[Federal Register Volume 80, Number 132 (Friday, July 10, 2015)]
[Notices]
[Pages 39761-39762]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2015-16941]


-----------------------------------------------------------------------

DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE

Department of the Army; Corps of Engineers


The Release of the Supplemental Environmental Impact Statement 
for the Figure Eight Island Shoreline Management Project, on Figure 
Eight Island, New Hanover County, NC

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

ACTION: Notice of Availability.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------

SUMMARY: The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (COE), Wilmington District, 
Wilmington Regulatory Field Office has received a request for 
Department of the Army authorization, pursuant to Section 404 of the 
Clean Water Act and Section 10 of the Rivers and Harbors Act, from 
Figure Eight Beach Homeowners' Association Inc. (HOA) to install a 
terminal groin structure along Rich Inlet and to conduct a supplemental 
beach nourishment on approximately 4,500 linear feet of oceanfront 
beach and 1,400 linear feet of back barrier shoreline to protect 
residential homes and infrastructures along the central and northern 
sections of Figure Eight Island. The terminal groin structure will be 
placed perpendicular on the northern tip of the island along the 
shoulder of Rich Inlet; and the proposed source of the material for the 
nourishment will be dredged from an area within Nixon Channel, a back 
barrier channel, that has been previously used for past beach 
nourishment projects. In case the quantity of material from Nixon 
Channel is not sufficient, material pumped from (3) nearby upland 
disposal islands will be used to supplement the nourishment needs. The 
majority of the material will be disposed within the fillet area, or 
down shore, of the groin. Pending storm events and shoreline changes, 
maintenance, or periodic nourishment, of the beach is proposed a 
maximum of once every five years, or potential 6 separate events over 
the 30-year study period. Nixon Channel and the upland disposal islands 
are the proposed material sources for the periodic maintenance, or 
renourishment, events.

DATES: Written comments on the Supplemental EIS must be received at 
(see ADDRESSES) no later than 5 p.m. on August 24, 2015.

ADDRESSES: Copies of comments and questions regarding the Supplemental 
EIS may be addressed to: U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Wilmington 
District, Regulatory Division. ATTN: File Number 2006-41158, 69 
Darlington Avenue, Wilmington, NC 28403. Copies of the Supplemental EIS 
can be reviewed on the Corps homepage at, http://www.saw.usace.army.mil/Missions/RegulatoryPermitProgram/MajorProjects, 
under Figure Eight Island Terminal Groin: Corps ID #SAW-2006-41158.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Questions about the proposed action 
and SEIS and/or to receive CD or written copies of the Supplemental EIS 
can be directed to Mr. Mickey Sugg,

[[Page 39762]]

Wilmington Regulatory Field Office, telephone: (910) 251-4811.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
    1. Project Purpose and Need. Figure Eight Beach HOA has addressed 
the continuing oceanfront erosion problems associated with Rich Inlet 
and Nixon Channel erosion hot-spot on the estuarine side of the island 
over the past several decades. Past actions to protect the shorelines 
have provided some protection, however they are seeking a longer term 
solution to handle shoreline erosion in order to protect the island's 
$907,352,900 (based on the 2012 reappraisal) assessed property tax 
value. Their stated needs of the project continue to be the following: 
(1) Reduce erosion along approximately 2.3 miles of oceanfront and 0.34 
miles of back barrier shorelines, (2) Provide reasonable short-term 
protection to residential structures to any unpredicted shoreline 
change over the next five years, (3) Provide long-term protection to 
homes and infrastructure over the next 30 years, (4) Maintain the tax 
value of homes, properties, and infrastructure, (5) Use beach 
compatible material, (6) Maintain navigation conditions within Rich 
Inlet and Nixon Channel, (7) Maintain recreational resources, and (8) 
Balance the needs of the human environment with the protection of 
existing natural resources.
    2. Proposed Action. Within the Town's preferred alternative, known 
as Alternative 5D, the installation of the terminal groin is the main 
component in the protection of the oceanfront shoreline. The location 
of the structure will be approximately 420 feet north of the initial 
location described in the Draft EIS which was published in the Federal 
Register (77 FR 29618) on May 18, 2012. The proposed structure is just 
north of the existing homes along the shoulder of Rich Inlet. Its total 
length is approximately 1,500 feet, which approximately 505 feet will 
project seaward of the 2007 mean high water shoreline. The landward 
995-foot anchor section would extend across the island and terminate 
near the Nixon Channel Shoreline. This section will be constructed of 
14,000 to 18,000 square feet of sheet pile with portions of the length 
wrapped with rock. Although engineering design plans are not finalized, 
basic construction design of the seaward 505-foot part of the structure 
will be in the form of a typical rubble (rock) mound feature supported 
by a 1.5-foot thick stone foundation blanket. Crest height or elevation 
of this section is estimated to be + 6.0 feet NAVD for the first 400 
feet and would slope to a top elevation of + 3.0 feet NAVD on the 
seaward end. Approximately 16,000 tons of stone would be used to 
construct the terminal groin. The concept design of the structure is 
intended to allow littoral sand transport to move over, around, and 
through the groin once the accretion fillet has completely filled in.
    Construction of the terminal groin will be kept within a corridor 
varying in width from 50 feet to 200 feet. Within this corridor, a 40-
70 foot wide trench will be excavated to a depth of -2.5 feet NAVD in 
order to construct the foundation of the landward section. The 
approximate 6,000 cubic yards of excavated material will be replaced on 
and around the structure once it's in place. Material used to build the 
groin will be barged down the Atlantic Intracoastal Waterway (AIWW), 
through Nixon Channel, and either offloaded onto a temporary loading 
dock or directly onto shore. It will then be transported, via dump 
trucks, within the designated corridor to the construction site.
    Material used for nourishment will be dredged, using a hydraulic 
cutterhead plant, from a designated borrow site within Nixon Channel, 
which has been previously used for beach fill needs. Approximately 
294,500 cubic yards will be required for both the oceanfront (237,500 
cubic yards) and the Nixon Channel shoreline (57,000 cubic yards) fill 
areas under the 2006 and 2012 shoreline study conditions. Beach 
compatible material from (3) upland disposal islands would serve as a 
contingency sediment source.
    Engineer modeling results have shown that periodic nourishment will 
be required approximately once every five years to maintain the beach 
and Nixon Channel shorelines. The combined 5-year estimated maintenance 
needs for both areas are 320,000 cubic yards of material under the 2006 
condition and 255,000 cubic yards of material under 2012 condition, 
equivalent to approximately 58,000 and 45,000 cubic yards per year 
respectively. This material will come from the designated Nixon Channel 
borrow site and the (3) upland disposal areas.
    3. Alternatives. Several alternatives have been identified and 
evaluated through the scoping process, and further detailed description 
of all alternatives is disclosed in Section 3.0 of the Supplemental 
EIS. At the time of the Draft EIS release in 2012, the applicant's 
preferred alternative had been the Alternative 5B described in Section 
3.0 of the SEIS. However, the Figure Eight Beach HOA evaluated two 
other minor variations of this alternative and determined that one of 
those variations, Alternative 5D, would best suit their needs. 
Alternative 5D, the applicant's preferred alternative, is to install a 
terminal groin structure approximately 420 feet north of Alternatives 
5A and 5B, to conduct initial supplemental beach nourishment, and to 
implement a periodic beach nourishment plan over a 30-year period.
    4. Scoping Process. To date, a public scoping meeting was held on 
March 1, 2007; several Project Delivery Team (PDT) meetings have been 
held; comprising of local, state, and federal government officials, 
local residents and nonprofit organizations; Draft EIS was released for 
public comments on May 18, 2012; and a Public Hearing was conducted on 
June 7, 2012.
    The COE is consulting with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service under 
the Endangered Species Act and the Fish and Wildlife Coordination Act, 
and with the National Marine Fisheries Service under the Magnuson-
Stevens Act and Endangered Species Act. Additionally, the SEIS assesses 
the potential water quality impacts pursuant to Section 401 of the 
Clean Water Act, and is coordinated with the North Carolina Division of 
Coastal Management (DCM) to insure the projects consistency with the 
Coastal Zone Management Act. The COE is coordinating closely with DCM 
in the development of the SEIS to ensure the process complies with 
State Environmental Policy Act (SEPA) requirements, as well as the NEPA 
requirements. The Supplemental EIS has been designed to consolidate 
both NEPA and SEPA processes to eliminate duplications.

    Dated: July 2, 2015.
Henry Wicker,
Regulatory Division Assistant Chief, Wilmington District.
[FR Doc. 2015-16941 Filed 7-9-15; 8:45 am]
 BILLING CODE 3720-58-P