[Federal Register Volume 83, Number 195 (Tuesday, October 9, 2018)]
[Notices]
[Pages 50679-50681]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2018-21601]


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DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR

[FWS-R4-ES-2018-N116; FVHC98220410150-XXX-FF04G01000]


Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill Florida Trustee Implementation Group 
Draft Restoration Plan 1 and Environmental Assessment: Habitat Projects 
on Federally Managed Lands; Nutrient Reduction; Water Quality; and 
Provide and Enhance Recreational Opportunities

AGENCY: Department of the Interior.

ACTION: Notice of availability; request for comments, public meeting 
and webinar.

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SUMMARY: In accordance with the Oil Pollution Act (OPA), the National 
Environmental Policy Act (NEPA), the Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill Final 
Programmatic Damage Assessment and Restoration Plan and Final 
Programmatic Environmental Impact Statement (Final PDARP/PEIS), and the 
resulting Consent Decree, the Federal natural resource trustee agencies 
for the Florida Trustee Implementation Group (FL TIG) have prepared a 
Draft Restoration Plan 1 and Environmental Assessment (Draft RP1/EA). 
The Draft RP1/EA describes restoration alternatives considered by the 
FL TIG and proposes 24 preferred alternatives intended to continue the 
process of restoring natural resources and services injured or lost as 
a result of the Deepwater Horizon oil spill, which occurred on or about 
April 20, 2010, in the Gulf of Mexico. The purpose of this notice is to 
inform the public of the availability of the Draft RP1/EA and to seek 
public comments on the document.

DATES: Submitting Comments: The FL TIG will consider public comments 
received on or before October 26, 2018.
    Public Meeting and Webinar: The FL TIG will conduct one public 
meeting and one webinar to facilitate public review and comment on the 
Draft RP1/EA. The public meeting and webinar will include presentation 
of the Draft RP1/EA. Comments will be taken through submission in 
person at the public meeting, online, or through U.S. mail (see 
Submitting Comments in ADDRESSES). Comments will be accepted during the 
public webinar. The public meeting and webinar are scheduled as 
follows:

                                 Webinar
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             Date                      Time                 Link
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October 10, 2018..............  1:30-4:00 p.m. ET  Webinar link will be
                                                    provided at http://www.gulfspillrestoration.noaa.gov/restoration-areas/florida florida.
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ADDRESSES: Obtaining Documents: You may download the Draft RP1/EA from 
either of the following websites:

     http://www.gulfspillrestoration.noaa.gov
     http://www.doi.gov/deepwaterhorizon
    Alternatively, you may request a CD of the Draft RP1/EA (see FOR 
FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT).
    Submitting Comments: You may submit comments on the Draft RP1/EA by 
one of the following methods:
     Via the Web: http://www.gulfspillrestoration.noaa.gov.
     Via U.S. Mail: U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, P.O. Box 
49567, Atlanta, GA 30345. In order to be considered, mailed comments 
must be postmarked on or before the comment deadline given in DATES.
     During the public meeting. (See DATES for more 
information.)
     During the public webinar. (See DATES for more 
information.)

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Nanciann Regalado, via email at 
[email protected] or via phone at 404-679-4161.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

Introduction

    In accordance with the Oil Pollution Act (OPA; 33 U.S.C. 2701 et 
seq.); the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969, as amended (NEPA; 
42 U.S.C. 4321 et seq.); the Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill Final 
Programmatic Damage Assessment and Restoration Plan and Final 
Programmatic Environmental Impact Statement (Final PDARP/PEIS); and the 
resulting Consent Decree, the Federal natural resource trustee agencies 
for the Florida Trustee Implementation Group (FL TIG) have prepared a 
Draft Restoration Plan 1 and Environmental Assessment (Draft RP1/EA). 
The Draft RP1/EA describes restoration alternatives considered by the 
FL TIG and proposes 24 preferred alternatives intended to continue the 
process of restoring natural resources and services injured or lost as 
a result of the Deepwater Horizon oil spill, which occurred in 2010 in 
the Gulf of Mexico. The four restoration types addressed in the Draft 
RP 1/EA are Habitat Projects on Federally Managed Lands; Nutrient 
Reduction; Water Quality; and Providing and Enhancing Recreational 
Opportunities. The FL TIG evaluated these alternatives under criteria 
set forth in the OPA Natural Resource Damage Assessment (NRDA) 
regulations at 15 CFR part 990, and also evaluated the environmental 
consequences of the restoration alternatives in accordance with NEPA. 
The purpose of this notice is to inform the public of the availability 
of the Draft RP1/EA and to seek public comments on the document.

Background

    On or about April 20, 2010, the Deepwater Horizon (DWH) mobile 
drilling unit exploded, resulting in loss of life and a massive release 
of oil and natural gas from the British Petroleum Exploration and 
Production, Inc. (BP) Macondo well. Initial efforts to cap the well 
were unsuccessful, resulting in 87 days of continuous discharge into 
the northern Gulf of Mexico, totaling approximately 3.19 million 
barrels (134 million gallons) of oil. Oil spread from the deep ocean to 
the surface and nearshore environment from Texas to Florida, coming 
into contact and injuring a diverse set of natural resources. Extensive 
response actions, including cleanup activities and actions to prevent 
the oil from reaching sensitive resources, were undertaken; however, 
many of these response actions had collateral impacts on the 
environment and natural resource services.
    The Trustees conducted the NRDA for the Deepwater Horizon oil spill 
under the OPA. Pursuant to the OPA, Federal and State agencies act as 
trustees on behalf of the public to assess natural resource injuries 
and losses and to determine the actions required to compensate the 
public for those injuries and losses. OPA further instructs the 
designated trustees to develop and implement a plan for the 
restoration, rehabilitation, replacement, or acquisition of the 
equivalent of the injured natural resources under their trusteeship, 
including the loss of use and services from those resources from the 
time of injury until the time of restoration to baseline (i.e., the 
resource quality and conditions that would exist if the spill had not 
occurred) is complete.
    The Deepwater Horizon Trustees are:
     U.S. Department of the Interior (DOI), as represented by 
the National Park Service, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, and Bureau 
of Land Management;
     National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), on 
behalf of the U.S. Department of Commerce;
     U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA);
     U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA);
     State of Louisiana Coastal Protection and Restoration 
Authority, Oil Spill Coordinator's Office, Department of Environmental 
Quality, Department of Wildlife and Fisheries, and Department of 
Natural Resources;
     State of Mississippi Department of Environmental Quality;
     State of Alabama Department of Conservation and Natural 
Resources and Geological Survey of Alabama;
     State of Florida Department of Environmental Protection 
(FDEP) and Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC); and
     State of Texas: Texas Parks and Wildlife Department, Texas 
General Land Office, and Texas Commission on Environmental Quality.
    The Trustees reached and finalized a settlement of their natural 
resource damage claims with BP in an April 4, 2016, Consent Decree 
approved by the United States District Court for the Eastern District 
of Louisiana. Pursuant to that Consent Decree, restoration projects in 
the Florida Restoration Area are now selected and implemented by the FL 
TIG. The FL TIG is composed of two State Trustees and four Federal 
Trustees: FDEP, FWC, DOI, NOAA, EPA, and USDA.
    On November 4, 2016, the FL TIG posted a public notice at http://www.gulfspillrestoration.noaa.gov requesting new or revised natural 
resource restoration project ideas by December 5, 2016, for the FL 
Restoration Area. The notice stated that the FL TIG was seeking project 
ideas for the following Restoration Types: (1) Habitat Projects on 
Federally Managed Lands; (2) Nutrient Reduction; (3) Water Quality; and 
(4) Provide and Enhance Recreational Opportunities.
    On September 29, 2017, the FL TIG announced that it had initiated 
drafting of its first post-settlement draft restoration plan, and that 
the first plan would include restoration projects for Habitat Projects 
on Federally Managed Lands; Nutrient Reduction; Water Quality; and 
Provide and Enhance Recreational Opportunities.

Overview of the FL TIG Draft RP1/EA

    The Draft RP1/EA is being released in accordance with OPA, NRDA 
regulations, NEPA, the Consent Decree, and the Final PDARP/PEIS. The 24 
preferred restoration alternatives include Habitat Projects on 
Federally Managed Lands at Gulf Islands National Seashore (FL) and St. 
Vincent National Wildlife Refuge; Nutrient Reduction projects in 
Pensacola Bay, Perdido River and Lower Suwannee River Watersheds; 
projects that restore Water Quality in Pensacola Bay Watershed, 
Carpenter Creek, Pensacola Beach, Rattlesnake Bluff Road, Alligator 
Lake, St. Andrew Bay, City of Port St. Joe, City of Carrabelle, Lower 
Suwanee National

[[Page 50681]]

Wildlife Refuge and Charlotte Harbor; and projects that Provide and 
Enhance Recreation Opportunities in Perdido River, Carpenter Creek, 
Gulf Islands National Seashore (FL), Joe's Bayou, St. Marks National 
Wildlife Refuge and the following State parks: Topsail Hill, Camp 
Helen, St. Andrews State Park, and T.H. Stone Memorial St. Joseph 
Peninsula.
    In compliance with NEPA, an environmental assessment is integrated 
into the plan. The FL TIG also analyzes eight additional alternatives, 
as well as no action. One or more alternatives may be selected for 
implementation by the FL TIG in the Final RP1/EA or in future 
restoration plans.
    The proposed alternatives are intended to continue the process of 
using DWH restoration funding to restore natural resources injured or 
lost as a result of the Deepwater Horizon oil spill. Additional 
restoration planning for the FL Restoration Area will continue.

Next Steps

    As described above, one public open house/meeting and one public 
webinar are scheduled to facilitate the public review and comment 
process on the Draft RP1/EA. After the public comment period ends, the 
FL TIG will consider and address the comments received before issuing 
the Final RP1/EA.

Public Availability of Comments

    Before including your address, phone number, email address, or 
other personal identifying information in your comment, you should be 
aware that your entire comment--including your personal identifying 
information--may be made publicly available at any time. While you can 
ask us in your comment to withhold your personal identifying 
information from public review, we cannot guarantee that we will be 
able to do so.

Administrative Record

    The documents comprising the Administrative Record for the Draft 
RP1/EA can be viewed electronically at https://www.doi.gov/deepwaterhorizon/adminrecord.

Authority

    The authority for this action is the Oil Pollution Act of 1990 (33 
U.S.C. 2701 et seq.) and its implementing Natural Resource Damage 
Assessment regulations found at 15 CFR part 990, and the National 
Environmental Policy Act of 1969, as amended (42 U.S.C. 4321 et seq.).

Kevin D. Reynolds,
Assistant Regional Director--Gulf Restoration, FWS; Department of the 
Interior Natural Resource Trustee Official for the Florida Trustee 
Implementation Group.
[FR Doc. 2018-21601 Filed 10-5-18; 8:45 am]
 BILLING CODE 4333-15-P