs) and lack of an acceptable disposal site for
confinement of these sediments. Sediment in the outermost portion of
the Federal Channel beyond the breakwater, is clean, does not require
confined disposal and has been dredged routinely since completion of
the harbor.
The Chicago District has been working closely with the Illinois
Environmental Protection Agency (IEPA), the U.S. Environmental
Protection Agency (USEPA), The Waukegan Port District, and the Waukegan
Citizen's Advisory Group (CAG) to develop a Comprehensive Dredging
Management Plan for Waukengan Harbor. The plan has three primary
objectives: (1) re-establish a regular maintenance dredging program for
the inner harbor area; (2) deepen the navigation channels to
accommodate more economical, deeper draft vessels; and (3) clean-up all
contaminated unconsolidated sediment within the harbor. Approximately
550,000 cubic yards of sediments need to be removed from the harbor to
meet these objectives. The EIS will evaluate sediment removal,
transport, and disposal and management alternatives developed as part
of the Waukegan Harbor CDMP.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Dr. Phil Moy, EIS Coordinator (312)
353-6400 extension 2021 or Ms. Joan Albert, Project Manager, (312) 353-
6400 extension 2004; U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Chicago District;
111 North
[[Page 3689]]
Canal Street; Chicago, Illinois 60606-7206.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
1. Background
Prior to 1969, sediment dredged from the Federal Channel was placed
at an open-lake location. The discovery of elevated levels of
contaminants has prohibited maintenance dredging and authorized
expansion and deepening of the Federal Channel. Due to the lack of
maintenance dredging, channel depth in some parts of the harbor has
been reduced by as much as ten feet.
Due to the presence of PCBs in the sediment, Waukegan Harbor was
designated as one of the Great Lake's Areas of Concern in 1981. State
are required to prepare a Remedial Action Plan (RAP) for Great Lakes
Areas of Concerns. The Waukegan Citizen's Advisory Group has been
actively involved in the RAP process with the IEPA.
The PCB contamination originated in discharges primarily attributed
to the Outboard Marine Corporation (OMC). Under the Federal Superfund
authority, the USEPA and OMC developed a plan to cleanup the most
severely PCB-contaminated sediment (>50 parts per million (ppm)); the
cleanup was complete in 1993. Prior to completion of the cleanup, the
maximum PCB concentration in the Federal Channel was 33.5 ppm. Today
the maximum concentration of PCBs in the Federal Channel is 10.9, with
an average of about 3.4 ppm.
2. Alternatives
The EIS will consider the potential impacts of alternatives for
dredging and disposal of contaminated sediment removed from the inner
areas of the harbor. These will include various means of dredging and
sediment transport to the proposed disposal sites. Alternatives for
deepening and ongoing maintenance of the Federal Channel will also be
evaluated. The EIS will evaluate management alternatives for clean
sediment dredged from the approach channel.
Current laws and environmental policies require that contaminated
dredged material be confined or receive special treatment. Contaminated
sediment can be placed at an approved commercial landfill or in a
confined disposal facility (CDF) constructed for the harbor. Over 15
potential CDF sites for the Waukegan Harbor sediment were evaluated in
a 1984 Study. Though several of the sites met the economic, technical,
and environmental standards, lack of a nonFederal project sponsor or
public support prevented the plan from oving forward to approval and
implementation.
One of the original sites, a 17-acre, in-lake location south of
Waukegan Harbor remains under consideration. Through cooperative
efforts of the Waukegan CAG, and Federal and State agencies, a new
upland site has been identified for consideration: an existing 33-acre
industrial lagoon on the Johns-Manville property two miles north of the
harbor.
It is anticipated that once the sediment cleanup is complete, new
sediment that accumulates in the harbor would not require confined
disposal. Therefore, any CDF constructed for the harbor cleanup would
be capped and closed upon completion of the project.
3. Scoping Process
As part of the EIS process, a public scoping meeting will be held
early in 1999. Public participation is an important part of the
environmental analysis by providing assistance in determining the scope
of issues to be addressed and identifying the significant issues of the
proposed actions. Federal, State, and local resources agencies, Native
American groups and concerned interest groups/individuals are
encouraged to participate in this process. Time and location of the
scoping meeting will be widely publicized through fliers, announcements
and news releases. Those wishing to provide information or data they
feel should be included or considered in the Environmental Impact
Statement should furnish the information by writing to the points of
contact indicated above or by attending the scoping meeting.
Mary V. Yonts,
Alternate Army Federal Register Liaison Officer.
[FR Doc. 99-1570 Filed 1-22-99; 8:45 am]
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