[Federal Register Volume 84, Number 170 (Tuesday, September 3, 2019)]
[Notices]
[Pages 46033-46035]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2019-18920]


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DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR

[FWS-R4-ES-2019-N104; FVHC98220410150-XXX-FF04H00000]


Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill Alabama Trustee Implementation Group 
Draft Restoration Plan III and Environmental Assessment: Birds and 
Provide and Enhance Recreational Opportunities

AGENCY: Department of the Interior.

ACTION: Notice of availability; request for public comments.

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SUMMARY: In accordance with the Oil Pollution Act of 1990 (OPA), the 
National Environmental Policy Act of 1969 (NEPA), the Deepwater Horizon 
Oil Spill Final Programmatic Damage Assessment Restoration Plan and 
Final Programmatic Environmental Impact Statement, Record of Decision, 
and Consent Decree, the Federal and State natural resource trustee 
agencies for the Alabama Trustee Implementation Group (AL TIG) have 
prepared a draft restoration plan and environmental assessment entitled 
Alabama Trustee Implementation Group Draft Restoration Plan III/
Environmental Assessment: Provide and Enhance Recreational 
Opportunities, and Birds (RP III/EA), analyzing a reasonable range of 
alternatives to help restore natural resources and the services they 
provide that were injured in the Alabama Restoration Area as a result 
of the Deepwater Horizon oil spill. The alternatives considered in the 
draft RP III/EA include five preferred by the AL TIG for implementation 
to address lost recreational use, and two preferred for the restoration 
of birds. We invite public comment on the draft RP III/EA.

DATES: Submitting Comments: We will consider public comments on the 
draft RP III/EA received on or before October 3, 2019.
    Public meeting: The AL TIG will host an open house public meeting 
on September 11, 2019, in conjunction with the AL TIG's annual meeting. 
The meeting will begin at 6 p.m. at the Five Rivers Tensaw Theater, 
located at 30945 Five Rivers Boulevard in Spanish Fort, Alabama.

ADDRESSES: Obtaining Documents: You may download the draft RP III/EA 
from either of the following websites:
     https://www.doi.gov/deepwaterhorizon/adminrecord.
     https://www.gulfspillrestoration.noaa.gov/restoration-areas/alabama.
    Alternatively, you may request a CD of the draft RP III/EA (see FOR 
FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT). Copies of the draft RP III/EA are also 
available for review during the public comment period at the following 
locations:

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                Location                            Address                      City                   Zip
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Dauphin Island Sea Laboratory, Admin      101 Bienville Boulevard...  Dauphin Island............           36528
 Building.
Thomas B. Norton Public Library.........  221 West 19th Avenue......  Gulf Shores...............           36542

[[Page 46034]]

 
Alabama Department of Conservation and    31115 Five Rivers           Spanish Fort..............           36527
 Natural Resources, State Lands            Boulevard.
 Division, Coastal Section Office.
Weeks Bay National Estuarine Research     11300 U.S. Highway 98.....  Fairhope..................           36532
 Reserve.
Mobile Public Library, West Regional      5555 Grelot Road..........  Mobile....................           36609
 Library.
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    Submitting Comments: You may submit comments on the draft RP III/EA 
by one of the following methods:
     Via the Web: https://www.gulfspillrestoration.noaa.gov/restoration-areas/alabama.
     Via U.S. Mail: U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, P.O. Box 
29649, 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: Oral and written comments may 
be provided during the public meeting on September 11, 2019.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Nanciann Regalado, via email at 
[email protected], via telephone at 678-296-6805, or via the 
Federal Relay Service at 800-877-8339.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Introduction

    On April 20, 2010, the mobile offshore drilling unit Deepwater 
Horizon, which was being used to drill a well for BP Exploration and 
Production, Inc. (BP), in the Macondo prospect (Mississippi Canyon 252-
MC252), experienced a significant explosion, fire, and subsequent 
sinking in the Gulf of Mexico, resulting in an unprecedented volume of 
oil and other discharges from the rig and from the wellhead on the 
seabed. The Deepwater Horizon oil spill is the largest oil spill in 
U.S. history, discharging millions of barrels of oil over a period of 
87 days. In addition, well over one million gallons of dispersants were 
applied to the waters of the spill area in an attempt to disperse the 
spilled oil. An undetermined amount of natural gas was also released 
into the environment as a result of the spill.
    The Trustees conducted the natural resource damage assessment 
(NRDA) for the Deepwater Horizon oil spill under the Oil Pollution Act 
1990 (OPA; 33 U.S.C. 2701 et seq.). Pursuant to 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. The 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 completion of restoration to baseline (the 
resource quality and conditions that would exist if the spill had not 
occurred).
    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 
and Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission; and
     State of Texas: Texas Parks and Wildlife Department, Texas 
General Land Office, and Texas Commission on Environmental Quality.
    On April 4, 2016, the Trustees reached and finalized a settlement 
of their natural resource damage claims with BP in a Consent Decree 
approved by the United States District Court for the Eastern District 
of Louisiana. Pursuant to that Consent Decree, restoration projects in 
the Alabama Restoration Area are now chosen and managed by the AL TIG. 
The AL TIG comprises the following Trustees: State of Alabama 
Department of Conservation and Natural Resources and Geological Survey 
of Alabama; DOI; NOAA; EPA; and USDA.

Background

    In preparation for the draft RP III/EA planning process, on 
December 19, 2018, the AL TIG posted a notice on two websites: the NOAA 
Gulf Spill web portal at http://www.gulfspillrestoration.noaa.gov, and 
the Alabama Department of Conservation and Natural Resources Project 
Portal at http://www.alabamacoastalrestoration.org/. The notice 
requested public input on restoration project ideas in the Alabama 
Restoration Area, asking the public to focus their input on ``Provide 
and Enhance Recreational Opportunities'' and ``Birds'' restoration 
types The AL TIG reviewed and considered these restoration project 
ideas.

Overview of the AL TIG Draft RP III/EA

    The draft RP III/EA is being released in accordance with OPA NRDA 
regulations found in the Code of Federal Regulations (CFR) at 15 CFR 
part 990, NEPA and its implementing regulations found at 40 CFR parts 
1500-1508, the Final PDARP/PEIS, and the Consent Decree. The draft RP 
III/EA provides OPA and NEPA analyses for a reasonable range of 
alternatives, addressing two restoration types: ``Provide and Enhance 
Recreational Opportunities'' and ``Birds''. The draft RP III/EA 
evaluates a total of 10 alternatives, seven of which are preferred (see 
table below). The AL TIG proposes to implement the preferred 
alternatives using approximately $26.6 million in DWH settlement funds 
in accordance with the Consent Decree.

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                  Alternatives                        Preferred  Y/N
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    Restoration Type--Provide and Enhance Recreational Opportunities
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Perdido River Land Acquisition (Molpus Tract)...  Y
Bayfront Park Restoration and Improvement Phases  Y
 IIa and IIb.

[[Page 46035]]

 
Bayfront Park Restoration and Improvement Phase   N
 IIa.
Gulf State Park Pier Renovation.................  Y
Perdido Beach Public Access Coastal Protection..  Y
Bon Secour National Wildlife Refuge Recreation    Y
 Enhancement--Mobile Street Boardwalk.
Bon Secour National Wildlife Refuge Recreation    N
 Enhancement--Centennial Trail Boardwalk.
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                         Restoration Type--Birds
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Stewardship of Coastal Alabama Beach Nesting      Y
 Bird Habitat.
Stewardship of Coastal Alabama Beach Nesting      N
 Bird Habitat--Stewardship and Monitoring Only.
Dauphin Island West End Acquisition.............  Y
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Next Steps

    As described above, the Trustees will hold a public meeting to 
facilitate the public review and comment process. After the public 
comment period ends, the Trustees will consider and address the 
comments received before issuing a final RP III/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 RP III/
EA can be viewed electronically at https://www.doi.gov/deepwaterhorizon/adminrecord.

Authority

    The authority of this action is the Oil Pollution Act of 1990 (33 
U.S.C. 2701 et seq.), its implementing Natural Resource Damage 
Assessment regulations found at 15 CFR part 990, and the National 
Environmental Policy Act of 1969 (42 U.S.C. 4321 et seq.) and its 
implementing regulations found at 40 CFR parts 1500-1508.

Mary Josie Blanchard,
Department of the Interior, Director, Gulf of Mexico Restoration.
[FR Doc. 2019-18920 Filed 8-30-19; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4333-15-P