[Federal Register Volume 79, Number 156 (Wednesday, August 13, 2014)]
[Notices]
[Page 47442]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2014-19127]


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DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE

Department of the Army; Corps of Engineers


Termination of Environmental Impact Statement for Baryonyx 
Corporation, Inc.'s Proposed Wind Farm, Offshore, Willacy and Cameron 
Counties, TX

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

ACTION: Notice.

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SUMMARY: The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Galveston District, 
Regulatory Branch is notifying interested parties that it has 
terminated the process to develop an Environmental Impact Statement 
(EIS) and has withdrawn the Section 10 of the Rivers and Harbors Act of 
1899 (33 U.S.C. 403) and Section 404 of the Clean Water Act (33 U.S.C. 
1344) permit application for the proposed Baryonyx Corporation, Inc. 
300-turbine offshore wind farm located in the Gulf of Mexico state 
waters, offshore Willacy and Cameron Counties in state tracts: 1068, 
1069, 1085, 1086, 1087, 1088, 1089, 1090, 1126, 1127, 1129, 1130 and 
1131. The original Notice of Intent to Prepare and EIS was published in 
the Federal Register on Wednesday, March 14, 2012 (77 FR 15088).

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Questions regarding the termination of 
this EIS process should be addressed to: Jayson M. Hudson, U.S. Army 
Corps of Engineers, Regulatory Branch, P.O. Box 1229, Galveston, TX 
77553-1229; (409) 766-3108; or Email: [email protected]. 
Emailed question, including attachments, should be provided in .doc, 
.docx, .pdf or .txt formats.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The Galveston District published the 
original Notice of Intent to prepare an EIS for the proposed Baryonyx 
offshore wind farm (SWG-2011-00511) in the Federal Register on 
Wednesday, March 14, 2012 (77 FR 15088). After the initial public 
scoping process in March 2012, the Corps received 1156 substantive 
comments related to the applicant's proposal construction of 
approximately 300 offshore turbines in the Gulf of Mexico offshore 
Willacy and Cameron Counties, TX. Common concerns with the proposed 
project included potential impacts to migratory birds/bats, threatened 
and endangered species, marine resources (including essential fish 
habitat), navigation/transportation, terrestrial wildlife, 
socioeconomics, wetlands/submerged aquatic vegetation (SAV), other, 
including viewshed, water and sediment quality, terrestrial and marine 
cultural, resources, offshore and onshore corridor analysis, coastal 
processes, recreation, storm surge, hazardous materials, air quality, 
noise, land use, geology, and coastal zone management. Based on 
comments submitted during this scoping process, the Corps began 
drafting an EIS in cooperation with the Environmental Protection 
Agency, National Park Service, and the U.S. Coast Guard; however, a 
draft EIS has not been published. By letter dated May 12, 2014, 
Baryonyx Corporation, Inc. requested withdrawal of their Department of 
the Army permit application. The applicant stated that their intent is 
to redefine the project and resubmit at a future date. Therefore, the 
Corps officially determined that it is appropriate to terminate the 
EIS. The Corps' neutral role in the EIS process was to evaluate the 
environmental consequences of the proposed project under the authority 
of Section 10 of the Rivers and Harbors Act of 1899 and Section 404 of 
the Clean Water Act. The preparation of the EIS was being conducted by 
a third-party contractor directed by the Corps, and funded by the 
applicant, which is typical of the Corps Regulatory EIS studies. 
Withdrawal of the permit application and termination of the EIS process 
will not prevent Baryonyx Corporation, Inc. from reapplying at a later 
date.

Brenda S. Bowen,
Army Federal Register Liaison Officer.
[FR Doc. 2014-19127 Filed 8-12-14; 8:45 am]
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