[Federal Register Volume 83, Number 83 (Monday, April 30, 2018)]
[Notices]
[Pages 18829-18830]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2018-09031]


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DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE

Department of the Army, Corps of Engineers


Intent To Prepare Draft Supplemental Environmental Impact 
Statement for the Allatoona Lake Water Supply Storage Reallocation 
Study and Updates to Weiss and Logan Martin Reservoir Project Water 
Control Manuals in the Alabama-Coosa-Tallapoosa River Basin

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

ACTION: Notice of intent.

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SUMMARY: The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE), Mobile District, 
intends to prepare a Supplemental Environmental Impact Statement (SEIS) 
to evaluate potential changes to the Water Control Manuals (WCMs) for 
three reservoirs in the Alabama-Coosa-Tallapoosa (ACT) River Basin and 
to the Master WCM for the ACT River Basin. The USACE intends to conduct 
a water supply storage reallocation study to evaluate a March 30, 2018 
request by Georgia and Cobb County-Marietta Water Authority (CCMWA) for 
increased water supply usage at Allatoona Lake and changed storage 
accounting methodology. The Draft SEIS will be prepared as an 
integrated document with the reallocation study. The reallocation study 
with the integrated Draft SEIS will address the water supply storage 
request and updated operating criteria and guidelines for managing the 
water storage and release actions of Federal water managers and will 
evaluate the associated environmental impacts of the proposed federal 
action, pursuant to the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA). The 
USACE also intends to update the WCMs for the Alabama Power Company's 
Weiss and Logan Martin Reservoirs in the ACT River Basin.

ADDRESSES: Environment and Resources Branch, Planning and Environmental 
Division, U.S. Army Engineer District-Mobile, Post Office Box 2288, 
Mobile, AL 36628-0001.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Questions about the NEPA process 
should be directed to: Mr. Mike Malsom, Inland Environment Team, 
Environment and Resources Branch, Planning and Environmental Division, 
U.S. Army Engineer District-Mobile, Post Office Box 2288, Mobile, AL 
36628-0001; Telephone (251) 690-2023; delivered by electronic facsimile 
at (251) 694-3815; or by electronic mail: [email protected]. You 
may also request to be included on the mailing list for public 
distribution of notices, meeting announcements and documents.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 
    Background. Eighteen major dams (six Federal and twelve non-
Federal), which form sixteen reservoirs, are located in the ACT River 
Basin. The ACT River Basin provides water resources for multiple 
purposes from northwestern Georgia down through central Alabama and to 
the Gulf Coast at the mouth of Mobile Bay, extending a distance of 
approximately 320 miles and encompassing an area of approximately 
22,800 square miles. Pursuant to Section 7 of the Flood Control Act of 
1944, the USACE prescribes regulations for the operation of its 
projects in the ACT River Basin for their authorized purposes, and for 
the non-federal projects that contain storage for the purposes of 
navigation or flood control (flood risk management), through water 
control plans and manuals.
    In May 2015, the USACE completed a long-term effort to update the 
Master WCM for the ACT River Basin, including updated WCMs for all five 
USACE projects (Allatoona Dam and Lake, Carters Dam and Lake, Robert F. 
Henry Lock and Dam, Millers Ferry Lock and Dam and Claiborne Lock and 
Dam) and two of four Alabama Power Company (APC) projects with 
navigation or flood control storage (H. Neely Henry Dam and Lake and 
R.L. Harris Dam and Lake). WCMs for the other two APC projects with 
navigation and flood control storage, Logan Martin Dam and Lake 
(Reservoir) and Weiss Dam and Lake (Reservoir), were not updated at 
that time. A pending request by the State of Georgia for additional 
water supply storage and changes to storage accounting practices at 
Allatoona Lake was also not included within the scope of the 2015 WCM 
update and EIS.
    In January 2018, the U.S. District Court for the Northern District 
of Georgia issued a judgment in Georgia et al. v. U.S. Army Corps of 
Engineers, No. 14-cv-03593 (Jan. 9, 2018), holding that the USACE had 
unreasonably delayed action on Georgia's water supply request, and 
directing the USACE to take final action responding to that request by 
March 1, 2021. Following that court decision, the State of Georgia and 
CCMWA submitted an updated request to the USACE on March 30, 2018, and 
the USACE intends to evaluate actions necessary to respond to Georgia's 
request, as well as one or more reasonable alternatives, in the 
proposed SEIS.

[[Page 18830]]

    The USACE did not include updates to the WCMs for the Weiss and 
Logan Martin Reservoirs in the 2015 ACT River Basin Master WCM because 
further study of flood risk management issues at both projects was 
required. The USACE intends to update the WCMs for two APC reservoir 
projects in the ACT River Basin, including evaluation of APC's proposal 
to raise the winter level for recreation and at the same time to lower 
the upper limit of the induced surcharge operation at the Weiss Dam and 
Lake (Reservoir) and the Logan Martin Dam and Lake (Reservoir). These 
projects will be evaluated for flood impacts. Current Water Control 
Plans for the Weiss and Logan Martin Reservoirs, originally issued in 
the 1960s, contain surcharge curves with elevations higher than the 
respective flood easements acquired by APC. The easement at the Weiss 
Reservoir is 572 feet mean sea level (msl) and the surcharge curve 
indicates flood control storage to 574 feet msl. At the Logan Martin 
Reservoir, the easement elevation is 473.5 feet msl and the surcharge 
curve indicates flood control storage to 477 feet msl. Due to the flood 
risk management operational responsibilities of the USACE, the APC 
proposals would be evaluated along with other alternatives in the FR/
SEIS and those manuals may be updated.
    Because the USACE is simultaneously considering proposals to modify 
operations and update WCMs at three different ACT River Basin projects, 
the USACE intends to evaluate the effects of these proposals through a 
single EIS, which would supplement the Final EIS for the ACT River 
Basin completed in May 2015. As part of this analysis, the USACE will 
consider the effects of the proposed changes on operations of the ACT 
system of projects for all purposes, and would revise the ACT Master 
WCM to incorporate the updated Allatoona Lake, Weiss Reservoir, and 
Logan Martin Reservoir WCMs and to reflect changes, if any, in overall 
system operations.
    WCMs are guidance documents that assist Federal water managers in 
the operation of individual and multiple interdependent Federal 
reservoirs on the same river system. The manuals provide technical, 
historical, hydrological, geographic, demographic, policy and other 
information that guide the proper management of reservoirs during times 
of high water, low water, and normal conditions. The manuals also 
contain drought plans and zones to assist Federal water managers in 
knowing when to reduce or increase reservoir releases, and how to 
ensure the safety of dams during extreme conditions. The authority and 
guidance for the USACE to prepare and update these manuals may be 
found, inter alia, in Section 7 of the 1944 Flood Control Act, the 
Federal Power Act, Section 9 of Public Law 436-83, and the following 
USACE Engineering Regulations (ER): ER 1110-2-240, ER 1110-2-241, ER 
1110-2-1941 and ER 1110-2-8156.
    The evaluations of the proposed water supply storage reallocation 
at the Allatoona Lake and the flood impacts at several APC projects in 
the Coosa Basin may require updates to the current WCMs. The updated 
WCMs would be provided as appendices to the SEIS.
    Public participation throughout the water supply storage 
reallocation and flood pool evaluation process is essential. The USACE 
invites full public participation at all stages to promote open 
communication and better decision making. All persons, stakeholders, 
and organizations that have an interest in water-related resources in 
the ACT Basin, including minority, low-income, disadvantaged and Native 
American groups, are urged to participate in this NEPA analysis 
process. Assistance will be provided upon request to anyone having 
difficulty understanding how to participate. Dates and locations for 
public scoping meetings will be announced by future publication in the 
Federal Register and in the local news media. Tentative dates for 
publication of the Draft SEIS and other opportunities for public 
involvement will also be announced at that time. Public comments are 
welcomed at any time throughout the NEPA process.
    Cooperating Agencies. The lead responsibility for this action rests 
with the USACE. USACE intends to coordinate and/or consult with an 
interagency team of Federal and State agencies during scoping and 
preparation of the FR/SEIS. A decision will be made during the scoping 
process whether other agencies will serve in an official role as 
cooperating agencies.
    Scoping. The 2015 ACT WCM update involved the States (Alabama and 
Georgia), stakeholders, and the public, in identifying areas of 
concern; collecting and developing water resources, environmental, and 
socioeconomic data; and developing tools to assist in decisions 
affecting water resources within the Basin. Scoping for this SEIS will 
continue to build upon the knowledge and information developed during 
the previous EIS process. Scoping meetings with agencies and 
stakeholder groups will be scheduled to identify any significant issues 
and data gaps, focus on the alternatives to be evaluated, and to 
identify any appropriate updated tools to assist in the evaluation of 
alternatives and analysis of impacts.

Curtis M. Flakes,
Chief, Planning and Environmental Division.
[FR Doc. 2018-09031 Filed 4-27-18; 8:45 am]
 BILLING CODE 3720-58-P