[Federal Register Volume 70, Number 117 (Monday, June 20, 2005)]
[Notices]
[Pages 35452-35453]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 05-11975]


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DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR

Bureau of Reclamation


Lower Yuba River Accord, Yuba County, CA

AGENCY: Bureau of Reclamation, Interior.

ACTION: Notice of Intent to prepare an Environmental Impact Statement/
Environmental Impact Report (EIS/EIR) and to hold public scoping 
meetings.

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SUMMARY: Pursuant to the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) of 
1969, as amended, the Bureau of Reclamation (Reclamation) proposes to 
participate and serve as the lead agency under NEPA in the preparation 
of a joint EIS/EIR on the Lower Yuba River Accord (Yuba Accord). The 
Yuba County Water Agency (YCWA), a local public water agency, is 
proposing the project and will serve as the lead agency under the 
California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA). The purpose of the Yuba 
Accord is to resolve instream flow issues associated with operation of 
the Yuba River Development Project (Yuba Project) in a way that 
protects and enhances lower Yuba River fisheries and local water-supply 
reliability, while providing revenues for local flood-control and 
water-supply projects, water for the CALFED Program to use for 
protection and restoration of Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta (Delta) 
fisheries, and improvements in state-wide water supply management, 
including supplemental water for the Central Valley Project (CVP) and 
the State Water Project (SWP).
    This notice is published in accordance with NEPA regulations found 
in 40 CFR 1501.7. The purpose of this notice is to obtain suggestions 
and information from other agencies and the public on the scope of 
issues to be addressed in the EIS/EIR. A similar notice is being 
published by YCWA in accordance with CEQA. Comments and participation 
in the scoping process are encouraged.

DATES: Four public scoping meetings will be held on the following 
dates:
     July 19, 2005-1 p.m., Sacramento, CA
     July 19, 2005-6:30 p.m., Sacramento, CA
     July 20, 2005-1 p.m., Marysville, CA
     July 20, 2005-6:30 p.m., Marysville, CA

ADDRESSES: The public scoping meeting locations are:
     Sacramento--Doubletree Hotel, 2001 Point West Way, 
Sacramento, CA
     Marysville--Yuba County Government Center, 915 8th Street, 
Marysville, CA
    Written comments on the scope of the Yuba Accord or issues to be 
addressed in the EIR/EIS must be received no later than August 4, 2005. 
Send written comments to Mary Grim, Bureau of Reclamation, 2800 Cottage 
Way, MP-400, Sacramento, CA 95825. Grim, Bureau of Reclamation, 2800 
Cottage Way, MP-400, Sacramento, CA 95825.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Mary Grim, Environmental Specialist, 
Reclamation, at the above address; telephone number 916-978-5204.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: YCWA is a public agency created and existing 
pursuant to the provisions of the Yuba County Water Agency Act of 1959. 
YCWA owns and operates the Yuba Project, which includes New Bullards 
Bar Dam and Reservoir on the North Yuba River. YCWA operates the Yuba 
Project in accordance with a Federal Energy Regulatory Commission 
License, flood control rules promulgated by the U.S. Army Corps of 
Engineers, state water rights permit terms, and an agreement with the 
California Department of Fish and Game (CDFG) for instream flows.
    In March of 1991, CDFG released a ``Lower Yuba River Fisheries 
Management Plan'', which contained recommendations regarding fishery 
protection and enhancement measures in the lower 24-mile section of the 
Yuba River. CDFG requested that the State Water Resources Control Board 
(SWRCB) consider modifying YCWA's water rights permits to implement the 
recommendations contained in CDFG's Plan. Based on CDFG's request, and 
to address various allegations raised by a coalition of non-
governmental fisheries organizations (NGOs) against several water 
agencies in 1989 filings, the SWRCB initiated a proceeding to consider 
fishery protection and water right issues on the lower Yuba River in 
early 1992.
    The SWRCB held hearings on these issues in 1992 and 2000. The SWRCB 
adopted Water Rights Decision 1644 (D-1644) on March 1, 2001. D-1644 
established new instream flow requirements for the lower Yuba River in 
YCWA's water right permits, required YCWA to take actions to address 
potential concerns regarding water temperatures for Chinook salmon and 
steelhead, and required studies and consultation on various other 
issues.
    YCWA, several local water districts in Yuba County, and a 
collective of fisheries NGOs all initiated legal actions challenging D-
1644 on a variety of issues. After considering some new evidence, the 
court remanded D-1644 to the SWRCB for reconsideration in light of the 
new evidence. After a brief hearing in 2003, the SWRCB issued Revised 
Water Rights Decision 1644 (RD-1644), which contains only minor changes 
from D-1644. The same parties that had challenged D-1644 then initiated 
new legal proceedings challenging RD-1644 on most of the same issues.
    Since RD-1644 was issued, the parties to the litigation and the 
state and Federal fisheries agencies have been engaged in a 
collaborative, interest-based initiative to try to resolve the flow and 
other fisheries issues on the lower Yuba River. The potential 
settlement has become known as the Yuba Accord. If implemented, the 
Yuba Accord would resolve issues associated with operation of the Yuba 
Project in a way that would protect and enhance lower Yuba River 
fisheries, protect local water supply reliability, provide revenues for 
local flood-control and water-supply projects, provide water for 
protection and restoration of Delta fisheries, and increase state-wide 
water supplies.
    The Yuba Accord would include three major elements:
     The first element would be an agreement (Yuba Accord 
Fisheries Agreement) between YCWA, CDFG and the collective of NGOs, 
with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) and the National 
Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, National Marine Fisheries 
Service supporting the agreement. Under the Yuba Accord Fisheries 
Agreement, YCWA would revise the operation of the Yuba Project to 
provide higher flows in the lower Yuba River to protect and enhance 
fisheries and to increase downstream water supplies.

[[Page 35453]]

     The second element of the Yuba Accord would be an 
agreement between YCWA and water districts within Yuba County (Yuba 
Accord Conjunctive Use Agreement) for the implementation of a 
comprehensive program of conjunctive use of surface water and 
groundwater supplies and actions to improve water use efficiencies.
     The third element would be an agreement between YCWA and 
the California Department of Water Resources (DWR) and Reclamation 
(Yuba Accord Transfer Agreement), which would put water released from 
the Yuba Project to beneficial uses through the Environmental Water 
Account and in the CVP and SWP service areas.
    All three of these agreements would need to be in place for the 
Yuba Accord to be implemented.
    The draft EIS/EIR will analyze the adverse and beneficial effects 
of implementing the Yuba Accord on surface water hydrology, groundwater 
hydrology, water supply, hydropower, flood control, water quality, 
fisheries, wildlife, vegetation, special-status species, recreation, 
visual, cultural and Indian Trust Assets, air quality, land use, 
socioeconomic, growth inducement, and environmental justice resources 
and conditions. Alternatives to be evaluated in the draft EIS/EIR 
include the No Action Alternative, Proposed Action Alternative, and 
others as appropriate. In addition, the draft EIS/EIR will address the 
cumulative impacts of implementation of the Yuba Accord in conjunction 
with other past, present, and reasonably foreseeable actions.
    Our practice is to make comments on a Notice of Intent, including 
names and home addresses of respondents, available for public review. 
Individual respondents may request that we withhold their home 
addresses from public disclosure, which we will honor to the extent 
allowable by law. There also may be circumstances in which we would 
withhold a respondent's identity from public disclosure, as allowable 
by law. If you wish us to withhold your name and/or address, you must 
state this prominently at the beginning of your comment. We will make 
all submissions from organizations or businesses, and from individuals 
identifying themselves as representatives or officials of organizations 
or businesses, available for public disclosure in their entirety.

    Dated: June 10, 2005.
Frank Michny,
Regional Environmental Officer, Mid-Pacific Region.
[FR Doc. 05-11975 Filed 6-17-05; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4310-MN-P