[Federal Register Volume 84, Number 208 (Monday, October 28, 2019)]
[Notices]
[Pages 57702-57703]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2019-23466]


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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration


Notice of Availability of a Draft Environmental Assessment and 
Public Comment for a Proposed Boundary Expansion for the Elkhorn Slough 
National Estuarine Research Reserve

AGENCY: Office for Coastal Management, National Ocean Service, National 
Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, U.S. Department of Commerce.

ACTION: Notice of proposed boundary expansion and availability of a 
draft environmental assessment; request for comments.

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SUMMARY: The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) is 
considering a request to amend the boundary of the Elkhorn Slough 
National Estuarine Research Reserve (Elkhorn Slough NERR or the 
Reserve) and is soliciting comments from the public on the proposed 
boundary expansion. The public is also invited to comment on the draft 
environmental assessment for the proposed boundary expansion. Any 
person wishing to comment on the proposed boundary expansion or the 
environmental assessment may submit comments as described under 
ADDRESSES below.

DATES: Written comments must be received at the appropriate address 
(see ADDRESSES) on or before November 27, 2019.

ADDRESSES: The draft environmental assessment can be downloaded or 
viewed at coast.noaa.gov/czm/compliance/. The document is also 
available by sending a written request to the point of contact 
identified below (see FOR FURTHER INFORMATION).
    You may submit comments by any of the following methods:
    Electronic Submission: Submit all electronic public comments by 
email to [email protected].
    Mail: Submit written comments to Elaine Vaudreuil, Office for 
Coastal Management, NOAA Ocean Service, 1305 East-West Hwy., N/OCM, 
Silver Spring, MD 20910.
    Comments submitted by any other method or after the comment period 
may not be considered. All comments are a part of the public record and 
may be publicly accessible. Any personal identifying information (e.g., 
name, address) submitted voluntarily by the sender may also be 
accessible. NOAA will accept anonymous comments.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Elaine Vaudreuil of NOAA's Office for 
Coastal Management, by email at [email protected], phone at 
240-533-0821, or mail at: 1305 East-West Hwy., N/OCM, Silver Spring, MD 
20910

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

I. Background

    The California Department of Fish and Wildlife, as lead agency for 
managing the Elkhorn Slough NERR, has requested approval to expand the 
geographic boundary of the Reserve by adding nine new parcels to and 
removing a 13.98-acre area from the existing approved boundary. 
Pursuant to 15 CFR 921.33(a), NOAA may require public notice, including 
notice in the Federal Register and an opportunity for public comment 
before approving a boundary or management plan change. In addition, 
boundary changes involving the acquisition of properties not listed in 
the reserve's original management plan or final environmental impact 
statement (EIS) require public notice and the opportunity for comment. 
Five of the new parcels were included in the reserve's original EIS 
(1979). However, since four of the new parcels were not evaluated in 
the original EIS, NOAA has developed an environmental assessment to 
analyze the potential effects of the requested change to the Reserve 
boundary and is publishing notice of the availability of this 
assessment for public review and comment on the proposed boundary 
expansion and associated environmental assessment.

II. NOAA Proposed Action and Alternatives

    NOAA is releasing a draft environmental assessment, prepared in 
accordance with the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) of 1969, 
as amended, 42 U.S.C. 4321 et seq., and the Council on Environmental 
Quality Regulations for Implementing the Procedural Provisions of NEPA 
(40 CFR 1500-1508). NOAA's proposed action is to approve a change in 
the management boundary of the Elkhorn Slough NERR to add nine parcels 
(totaling 313.753 acres) acquired since 2007 and remove one 13.98-acre 
parcel from the approved boundary.
    The draft environmental assessment identifies and assesses 
potential environmental impacts associated with the proposed boundary 
expansion, and identifies a preferred alternative and a no action 
alternative. The preferred alternative would add five parcels 
identified for future acquisition at the time of the reserve's 
designation in 1979, along with four additional parcels. It would also 
remove from the current Reserve boundary a 13.98-acre area containing a 
non-conforming use, which would result in a net increase in size of 
299.773 acres. NOAA anticipates that the preferred alternative would 
(1) provide additional buffer around the reserve's core areas, (2) 
enable the reserve to manage the significant habitats on those 
properties, and where possible, restore habitats for the benefit of key 
species in the Elkhorn Slough watershed, and (3) expand research and 
education activities to the adjacent Moro Cojo Slough within the 
reserve's watershed. Therefore, NOAA prefers the proposed boundary 
expansion over the no action alternative.


[[Page 57703]]


    Authority: 16 U.S.C. 1431 et seq.

Keelin S. Kuipers,
Deputy Director, Office for Coastal Management, National Ocean Service, 
National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.
[FR Doc. 2019-23466 Filed 10-25-19; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3510-08-P