[Federal Register Volume 66, Number 177 (Wednesday, September 12, 2001)]
[Notices]
[Pages 47457-47458]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 01-22919]


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DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE

Department of the Army, Corps of Engineers


Draft Programmatic Environmental Impact Statement for the 
Nationwide Permit Program

AGENCY: Army Corps of Engineers, DoD.

ACTION: Extension of comment period.

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SUMMARY: In the July 31, 2001, issue of the Federal Register (66 FR 
39499) the Corps of Engineers (Corps) announced the availability of the 
draft Programmatic Environmental Impact Statement (PEIS) for the 
Nationwide Permit (NWP) Program. The overall purpose of the draft PEIS 
is to review and evaluate the NWP program as a whole to ensure that the 
NWP program authorizes only activities with no more than minimal 
individual and cumulative adverse effects on the aquatic environment. 
We have received several requests to extend the comment period, which 
ends September 14, 2001. To ensure ample opportunity to review the 
draft PEIS and to provide meaningful comments, we are extending the 
comment period 45 days to October 29, 2001. We have submitted a copy of 
the draft PEIS to EPA's Office of Federal Activities which is also 
publishing a Notice of Availability in September 14, 2001 Federal 
Register.

DATES: Comments on the draft PEIS must be received by October 29, 2001.

ADDRESSES: Mail comments to the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Institute 
for Water Resources, CEIWR-PD, 7701 Telegraph Road, Casey Building, 
Alexandria, Virginia 22315-3868. Submit electronic comments to 
[email protected]. See SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION for file formats 
and other information about filing electronic comments.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Dr. Robert Brumbaugh, CEIWR-PD, at 
703-428-6370 or to download a copy of the draft PEIS access http://www.iwr.usace.army.mil/iwr/Regulatory/regulintro.htm or for information 
on the Corps Regulatory program access http://www.usace.army.mil/inet/functions/cw/cecwo/reg/

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The Corps has decided to prepare a voluntary 
PEIS on the Corps NWP Program, even though the Corps has determined 
that it is not legally required to do so. The PEIS will evaluate the 
NWP process (requirements and procedures) and examine and compare 
programmatic and procedural alternatives to the NWP Program. To 
accomplish this, the PEIS will look at the structure, implementation, 
and performance (in terms of achieving the stated goals) of the NWP 
Program as a whole. It will identify, evaluate, and compare 
programmatic alternatives and procedural changes to ensure that the 
adverse environmental effects of activities authorized by NWPs will be 
no more than minimal, individually and cumulatively. The PEIS will also 
examine how the procedures have been implemented in the Corps field 
offices to ensure that the adverse environmental effects of activities 
authorized by NWPs will be no more than minimal, individually and 
cumulatively. The PEIS will address the NWP Program and will not 
address the impacts of any specific NWP(s) (neither the existing NWPs 
nor the Corps current proposed reissuance of NWPs). The Corps of 
Engineers prepared an Environmental Assessment on the NWP Program that 
resulted in the issuance of a FONSI on June 23, 1998. There is no 
change in the proposal or the environmental aspect of the proposal 
examined in the EA; therefore, the Corps has determined that it is not 
required to prepare an EIS or a PEIS in order to comply with the 
National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA). The FONSI is available for 
review on the Corps Regulatory Program webpage http://www.usace.army.mil/inet/functions/cw/cecwo/reg/. The NWP Program is 
designed and implemented to ensure that the NWPs do not reach the 
threshold of environmental impacts that would require that an EIS be 
prepared. The Corps prepares an Environmental Assessment (EA) on each 
specific NWP when the Corps issues or reissues that NWP. These EAs are 
prepared at the Office of the Chief of Engineers, and are supplemented 
by the Division Engineers with regional information on potential 
environmental impacts, including adding regional conditions where 
necessary to ensure that the impacts of each NWP are minimal both 
individually and cumulatively.
    As indicated above, the Corps has determined that the PEIS is not a 
legally required Environmental Impact Statement. The Corps is preparing 
the voluntary PEIS in accordance with Corps regulations at 33 CFR part 
325, appendix B, and with CEQ regulations at 40 CFR parts 1500-1508. 
The Corps had hoped to complete the PEIS prior to the reissuance of the 
NWPs that were proposed on August 9, 2001, in the Federal Register at 
66 FR 42070, even though the Corps has determined that completing the 
voluntary PEIS prior to reissuance is not legally required. However, 
with the extension of the comment period the Corps will not be able to 
complete the PEIS before the NWPs will need to be issued in order to 
ensure that the existing NWPs do not expire without new NWPs to take 
their place. The CEQ regulations at 40 CFR 1506.1(c) do not prohibit 
the Corps from issuing the NWPs prior to completing the voluntary PEIS, 
because the Corps has determined that the PEIS is not a required PEIS. 
We will thus be in full compliance with NEPA for the reissuance of the 
NWPs through preparation of an EA on each NWP prior to issuance. 
Moreover, the issuance of the NWPs by the end of this year will not 
preclude or limit the ability of the Corps to make modifications to the 
NWP Program or to make changes to the NWPs in accordance with any need 
for changes identified in the PEIS. The Corps can, and has in the past, 
issued revisions to existing NWPs and new NWPs prior to the expiration 
of NWPs five years from the date of issuance. The Corps has submitted 
this voluntary draft PEIS to EPA's Office of Federal Affairs (OFA) for 
review. In accordance with procedures specified in NEPA regulations, 
OFA is publishing in September 14, 2001, Federal Register a Notice of 
Availability of the draft PEIS for public review through October 29, 
2001. In The draft PEIS can be downloaded from the Institute for Water 
Resources homepage at http://

[[Page 47458]]

www.iwr.usace.army.mil/iwr/Regulatory/regulintro.htm For those 
interested parties who cannot download documents from the Internet, a 
limited number of copies of the draft PEIS can be obtained by 
contacting the Institute for Water Resources at the address or 
telephone number above. You may submit comments by sending electronic 
mail (e-mail) to: [email protected] Submit electronic comments as 
a text file and avoid the use of any special characters; do not use any 
form of encryption. Comments sent as attachments to electronic mail 
messages must be in text format to ensure that those attachments can be 
read by IWR. Comments sent electronically as attachments in word 
processing program formats will not be accepted.

Charles M. Hess,
Chief, Operations Division, Directorate of Civil Works.
[FR Doc. 01-22919 Filed 9-11-01; 8:45 am]
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