[Federal Register Volume 65, Number 59 (Monday, March 27, 2000)]
[Notices]
[Pages 16191-16192]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 00-7390]


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DEPARTMENT OF THE DEFENSE

Department of the Army Corps of Engineers


Notice of Intent To Prepare an Environmental Impact Statement and 
Conduct a Public Scoping Meeting for the Marlinton Local Protection 
Project, Marlinton, Pocahontas County, West Virginia

AGENCY: U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, DoD.

ACTION: Notice.

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SUMMARY: Pursuant to the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA), the 
U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, DoD, Huntington District will prepare an 
Environmental Impact Statement (EIS). The EIS will evaluate potential 
impacts to the natural, physical, and human environment as a result of 
the proposed flood damage reduction measure for the City of Marlinton, 
Pocahontas County, West Virginia (Marlinton Local Protection Project). 
The proposed project would consist of a levy along the banks of the 
Greenbrier River and two alternative measures for managing flooding 
from Knapp Creek. A public scoping meeting is announced for April 11, 
2000, from 7:00-10:00 pm in the Marlinton City Hall Auditorium, 
Marlinton, Pocahontas County, West Virginia.

ADDRESSES: Send written comments and suggestions concerning this 
proposed project to Nicholas E. Krupa PD-R, U.S. Army Corps of 
Engineers, Huntington District, 502 Eighth Street, Huntington, West 
Virginia, 25701-2070. Telephone: 304-529-5712. Electronic mail: 
[email protected]. Requests to be placed on the mailing list 
should also be sent to this address.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: To obtain additional information about 
the proposed project, contact Curt Murdock PM-P, U.S. Army Corps of 
Engineers, Huntington District, 502 Eighth Street, Huntington, West 
Virginia, 25701-2070. Telephone: 304-528-7444. Electronic mail: 
[email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

1. Public Participation

    a. The Corps of Engineers will conduct a public scoping meeting to 
gain input from interested agencies, organizations, and the general 
public concerning the content of the EIS, issues and impacts to be 
addressed in the EIS, and alternatives that should be analyzed. The 
meeting is scheduled for:
    Date: April 11, 2000.
    Time: 7:00-10:00 pm.
    Place: The Marlinton City Hall Auditorium, Marlinton, Pocahontas 
County, West Virginia.
    b. The Corps invites full public participation to promote open 
communication and better decision-making. All persons and organizations 
that have an interest in the Greenbrier River flooding problems as they 
effect the community of Marlinton, West Virginia and the affected 
environment are urged to participate in this NEPA environmental 
analysis process. Assistance will be provided upon request to anyone 
having difficulty with learning how to participate.
    c. Public comments are welcomed anytime throughout the NEPA 
process. Formal opportunities for public participation include: (1) 
Public meetings to be held near the community of Marlinton; (2) Anytime 
during the NEPA process via mail, telephone or e-mail; (3) During 
Review and Comment on the Draft EIS--approximately July to October 
2001; and, (4) Review of the Final EIS --winter 2001-02. Schedules and 
locations will be announced in local news media. Interested parties may 
also request to be included on the mailing list for public distribution 
of meeting announcements and documents. (See ADDRESSES).
    d. To ensure that all issues related to the proposed project are 
addressed, the Corps will conduct an open process to define the scope 
of the EIS. Recommendations from interested agencies, local and 
regional stakeholders and the general public are encouraged to provide 
input in identifying areas of concern, issues and impacts to be 
addressed in the EIS, and the alternatives that should be analyzed. 
Scoping for the DEIS will continue to build upon the knowledge and 
information developed during the more than 20 years of Corps of 
Engineer investigations of flooding in the Greenbrier watershed.

2. Background

    a. Flooding has played a significant role in the history of 
Marlinton. Virtually the entire town lies within the 100-year 
floodplain of the Greenbrier River. Approximately 465 structures

[[Page 16192]]

(both residential and nonresidential) in Marlinton stand within the 
100-year floodplain. Potential annual damages for this reach are 
estimated to be $1.8 million (1997 dollars). Located near the 
headwaters of the Greenbrier, warning times for floods in Marlinton are 
short, yet flood flows can be significant because of the large drainage 
area.
    b. The largest known floods in the basin occurred in 1812, 1877, 
1985, and 1996. At least eleven other major, but less severe, floods 
occurred in the 20th centruy. In November 1985, the flood of record for 
the upper portion of the basin occurred, resulting in five deaths. This 
event caused an estimated $97 million (1997 dollars) in damages basin-
wide, with approximately $20 million (1997 dollars) occurring in 
Marlinton alone. The most recent major flood occurred in January 1996 
and was approximately 1.5 feet lower than the 1985 event in Marlinton, 
but still caused widespread destruction.
    c. Section 579 of the 1996 Water Resources Development Act 
specifically authorized the Corps to again consider local protection 
plans that would include such measures as floodwalls, levees, 
channelization and small tributary impoundments along with the 
nonstructural plans. The Greenbrier Limited Feasibility Study, 
completed in 1997 by the Huntington District Corps, evaluated 
alternatives for three major damage centers, including Marlinton. The 
1997 study reevaluated the economic analysis of structural alternatives 
using more accurate property evaluation data. Three feasible 
alternatives emerged from the 1997 study for local flood protection at 
Marlinton. These are:
    d. Alternative 1--An earthen levee/concrete floodwall combination 
to protect Marlinton, and an earthen levee to protect Riverside. The 
Marlinton levee will begin at high ground 200 feet north, or at the end 
of First Avenue, and run 6,000 feet along the Greenbrier River to Knapp 
Creek, and then 2,900 feet up Knapp Creek to the vicinity of the water 
plant. From this point, a 1,000-foot long floodwall would continue to 
the protection along Knapp Creek. A 600-foot levee would run from the 
end of the floodwall to high ground in the vicinity of Wilson's field. 
Marlin Run, which flows into Knapp Creek and which would be blocked by 
the proposed levee, would be re-routed to a point upstream of the end 
of the levee to avoid the need for a pump station. The 5,000-foot long 
Riverside levee would begin at high ground in the vicinity of 
Campbelltown, and run along Stoney Creek to the Greenbrier. Along the 
Greenbrier River, the levee would run to high ground in the vicinity of 
Burns Motor Freight. The Riverside levee would be required because the 
Marlinton protection would increase flood heights in the Riverside 
area.
    e. Alternative 2--An earth levee/concrete floodwall combination and 
a diversion of Knapp Creek to protect Marlinton, and an earth levee to 
protect Riverside. The Marlinton levee would be the same as in 
Alternative 1 along the Greenbrier River to Knapp Creek. From that 
point along Knapp Creek, the levee would then cross Knapp Creek and run 
800 feet to high ground. Three, gated culverts would run through this 
structure at Knapp Creek. A pump station would be mounted on the levee 
in close proximity. When the level of the Greenbrier River reaches a 
set point, the culvert gates would close and pumping of Knapp Creek to 
the Greenbrier River would occur. A 2,200-foot long diversion channel 
would be cut through Buckley Mountain, from a point approximately 1 
mile upstream of the mouth of Knapp Creek to a point on the Greenbrier 
River 2000 feet downstream of their confluence. This channel diversion 
would carry Knapp Creek flood flows away from Marlinton. In conjunction 
with the channel diversion, an 800-foot long, 25foot-high concrete dam 
would be built across Knapp Creek just downstream of the channel 
diversion.
    f. Alternative 3--Nonstructural plan for both Marlinton and 
Riverside. The nonstructural plan for the Marlinton/Riverside area 
involves the raising in place of 260 residential and 5 nonresidential 
structures and the acquisition of 10 residential structures and 145 
nonresidential structures.
    g. These alternatives, along with the no-action will be the 
alternatives the Corps initially proposes to evaluate in the EIS. As 
necessary, any reasonable alternatives that may become apparent as the 
evaluation proceeds will be addressed.

Gregory D. Showalter,
Army Federal Register Liaison Officer.
[FR Doc. 00-7390 Filed 3-24-00; 8:45 am]
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