[Federal Register Volume 82, Number 175 (Tuesday, September 12, 2017)]
[Notices]
[Pages 42872-42874]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2017-19310]


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TENNESSEE VALLEY AUTHORITY


Multiple Reservoir Land Management Plans

AGENCY: Tennessee Valley Authority.

ACTION: Issuance of Record of Decision.

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SUMMARY: The Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA) has decided to adopt 
proposed reservoir land management plans (RLMPs) for the 138,321.4 
acres of TVA-managed public land on eight reservoirs in Alabama, 
Kentucky, and Tennessee: Chickamauga, Fort Loudoun, Great Falls, 
Kentucky, Nickajack, Normandy, Wheeler and Wilson. TVA is also revising 
its Comprehensive Valleywide Land Plan (CVLP) to incorporate the 
information included in the eight RLMPs.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:  Kelly Baxter, Land Planning 
Specialist, Natural Resources, Tennessee Valley Authority, 400 West 
Summit Hill Drive, WT-11D, Knoxville, Tennessee 37902-1499; telephone 
(865) 632-2444; or email [email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: This notice is provided in accordance with 
the Council on Environmental Quality's regulations (40 CFR parts 1500 
to 1508) and TVA's procedures for implementing the National 
Environmental Policy Act. TVA manages public lands to protect the 
integrated operation of TVA reservoir and power systems, to provide for 
appropriate public use and enjoyment of the reservoir system, and to 
provide for continuing economic growth in the Tennessee Valley region. 
Shortly after its creation in 1933, TVA began a dam and reservoir 
construction program that required the purchase of approximately 1.3 
million acres of land for the creation of 46 reservoirs within the 
Tennessee Valley region. Most of these lands are now located underneath 
the water of the reservoir system or have since been sold by TVA or 
transferred to other state or federal agencies. Today, approximately 
293,000 acres of land along TVA reservoirs are managed by TVA for the 
benefit of the public.
    Reservoir land planning is a systematic method of identifying and 
evaluating the most suitable uses of reservoir lands under TVA 
stewardship and RLMPs guide future decision-making and the management 
of reservoir lands in a manner consistent with TVA policies. The 
updated RLMPs are needed to consider changes to land uses over time, to 
make land planning decisions on these eight reservoirs consistent with 
the TVA Land Policy and the CVLP, and to incorporate TVA's goals for 
managing natural resources on public lands.
    On July 21, 2017, TVA issued a Final Environmental Impact Statement 
(EIS) that considered the eight proposed RLMPs and the associated 
changes to the CVLP land use allocation target ranges. The eight RLMPs 
reviewed in the Final EIS address management of approximately 138,221 
acres of TVA-managed public lands surrounding Chickamauga, Fort 
Loudoun, Great Falls, Kentucky, Nickajack, Normandy, Wheeler, and 
Wilson Reservoirs.
    On August 23, 2017, the TVA Board of Directors (TVA Board) approved 
the Multiple RLMPs and updates to the CVLP, implementing the preferred 
alternative (Proposed Land Use Alternative) identified in the Final 
EIS. Under the RLMPs adopted by the TVA Board, TVA-managed land on the 
eight reservoirs has been allocated into broad land use categories or 
``zones'', including Project Operations (Zone 2), Sensitive Resource 
Management (Zone 3), Natural Resource Conservation (Zone 4), Industrial 
(Zone 5), Developed Recreation (Zone 6) and Shoreline Access (Zone 7). 
These allocations guide the types of activities that will be considered 
on each parcel of land in the future. Non-TVA Shoreland (Zone 1) is 
applied to reservoir lands where TVA has land rights such as flowage 
easements. In the Final EIS, TVA considered potential environmental 
impacts of the eight RLMPs and the land use allocations of reservoir 
parcels.
    In proposing the land use zones, TVA considered previous land use 
allocations and current land uses, existing land rights (easements, 
leases, etc.), public needs, the presence of sensitive environmental 
resources, and TVA policies and guidelines, including the TVA Land 
Policy and Shoreline Management Policy. Of the eight reservoirs, seven 
have land use plans that were developed using different methodology and 
land use categories. Two reservoirs (Fort Loudoun and Normandy) were 
planned using TVA's Forecast System in the 1960s or 1970s; four 
reservoirs (Chickamauga, Kentucky, Nickajack, and Wheeler) were planned 
in the 1980s and 1990s under the Multiple Use Tract Allocation 
methodology. A land plan has never been developed for Great Falls 
Reservoir, and only a portion of Wilson Reservoir has been planned 
previously. Further, previous land planning methodologies did not 
assign land use designations to all TVA-managed land on the reservoir. 
In developing the eight RLMPs, TVA applied the Single Use Parcel 
Allocation methodology which allocates all TVA reservoir land to the 
seven allocation land use zones identified above. With the approval of 
these RLMPs, all TVA land plans are now based on the same allocation 
methodology, ensuring that future management policies can be 
consistently applied across the Tennessee Valley region, as intended 
under TVA's 2011 Natural Resource Plan.
    In its Natural Resource Plan, TVA established the CVLP to guide 
allowable uses of TVA-managed properties on 46 reservoirs. The CVLP 
identifies target ranges for the different types of land use zone 
allocations for TVA reservoir lands in the Tennessee Valley region and 
helps TVA to balance competing land use demands. When establishing the 
CVLP target ranges for the land use zones in 2011, TVA based the ranges 
on parcel allocation conversions from existing plans as well as ``rapid 
lands assessments,'' which were initial allocation designations of 
reservoir parcels conducted in order to establish an initial CVLP 
target range. Since 2011, TVA has conducted thorough, systematic 
assessments of parcels on the eight reservoirs and found in many cases 
that the initial allocation estimates did not accurately reflect actual 
land uses on parcels, the presence of sensitive resources, or existing 
land rights or restrictions for parcels. TVA incorporated these 
allocation corrections into the proposed RLMPs, which resulted in the 
need to make minor revisions to the CVLP target ranges. Thus, as part 
of this planning effort, TVA considered changes to the CVLP target 
ranges according to the zone allocations identified in the RLMPs. No 
other decisions in the Natural Resource Plan were revised during this 
planning effort.

Alternatives Considered

    In the Final EIS, TVA considered the Proposed Land Use Plan 
Alternative and the No Action Alternative for managing

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1,396 parcels of public land, comprising 138,221.4 acres, under its 
management around the eight reservoirs. Under both alternatives, TVA 
would continue to conduct environmental reviews to consider potential 
site- and project-specific impacts prior to the approval of any 
proposed development or activity on any parcel. About 56 percent of 
reservoir lands (76,880 acres) had previous commitments specified in 
land use agreements (e.g., easements, leases, etc.) or existing plans. 
No changes to committed lands were proposed under either alternative.
    Because of the differences with past and present land planning 
methodologies, it was necessary to convert the land use designations to 
one of the seven land use zones to represent the No Action Alternative 
to facilitate the comparison of the two alternatives. Designations from 
existing RLMPs and the Forecast System and the committed land that was 
not assigned a land use designation on all reservoirs were converted to 
the equivalent land use zone. The conversions are estimates of the 
appropriate zone allocation based on best available information at that 
time.
    Under the No Action Alternative, TVA would not implement new RLMPs 
for the eight reservoirs and would continue to rely on previous land 
planning decisions or current management of parcels. TVA would continue 
to manage TVA land on Fort Loudoun and Normandy reservoirs as 
designated under the Forecast System and would continue to manage lands 
on Chickamauga, Kentucky, Nickajack, and Wheeler reservoirs in 
accordance with existing RLMPs for those reservoirs. Lands on Great 
Falls and portions of Wilson were not previously planned and, 
therefore, would be subject to management in accordance with existing 
commitments and land use agreements as well as applicable TVA policies. 
Reservoir lands would not be managed according to TVA's current land 
use planning zones and would not be in complete alignment with current 
TVA policies. The target allocation ranges of the CVLP identified in 
TVA's Natural Resource Plan would not be revised.
    Under the Proposed Land Use Plan Alternative, TVA would implement 
the eight RLMPs detailed in the Final EIS to guide future management on 
these reservoirs. The TVA managed land would be allocated to land use 
zones according to current land usage, existing land rights, existing 
land use agreements, existing and newly collected data, public needs, 
the presence of sensitive resources, and TVA policies. Generally, land 
allocations in the eight RLMPs reflect actual uses of parcels, the 
presence of known sensitive resources, or existing land rights or 
restrictions for parcels. As such, the changes in allocations are 
minor.
    The approved RLMPs result in changes of zone allocations to 25,558 
acres of land, roughly 18 percent of the 138,321.4 acres of TVA-managed 
reservoir lands (approximately 7 percent of the allocations were made 
to reflect existing land use agreements and commitments and 
approximately 11 percent were made for other reasons). Under the eight 
RLMPs, the total number of acres of TVA lands allocated to Sensitive 
Resource Management (Zone 3) and Natural Resource Conservation (Zone 4) 
is slightly lower than previous allocations; the RLMPs reduce Zone 3 
lands by 2,289.8 acres and Zone 4 lands by 3,300.3 acres. In turn, the 
amount of land allocated for Project Operations (Zone 2), Industrial 
(Zone 5), Developed Recreation (Zone 6), and Shoreline Access (Zone 7) 
is slightly higher under the RLMPs; an additional 1,622.1 acres are 
allocated for Zone 2, 1,303.3 acres for Zone 5, 1,644.0 acres for Zone 
6, and 1,090.1 acres for Zone 7.
    Because of new allocations in the RLMPs, the target allocation 
ranges of the CVLP are revised under the Proposed Land Use Plan 
Alternative as follows: The range for Project Operations (Zone 2) is 
raised from 5 to 7 percent (current) to 7 to 10 percent; Sensitive 
Resource Management (Zone 3) is adjusted from 16 to 18 percent to 14 to 
18 percent; Natural Resource Conservation (Zone 4) is reduced from 58 
to 65 percent to 56 to 63 percent; Industrial (Zone 5), is adjusted 
from 1 to 2 percent to 1 to 3 percent; and Shoreline Access (Zone 7) is 
adjusted from 5 percent to 5 to 6 percent. There are no changes to the 
allocation range for Developed Recreation (Zone 6).

Environmental Consequences

    In the Final EIS, TVA found that under the No Action Alternative, 
the total number of acres of TVA land on the eight reservoirs that 
would be equivalently designated to Project Operations (Zone 2), 
Industrial (Zone 5) and Developed Recreation (Zone 6) is less than 
under the Proposed Land Use Alternative. However, proposed land use 
allocations under the Proposed Land Use Alternative primarily reflect 
the existing conditions and suitable uses of land and as such, the 
actual on-the-ground difference between the two alternatives is minor. 
No significant direct, indirect, or cumulative effects are expected to 
occur to any resource under either alternative. Under both 
alternatives, TVA would conduct site-specific environmental reviews of 
proposed projects on reservoir lands to identify potential impacts to 
resources, including sensitive resources such as species federally 
listed as endangered or threatened, cultural resources and wetlands.
    In contrast to the No Action Alternative, the Proposed Land Use 
Alternative was developed using a systematic and comprehensive planning 
approach to the management, retention, and disposal of reservoir lands 
managed by TVA. It brings consistency to the land planning process 
across the eight reservoirs that enables TVA to identify the most 
suitable use of TVA public lands in furtherance of TVA's 
responsibilities under the TVA Act. The Proposed Land Use Plan 
Alternative, then, would result in the benefits of comprehensive land 
planning across the entire range of lands associated with the eight 
reservoirs.

Environmentally Preferable Alternative

    The Proposed Land Use Plan Alternative, approved by the TVA Board, 
is the environmentally preferable alternative because the land use 
allocations under this alternative are the result of thorough research 
and implementation of TVA's land planning process. This alternative 
best reflects existing uses and conditions of TVA-managed land and the 
proposed land use allocations would result in the widest range of 
beneficial uses without degrading the environment or other undesirable 
and unintended consequences.

Public Involvement

    TVA published a Notice of Intent to prepare the EIS in the Federal 
Register on March 3, 2016. TVA sought input from Federal and state 
agencies, Federally recognized Indian tribes, local organizations and 
individuals during a 30-day public scoping period. The most common 
concerns raised during the scoping period were related to recreation 
use on Normandy Reservoir parcels (e.g., horseback riding, campground 
management). Numerous individuals requested information regarding TVA 
parcels, provided recommendations to TVA on how specific parcels should 
be managed, or raised general concerns regarding how TVA should manage 
the public lands. In July 2016, TVA published a Scoping Report that 
detailed the outreach and input during this period.
    The Notice of Availability of the Draft EIS was published in the 
Federal Register on December 2, 2016. TVA

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held public meetings on the Draft EIS in January 2017 in Knoxville, 
Chattanooga, Manchester, and Paris, Tennessee, and in Muscle Shoals, 
Alabama, and accepted comments until January 31, 2017.
    TVA received 44 comment submissions on the Draft EIS and provided 
responses in the Final EIS. Most comments pertained to the proposed 
land use allocations of specific parcels of TVA land. In response to 
numerous substantive comments, TVA made revisions and corrections to 
the EIS. After considering the public's feedback on the Draft EIS and 
further internal deliberation, TVA made minor modifications to its 
Proposed Land Use Plan Alternative. The land use allocations were 
changed for 4 parcels and parcel boundaries were changed for 41 
parcels. Allocation and/or acreage changes were made to reflect new 
information or changes in land use agreements or changes in back-lying 
property ownership, to correct errors or omissions, or in response to 
public comments.
    The NOA for the Final EIS was published in the Federal Register on 
July 21, 2017. In the Final EIS, TVA identified the Proposed Land Use 
Plan Alternative as its preference. Prior to its August 23, 2017 
meeting, the TVA Board provided opportunity to the public to comment on 
the RLMPs and CVLP revision. No comments were received.

Decision

    On August 23, 2017, the TVA Board approved the eight RLMPs and the 
revision of the CVLP, thereby adopting the Proposed Land Use Plan 
Alternative of the Final EIS. TVA believes the implementation of this 
plan provides suitable opportunities for balancing competing land use 
demands for natural and sensitive resource conservation while providing 
public lands for recreational enjoyment as well as supporting 
recreation and economic development goals. This decision incorporates 
mitigation measures that would minimize the potential for adverse 
impacts to the environment.

Mitigation Measures

    Because this is a programmatic review, specific measures to reduce 
potential environmental impacts on a site-specific level were not 
identified. Prior to approving any use of land on the eight reservoirs, 
TVA would conduct an appropriate level of site-specific environmental 
review to determine the potential environmental effects of the proposed 
use. TVA's review process for potential actions on these lands is 
designed to identify ways to avoid and/or minimize potential adverse 
environmental impacts. Based on the findings of any site-specific 
environmental review, TVA may require the implementation of appropriate 
mitigation measures, including best management practices, as conditions 
of approval for land use on the TVA-managed lands.
    When considering future development of reservoir lands, TVA would 
also comply with other applicable environmental requirements, including 
the Endangered Species Act, Clean Water Act, Clean Air Act, and 
applicable Executive Orders, and ensure that proper agency coordination 
and permitting requirements are met. In addition, all activities will 
be conducted in accordance with the stipulations defined in the 
programmatic agreement (PA) between TVA and the State Historic 
Preservation Officers (SHPO) of Alabama, Kentucky, and Tennessee, the 
Advisory Council of Historic Preservation, and federally recognized 
Indian tribes, that was established for implementation of the Natural 
Resources Plan in 2011. Under the agreement, TVA will consult with the 
appropriate SHPO and consulting parties when reviewing plans submitted 
to TVA.

David Bowling,
Vice President, Land and River Management.
[FR Doc. 2017-19310 Filed 9-11-17; 8:45 am]
 BILLING CODE 8120-08-P