[Federal Register Volume 75, Number 76 (Wednesday, April 21, 2010)]
[Notices]
[Pages 20826-20827]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2010-9204]


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DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE

Department of the Army; Corps of Engineers


Notice of Intent To Prepare a Draft Environmental Impact 
Statement on Beach and Dune Restoration in St. Lucie County, FL

AGENCY: U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Jacksonville District, DoD.

ACTION: Notice of Intent (NOI).

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SUMMARY: The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (Corps), Jacksonville 
District, has received a permit application for a Department of the 
Army permit under Section 10 of the Rivers and Harbors Act and Section 
404 of the Clean Water Act from the St. Lucie County Erosion Control 
District (County) to construct a beach nourishment and dune restoration 
project along St. Lucie County. As part of the permit process, the 
Corps is evaluating the environmental effects associated with beach 
nourishment and dune restoration.
    The primary Federal involvement associated with the Proposed Action 
is the dredging and discharge of fill within navigable waters of the 
United States. Because of the extensive hardbottom resources 
immediately adjacent to the beach, the high recreational uses of the 
project area, and the potential environmental impacts of the proposed 
project, the Corps will prepare an Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) 
in compliance with the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) to 
render a final decision on the County's permit application. The Corps' 
decision will be to either issue or deny a Department of the Army 
permit for the Proposed Action. The Draft EIS (DEIS) is intended to be 
sufficient in scope to address Federal, State, and local requirements 
and environmental issues

[[Page 20827]]

concerning the Proposed Action and permit reviews.
    The ongoing St. Lucie County, FL, Shore Protection Feasibility 
Study was authorized by Section 418 of the Water Resources and 
Development Act of 2000 (Pub. L. 106-541). It is anticipated that this 
study will culminate in a congressionally authorized Federal project 
and the Corps will cost share future renourishment events subsequent to 
the construction of the initial project by the permittee. In addition, 
as a Federal agency with jurisdiction to manage resources available on 
the Outer Continental Shelf (OCS), the U.S. Minerals Management Service 
would be invited to become a cooperating agency on the study should 
potential borrow areas be identified within Federal waters (outside the 
3-mile State statutory limit).

DATES: A public scoping workshop will be held on, or about, May 19, 
2010 at 6 p.m. EST.

ADDRESSES: The meeting will be held at the following location. St. 
Lucie County Commission Chambers, Roger Poitras Administration Annex, 
2300 Virginia Ave., Fort Pierce, FL 34982. The workshop will give 
agencies and the public an opportunity to receive more information on 
the Proposed Action, alternatives, and to provide comments and 
suggestions on the scope of the EIS.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Questions about the Proposed Action 
and Draft EIS should be directed to Mr. Garett Lips, Corps Regulatory 
Project Manager, by telephone at (561) 472-3519 or by e-mail at 
[email protected]. Written comments should be addressed to 
the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Attn: Mr. Garett Lips, 4400 PGA 
Boulevard, Suite 500, Palm Beach Gardens, Florida 34410 or by facsimile 
at (561) 626-6971.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: a. Project Background and Authorization. The 
Corps will study the southern 3.8 miles of County shoreline which 
approximately coincides with Florida Department of Environmental 
Protection Shoreline Monuments R-88.5 to R-90.3, and R-98 to the St. 
Lucie/Martin County line. The study area is comprised of the shoreline 
and nearshore environment. The shoreline in this area has experienced 
long-term erosion due to waves and intense tropical storms.
    b. Background: No previous beach nourishment activities have 
occurred along this segment of beach. However, upland dune restoration 
was performed after Hurricane Jeanne in 2004, which was not regulated 
by the Corps. Native dune vegetation is limited to those few locations 
where the dry beach extends far enough to allow dune vegetation to 
grow. Based on aerial photography, hardbottom colonized by 
Phragmatopoma lapidosa is commonly found within 600 feet of the inter-
tidal beach, depending on the time of evaluation and the specific 
location within the project area.
    c. Purpose and Need: The project purpose is to stabilize and 
restore the beach and dune between FDEP Monuments R-88.5 to R-90.3, and 
R-98 to the St. Lucie/Martin County line.
    d. Proposed Action. St. Lucie County intends to restore the beach 
and dune by placing approximately 610,000 cubic yards of beach 
compatible sand along the proposed project's beach. The sand will be 
hopper-dredged from a relict shoal approximately three to six miles 
offshore of FDEP monuments R-88 to R-115.
    e. Alternatives. An evaluation of alternatives to the Proposed 
Action initially being considered includes a ``No Action'' alternative, 
beach nourishment and dune restoration through filling activities, as 
well as analyzing other reasonable alternatives developed through the 
project scoping process to stabilizing the beach to meet the identified 
purpose and need.
    f. Draft EIS Scoping Process: The Corps is furnishing this notice 
to advise other Federal and State agencies, affected federally 
recognized Tribes, and the public of our intentions. This notice 
announces the initiation of a 30-day scoping period which requests the 
public's involvement in the scoping and evaluation process of the DEIS. 
Stakeholders will be notified through advertisements, public notices 
and other means. All parties who express interest will be given an 
opportunity to participate in this process. The process allows the 
Corps to obtain suggestions and information on the scope of issues and 
an opportunity to provide reasonable alternatives to be included in the 
Draft EIS. The Corps invites comments from all interested parties to 
ensure that all significant issues are identified and the full range of 
issues related to the permit request are addressed. We will accept 
written comments until 30 days after the date of publication of this 
notice. (See DATES and ADDRESSES)
    g. Significant issues: The DEIS will analyze the following: 
aesthetics/visual quality, agricultural resources, air quality, 
biological resources, cultural resources, cumulative impacts, 
environmental justice, flood protection, geology/soils, growth 
inducement, land use/planning, noise/vibration, public health and 
safety, public services/utilities, recreation, socioeconomics, 
threatened and endangered species, traffic/circulation, water resources 
including wetlands, and other issues identified through scoping, public 
involvement, and interagency coordination. The Corps will conduct an 
environmental review of the Proposed Action in accordance with the 
requirements of NEPA, 1969, as amended, (42 U.S.C. 4321 et seq.) and 
its implementing regulations (40 Code of Federal Regulations, Section 
1500 et seq.), Corps Procedures for Implementing NEPA (33 Code of 
Federal Regulations, Section 230 et seq.), NEPA Implementation 
Procedures for the Regulatory Program (33 Code of Federal Regulations, 
Section 325, Appendix B), and with other appropriate Federal laws and 
regulations, policies, and procedures of the Corps for compliance with 
those regulations. The Proposed Action, through the Corps permit review 
process, will require consultation under Section 7 of the Endangered 
Species Act and the Magnunson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and 
Management Act. Additionally, the proposed action would involve 
evaluation for compliance with the Section 404(b)(1) Guidelines of the 
Clean Water Act; Section 106 of the National Historic Preservation Act; 
Water Quality Certification pursuant to Section 401 of the Clean Water 
Act; certification of State lands, easements and right of ways; and 
determination of Coastal Zone Management Act consistency.
    h. Availability of the Draft EIS. The Corps currently expects the 
DEIS to be made available to the public in late October 2010. A public 
meeting will be held during the public comment period for the DEIS. 
Written comments will be accepted at the meeting.

Donnie W. Kinard,
Chief, Regulatory Division, Jacksonville District.
[FR Doc. 2010-9204 Filed 4-20-10; 8:45 am]
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