[Federal Register Volume 66, Number 106 (Friday, June 1, 2001)]
[Notices]
[Pages 29768-29769]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 01-13521]


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DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE

Rural Utilities Service


Jackson County Lake Project

AGENCY: Rural Utilities Service, USDA.

ACTION: Notice of availability of final environmental impact statement.

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SUMMARY: Notice is hereby given that the Rural Utilities Service (RUS) 
is issuing a Final Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) for the Jackson 
County Lake Project. The Final EIS was prepared 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 parts 1500-1508) 
and RUS regulations (7 CFR part 1940-G). RUS invites comments on the 
Final EIS.
    The purpose of the EIS is to evaluate the potential environmental 
impacts of and alternatives to the Jackson County Empowerment Zone (EZ) 
Community, Incorporated and Jackson County Water Association's (JCWA) 
applications for financial assistance to provide water supply for the 
residents of Jackson County and parts of surrounding counties. A 
secondary purpose of the proposal is to provide recreational 
opportunities. The project, known as the Jackson County Lake Project, 
proposes to construct a roller-compacted concrete dam to create a 
reservoir within Jackson County, Kentucky, and to construct a raw water 
transmission main from the proposed reservoir to the JCWA Treatment 
Plant. A 300-foot buffer zone surrounding the reservoir horizontally 
from the normal pool level has been proposed to protect the water 
quality of the reservoir by restricting development and certain land 
uses in this area. Also included in the proposal is the construction of 
a water intake structure and a pump house to pump water out of the 
reservoir. Proposed recreational development around the reservoir may 
include a boat ramp, boat dock, public beach, hiking trails, picnic 
areas, and a primitive campground.

DATES: Written comments on this Final EIS will be accepted on or before 
July 2, 2001.

ADDRESSES FOR FURTHER INFORMATION: To send comments or for more 
information, contact: Mark S. Plank, Acting Director, USDA, Rural 
Utilities Service, Engineering and Environmental Staff, 1400 
Independence Avenue, Mail Stop 1571, Washington, DC 20250, telephone 
(202) 720-1649, fax (202) 720-0820, or e-mail: [email protected]. 
Further information can also be obtained from: Kenneth Slone, State 
Director, USDA, Rural Development State Office, 771 Corporate Drive, 
Suite 200, Lexington, KY 40503, telephone (606) 224-7300, or fax (606) 
224-7340.
    A copy of the Final EIS can be obtained or viewed online at http://www.usda.gov/rus/water/ees/feis-jc.htm. The files are in a portable 
document format (pdf); in order to review or print the document, users 
need to obtain a free copy of Acrobat Reader. The Acrobat Reader can be 
obtained from http://www.adobe.com/prodindex/acrobat/readstep.html.
    Copies of the Final EIS will be available for public review during 
normal business hours at the following locations:

Jackson County Public Library, Courthouse Square, P.O. Box 160, McKee, 
KY 40447, (606) 287-8113
Natural Resources Conservation Service, U.S. Highway 421 South, McKee, 
KY 40447, (606) 287-8311
Jackson County Extension Service 263 U.S. Highway 421, South, P.O. Box 
188, McKee, KY 40447, (606) 287-7693
Kentucky Highlands Investment Corporation, 362 Old Whitley Road, 
London, KY 40741, (606) 864-5175
Jackson County EZ Community, Incorporated, McCammon Ridge Road, P.O. 
Box 280, McKee, KY 4044, (606) 287-8395
USDA Rural Development, 771 Corporate Drive, Suite 200, Lexington, KY 
40503, (606) 224-7300

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 60 FR 6945, 
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.
    The Jackson County EZ Community, Inc. and the JCWA have applied for 
financial assistance for the Jackson County Lake Project from the 
following: RUS; Appalachian Regional

[[Page 29769]]

Commission; U.S. Department of Commerce, Economic Development 
Administration; Department of Housing and Urban Development; Kentucky 
Highlands Empowerment Zone; and Kentucky Tobacco Settlement money. In 
accordance with 40 CFR 1501.5, Lead Agencies, the RUS is the lead 
Agency for the EIS and the U.S. Forest Service is the Cooperating 
Agency.
    The Draft EIS was published May 26, 2000 for a 45-day comment 
period. In addition, two public meetings were held in McKee, Kentucky 
on June 27, 2000 to solicit comments from the public and other 
interested parties.
    Comments received from agencies and the public on the Draft EIS and 
revision of the water needs analysis led to the reassessment of various 
reservoir and non-reservoir alternatives for meeting Jackson County's 
projected water needs. As a result of this reassessment, two types of 
alternatives are now considered to be reasonable for meeting those 
needs. The action proposed by the Jackson County Empowerment Zone 
Community, Incorporated (EZ), Jackson County Fiscal Court, and the 
Jackson County Water Association (JCWA) consists of either the 
construction of a roller-compacted concrete (RCC) dam to create a 
reservoir within Jackson County, Kentucky, and the construction of a 
raw water transmission main from the proposed reservoir to the existing 
JCWA Treatment Plant, or the construction of a water transmission 
pipeline from an existing surface water resource in a neighboring 
county to Jackson County for the purposes of importing additional 
water. For the dam and reservoir alternatives, a 300-foot buffer zone 
surrounding the reservoir horizontally from the normal pool level has 
been proposed to protect the water quality of the reservoir by 
restricting development and certain land uses in this area. Along with 
the dam, a water intake structure and a pump house would be constructed 
to pump water out of the reservoir. Proposed recreational development 
around the reservoir may include a boat ramp, boat dock, public beach, 
hiking trails, picnic areas, and a primitive campground.
    In the Draft EIS both the Rural Utilities Service and the Jackson 
County Empowerment Zone asserted that their preferred alternative for 
meeting the purpose and need of the proposed action was the War Fork 
and Steer Fork proposal. After comparing project costs, user rates 
impacts, future growth prospects of Jackson County and the surrounding 
area, and evaluating other relevant information with regard to the 
reasonable alternatives considered in the EIS, RUS has identified the 
War Fork and Steer Fork, 3.5 MGD reservoir as their preferred 
alternative. The Jackson County Empowerment Zone concurs.
    The War Fork and Steer Fork dam site is located about 0.5 miles 
southwest of Turkey Foot in eastern Jackson County. The dam would be 
situated on War Fork, 0.75 miles north of the confluence with Steer 
Fork. The dam would be about 87 to 107 feet tall, 760 to 790 feet long, 
and 102 to 122 feet wide, creating a reservoir with an average yield of 
3.5 mgd of raw water. At a normal pool elevation of 980 feet above mean 
sea level (MSL), the surface area of this reservoir would be about 116 
acres. At a potential maximum flood elevation of 1,000 feet above MSL, 
the surface area of the reservoir would be approximately 162 acres. The 
total acreage for a reservoir at maximum flood level at this site, with 
a 300-foot buffer extending from normal pool level, would be about 337 
acres of land. As much of this land is currently part of the Daniel 
Boone National Forest, land acquisition at this site would require a 
land exchange with the U.S. Forest Service. The War Fork and Steer Fork 
reservoir site has been identified as the Lead Agency's Preferred 
Alternative.
    With this notice, RUS invites any affected Federal, State, and 
local Agencies and other interested persons to comment on the Final 
EIS.

    Dated: May 24, 2001.
Blaine D. Stockton,
Acting Administrator, Rural Utilities Service.
[FR Doc. 01-13521 Filed 5-31-01; 8:45 am]
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