[Federal Register Volume 84, Number 63 (Tuesday, April 2, 2019)]
[Notices]
[Pages 12598-12599]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2019-06354]


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DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE

Department of the Army, Corps of Engineers


Notice of Intent To Prepare a Draft Environmental Impact 
Statement for the Lake Pontchartrain and Vicinity General Re-Evaluation 
Report, Louisiana

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

ACTION: Notice of intent.

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SUMMARY: Pursuant to the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA), the 
U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, New Orleans District (USACE) intends to 
prepare a Draft Integrated General Re-evaluation Report and 
Environmental Impact Statement (DGRR-EIS) for the Lake Pontchartrain 
and Vicinity Coastal Storm Risk Management Project. The study seeks to 
determine if the work necessary to sustain the 1% level of hurricane 
storm damage risk reduction is technically feasible, environmentally 
acceptable, and economically justified.

ADDRESSES: Questions or comments about the proposed action or requests 
to be added to the project mailing list should be directed to Mr. 
Bradley Drouant, P.E., CEMVN-PMO-L, Room 361, 7400 Leake Avenue, New 
Orleans, LA 70118; [email protected]. For additional 
information, please visit the following website: https://www.mvn.usace.army.mil/About/Projects/BBA-2018/studies/.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Mr. Bradley Drouant, (504) 862-1516.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The lead agency for this proposed action is 
the USACE. The Louisiana Coastal Protection and Restoration Authority 
(CPRA) is the non-Federal sponsor.
    1. Authority. The USACE is preparing the DGRR-EIS under the 
authority of Section 3017 of WRRDA 2014. Public Law 115-123 (Bipartisan 
Budget Act of 2018) funded the study as a new start. The study phase is 
100% federal funding.
    2. Background. The devastation to New Orleans and the Gulf Coast 
from Hurricanes Katrina and Rita included the loss of over 1,800 lives, 
it temporarily and permanently displaced many thousands of residents, 
and resulted in estimated property damages in excess of $40 billion in 
New Orleans and as much as $100 billion along the Gulf Coast.
    After the devastation of the 2005 hurricane season, the U.S. 
embarked on one of the largest civil works projects ever undertaken, at 
an estimated cost of $14 billion. The project included restoration, 
accelerated construction, improvements, and enhancements of various 
risk reduction projects within southeastern Louisiana, including the 
Lake Pontchartrain and Vicinity, Louisiana Project (LPV) and the West 
Bank and Vicinity, Louisiana Project (WBV), jointly referred to as the 
Greater New Orleans Hurricane and Storm Damage Risk Reduction System 
(HSDRRS). The completion of the levees, floodwalls, gates, and pumps 
that together form the HSDRRS brought 100-year level of hurricane and 
storm damage risk reduction to the areas within LPV and WBV.
    Southeast Louisiana, including the Greater New Orleans area, is 
generally characterized by weak soils, general subsidence, and the 
global incidence of sea level rise that will cause levees to require 
future lifts to sustain performance of the HSDRRS. The HSDRRS project 
authority did not provide for future lifts. Engineering analysis 
indicates the HSDRRS will no longer provide 1% level of risk reduction 
as early as 2023. Absent future levee lifts to offset consolidation, 
settlement, subsidence, and sea level rise, risk to life and property 
in the Greater New Orleans area will progressively increase. USACE will 
notify FEMA once the system no longer provides the 1% level of risk 
reduction, which may result in the loss of accreditation required for 
participation in the National Flood Insurance Program.
    The DGRR-EIS seeks to determine if the work necessary to sustain 
the 1% level of risk reduction is technically feasible, environmentally 
acceptable, and economically justified. The study will also consider 
other levels of risk reduction. A positive determination

[[Page 12599]]

would make construction of future levee lifts eligible for future 
budget requests.
    The significant issues that are likely to be analyzed in depth in 
the DGRR-EIS include: Climate; relative sea level rise; levee 
consolidation and compaction; annual probability of failure; life loss; 
economic damages; geology and soils; hydrology and hydraulics; water 
resources; forest and wetland resources; uplands; fisheries; essential 
fish habitat; wildlife; invasive species; threatened and endangered 
species; cultural and historical resources; scenic and aesthetic 
resources; recreation; air quality; noise; transportation; population 
and housing; employment, business, and industrial activity; public 
facilities and services; community and regional growth; tax revenue and 
property values; community cohesion; environmental justice; and 
hazardous, toxic, and radioactive waste.
    3. Alternatives. The USACE will evaluate a range of alternatives 
for the proposed action including structural and nonstructural 
measures. The USACE will fully evaluate reasonable and practicable 
alternatives, including the no action alternative. Alternatives may 
result in avoidance, minimization, and mitigation measures to reduce or 
offset any impacts.
    4. Public Involvement. Public involvement, an essential part of the 
NEPA process, is integral to assessing the environmental consequences 
of the proposed action and improving the quality of the environmental 
decision making. The public includes affected and interested Federal, 
state, and local agencies, Indian tribes, concerned citizens, 
stakeholders, and other interested parties. Public participation in the 
NEPA process will be strongly encouraged, both formally and informally, 
to enhance the probability of a more technically accurate, economically 
feasible, and socially acceptable EIS. Public involvement will include, 
but is not limited to: Information dissemination; identification of 
problems, needs, and opportunities; idea generation; public education; 
problem solving; providing feedback on proposals; evaluation of 
alternatives; conflict resolution; public and scoping notices and 
meetings; public, stakeholder, and advisory groups consultation and 
meetings; and making the EIS and supporting information readily 
available in conveniently located places, such as libraries and on the 
world wide web.
    5. Scoping. Scoping, an early and open process for identifying the 
scope of significant issues related to the proposed action to be 
addressed in the EIS, will be used to: (a) Identify the affected public 
and agency concerns; (b) facilitate an efficient EIS preparation 
process; (c) define the issues and alternatives that will be examined 
in detail in the EIS; and (d) save time in the overall process by 
helping to ensure that the draft EIS adequately addresses relevant 
issues.
    A Scoping Meeting Notice announcing the locations, dates and times 
for scoping meetings is anticipated to be posted on the project 
website, https://www.mvn.usace.army.mil/About/Projects/BBA-2018/studies/ and through various advertising avenues widely available to 
the public no later than 15 days prior to the meeting dates.
    6. Environmental Consultation and Review. The USACE will serve as 
the lead Federal agency in the preparation of the DGRR-EIS. Other 
Federal and/or state agencies may participate as cooperating and/or 
commenting agencies throughout the study process. The U.S. Fish and 
Wildlife Service (USFWS) will assist in documenting existing conditions 
and assessing effects of project alternatives through the Fish and 
Wildlife Coordination Act consultation procedures. In addition, because 
the proposed project may affect federally listed species, the USACE 
will consult with the USFWS and the National Marine Fisheries Service 
(NMFS) in accordance with the Endangered Species Act, Section 7. The 
USACE will consult the NMFS regarding the effects of the project on 
Essential Fish Habitat per the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation 
and Management Act. The USACE will also consult with affected Federally 
Recognized Tribes. Other environmental review and consultation 
requirements for the proposed project include the need for Louisiana 
Department of Environmental Quality Clean Water Act Section 401 water 
quality certification and Clean Air Act coordination. The USACE will 
also consult with the State Historic Preservation Officer under Section 
106 of the National Historic Preservation Act concerning properties 
listed or potentially eligible for listing. The USACE will also 
coordinate with the Louisiana Department of Natural Resources for 
coastal zone management consistency per the Coastal Zone Management 
Act.
    7. Availability. The USACE currently estimates that the DGRR-EIS 
will be available for public review and comment in December 2019. At 
that time, the USACE will provide a 45-day public review period for 
individuals and agencies to review and comment. The USACE will notify 
all interested agencies, organizations, and individuals of the 
availability of the draft document at that time.

Brenda S. Bowen,
Army Federal Register Liaison Officer.
[FR Doc. 2019-06354 Filed 4-1-19; 8:45 am]
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