[Federal Register Volume 85, Number 76 (Monday, April 20, 2020)]
[Notices]
[Pages 21852-21853]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2020-07263]
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ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY
[FRL-10006-91-OW]
Notice of Availability of the Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill
Louisiana Trustee Implementation Group Draft Supplemental Restoration
Plan and Environmental Assessment for the Cypremort Point State Park
Improvements Project Modification
AGENCY: Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).
ACTION: Notice of availability; request for public comments.
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SUMMARY: On July 20, 2018, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA)
published a Notice of Availability of the Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill
Louisiana Trustee Implementation Group (Louisiana TIG) Final
Restoration Plan and Environmental Assessment #4: Nutrient Reduction
(Nonpoint Source) and Recreational Use (RP/EA #4). The Louisiana TIG is
considering modifications to the Cypremort Point State Park
Improvements (Cypremort Improvements) project originally described in
the RP/EA #4. The modifications being considered include replacing the
original proposed breakwater system project feature with construction
of a recreational vehicle (RV) campground, associated infrastructure,
and amenities at the park. In accordance with the Oil Pollution Act of
1990 (OPA) and the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA), the
Federal and State natural resource trustee agencies for the Louisiana
TIG prepared a Draft Supplemental Restoration Plan and Environmental
Assessment for the Cypremort Point State Park Improvements Project
Modification (Supplemental RP/EA). The Supplemental RP/EA evaluates
modifications to the Cypremort Improvements project and alternatives
considered by the Louisiana TIG under criteria set forth in the OPA
natural resource damage assessment (NRDA) regulations and evaluates the
environmental effects in accordance with the NEPA. The modifications
under consideration to the Cypremort Improvements project are
consistent with the restoration alternatives selected in the Deepwater
Horizon Oil Spill Final Programmatic Damage Assessment and Restoration
Plan/Programmatic Environmental Impact Statement (PDARP/PEIS). This
notice informs the public of the availability of the Supplemental RP/EA
and provides an opportunity for the public to submit comments on the
document.
DATES: The Louisiana TIG will consider public comments received on or
before May 20, 2020.
Public Webinar: The Louisiana TIG will conduct a public webinar on
April 28, 2020, at 12 p.m. Central Daylight Time to facilitate public
review and comment on the Supplemental RP/EA. The public webinar will
include a presentation on the Supplemental RP/EA. Public comments will
be taken during the public webinar. The public may register for the
webinar at https://attendee.gotowebinar.com/register/2110487686130281741. After registering, participants will receive a
confirmation email with instructions for joining the webinar. The
presentation will be posted on the web shortly after the webinar is
conducted.
ADDRESSES: Obtaining Documents: You may download the Supplemental RP/EA
at any of the following sites:
http://www.gulfspillrestoration.noaa.gov
http://www.la-dwh.com
Alternatively, you may request a CD of the Supplemental RP/EA (see
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT). You may also view the document at any
of the public facilities listed at http://www.gulfspillrestoration.noaa.gov.
Submitting Comments: You may submit comments on the Supplemental
RP/EA by one of the following methods:
Via the Web: http://www.gulfspillrestoration.noaa.gov/restoration-areas/louisiana
Via U.S. Mail: U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, P.O. Box 29649,
Atlanta, GA 30345
During the Public Webinar: Comments may be provided by the
public during the webinar on April 28, 2020
Once submitted, comments cannot be edited or withdrawn. The
Louisiana TIG may publish any comment received on the document. Do not
submit electronically any information you
[[Page 21853]]
consider to be Confidential Business Information (CBI) or other
information whose disclosure is restricted by statute. Multimedia
submissions (audio, video, etc.) must be accompanied by a written
comment. The written comment is considered the official comment and
should include discussion of all points you wish to make. The Louisiana
TIG will generally not consider comments or comment contents located
outside of the primary submission (i.e. on the web, cloud, or other
file sharing system). Please be aware that your entire comment,
including your personal identifying information, will become part of
the public record. Please note that mailed comments must be postmarked
on or before the comment deadline of 30 days following publication of
this notice to be considered.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:
Louisiana--Joann Hicks, 225-342-5477
EPA--Douglas Jacobson, 214-665-6692
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 the release of 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 offshore oil spill in U.S. history, discharging millions of
barrels of oil over a period of 87 days. The Trustees conducted the
natural resource damage assessment for the Deepwater Horizon oil spill
under the Oil Pollution Act of 1990 (33 U.S.C. 2701 et seq.). Under 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. 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 time of restoration to
baseline (the resource quality and conditions that would exist if the
spill had not occurred) is complete.
The Deepwater Horizon oil spill Trustees are:
U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA);
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);
State of Louisiana Coastal Protection and Restoration
Authority (CPRA), Oil Spill Coordinator's Office (LOSCO), Department of
Environmental Quality (LDEQ), Department of Wildlife and Fisheries
(LDWF), and Department of Natural Resources (LDNR);
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 Parks and Wildlife Department, General Land
Office, and 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 Louisiana Restoration Area are chosen and managed by the Louisiana
TIG. The Louisiana TIG is composed of the following Trustees: CPRA,
LOSCO, LDEQ, LDWF, LDNR, EPA, DOI, NOAA, USDA.
Background
The original scope of the Cypremort Improvements project was
evaluated in the RP/EA #4, which was published in the Federal Register
at 83 FR 34571 on July 20, 2018. As proposed in the RP/EA #4, the
project would entail a variety of park enhancements including beach
restoration, marsh boardwalk and trail construction, road and jetty
repairs, and replacement of the breakwater system that helps protect
the park's recreational beach. Following completion of the RP/EA #4,
the Louisiana Office of State Parks was successful in securing other
non-NRDA funding to construct the breakwater system that was originally
proposed as a component of the Cypremort Improvements project. The
Louisiana TIG prepared the Supplemental RP/EA to evaluate modifications
to the Cypremort Improvements project and consider alternatives,
consistent with the purpose and need of the original project.
Alternatives considered in the Supplemental RP/EA include replacing the
original proposed breakwater system project feature with construction
of an RV campground, associated infrastructure, and amenities at the
park. The Louisiana TIG prepared the Supplemental RP/EA to inform the
public about potential modifications to the Cypremort Improvements
project and to seek public comment.
Next Steps
The public is encouraged to review and comment on the Supplemental
RP/EA. A public webinar is scheduled to help facilitate the public
review and comment process. After the public comment period ends, the
Louisiana TIG will consider the comments received before issuing a
Final Supplemental RP/EA. A summary of comments received and the
Louisiana TIG's responses and any revisions to the document, as
appropriate, will be included in the final document. Public comments on
the Supplemental RP/EA will inform the Louisiana TIG's decision on
whether to select the Cypremort Improvements project, as modified, in
the Final Supplemental RP/EA.
Administrative Record
The documents comprising the Administrative Record for the
Supplemental RP/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.), its implementing NRDA regulations found at 15 CFR
part 990, and the NEPA (42 U.S.C. 4321 et seq.).
Dated: March 31, 2020.
Benita Best-Wong,
Deputy Assistant Administrator, Office of Water.
[FR Doc. 2020-07263 Filed 4-17-20; 8:45 am]
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