[Federal Register Volume 71, Number 57 (Friday, March 24, 2006)]
[Notices]
[Pages 14857-14858]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 06-2863]


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DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE

Department of the Army; Corps of Engineers


Intent to Prepare an Environmental Impact Statement for the 
Chesapeake Bay Oyster Recovery Project, Virginia and Maryland

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

ACTION: Notice of intent.

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SUMMARY: The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (Corps), Baltimore (NAB) 
issued a notice of intent (NOI) for the Chesapeake Bay Native Oyster 
Recovery Project in the Friday, November 26, 2004 issue of the Federal 
Register (69 FR 68887). That NOI indicated that NAB would prepare a 
draft environmental impact statement (DEIS) for native oyster 
(Crassostrea virginica) recovery activities within Maryland waters of 
the Chesapeake Bay.
    The Corps is announcing a major change in the scope of the project. 
The NAB and Norfolk (NAO) Districts will prepare a single, integrated 
master plan (MP) and programmatic environmental impact statement (PEIS) 
for native oyster recovery in the entire Chesapeake Bay. This MP is a 
long-term plan for native oyster recovery and will be written in 
cooperation with the local sponsors, the Maryland Department of Natural 
Resources and Virginia Marine Resources Commission. The Corps is 
undertaking native oyster recovery in the Chesapeake Bay to support 
efforts to reverse the ongoing decline in oyster resources throughout 
the Bay.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Questions and comments about the MP 
and/or PEIS can be addressed to Mr.

[[Page 14858]]

Craig Seltzer, Norfolk District, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, ATTN: 
CENAO-PM-PA, 803 Front Street, Norfolk, VA 23510. E-mail address: 
[email protected] or Ms. Erika Mark, Baltimore District, 
U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, ATTN: CENAB-PL-P, P.O, Box 1715, 
Baltimore, MD 21203. E-mail address: [email protected]. 
Please include your name and address in your message.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The MP/EIS will incorporate science, policy, 
and experience from a number of sources to develop a comprehensive 
approach to oyster restoration in Maryland and Virginia. The purpose of 
the MP is to lay out a road map for a long-term, large-scale 
restoration of native oysters in the Maryland and Virginia waters of 
the Chesapeake Bay. All suitable locations and techniques available for 
native oyster restoration will be identified and explored, and, if 
restoration is feasible, will be included in the MP.
    Previously performed oyster restoration activities by NAB include 
the: Creation of new oyster bars and rehabilitation of existing non-
productive bars; construction of see bars for production and collection 
of seed oysters or ``spat''; planting of hatchery-produced and seed bar 
spat on new and rehabilitated bars; and monitoring of implemented 
projects. Previously performed oyster restoration activities by NAO 
include: Construction of permanent oyster reef sanctuaries; seeding of 
reefs with disease resistant DEBYTM strain oysters; adaptive 
management and monitoring; and managed spat-on-shell production areas 
with oysters moved to other sites in the Bay as part of a genetic 
rehabilitation stocking effort. This work is being conducted under the 
authority provided by Section 704(b) of the Water Resources Development 
Act (WRDA) of 1986, as amended.
    Scoping: The Corps will conduct a public scoping meeting in 
Virginia this spring to supplement the scoping meetings previously held 
in Maryland, and will include interested parties throughout the 
development of the EIS through informational meetings and website 
postings and other means. All interested federal, state, and local 
agencies, interested private and public organizations, affected Indian 
tribes, and individuals are invited to attend the scoping meeting.
    Other Environmental Review and Consultation Requirements: To the 
fullest extent possible, the EIS will be integrated with analyses and 
consultation required by the Fish and Wildlife Coordination Act of 
1958, as amended; the National Historic Preservation Act of 1966, as 
amended; the Coastal Zone Management Act of 1972, as amended; the 
Endangered Species Act of 1973, as amended; the Marine Protection, 
Research and Sanctuaries Act of 1972, as amended; and the Clean Water 
Act of 1977, as amended.
    Schedule: The anticipated date of publication of the draft PEIS is 
March 2007. The PEIS will be prepared in accordance with (1) the 
National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) of 1969, as amended (42 U.S.C. 
4321 et seq.), (2) regulations of the Council on Environmental Quality 
for implementing the procedural provisions of NEPA (40 CFR parts 1500-
1508), and (3) USACE regulations implementing NEPA (ER-200-2).

Claire O'Neill,
Project Manager.
[FR Doc. 06-2863 Filed 3-23-06; 8:45 am]
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