[Federal Register Volume 69, Number 216 (Tuesday, November 9, 2004)]
[Notices]
[Pages 64919-64920]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 04-24907]


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DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE

Department of the Army; Corps of Engineers


Notice of Availability of the Draft Environmental Impact 
Statement for the Cape Wind Energy Project, Nantucket Sound and 
Yarmouth, MA, Application for Corps Section 10 Individual Permit

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

ACTION: Notice of availability.

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SUMMARY: In keeping with the purposes of the National Environmental 
Policy Act (NEPA), the New England District, Corps of Engineers (Corps) 
has prepared a Draft Environmental Impact Statement (DEIS) in response 
to a permit application for the proposed construction of an offshore 
wind-powered generating facility by Cape Wind Associates, LLC on 
Horseshoe Shoal in Nantucket Sound, MA. The DEIS evaluated the 
potential environmental impacts associated with the construction, 
operation and decommissioning of the proposed offshore wind facility. 
Potential impacts at four alternative locations were also considered 
for comparison purposes. Public comment on the proposed and any or all 
of the alternative sites is requested and encouraged.

DATES: The Corps will hold four public hearings to receive comments on 
the DEIS. The public hearings will be held on:
    1. December 6, 2004, 6 p.m. to 10 p.m., Oak Bluffs, MA.
    2. December 7, 2004, 7 p.m. to 11 p.m., West Yarmouth, MA.
    3. December 8, 2004, 6 p.m. to 10 p.m., Nantucket, MA.
    4. December 16, 2004, 7 p.m. to 11 p.m., Cambridge, MA.
    Comments on the DEIS must be received no later than January 10, 
2005.
    Additional information on how to submit comments is included in the 
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION section.

ADDRESSES: The hearing locations are:
    1. Martha's Vineyard Regional High School, Vineyard Haven Road, Oak 
Bluffs, MA.
    2. Mattacheese Middle School, 400 Higgins Crowell Road, West 
Yarmouth, MA.
    3. Nantucket Community School, Mary P. Walker Auditorium, 10 
Surfside Road, Nantucket, MA.
    4. Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Building 10 Alumni Center 
(Maclaurin Buildings)--Room 10-250, 222 Memorial Drive, Cambridge, MA.
    Additional information regarding locations where the DEIS and 
appendices can be viewed is included in the SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION 
section.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:  Karen Kirk Adams, 978-318-8335.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:  Cape Wind Associates, LLC (the applicant) 
has requested a permit under Section 10 of the Rivers and Harbors Act 
of 1899 to install 130 wind turbine generators, an electric service 
platform, and associated cable in an area of Nantucket Sound, 
Massachusetts known as Horseshoe Shoal. The applicant's intended 
purpose is to provide wind-generated energy that will be transmitted to 
the regional power grid. The wind turbine generators would be spaced 
one-third to one-half mile apart over a 24 square mile area, producing 
up to 454 megawatts of wind generated energy to be transmitted from a 
centrally located electric service platform via a submarine cable to a 
landfall location in Yarmouth, MA. The proposed wind turbines would be 
up to 420 feet high with the hub height approximately 260 feet above 
the water surface. The northernmost turbines would be approximately 4 
miles from Yarmouth, MA, the southeastern most turbines would be 
approximately 11 miles from Nantucket, and the westernmost turbines 
would be approximately 5.5 miles from Martha's Vineyard. The proposed 
submarine cable system, consisting of two 115 kV solid dielectric cable 
circuits, would be jet-plow embedded into the seabed to a depth on 
approximately 6 feet below the present bottom. The overland cable 
system would be installed underground within existing public right-of-
ways and roadways in the town of Yarmouth, MA to NSTAR's existing 
electric system in Barnstable, MA. The approximate construction start 
date for the proposed project is November 2005, with commercial 
operation starting in November 2006.
    The DEIS is intended to provide the information needed for the 
Corps to perform a public interest review for the Section 10 permit 
decision. Significant issues analyzed in the DEIS included geology and 
sediment conditions; physical oceanographic conditions; benthic and 
shellfish resources; finfish resources and commercial and recreational 
fisheries; protected marine species; terrestrial ecology, wildlife, and 
protected species; avian resources; coastal and freshwater wetland 
resources; water quality; cultural and recreational resources; visual 
resources; noise; transportation; electrical and magnetic fields, 
telecommunications systems; air quality; and socioeconomic

[[Page 64920]]

resources. Several alternatives were evaluated for comparative 
purposes, including the No Action Alternative under which the new 
facility will not be built. In addition to the applicant's proposed 
location, which is Nantucket Sound, the potential impacts and benefits 
of locating a wind energy project at the Massachusetts Military 
Reservation, a site south of Tuckernuck Island, and a combination site 
comprised of two areas south of New Bedford with a reduced footprint in 
Nantucket Sound were evaluated for comparison purposes. Public comment 
on any or all of the alternatives is encouraged. The Notice of Intent 
for preparation of the DEIS was published in the Federal Register (67 
FR 4414, January 30, 2002).
    Other Environmental Review and Consultation Requirements. To the 
fullest extent possible, the DEIS integrated analyses and consultation 
required by the Endangered Species Act of 1973, as amended (Pub. L. 93-
205; 16 U.S.C. 1531, eq seq.); the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery 
Conservation and Management Act, as amended (Pub. L. 94-265; 16 U.S.C. 
1801, et seq.), the National Historic Preservation Act of 1966, as 
amended (Pub. L. 89-855; 16 U.S.C. 470. et seq.), the Fish and Wildlife 
Coordination Act of 1958, as amended (Pub. L. 85-624; 16 U.S.C. 661, et 
seq.); the Coastal Zone Management Act of 1972, as amended (Pub. L. 92-
583; 16 U.S.C. 1451, et seq.); the Clean Water Act of 1977, as amended 
(Pub. L. 92-500; 33 U.S.C. 1251, et seq.); Section 10 of the Rivers and 
Harbors Act of 1899, 33 U.S.C. 403 et seq.); the Outer Continental 
Shelf Lands Act (Pub. L. 95-372; 43 U.S.C. 1333(e)), and applicable and 
appropriate Executive Orders. Additionally, the DEIS was prepared as a 
Draft Environmental Impact Report to satisfy the requirements of the 
Massachusetts Environmental Policy Act (301 CMR 11.00 et seq.) and to 
satisfy the requirements of the Cape Cod Commission as a Development of 
Regional Impact.
    Public Participation. Any person wishing to comment on the DEIS can 
submit written comments to: Karen Kirk Adams, Project Manager, 
Regulatory Division, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, New England 
District, 696 Virginia Road, Concord, Massachusetts 01742-2751, 
Reference File No. NAE-2004-338-1, or by e-mail to 
[email protected]. Interested parties may view the DEIS online 
at http://www.nae.usace.army.mil/projects/ma/ccwf/deis.htm. The DEIS is 
also available to review at the following locations:
    1. Sturgis Library, 3090 Main Street, (PO Box 606), Barnstable, MA.
    2. South Yarmouth Library, 312 Old Main Street, Yarmouth, MA.
    3. West Yarmouth Library, Route 28, West Yarmouth, MA.
    4. Yarmouthport Library, 297 Main Street (6A), Yarmouthport, MA.
    5. Whelden Memorial Library, 2401 Meeting House Way, (PO Box 147), 
West Barnstable, MA.
    6. Cotuit Library, 871 Main Street (PO Box 648), Cotuit, MA.
    7. Hyannis Public Library, 401 Main Street, Hyannis, MA.
    8. Centerville Public Library, 585 Main Street, Centerville, MA.
    9. Marstons Mills Library, 2160 Main Street, Marstons Mills, MA.
    10. Osterville Free Library, 43 Wianno Avenue, Osterville, MA.
    11. Mashpee Library, 100 Nathan Ellis Highway (PO Box 657), 
Mashpee, MA.
    12. Falmouth Public Library, 123 Katherine Lee Bates Road, 
Falmouth, MA.
    13. East Falmouth Public Library, 310 East Falmouth Highway, East 
Falmouth, MA.
    14. North Falmouth Public Library, 6 Chester Street, North 
Falmouth, MA.
    15. West Falmouth Public Library, 575 West Falmouth Highway (PO Box 
1209), West Falmouth, MA.
    16. Dennis Memorial Library, 1020 Old Bass River Road, Dennis, MA.
    17. Dennis Public Library, 673 Main Street (Route 28), Dennisport, 
MA.
    18. Woods Hole Library, 581 Woods Hole Road (PO Box 185), Woods 
Hole, MA.
    19. Brooks Free Library, 739 Main Street, Harwich, MA.
    20. Eldredge Public Library, 64 Main Street, Chatham, MA.
    21. Nantucket Atheneum, 1 India Street (PO Box 808), Nantucket, MA.
    22. Edgartown Free Public Library, 58 North Water Street (PO Box 
5249), Edgartown, MA.
    23. Oak Bluffs Public Library, 80 Pennacook Avenue (PO Box 2039), 
Oak Bluffs, MA.
    24. Free Public Library, 1042A State Road (PO Box 190), West 
Tisbury, MA.
    25. Chilmark Public Library, 522 South Road, Chilmark, MA.
    26. Aquinnah Public Library, 1 Church Street, Aquinnah, MA.
    27, New Bedford Free Public Library, 613 Pleasant Street, New 
Bedford, MA.
    28. Jonathan Bourne Public Library, 19 Sandwich Road, Bourne, MA.
    29. Vineyard Haven Public Library, RFD 139A Main Street, Vineyard 
Haven, MA.
    30. Sandwich Free Public Library, 142 Main Street, Sandwich, MA.
    31. Boston Public Library, Central Library, 700 Boylston Street, 
Boston, MA.
    32. Cape Cod Community College, Wilkens Library, 2240 Iyanough 
Road, West Barnstable, MA.

Thomas L. Koning,
COL, EN, Commander.
[FR Doc. 04-24907 Filed 11-8-04; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3710-24-M