[Federal Register Volume 79, Number 207 (Monday, October 27, 2014)]
[Notices]
[Pages 64009-64013]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2014-25464]


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DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION

Surface Transportation Board

[STB Docket No. FD 35852]


Canaveral Port Authority--Petition for Exemption To Construct and 
Operate a Rail Line Extension to Port Canaveral, Florida

AGENCY: Surface Transportation Board, DOT.

ACTION: Notice of Intent To Prepare an Environmental Impact Statement; 
Notice of Availability of the Draft Scope of Study for the 
Environmental Impact Statement; Notice of Scoping Meetings; and Request 
for Comments on Draft Scope.

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SUMMARY: The Canaveral Port Authority (CPA) plans to file a request 
with the

[[Page 64010]]

Surface Transportation Board (Board) pursuant to 49 U.S.C. 10502 for 
authority to construct and operate approximately 11 miles of new rail 
line to Port Canaveral (Port) in Brevard County, Florida. The proposed 
Port Canaveral Rail Extension (PCRE) would also utilize approximately 
17 miles of existing rail line at the National Aeronautics and Space 
Administration's (NASA) John F. Kennedy Space Center (KSC) to make a 
connection with a main line of the Florida East Coast Railway (FEC). 
The proposed PCRE would provide the Port with direct access to freight 
rail service. The new rail line would begin near the Port's North Cargo 
Area, extend west across the Banana River, enter KSC on Merritt Island 
south of Kars Park, and then turn north through KSC grounds where it 
would connect with KSC's existing rail line.
    The construction and operation of the proposed PCRE has the 
potential to result in significant environmental impacts; therefore, 
the Board's Office of Environmental Analysis (OEA) has determined that 
the preparation of an Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) is 
appropriate to satisfy the Board's obligations under the National 
Environmental Policy Act of 1969 (NEPA), as amended (42 U.S.C. 4321 et 
seq.). The purpose of this Notice of Intent is to inform stakeholders--
including members of the public; Tribes; federal, state, and local 
agencies; environmental groups; potential shippers and other parties--
interested in or potentially affected by the proposed project of the 
decision to prepare an EIS and to issue a Draft Scope of Study for the 
EIS for review and comment. OEA will hold public scoping meetings as 
part of the NEPA process. Written comments submitted during scoping 
will assist OEA in issuing a Final Scope of Study that defines the 
range of actions, alternatives, and impacts to be considered in the 
EIS. Public meeting dates and locations, along with the Draft Scope of 
Study, are provided below. This Notice of Intent initiates the EIS 
process and scoping.
    Dates and Locations: The public scoping meetings will be held at 
the following locations on the dates listed:
     November 18, 2014; 5:00-8:00 p.m.; John Henry Jones 
Gymnatorium, Titusville Campus of Eastern Florida State College, 1311 
North U.S. Route 1, Titusville, Florida; and
     November 19, 2014; 5:00-8:00 p.m.; Convention Center, 
Radisson Resort at the Port, 8701 Astronaut Boulevard, Cape Canaveral, 
Florida.
    The scoping meetings will be held in an open house format for the 
first hour followed by a brief presentation by OEA. After the 
presentation, interested parties will be provided an opportunity for 
public comment at an open microphone for the balance of the three-hour 
scoping meeting, as needed. A court reporter will transcribe the public 
comments.
    The meeting locations comply with the Americans with Disabilities 
Act of 1990 (42 U.S.C. 12101 et seq.). Persons that need special 
accommodations should contact OEA's project manager listed below.
    Interested parties are invited to submit written comments on the 
Draft Scope of Study, potential alternative routes for the proposed 
rail line, and other environmental issues and concerns by December 19, 
2014 to assure full consideration during the scoping process. OEA will 
issue a Final Scope of Study after the close of the scoping comment 
period.
    Summary of the Board's Environmental Review Process: The NEPA 
process is intended to assist the Board and the public in identifying 
and assessing the potential environmental consequences of a proposed 
action before a decision on the proposed action is made. OEA is 
responsible for ensuring that the Board complies with NEPA and related 
environmental statutes. The first stage of the EIS process is scoping. 
Scoping is an open process for determining the range of actions, 
alternatives and potential scope of environmental impacts or issues to 
be addressed in the EIS. As part of its scoping process, OEA has 
developed, and has made available for public comment in this notice, a 
Draft Scope of Study for the EIS. Scoping meetings will be held in the 
project area to provide further opportunities for public involvement 
and input during the scoping process. In addition to comments on the 
Draft Scope of Study, interested parties are encouraged to comment on 
potential alternative routes for the proposed rail line. At the 
conclusion of the scoping and comment period, OEA will issue a Final 
Scope of Study for the EIS. The Final Scope of Study will identify the 
alternative rail line routes to be carried forward for detailed 
analysis in the EIS.
    After issuing the Final Scope of Study, OEA will prepare a Draft 
EIS for the project. The Draft EIS will address the environmental 
issues and concerns identified during the scoping process and assess 
and compare alternatives, including the no-action alternative. The 
Draft EIS will also contain OEA's preliminary recommendations for 
environmental mitigation measures. Upon its completion, the Draft EIS 
will be made available for review and comment by the public, government 
agencies, and other interested parties. OEA will prepare a Final EIS 
that considers comments on the Draft EIS. In reaching its decision on 
this case, the Board will consider the Draft EIS, the Final EIS, all 
environmental comments, and OEA's recommendations regarding the 
environmental preferred alternative and environmental mitigation 
measures.
    OEA has invited several agencies to participate in this EIS process 
as cooperating agencies on the basis of their special expertise or 
jurisdiction by law. These agencies include but may not be limited to: 
NASA; U.S. Army Corps of Engineers; and U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. 
OEA is also initiating government-to-government consultation with 
potentially affected tribes, including but not limited to: Seminole 
Tribe of Florida, Seminole Nation of Oklahoma, and Miccosukee Tribe of 
Indians of Florida.
    Filing Environmental Comments: Scoping comments submitted by mail 
should be addressed to: Dave Navecky, Surface Transportation Board, 395 
E Street SW., Washington, DC 20423-0001, Attention: Environmental 
Filing, Docket No. FD 35852.
    Scoping comments may also be submitted electronically on the 
Board's Web site, www.stb.dot.gov, by clicking on the ``E-FILING'' link 
on the home page and then selecting ``Environmental Comments.'' Log-in 
accounts are not needed to file environmental comments electronically, 
and comments may be typed into the text box provided or attached as a 
file. If you have difficulties with the e-filing process, please call 
202-245-0350.
    Please refer to Docket No. FD 35852 in all correspondence, 
including e-filings, addressed to the Board.
    Scoping Comments are due by December 19, 2014.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Dave Navecky by mail at Office of 
Environmental Analysis, Surface Transportation Board, 395 E Street SW., 
Washington, DC 20423-0001 or by phone at 202-245-0294. Assistance for 
the hearing impaired is available through the Federal Information Relay 
Service (FIRS) at 1-800-877-8339. The Web site for the Board is 
www.stb.dot.gov. Project specific information on the Board's Web site 
may be found by placing your cursor on the ``Environmental Matters'' 
button, then clicking on the ``Key Cases'' button in the drop down menu 
and then selecting ``Port Canaveral Rail Extension.'' For further 
information about the Board's environmental review

[[Page 64011]]

process and this EIS, you may also visit a Board-sponsored project Web 
site at www.portcanaveralraileis.com. The project Web site includes a 
map of the project area including CPA's proposed alignment. However, 
the final list of alternatives to be carried forward in the EIS for 
detailed study will be determined by the Board, in consultation with 
the cooperating agencies, following the scoping period and 
consideration of scoping comments.

Draft Scope of Study for the EIS

Purpose and Need

    According to CPA, the principal purpose of the proposed rail 
extension is to provide it with the capability to transport primarily 
bulk, break bulk (i.e., packaged, non-containerized cargo), and 
containerized goods to and from Port Canaveral by rail.
    The Port currently has no on-dock or near-dock freight rail 
service, and the only access to rail service is by truck. The Port's 
current access to the Interstate Highway System (I-95) requires 
traveling two miles on State Road 401 and a 14-mile stretch of heavily 
traveled State Road 528. The construction of a rail line would satisfy 
the need for an additional mode of transportation for the movement of 
bulk and break-bulk materials and containerized freight to and from the 
Port. Additionally, the PCRE would facilitate future cargo growth at 
the Port.
    The proposed PCRE involves a request by CPA for Board approval to 
operate KSC's existing 17 miles of rail line and to construct and 
operate an approximately 11-mile rail line extension to the Port. The 
CPA-proposed alignment would also maintain rail support to NASA KSC 
government and commercial space operations. The proposed project is not 
a federal government-proposed or sponsored project. Thus, the project's 
purpose and need should be informed by both the applicant's goals and 
the agency's enabling statute, here, 49 U.S.C. 10901. Section 10901 
provides that the Board must approve a construction request unless it 
finds that the construction is ``inconsistent with the public 
convenience and necessity.'' Thus, the statute creates a presumption 
that rail construction is in the public interest and will be approved.

Proposed Action and Alternatives

    The proposed new rail line would extend from the Port's North Cargo 
Area, cross over the Banana River, enter KSC on Merritt Island south of 
Kars Park, continue north up the east side of KSC, connect with the 
KSC's existing rail facilities, continue on KSC's existing rail line, 
which crosses the Indian River via the Jay-Jay Bridge, and then connect 
with the FEC mainline near Titusville, Florida.
    The new rail line would consist of a single track constructed of 
continuous welded rail and concrete ties. Other major elements of the 
proposed project would include a right-of-way of up to 100 feet in 
width and crossings of local roads and utility corridors.
    CPA would operate its trains on both the new rail line and on KSC's 
existing rail line to the FEC connection. Initially, the trains would 
move approximately 170 roundtrip hopper and box cars per week. Within 
2.5 years after the proposed rail operations begin, CPA estimates that 
an additional 50 roundtrip double-stacked container cars could also 
move on the proposed PCRE. CPA estimates that it would operate 
approximately three to four trains per week with the trains moving at 
approximately 10 miles per hour.
    The EIS will analyze and compare the potential impacts of (1) 
construction and operation of a range of reasonable and feasible 
alternative routes for the proposed PCRE and (2) the no-action 
alternative (i.e., denial of the request).

Environmental Impact Analysis

Proposed New Construction and Operation

    Analyses in the EIS will address the proposed activities associated 
with the construction and operation of the PCRE and their potential 
environmental impacts, as appropriate.

Impact Categories

    The EIS will analyze potential direct, indirect, and cumulative 
impacts \1\ of CPA's proposed construction and operation and a range of 
reasonable and feasible alternatives, or in the case of the no-action 
alternative, the lack of these activities.
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    \1\ NEPA requires the Board to consider direct, indirect, and 
cumulative impacts. Direct and indirect impacts are both caused by 
the action. 40 CFR 1508.8(a)-(b). A cumulative impact is the 
``incremental impact of the action when added to other past, 
present, and reasonably foreseeable future actions regardless of 
what agency (Federal or non-federal) or person undertakes such other 
actions.'' 40 CFR 1508.7.
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    Impact areas addressed will include the analysis of transportation 
systems, safety, land use, recreation, biological resources, water 
resources, including wetlands and other waters of the U.S., navigation, 
geology and soils, air quality and climate, noise and vibration, energy 
resources, socioeconomics as they relate to physical changes in the 
environment, cultural and historic resources, aesthetics and 
environmental justice. Other categories of potential impacts may also 
be included as a result of comments received during the scoping process 
or on the Draft EIS. The EIS will include a discussion of each of these 
categories as they currently exist in the project area and will address 
the potential direct, indirect, and cumulative impacts of each 
alternative being studied in detail on each category, as described 
below:
1. Transportation Systems
    The EIS will:
    a. Evaluate the potential impacts resulting from construction and 
operation of each alternative on the existing transportation network in 
the project area.
    b. Propose mitigation measures to avoid, minimize or eliminate 
potential project impacts to transportation systems, as appropriate.
2. Safety
    The EIS will:
    a. Describe existing road/rail grade crossing safety and analyze 
the potential for an increase in accidents related to the proposed new 
rail operations, as appropriate.
    b. Describe existing rail operations and analyze the potential for 
increased probability of train accidents, as appropriate.
    c. Evaluate the potential for disruption and delays to the movement 
of emergency vehicles.
    d. Propose mitigation measures to avoid, minimize or eliminate 
potential project impacts to safety, as appropriate.
3. Land Use
    The EIS will:
    a. Evaluate the potential impacts of each alternative on existing 
land use patterns within the project area and identify those land uses 
that would be potentially impacted by the proposed new rail line 
construction.
    b. Analyze the potential impacts associated with each alternative 
to land uses identified within the project area. Such potential impacts 
could include incompatibility with existing land use and conversion of 
land to railroad use.
    c. Evaluate consistency with Florida Coastal Management Program in 
compliance with the Coastal Zone Management Act.
    d. Propose mitigation measures to avoid, minimize or eliminate 
potential impacts to land use, as appropriate.
4. Recreation
    The EIS will:
    a. Evaluate existing conditions and the potential impacts of each

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alternative, and their operation, on recreational areas and 
opportunities for recreational activities provided in the project area.
    b. Propose mitigation measures to avoid, minimize or eliminate 
potential project impacts on recreational areas and opportunities for 
recreational activities, as appropriate.
5. Biological Resources
    The EIS will:
    a. Evaluate the existing biological resources within the project 
area including vegetative communities (including seagrasses), wildlife, 
fisheries, marine mammals, and federal and state threatened or 
endangered species, and analyze the potential impacts to these 
resources resulting from each alternative. Several protected species 
will be addressed, including, but not limited to, the bald eagle, 
Florida scrub jay, gopher tortoise, manatee, eastern indigo snake, wood 
stork, and southeastern beach mouse.
    b. Describe the Merritt Island National Wildlife Refuge and any 
other relevant wildlife sanctuaries, refuges, national or state parks, 
forests, or grasslands, and evaluate the potential impacts to these 
resources resulting from each alternative.
    c. Propose mitigation measures to avoid, minimize, eliminate, or 
compensate for potential impacts to biological resources, as 
appropriate.
6. Water Resources
    The EIS will:
    a. Describe the existing surface water and groundwater resources 
within the project area, including the Atlantic Ocean, lakes, rivers, 
streams, ponds, wetlands, and floodplains and analyze the potential 
impacts on these resources resulting from each alternative.
    b. Describe the permitting requirements for the various 
alternatives with regard to wetlands, river crossings, water quality, 
floodplains, and erosion control.
    c. Propose mitigation measures to avoid, minimize, eliminate, or 
compensate for potential project impacts to water resources, as 
appropriate.
7. Navigation
    The EIS will:
    a. Identify existing navigable waterways within the project area 
and analyze the potential impacts on navigability resulting from each 
alternative.
    b. Describe the permitting requirements for the various 
alternatives with regard to navigation.
    c. Propose mitigation measures to avoid, minimize or eliminate 
potential impacts to navigation, as appropriate.
8. Geology and Soils
    The EIS will:
    a. Describe the geology, soils, and seismic conditions found within 
the project area, including unique or problematic geologic formations 
or soils, prime farmland, and hydric soils, and analyze the potential 
impacts on these resources resulting from each alternative.
    b. Evaluate any potential measures to avoid or construct through 
unique or problematic geologic formations or soils.
    c. Propose mitigation measures to avoid, minimize or eliminate 
potential project impacts to geology and soils, as appropriate.
9. Air Quality and Climate
    The EIS will:
    a. Evaluate the air emissions from the potential operation of 
trains on the proposed rail line, including potential greenhouse gas 
emissions, as appropriate.
    b. Evaluate the potential air quality impacts resulting from the 
proposed new rail line construction activities.
    c. Evaluate the potential impacts of the proposed project on global 
climate change and the potential impacts of global climate change on 
the proposed project.
    d. Propose mitigation measures to avoid, minimize or eliminate 
potential project impacts, as appropriate.
10. Noise and Vibration
    The EIS will:
    a. Describe the potential noise and vibration impacts during the 
proposed new rail line construction resulting from each alternative.
    b. Describe the potential noise and vibration impacts of the 
proposed new rail line operation resulting from each alternative.
    c. Propose mitigation measures to avoid, minimize or eliminate 
potential project impacts to sensitive noise receptors, as appropriate.
11. Energy Resources
    The EIS will:
    a. Describe and evaluate the potential impact of the proposed 
project on the distribution of energy resources in the project area 
resulting from each alternative.
    b. Propose mitigation measures to avoid, minimize or eliminate 
potential project impacts to energy resources, as appropriate.
12. Socioeconomics
    The EIS will:
    a. Analyze the effects of a potential influx of construction 
workers to the project area and the potential increase in demand for 
local services interrelated with natural or physical environmental 
effects.
    b. Propose mitigation measures to avoid, minimize or eliminate 
potential project-related adverse impacts to social and economic 
resources, as appropriate.
13. Cultural and Historic Resources
    The EIS will:
    a. Identify historic buildings, structures, sites, objects, or 
districts eligible for listing on or listed on the National Register of 
Historic Places (historic properties) within the area of potential 
effects for each alternative. The cultural resources identified will be 
categorized into three major groups: tribal resources, archaeological 
resources, and built resources.
    b. Consult with federally recognized Native American tribes to 
identify properties with religious and cultural significance to the 
tribes within the area of potential effects for each alternative 
(tribal resources), and analyze potential project impacts to them.
    c. Identify prehistoric-era and historic-era archaeological 
resources by using professionals who meet the Secretary of the Interior 
Professional Qualifications Standards (SOIPQS) in the discipline of 
archaeology, and analyze potential project impacts to them.
    d. Identify built resources by using professionals who meet the 
SOIPQS in the disciplines of history or architectural history, and 
analyze potential project impacts to them.
    e. Propose measures to avoid, minimize, or mitigate potentially 
adverse project impacts to tribal resources, built resources, and 
archaeological resources that are historic properties, as appropriate.
14. Aesthetics
    The EIS will:
    a. Describe the potential impacts of the proposed new rail line 
construction on any areas within the project area identified or 
determined to be of high visual quality.
    b. Describe the potential impacts of the proposed new rail line 
construction on any waterways considered for or designated as wild and 
scenic.
    c. Propose mitigation measures to avoid, minimize or eliminate 
potential project impacts on aesthetics, as appropriate.
15. Environmental Justice
    The EIS will:
    a. Evaluate the potential impacts resulting from each alternative 
on local

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and regional minority and low-income populations.
    b. Propose mitigation measures to avoid, minimize or eliminate 
potential project impacts on environmental justice populations, as 
appropriate.
16. Cumulative Impacts
    The EIS will evaluate the cumulative and incremental impacts of the 
proposed project when added to other past, present, and reasonably 
foreseeable future actions in the project area, as appropriate.

    By the Board.
Victoria Rutson,
Director, Office of Environmental Analysis.
Brendetta S. Jones,
Clearance Clerk.
[FR Doc. 2014-25464 Filed 10-24-14; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4915-01-P