[Federal Register Volume 67, Number 36 (Friday, February 22, 2002)]
[Notices]
[Page 8234]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 02-4177]



[[Page 8234]]

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DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE

Department of the Army; Corps of Engineers


Availability of the Draft Environmental Impact Statement for the 
Proposed Rueter-Hess Reservoir, Parker, CO

AGENCY: Department of the Army, DoD.

ACTION: Notice of availability.

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SUMMARY: The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (Corps) has prepared a Draft 
Environmental Impact Statement (DEIS) to analyze the direct, indirect 
and cumulative effects of constructing and operating the proposed 
Rueter-Hess Reservoir near the town of Parker, in Douglas County, 
Colorado. The project proponent is the Parker Water and Sanitation 
District (District). The basic purpose of the Proposed Action is to 
provide a safe, adequate and sustainable municipal water supply to the 
District, which is capable of meeting peak demands within the 
District's currently zoned boundary for the next 50 years. The 
construction of the proposed project would result in permanent impacts 
to 6.7 acres of wetlands and 5 miles of other waters of the United 
States, and would require a Section 404 permit.
    The DEIS was prepared in accordance with the National Environmental 
Policy Act (NEPA) of 1969, as amended, and the Corps' regulations for 
NEPA implementation (33 Code of Federal Regulations (CFR) parts 230 and 
325, appendices B and C). The Corps, Omaha District; Regulatory Branch 
is the lead Federal agency responsible for the DEIS and information 
contained in the DEIS serves as the basis for a decision regarding 
issuance of the Section 404 permit. It also provides information for 
local and state agencies having jurisdictional responsibility for 
affected resources.

DATES: Written comments on the DEIS will be accepted on or before April 
8, 2002. Comments should be submitted to Rodney Schwartz, Corps--Omaha 
District (address below). Oral and/or written comments may also be 
presented at the Public Hearing to be held at 7 p.m. on March 12, 2002 
at the High Prairie Farm Equestrian Center, 7522 Pinery Parkway South 
in Parker, Colorado.

ADDRESSES: Copies of the DEIS will be available for review at:
    1. Parker Library, 10851 South Crossroad Drive, Parker, CO 80134.
    2. Parker Water and Sanitation District, 19801 East Mainstreet, 
Parker, CO 80138.
    3. U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Denver Regulatory Office, 9307 
South Platte Canyon Road, Littleton, CO 80128.
    Copies can also be obtained from the Corps' third-party contractor, 
URS Corporation, attention: Paula Daukas, 8181 East Tufts Avenue, 
Denver, CO 80237; 303-740-3896; Fax 303-694-3946, 
[email protected]

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Rodney Schwartz, Senior Project 
Manager, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Omaha District--Regulatory 
Branch, 12565 West Center Road, Omaha, Nebraska 68144-3869, Phone: 402-
221-4143, Fax: 402-221-4939, [email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The purpose of the DEIS is to provide 
decision makers and the public with information pertaining to the 
Proposed Action, and to disclose environmental impacts and identify 
mitigation measures to reduce impacts. The DEIS analyzes the Parker 
Water and Sanitation District's proposal to construct and operate 
Rueter-Hess Reservoir and the associated water delivery system. The 
proposed reservoir would be located in Douglas County, Colorado 
approximately 12 miles southeast of Denver and 3 miles southwest of the 
town of Parker. The reservoir would be located on Newlin Gulch with a 
diversion structure along Cherry Creek. The project would include a 
16,200 acre-foot (AF) reservoir inundating 470 acres, a 5,300-foot long 
and 135-foot high dam, two pipelines, a water treatment plant and 
booster pump station, a diversion structure along Cherry Creek with a 
pump station, and 16 Denver Basin extraction wellfields.
    The proposed water supply system would rely upon renewable sources 
of water, including the capability of capturing, storing, and reusing 
seasonal high flows in nearby Cherry Creek, and Advanced Wastewater 
Treatment (AWT) return flows currently discharged into Cherry Creek. 
The water from the reservoir would be used primarily to help satisfy 
the District's peak seasonal demands, thereby reducing the loading on 
nonrenewable Denver Basin aquifer groundwater. The reservoir is needed 
by the District to provide operational flexibility to ensure a long-
term, reliable water supply.
    In addition to the Proposed Action, the DEIS analyzes two 
alternatives: (1) The Reduced Capacity Reservoir (11,200 AF), and (2) 
the No Action. The Reduced Capacity Reservoir would be constructed 
along the same dam axis as the Proposed Action, but with a smaller 
storage capacity. The dam would be 5,000 feet long, 123 feet high, and 
inundate approximately 370 acres. A total of 17 Denver Basin wellfields 
would be developed, one more wellfield than the Proposed Action. The 
diversion facilities along Cherry Creek would be the same as for the 
Proposed Action. The No Action Alternative assumes that the Rueter-Hess 
Reservoir would not be built and that the District would continue with 
their current operational plan relying upon deep groundwater well 
fields and alluvial Cherry Creek wellfields to supply their water. It 
is estimated that 71 Denver Basin wellfields would be required to 
supply the area within the District's legal boundary.

Rodney J. Schwartz,
Senior Project Manager, Regulatory Branch.
[FR Doc. 02-4177 Filed 2-21-02; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3710-62-P