[Federal Register Volume 80, Number 123 (Friday, June 26, 2015)]
[Notices]
[Page 36776]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2015-15661]


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DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE

Department of the Army, Corps of Engineers


Ending of the National Environmental Policy Act Emergency 
Alternative Arrangements for New Orleans Hurricane and Storm Damage 
Risk Reduction System (HSDRRS)

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

ACTION: Public notice.

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SUMMARY: The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE), Mississippi Valley 
Division, New Orleans District (CEMVN) announces the formal termination 
of the Emergency Alternative Arrangements implemented by agreement with 
the Council on Environmental Quality (CEQ) pursuant to CEQ's National 
Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) regulations (40 CFR 1506.11).

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Questions concerning ending NEPA 
Emergency Alternative Arrangements should be addressed to Sandra Stiles 
at U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, PDN-CEP, P.O. Box 60267, New Orleans, 
LA 70160-0267, (504) 862-1583, fax (504) 862-2088 or by email at 
[email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The NEPA Emergency Alternative Arrangements 
(Alternative Arrangements) were announced and published in the Federal 
Register on March 13, 2007 (72 FR 11337). The purpose of the 
Alternative Arrangements was to expedite the environmental analyses 
necessary to design and to construct the levees, floodwalls and other 
risk reduction structures comprising the HSDRRS in light of the threat 
posed by hurricanes and storm surge to the post-Hurricane Katrina New 
Orleans Metropolitan Area. The Alternative Arrangements were limited to 
those actions necessary to control the immediate impacts of the 
emergency (40 CFR 1506.11) and were to remain in effect during the 
completion of the Individual Environmental Reports (IERs) and the 
Comprehensive Environmental Document (CED) as identified in the 
Alternative Arrangements.
    The remaining documents to be completed under Alternative 
Arrangements include the Westbank & Vicinity Supplemental Programmatic 
IER for compensatory mitigation (SPIER 37a) and the CED, Phase II. 
While construction of the HSDRRS is very near complete, implementation 
of compensatory mitigation for the impacts caused by that construction 
is ongoing. CEMVN has released multiple IERs evaluating potential 
mitigation projects. SPIER 37a will be released for public review not 
later than September 2015.
    As set forth in the Alternative Arrangements, the CED addresses the 
HSDRRS on a system-wide scale. A Phase I CED was finalized on May 22, 
2013. A Phase II CED will be released for public review in December 
2016. A Decision Record on the CED is anticipated in May of 2017.
    SPIER 37a and the CED, Phase II will be the final documents 
prepared under the Alternative Arrangements. In all other cases, CEMVN 
no longer utilizes the procedures of the Alternative Arrangements.

    Dated: June 19, 2015.
Richard L. Hansen,
Colonel, U.S. Army, District Commander.
[FR Doc. 2015-15661 Filed 6-25-15; 8:45 am]
 BILLING CODE 3720-58-P