[Federal Register Volume 67, Number 125 (Friday, June 28, 2002)]
[Notices]
[Pages 43588-43589]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 02-16379]


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DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE

Department of the Army; Corps of Engineers


Availability of the Draft Supplement to the Final Environmental 
Impact Statement for the Operation and Maintenance Program at Wister 
Lake and Poteau River, OK

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

ACTION: Notice of availability.

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SUMMARY: Notice is made of the availability of a Draft Supplement to 
the Final Environmental Statement (DSFES) for the Operation and 
Maintenance Program at Wister Lake and Poteau River, OK, prepared by 
the Tulsa District of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE). The 
supplement describes and considers the potential environmental 
consequences resulting from operating the Wister Lake project with a 
conservation pool at 478.0 feet National Geodetic Vertical Datum (NGVD) 
and from raising the conservation pool from 471.6 to 478.0 feet (NGVD).

DATES: The DSFES will be available for public review when this 
announcement is published. The review period of the

[[Page 43589]]

document will be until September 11, 2002. To request a copy of the 
supplement, please call (918) 669-4396.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: For further information regarding the 
DSFES, please contact Stephen L. Nolen, Chief, Environmental Analysis 
and Compliance Branch, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, ATTN: CESWT-PE-E, 
1645 South 101st East Avenue, Tulsa OK 74128-4629.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The Wister Lake Project is located in 
southeastern Oklahoma in LeFlore County and was authorized by the Flood 
Control Act of 1938 and completed in 1949. The project consists of the 
lake, dam, and downstream stations on the lower Poteau River to its 
confluence with the Arkansas River. It provides substantial flood 
control, municipal and industrial water supply, flow augmentation, 
water conservation, and sediment reduction. Wister Lake and its 
adjacent lands are also used for recreation, hunting, and wildlife 
management.
    A Final Environmental Statement (FES) for operation and maintenance 
of the project was filed on November 19, 1973, and evaluated impacts to 
the environment from operating the project with a conservation pool 
level at 471.6 feet NGVD. Since 1974, the lake's conservation pool has 
been raised four times, either seasonally or permanently, principally 
to increase water supply and enhance recreation. The Water Resources 
Development Act of 1996 (WRDA 1996) instructed the United States Army 
Corps of Engineers (USACE) to permanently raise the conservation pool 
to its present elevation, 478.0 feet NGVD. However, impacts to 
resources and the environment were never documented or analyzed. To 
comply with the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA), this 
supplement to the 1973 FES focuses on the impacts associated with 
maintaining the permanent pool level at 478.0 feet, as directed by 
Congress, and continuing current management practices. It also examines 
the historical impacts associated with raising the permanent 
conservation pool from its original level of 471.6 to 478.0 feet NGVD.
    Raising the conservation pool to 478.0 feet NGVD has resulted in 
the loss and/or modification of approximately 3,254 acres of wildlife 
habitat and approximately 300 acres of a waterfowl marsh and green tree 
waterfowl management unit. Raising the conservation pool has inundated 
at least 10 archeological sites. Pool fluctuations and wave action 
between 471.6 and 478.0 feet NGVD have disturbed at least 18 
archeological sites and may have affected as many as 36 sites.
    Mitigation measures are proposed for those resources that have been 
negatively impacted from raising the conservation pool to 478.0 feet 
NGVD. These impacts are limited to biological and cultural resources. 
Mitigations for biological resources are based on recommendations of 
the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and include reimbursement to the 
Oklahoma Department of Wildlife Conservation for the loss of a green 
tree waterfowl management unit and the cost of reconstructing a new 
waterfowl management unit.
    The USACE, Tulsa District is consulting with the Advisory Council 
on Historic Preservation, the Oklahoma State Historic Preservation 
Officer, the Caddo Tribe of Oklahoma, and the Wichita and Affiliated 
Tribes of Oklahoma to develop mitigation measures to minimize adverse 
effects of the proposed action on historic properties.
    The DSFES has been coordinated and approved by offices and 
directorates affected by or interested in the subject matter, including 
the Office of Counsel and Executive Offices.

Stephen R. Zeltner,
Lieutenant Colonel, U.S. Army, Acting District Engineer.
[FR Doc. 02-16379 Filed 6-27-02; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3710-39-P