[Federal Register Volume 79, Number 124 (Friday, June 27, 2014)]
[Notices]
[Pages 36556-36557]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2014-15106]


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DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR

Bureau of Reclamation

[RR06230000, 14XR0680A1, RN076949980000501]


Notice of Availability of the Northwest Area Water Supply Project 
Draft Supplemental Environmental Impact Statement; Burke, Bottineau, 
Divide, McHenry, McLean, Mountrail, Pierce, Renville, Ward, and 
Williams Counties, North Dakota

AGENCY: Bureau of Reclamation, Interior.

ACTION: Notice.

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SUMMARY: The Bureau of Reclamation has completed the Northwest Area 
Water Supply Project Draft Supplemental Environmental Impact Statement 
(Draft SEIS). It is now available for public review and comment. The 
Draft SEIS describes the potential environmental effects of the No 
Action Alternative and four action alternatives to complete the 
Project, which would provide a reliable high quality water supply to 
local communities and rural water systems in northwestern North Dakota, 
including the City of Minot. Cooperating agencies assisting in the 
preparation of the Draft SEIS include the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, 
U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, North Dakota State Water 
Commission, City of Minot, and Garrison Diversion Conservancy District.

DATES: Send written comments on the Draft SEIS on or before August 11, 
2014.
    One public hearing will be held on the following date:
     Wednesday, July 23, 2014, 6:30 p.m. to 8:30 p.m., Minot, 
North Dakota.

ADDRESSES: Send written comments or requests for copies to Ms. Alicia 
Waters, Project Manager, Bureau of Reclamation, P.O. Box 1017, 
Bismarck, ND 58502, or via email to [email protected]. The Draft SEIS is 
also accessible from the following Web site: http://www.usbr.gov/gp/dkao/naws/.
    The hearing location is:
     Comfort Inn, 1515 22nd Ave. SW., Minot, ND 58701.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Ms. Alicia Waters, Project Manager, 
701.221.1206; or by email at [email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The Draft SEIS documents the potential 
direct, indirect, and cumulative physical, biological, and 
socioeconomic environment effects that may result from the completion 
of a municipal, rural, and industrial water system in

[[Page 36557]]

northwestern North Dakota. The Project would supply water to specific 
delivery points. Each community or rural water system would be 
responsible for connecting to the distribution line and delivering 
water through their water system to end users.
    The Draft SEIS evaluates the construction and operation of the 
components required to complete the proposed action (i.e., the 
Project). The purpose of the Project is to provide a reliable source of 
high quality water to communities and rural water systems in 
northwestern North Dakota for municipal, rural, and industrial uses; 
the Project is sized to serve projected population growth up to the 
year 2060. The water provided by the Project would be treated to meet 
the primary drinking water standards established by the Safe Drinking 
Water Act.
    Project construction began in April 2002 after Reclamation 
completed an environmental assessment and finding of no significant 
impact. The Province of Manitoba, Canada, filed a lawsuit in October 
2002 against the U.S. Department of the Interior in the U.S. District 
Court in Washington, DC. The Province challenged the adequacy of the 
environmental assessment and finding of no significant impact and 
requested an injunction prohibiting expenditure of federal funds on the 
Project.
    In 2005 the U.S. District Court ordered Reclamation to revisit the 
finding of no significant impact after completing further environmental 
analysis. The order stated that additional analyses should consider 
potential impacts associated with not fully treating Missouri River 
water at its source, as well as the impacts of pipeline leaks and 
possible failure of water treatment systems. The court also partially 
denied the plaintiff's request for an injunction, allowing Project 
construction to continue with some restrictions. In response to the 
court order, Reclamation prepared an environmental impact statement 
(EIS) on water treatment in consultation with other federal, tribal, 
state and local government agencies, which also included public input. 
The EIS evaluated a wide range of methods for treating water from Lake 
Sakakawea in the Missouri River basin prior to conveyance of treated 
water via buried pipeline to users within the Hudson Bay basin. The EIS 
also evaluated environmental impacts that could occur due to pipeline 
leaks and failure of the water treatment systems. A Final EIS on Water 
Treatment was published in 2008, and Reclamation signed a Record of 
Decision in 2009.
    Shortly thereafter, the Province of Manitoba filed a supplemental 
complaint contending the Final EIS on Water Treatment was insufficient. 
The State of Missouri also filed a complaint against the U.S. 
Department of the Interior and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers in the 
same District Court. The State of Missouri alleged Reclamation's Final 
EIS was insufficient and that the Corps of Engineers failed to complete 
a separate National Environmental Policy Act assessment of the Project. 
These two complaints were combined by the District Court. In March 
2010, the court remanded the case to Reclamation and stated that the 
injunction imposed in 2005 remained in effect. The court's remand 
focused on two specific issues: (1) Cumulative impacts of water 
withdrawals on Lake Sakakawea and on the Missouri River, and (2) the 
consequences of transferring potentially invasive species into the 
Hudson Bay basin. This Draft SEIS evaluates these issues, takes a hard 
look at potential impacts to other resources, examines the purpose and 
need for the Project, and evaluates a full range of alternatives to 
meet the purpose and need.
    The geographic scope of analysis varies by resource but generally 
covers the Missouri and Souris river basins. The geographic scope for 
the aquatic invasive species analysis extends into Canada as directed 
by the court. The Hudson Bay basin, which includes Canada's Lake 
Winnipeg and the surrounding communities, is within the scope of study. 
The Lake Winnipeg area is included because the Souris River flows north 
into Manitoba where it meets the Assiniboine River, which flows into 
the Red River and eventually terminates in Lake Winnipeg.

Authority

    The Project was authorized by the Garrison Diversion Reformulation 
Act of 1986 and the Dakota Water Resources Act of 2000 as part of the 
Municipal, Rural, and Industrial (MR&I) Grant Program.

Public Review of Draft SEIS

    Copies of the Draft SEIS are available for public review at the 
following locations:
    1. Bureau of Reclamation, Dakotas Area Office, 304 East Broadway 
Avenue, Bismarck, ND 58501.
    2. Bureau of Reclamation, Great Plains Regional Office, 2021 4th 
Avenue North, Billings, MT 59101.
    3. Bureau of Reclamation, Denver Office Library, Building 67, Room 
167, Denver Federal Center, 6th and Kipling, Denver, CO 80225.
    4. Natural Resources Library, U.S. Department of the Interior, 1849 
C Street NW., Main Interior Building, Washington, DC 20240-0001.
    5. Bismarck Public Library, 515 North 5th Street, Bismarck, ND 
58501.
    6. Bottineau City Hall, 115 West 6th Street, Bottineau, ND 58318.
    7. Minot Public Library, 516 2nd Avenue SW., Minot, ND 58701.
    8. Mohall Public Library, 115 Main Street West, Mohall, ND 58761.
    9. North Dakota State Library, 604 East Boulevard Avenue, Bismarck, 
ND 58505.

Special Assistance for the Public Hearing

    If special assistance is required at the public hearing, please 
contact Ms. Patience Hurley, Bureau of Reclamation, Public Affairs 
Office, at [email protected]. Please notify Ms. Hurley as far in advance 
as possible to enable Reclamation to secure the needed services. If a 
request cannot be honored, the requestor will be notified.

Public Disclosure

    Before including your address, phone number, email address, or 
other personal identifying information in your comment, you should be 
aware that your entire comment--including your personal identifying 
information--may be made publicly available at any time. While you can 
ask us in your comment to withhold your personal identifying 
information from public review, we cannot guarantee that we will be 
able to do so.

    Dated: June 19, 2014.
John F. Soucy,
 Deputy Regional Director, Great Plains Region.
[FR Doc. 2014-15106 Filed 6-26-14; 8:45 am]
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