[Federal Register Volume 71, Number 245 (Thursday, December 21, 2006)]
[Notices]
[Pages 76633-76634]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: E6-21847]


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DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE

Natural Resources Conservation Service


Cape Cod Water Resources Restoration Project, Barnstable County, 
MA; Record of Decision

    1. Purpose--As State conservationist for the Natural Resources 
Conservation Service (NRCS), I am the Responsible Federal Official 
(RFO) for all NRCS projects in Massachusetts.
    The recommended plan for the Cape Cod Watershed involves works of 
improvement to be installed under authorities administered by NRCS. 
This areawide planning Project \1\ includes 26 salt marsh restoration 
projects, 24 fish passage remediation projects, and 26 stormwater 
remediation projects.
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    \1\ We use ``Project'' in this ROD and the Plan-EIS to refer to 
the areawide Cape Cod Water Resources Restoration Project and 
``project'' to refer to individual site restoration or remediation 
activities; the Project comprises 76 projects.
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    The Cape Cod Watershed plan was prepared under the authority of the 
Watershed Protection and Flood Prevention Act (Public Law 566, 83rd 
Congress, 68 Stat. 666, as amended) by the Cape Cod Conservation 
District, Barnstable County Commissioners, the 15 towns of Barnstable 
County, and the Massachusetts Executive Office of Environmental 
Affairs. The scoping meeting, held during May 2005, established the 
NRCS, U.S. Department of Agriculture, as lead agency.
    2. Measures taken to comply with national environmental policies--
The Cape Cod Water Resources Restoration Project has been planned in 
accordance with existing Federal legislation concerned with the 
preservation of environmental values. The following actions were taken 
to ensure that the Cape Cod Watershed plan is consistent with national 
goals and policies.
    The interdisciplinary environmental evaluation of the Cape Cod 
Water Resources Restoration Project was conducted by the sponsoring 
local organizations, cooperating agencies, and the NRCS. Information 
was obtained from many groups and agencies. An inventory and evaluation 
of environmental and socioeconomic conditions were prepared by 
Massachusetts NRCS and EA Engineering, Science, and Technology under a 
contract with NRCS. Reviews were held with the U.S. Environmental 
Protection Agency, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, U.S. Fish and Wildlife 
Service, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, National Park 
Service, Massachusetts Executive Office of Environmental Affairs, State 
Historic Preservation Officer, and the Tribal Historic Preservation 
Officer of the Wampanoag Tribe of Gay Head (Aquinnah). Inputs from 
these reviews were included in the EIS.
    A public meeting was held on May 18, 2005, to solicit public 
participation in the environmental evaluation, to assure that all 
interested parties had sufficient information to understand how their 
concerns are affected by water resource problems, to afford local 
interests the opportunity to express their views regarding the plans 
that can best solve these problems, and to provide all interests an 
opportunity to participate in the plan selection. More than 400 parties 
were notified by mail of the joint public meetings. Meeting notes are 
on file at the NRCS State Office.
    Testimony and recommendations were received relative to the 
following subjects:
    a. Support for projects to treat stormwater runoff as a means for 
improving water quality and keeping shellfish beds open for 
recreational and commercial use.
    b. Support for projects to restore fish passageways on local 
streams.
    c. Support for projects to restore tidal flushing to salt marshes 
with restricted tidal openings.
    A draft Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) was prepared in August 
2006 and made available for public review. The recommendations and 
comments obtained from the public meeting held during Project planning 
and assessment were considered in the preparation of the draft EIS.
    The draft EIS was distributed to agencies, conservation groups, 
organizations, and individuals for comment. Copies were also placed in 
the libraries of all 15 towns in the watershed, and the draft EIS was 
made available on the Massachusetts NRCS Web site. The draft EIS was 
filed with the Environmental Protection Agency on August 3, 2006, and 
notices of the availability of the draft EIS for public review were 
published in the Federal Register by NRCS on August 1, 2006, and by EPA 
on August 11, 2006.

[[Page 76634]]

    Existing data and information pertaining to the Project's probable 
environmental consequences were obtained with assistance from other 
scientists and engineers. Documentary information as well as the views 
of interested Federal, State, and local agencies and concerned 
individuals and organizations having special knowledge of, competence 
over, or interest in the Project's environmental impacts were sought. 
This process continued until it was felt that all the information 
necessary for a comprehensive, reliable assessment had been gathered.
    A complete picture of the Project's current and probable future 
environmental setting was assembled to determine the proposed Project's 
impact and identify unavoidable adverse environmental impacts that 
might be produced. During these phases of evaluation, it became 
apparent that there are legitimate conflicts of scientific theory and 
conclusions leading to differing views of the Project's environmental 
impact. In such cases, after consulting with persons qualified in the 
appropriate disciplines, those theories and conclusions appearing to be 
the most reasonable, and having scientific acceptance were adopted.
    The consequences of a full range of reasonable and viable 
alternatives to specific improvements were considered, studied, and 
analyzed. In reviewing these alternatives, all courses of action that 
could reasonably accomplish the Project purposes were considered. 
Attempts were made to identify the economic, social, and environmental 
values affected by each alternative. Both structural and nonstructural 
alternatives were considered.
    The alternatives considered reasonable alternatives to accomplish 
the project's objectives were (1) Water Resources Restoration 
Alternative, (2) No Action Alternative.
    3. Conclusions--The following conclusions were reached after 
carefully reviewing the proposed Cape Cod Water Resources Restoration 
Project in light of all national goals and policies, particularly those 
expressed in the National Environmental Policy Act, and after 
evaluating the overall merit of possible alternatives to the Project:
    a. The Cape Cod Water Resources Restoration Project will employ 
reasonable and practicable means that are consistent with the National 
Environmental Policy Act while permitting the application of other 
national policies and interests. These means include, but are not 
limited to, a Project planned and designed to minimize adverse effects 
on the natural environment while accomplishing an authorized Project 
purpose. Project features designed to preserve existing environmental 
values for future generations include: (1) Replacement of inadequately 
sized or failed culverts with larger culverts or bridges to restore 
tidal flushing to salt marshes; (2) reconstruction of failed fish 
passageways, replacement of collapsed or improperly aligned curves, or 
removing restrictions at bridges to provide full access to upstream 
spawning and nursery areas for anadromous fish; and (3) installation of 
catch basins and infiltration systems or other cost-effective 
alternatives to treat stormwater runoff, reduce bacteria loading to 
tidal receiving waters, and help keep shellfish beds open.
    b. The Cape Cod Water Resources Restoration Project was planned 
using a systematic interdisciplinary approach involving integrated uses 
of the natural and social sciences and environmental design arts. All 
conclusions concerning the environmental impact of the Project and 
overall merit of existing plans were based on a review of data and 
information that would be reasonably expected to reveal significant 
environmental consequences of the proposed Project. These data included 
studies prepared specifically for the Project and comments and views of 
all interested Federal, State, and local agencies and individuals. The 
results of this review constitute the basis for the conclusions and 
recommendations. The Project will not affect any cultural resources 
eligible for inclusion in the National Register of Historic Places. Nor 
will the Project affect any species of fish, wildlife, or plant or 
their habitats that have been designated as endangered or threatened.
    c. In studying and evaluating the environmental impact of the Cape 
Cod Water Resources Restoration Project, every effort was made to 
express all significant environmental values quantitatively and to 
identify and give appropriate weight and consideration of 
nonquantifiable environmental values.
    d. Wherever legitimate conflicts of scientific theory and 
conclusions existed and conclusions led to different views, persons 
qualified in the appropriate environmental disciplines were consulted. 
Theories and conclusions appearing to be most reasonable scientifically 
acceptable, or both, were adopted.
    e. Every possible effort has been made to identify those adverse 
environmental effects that cannot be avoided if the Project is 
constructed.
    f. The long-term and short-term resource uses, long-term 
productivity, and the irreversible and irretrievable commitment of 
resources are described in the final EIS.
    g. All reasonable and viable alternatives to Project features and 
to the Project itself were studied and analyzed with reference to 
national policies and goals, especially those expressed in the National 
Environmental Policy Act and the Federal water resource development 
legislation under which the Project was planned. Each possible course 
of action was evaluated as to its possible economic, technical, social, 
and overall environmental consequences to determine the tradeoffs 
necessary to accommodate all national policies and interests. Some 
alternatives may tend to protect more of the present and tangible 
environmental amenities than the proposed Project will preserve. 
However, no alternative or combination of alternatives will afford 
greater protection of the environmental values while accomplishing the 
other Project goals and objectives.
    h. I conclude, therefore, that the proposed Project will be the 
most effective means of meeting national goals and is consistent in 
serving the public interest by including provisions to protect and 
enhance the environment. I also conclude that the recommended plan is 
the environmentally preferable plan.
    4. Recommendations--Having concluded that the proposed Cape Cod 
Water Resources Restoration Project uses all practicable means, 
consistent with other essential considerations of the national policy, 
to meet the goals established in the National Environmental Policy Act, 
that the Project will thus serve the overall public interest, that the 
final EIS has been prepared, reviewed, and accepted in accordance with 
the provisions of the National Environmental Policy Act as implemented 
by Departmental regulations for the preparation of environmental impact 
statements, and that the Project meets the needs of the Project's 
sponsoring local organizations, I propose to implement the Cape Cod 
Water Resources Restoration Project.

Christine Clarke,
State Conservationist, Natural Resources Conservation Service, U.S. 
Department of Agriculture.
 [FR Doc. E6-21847 Filed 12-20-06; 8:45 am]
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