[Federal Register Volume 66, Number 195 (Tuesday, October 9, 2001)]
[Notices]
[Pages 51495-51496]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 01-25112]


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DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION

Federal Highway Administration


Environmental Impact Statement: Tucker County, WV

AGENCY: Federal Highway Administration (FHWA), DOT

ACTION: Revised notice of intent.

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SUMMARY: On May 2, 2000, the FHWA issued an NOI to advise the public 
that a Supplemental Environmental Impact Statement (SEIS) would be 
prepared for the Blackwater Avoidance area of the Thomas-to-Davis 
portion of the Parsons-to-Davis project of the proposed Appalachian 
Corridor H highway in Tucker County, West Virginia. This purpose of 
this revised NOI is to advise the public that the limits of the study 
area for the SEIS will be expanded to include the entire Parsons-to-
Davis project. Expansion of the study area is required due to new 
information obtained during Endangered Species Act, Section 7 
consultation regarding a federally listed, endangered species; the 
Northern Flying Squirrel (Glaucomys sabrinus fuscus).

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Henry E. Compton, Division 
Environmental Coordinator, Federal Highway Administration, West 
Virginia Division, Geary Plaza, Suite 200, 700 Washington Street East, 
Charleston, West Virginia, 25301, Telephone: (304) 347-5268

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: In accordance with a court approved 
settlement agreement, the FHWA published an NOI on May 2, 2000, that 
indicated the FHWA, in cooperation with the West Virginia Department of 
Transportation (WVDOT), would prepare an SEIS to examine one or more 
potential alignment shifts for the Thomas-to-Davis portion of the 
Parsons-to-Davis project of the proposed Appalachian Corridor H highway 
in Tucker County, West Virginia. A Record of Decision (ROD) for the 
entire Appalachian Corridor H highway (FHWA-WV-EIS-92-01-F) from 
Aggregates to the WV/VA state line, a distance of approximately 100 
miles, was approved on August 2, 1996.
    During Endangered Species Act, Section 7 consultation with the 
United States Fish and Wildlife Service, populations of the federally 
listed, endangered, Northern Flying Squirrel (Glaucomys sabrinus 
fuscus) were found within the current study limits of the Parsons-to-
Davis project. Due to this discovery, it was determined that in order 
to review a full range of potential alignments that may avoid the newly 
discovered populations, the study limits of the SEIS must be expanded 
to include the entire Parsons-to-Davis project.
    The proposed Parsons-to-Davis project will provide a divided four-
lane, partially controlled access highway on new location for a 
distance of approximately 9 miles. The purpose of this project is to 
provide safe and efficient travel between population centers in Tucker 
County (Parsons Area and Thomas/Davis Area), while also contributing to 
the completion of Corridor H in West Virginia.
    Alternates under consideration in the SEIS will be: (1) The no-
action alternative, (2) the preferred alternative that was approved in 
the 1996 ROD, and (2) one or more alternatives that avoid the 
Blackwater Area, as identified in Exhibit 4 of the court approved 
Corridor H Settlement Agreement. Based on

[[Page 51496]]

preliminary studies, it is expected that the avoidance alternatives 
considered in the SEIS will include one or more alignments that would 
shift the project to the north, resulting in additional connections to 
US 219, WV Route 32, and WV Route 93 in the vicinity of the towns of 
Thomas and Davis.
    Letters describing the proposed action and soliciting comments will 
be sent to appropriate federal, state, and local agencies, and to 
private organizations and citizens who have expressed or are known to 
have an interest in this proposal.
    To ensure the full range of issues related to the proposed action 
are addressed and all significant issues identified, comments and 
suggestions are invited from all interested parties. Comments or 
questions concerning this proposed action should be directed to the 
FHWA at the address provided above.

(Catalog of Federal Domestic Assistance Program Number 20.205, 
Highway Research Planning and Construction. The regulations 
implementing Executive Order 12372 regarding intergovernmental 
consultation on Federal programs and activities apply to this 
program.)

    Issued on: September 27, 2001.
Henry E. Compton,
Environmental Coordinator, Charleston, West Virginia.
[FR Doc. 01-25112 Filed 10-5-01; 8:45 am]
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