[Federal Register Volume 67, Number 173 (Friday, September 6, 2002)]
[Notices]
[Pages 57055-57057]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 02-22675]


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TENNESSEE VALLEY AUTHORITY


Lower Cumberland and Tennessee Rivers, Kentucky Lock Addition 
Project, Final Supplement 1 Environmental Impact Statement, Department 
of the Army, United States Army Corps of Engineers

AGENCY: Tennessee Valley Authority.

ACTION: Adoption of Final Supplement 1 Environmental Impact Statement 
and issuance of record of decision.

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SUMMARY: In accordance with the Council on Environmental Quality's 
regulations (40 CFR parts 1500 to 1508) and the Tennessee Valley 
Authority's (TVA) procedures for implementing the National 
Environmental Policy Act (NEPA), TVA has decided to adopt the Final 
Supplement 1 Environmental Impact Statement (FSEIS) issued by the 
United States Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) in May 2001. The FSEIS, 
entitled ``Lower Cumberland and Tennessee Rivers, Kentucky Lock 
Addition Project,'' was filed with the Environmental Protection Agency 
on May 31, 2001. It addresses modifications and design changes to the 
approved Lock Addition Project not addressed in earlier NEPA reviews. 
TVA was a cooperating agency in the preparation of the FSEIS because it 
has responsibility for Kentucky Dam, including preserving the integrity 
of the dam and its appurtenant lock structures. TVA also has review and 
approval responsibilities under Section 26a of the TVA Act and property 
under TVA control that would be affected. TVA has independently 
reviewed the FSEIS and finds that the statement adequately addresses 
the comments and suggestions made by TVA in its role as a cooperating 
agency. Further, TVA has decided to adopt the USACE's Proposed Action 
Plan identified in the FSEIS. The Proposed Action Plan is the currently 
recommended project design based on recent engineering studies, 
hydraulic modeling information, and newly added features. Overall, the 
design changes and project modifications reduce the environmental 
impacts of the original project on high quality mussel resources while 
improving long-term recreation facilities for fishermen and tourists. 
None of the proposed changes resulted in public controversy.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Linda B. Shipp, Senior NEPA 
Specialist, Environmental Policy and Planning, Tennessee Valley 
Authority, 400 West Summit Hill Drive, Mail Stop WT 8C, Knoxville, 
Tennessee 37902-1499, telephone (865) 632-3440 or e-mail 
[email protected]. Copies of the FSEIS may be obtained by writing to 
Tim Higgs, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Nashville District, PO Box 
1070 (PM-P), Nashville, Tennessee 73202-1070, telephone (615) 736-7863 
or e-mail [email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The Kentucky Lock and Dam (L&D) project is 
located in Marshall and Livingston Counties in western Kentucky at 
Tennessee River Mile 22.4. The project is part of the Kentucky-Barkley 
Reservoirs' navigation system. The originally approved design for the 
Lock Addition Project was evaluated in a Final Feasibility Study and 
Final Environmental Impact Statement (FS/FEIS) completed by USACE on 
March 13, 1992. In its adoption of the FS/FEIS and issuance of a Record 
of Decision (ROD) on September 30, 1999, TVA adopted the USACE's 
preferred alternative, Alternative Plan A. Alternative Plan A 
recommended the construction of a second and main 110-foot-wide by 
1200-foot-long navigation lock chamber and related features at the 
existing Kentucky L&D to improve the capacity and efficiency of the 
navigation system. The project was authorized by section 101(a)(13) of 
the Water Resources Development Act of 1996, and funding to initiate 
construction was included in the Fiscal Year 1998 Energy and Water 
Development Appropriations Act.
    In recommending the construction of a new navigation lock chamber 
at Kentucky Dam, the USACE recognized that additional engineering 
evaluations and hydraulic modeling studies would be required before 
some features, such as a possible navigation training dike, could be 
designed. Further, USACE recognized that those modified project 
components would be addressed in subsequent NEPA documents, tiered from 
the 1992 FEIS. The FSEIS was prepared to address the project changes 
not covered by previous NEPA documents.

Alternatives Considered

    Two broad plans were considered in the FSEIS: A No Action Plan and 
a Proposed Action Plan. Under the No Action Plan, the project would be 
implemented as described in the original 1992 FEIS, as modified in a 
subsequent October 1999 Environmental Decision Record on the relocation 
of transmission structures and a March 2000 Environmental Assessment on 
the relocation of the U.S. Highway 62/641 bridge off Kentucky L&D. 
Under the Proposed Action Plan, the previously approved project would 
be implemented with the following design changes and modifications:
    [sbull] Relocation of the new lock upstream about 200 feet and 
toward the river about 20 feet.
    [sbull] Modification of construction methods to reduce the size of 
areas within cofferdams and to construct more features in the ``wet.''
    [sbull] Construction of a non-public, temporary access road from 
the main lock area to the Vulcan Disposal Area.
    [sbull] Mitigation for the loss of the TVA Taylor Park Campground 
(TPC), temporarily closed by TVA in 1997, through construction of 
facilities for use by fishermen. These new or modified facilities 
include: A new lock visitors' center, Powerhouse Island fishing pier, 
additional Powerhouse Island parking and restroom facilities, west bank 
fishing pier, and improvements to existing coffer cell.
    [sbull] Placement of fill up to elevation of contour 385 feet in 
the TPC area during construction and possibly permanently.
    [sbull] Mitigation for closure of the east bank boat ramp by 
constructing a new public boat ramp and courtesy dock in an expanded 
west bank boat basin for use after construction.

[[Page 57056]]

    [sbull] Use of the expanded boat basin for contractor activities 
during construction.
    [sbull] Refinements in some upstream lock features and the approach 
channel.
    [sbull] Refinements in some downstream lock features and the 
approach channel.
    [sbull] Modification of the size and location of the navigation 
training dike off Powerhouse Island to improve commercial navigation 
conditions.
    [sbull] Mitigation for construction-related closures of the west 
bank by construction of two fishing jetties along the downstream part 
of the west bank shoreline.
    [sbull] Elimination of placement of excavated or dredged material 
on the east bank between Russell Creek and the Interstate 24 bridge.
    [sbull] Elimination of the aquatic disposal site at Tennessee River 
Mile 19.9.
    All of the items listed above were determined to be independent 
features, each of which could be dropped from the project without 
jeopardizing the construction of the new lock chamber or any of the 
other independent features. In addition, utility lines (including 
water, sewer, power, and telephone) associated with those features will 
be constructed and/or relocated within the project boundaries.
    The USACE used a 1:100 scale physical model of Kentucky L&D at its 
Engineering Research and Development Center to evaluate alternative 
lock orientations and the design of the navigation and spillway 
training dikes. The model also was used to develop designs of project 
facilities that would have minimal environmental impacts. The proposed 
upstream lock location was selected because it reduced construction 
costs and environmental impacts by reducing previously planned 
downstream channel and bank modifications. Modeling determined that 
bank excavations and in-water excavations to widen the downstream 
navigation channel were not required. With the reduced volume of wet 
material requiring disposal, the need for an aquatic disposal site at 
Tennessee River Mile 19.9 was eliminated. In addition, the need for 
placing rock along the east bank between Russell Creek and the 
Interstate 24 bridge also was eliminated.
    Alternative locations for replacement of the fisherman access 
intended to be provided by the east bank boat ramp included other east 
bank locations, expansion of the existing west bank ramp (as proposed 
in the 1992 FEIS), and construction of a new ramp in an expanded west 
bank boat basin. Other east bank locations were dropped due to 
environmental conflicts (extensive mussel beds) and safety concerns 
(proximity to lock approach channel). The location of the new ramp in 
the expanded boat basin was selected because it provided both improved 
recreational facilities and easy construction access to the river. 
Alternative contractor ramp locations upstream of the basin in areas 
with known higher density of mussels were dropped during preliminary 
scoping discussions with the resources agencies.

Basis for Decision

    Like the USACE, TVA has decided to adopt the Proposed Action Plan 
because it reduces many environmental impacts of the earlier design, 
including mitigating unavoidable recreational impacts, reducing impacts 
to listed and non-listed mussel species, and improving recreational 
fishing. None of the changes resulted in public controversy. The 
Proposed Action Plan is the environmentally preferable alternative.

Environmental Consequences and Mitigation

    As with the preparation of the 1992 FEIS, the issues of major 
concern for the Supplemental Environmental Impact Statement (SEIS) were 
impacts to the high quality mussel beds downstream of the L&D and 
impacts of construction activities on recreation fishing in the 
tailwater area. Refinements to the lock design have lessened the degree 
of in-stream work, such as bank excavation and channel dredging, as 
well as eliminating the need for placement of material along about 3000 
linear feet of the right bank from Russell Creek to the Interstate 24 
bridge. Construction techniques were modified to reduce the area to be 
dewatered behind cofferdams. Proposed techniques for building the lower 
approach wall call for some features (slurry wall and drilled shafts) 
to be constructed in the ``wet.'' Much of the lower guidewall would be 
constructed on a working platform typically 5 feet above normal water 
levels. These changes are expected to reduce potential mussel impacts.
    Recreational facilities closed or displaced by construction 
activities are being mitigated according to plans that have been 
coordinated with the public and resource agencies. Additional 
recreational and tailwater fishing facilities are being constructed 
with funds previously allocated to mitigate the closure of the TVA TPC, 
including the lock visitors' center, two fishing piers, and additional 
parking and restroom facilities. As mitigation for the loss of public 
access to the west bank of the tailwater for 5-8 years during 
construction, west bank jetties are being constructed that will provide 
additional shoreline fishing areas downstream from the construction 
site. As mitigation for the loss of the east bank boat ramp, a new ramp 
and courtesy dock will be constructed in the expanded west bank boat 
basin for post-construction public use.
    Relocation and construction of utility lines (including water, 
sewer, power, and telephone), associated with changes in project 
design, although not directly addressed in the SEIS, are within the 
project construction area evaluated in the FSEIS. Most of the proposed 
utility lines are along an existing right-of-way. As with overall 
project construction, best management practices will be used to 
minimize erosion impacts. Therefore, impacts of utility line 
construction and/or relocation will be minor and localized.
    All structures displacing aquatic habitat have been designed to the 
minimum size necessary to achieve the targeted effects (i.e., 
addressing river eddy formations). The navigation training dike, 
spillway training dikes, and the west bank fishing jetties will 
displace existing river bottom habitat; however, mussel relocation will 
be conducted for the navigation training dike and west bank jetties to 
reduce the direct impacts to these resources. The west bank jetties 
will result in some permanent loss of quality mussel habitat; however, 
both of those structures should provide long-term improvements for 
fisheries habitat and benthic macroinvertebrate populations. The 
structures are to be composed of rock containing minimal amounts of 
fine material so that objectionable turbidity would not be generated 
during the construction period. Visual turbidity monitoring will be 
provided to ensure that in-stream activities do not generate 
objectionable turbidity.
    Overall, the Proposed Action Plan reduces construction impacts of 
the original project design while improving long-term recreation 
facilities for fishermen and tourists. The environmental commitments 
presented in the FSEIS for the Proposed Action Plan include:
    [sbull] Construction sequencing will be implemented to minimize 
some project impacts. The west bank fishing jetties would be 
constructed early to offset impacts from closing areas of the west bank 
upstream of the boat basin to public access.
    [sbull] Seasonal restrictions on in-stream, bottom-disturbing 
activities, such as blasting, dredging, and fill placement, to protect 
fish spawning. For the tailwater, this seasonal restriction is during

[[Page 57057]]

February and March; in the headwater, the restricted period is mid-
April to mid-June.
    [sbull] Active construction areas are to be cordoned off to protect 
the general public. This would include the west bank above the existing 
boat basin and localized areas on the river and reservoir during active 
construction of in-water features.
    [sbull] Escort tugs will be required during active construction of 
the lock guidewalls and approach dredging to protect both construction 
crews and traffic entering/exiting the lock.
    [sbull] Conducting in-stream activities during low-flow periods, 
where applicable.
    [sbull] Visual turbidity monitoring during in-stream activities.
    [sbull] Use of a weighted silt curtain during construction of the 
expanded west bank boat basin.
    [sbull] Use of rock with minimal fines for construction of in-
stream structures, such as dikes and jetties.
    [sbull] Relocation of abundant mussel resources where they occur at 
in-water construction sites.
    [sbull] Notification of Kentucky Department of Fish and Wildlife 
Resources during blasting activities for monitoring potential fish 
kills.
    [sbull] Proper control of fugitive dust and tracking of sediment 
onto public roads.
    [sbull] Compliance with solid waste regulations for disposal of 
demolition and construction-related wastes.
    [sbull] If cultural resources are encountered, work is to stop 
until the site is investigated by a qualified archaeologist. The 
existing ``protective'' layer of fill at archaeological site 15Lv12 
will not be modified. The berm separating site 15Lv12 from the Vulcan 
Disposal Area Haul Road also is to remain undisturbed.
    [sbull] Stabilization of all disturbed areas after construction 
including use of native plants where areas are not to be mowed or 
manicured.
    [sbull] Wetland mitigation for the entire Lock Addition Project, 
including the 0.11 acres associated with the Vulcan Disposal Area Haul 
Road, will be completed at a site in Benton, Kentucky. The wetland 
mitigation site will be monitored to ensure successful restoration of 
the hydrology and the establishment of wetland vegetation.
    [sbull] Restoration of the Livingston County Trail System after 
construction use of the Vulcan Disposal Area Haul Road.
    Further, as stated in the USACE's ROD: ``Compliance with applicable 
environmental review and consultation requirements has been 
accomplished through the development of the FSEIS. The FSEIS documents 
consideration and compliance with the Clean Water Act; the Endangered 
Species Act; the National Environmental Policy Act; the National 
Historic Preservation Act; Executive Order 11988 (Floodplain 
Management); Executive Order 12898 (Environmental Justice); Executive 
Order 11990 (Protection of Wetlands); Section 504 of the Rehabilitation 
Act of 1973 and the Architectural Barriers Act of 1968, and other 
applicable environmental protection statutes, regulations, and orders. 
* * *''


    Dated: August 28, 2002.
Kathryn J. Jackson,
Executive Vice President.

[FR Doc. 02-22675 Filed 9-5-02; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 8120-08-P