[Federal Register Volume 64, Number 12 (Wednesday, January 20, 1999)]
[Notices]
[Pages 3066-3067]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 99-1227]
[[Page 3066]]
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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE
National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration
DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR
Fish and Wildlife Service
[I.D. 011199D]
Notice of Intent to Prepare an Environmental Impact Statement
Regarding Proposed Issuance of an Incidental Take Permit to the City of
Tacoma, Washington, for Water Storage and Withdrawal and Forest
Management in the Green River Watershed, King County, Washington
AGENCIES: National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS), National Oceanic
and Atmospheric Administration, Commerce; Fish and Wildlife Service
(USFWS), Interior.
ACTION: Notice of intent to prepare an environmental impact statement.
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SUMMARY: Pursuant to the National Environmental Policy Act, USFWS and
NMFS (the Services) intend to prepare an Environmental Impact Statement
(EIS) regarding the proposed issuance of an Incidental Take Permit
(Permit) to the City of Tacoma for take of endangered and threatened
species, in accordance with the Endangered Species Act of 1973, as
amended (Act). The Permit applicant is the City of Tacoma, Washington,
Public Utilities, Water Division (Tacoma Water), and the application is
related to water storage and withdrawal from the Green River and to
forest management activities in the Green River Watershed, in south
King County, Washington. Takoma Water is preparing a Habitat
Conservation Plan (HCP) as required by the Act, and intends to request
a Permit for northern spotted owl (Strix occidentalis), marbled
murrelet (Brachyramphus marmoratus), gray wolf (Canis lupus), peregrine
falcon (Falco peregrinus), bald eagle (Haliaeetus leucocephalus), and
grizzly bear (Ursus arctos). Tacoma Water also plans to seek coverage
for approximately 25 currently unlisted fish and wildlife species
(including Chinook salmon (Oncorhynchus tshawytscha) and the Puget
Sound distinct population segment of the bull trout (Salvelinus
confluentus), which are proposed for listing under the Act, and other
anadromous and resident fishes) under specific provisions of the
Permit, should these species be listed in the future. The HCP and
Permit would be in effect for 50 years. Through development of a joint
EIS, the applicant also proposes to comply with the requirements of the
Washington State Environmental Policy Act.
The Services are furnishing this notice in order to (1) advise
other agencies and the public of our intentions and (2) announce that a
joint draft EIS is expected to be available for public review and
comment during the first quarter of 1999.
ADDRESSES: Comments and requests for information should be sent to Tim
Romanski, Fish and Wildlife Service, 510 Desmond Drive, SE, Suite 102,
Lacey, Washington 98503, (360) 753-5823; or Mike Grady, National Marine
Fisheries Service, 510 Desmond Drive, SE, Suite 103, Lacey, Washington
98503, (360)753-6052.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: In accordance with the Act, Tacoma Water
will prepare an HCP for, among other things, minimizing and mitigating
to the maximum extent practicable any such take of listed species which
could occur incidental to the proposed Plan activities (watershed
management). Previous announcements relating to this project indicated
that an environmental review (EIS or Environmental Assessment) would be
conducted. The Services have now concluded that an EIS will be
prepared. Public input into the environmental review of this proposal
was obtained during a public scoping period conducted from August 21 to
September 21, 1998, and was announced in a previous Federal Register
notice (63 FR 44918, August 21, 1998). That public scoping period was
used to fulfill scoping requirements under 40 CFR 1501.7, consistent
with 46 FR 18026 (March 23, 1981), as amended at 51 FR 15618 (April 25,
1985).
Tacoma Water owns and manages a water diversion dam and associated
facilities (Headworks) on the Green River, approximately 13,600 acres
of land upstream of the diversion dam on both sides of the River, and a
well field (North Fork Well Field) located approximately 5 miles
upstream of the Headworks. Tacoma Water operates and manages the
Headworks, watershed lands, and the North Fork Well Field as the
principal source of municipal and industrial water for the City of
Tacoma and for portions of Pierce and King Counties. Howard Hanson Dam
and Howard Hanson Reservoir, owned and operated by the U.S. Army Corps
of Engineers (Corps), are also located on the Green River, upstream of
the City's Headworks. City lands in the watershed are adjacent to the
Dam and Reservoir on all sides.
Current trends in population growth within the Puget Sound region
create a need for Tacoma Water to explore possibilities for increasing
its water supply capabilities. To meet this need, Tacoma has developed
two separate, but related plans. The first of these, the Second Supply
Project, involves improvements at Tacoma's Headworks and the
construction of a 33.5-mile long pipeline from the Headworks to the
City of Tacoma. This project is the subject of a State Environmental
Policy Act review in the document entitled ``Final Supplemental
Environmental Impact Statement for the Second Supply Project, October
18, 1994,'' prepared by Tacoma Water. The second related plan was
developed in conjunction with the Corps and in cooperation with the
Services, the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife, Washington
Department of Ecology, and Muckleshoot Indian Tribe for increasing the
size of Howard Hanson Dam and, consequently, Howard Hanson Reservoir.
Known as the Additional Water Storage Project, this plan incorporates
restoration and mitigation measures (including fish passage) to
alleviate the historical barrier to migrating salmon and hence
spawning, created by the City's Headworks and the Corps' Dam. This
project is the subject of a National Environmental Policy Act review in
the document entitled ``Final Feasibility Report and Final
Environmental Impact Statement, Howard Hanson Dam, Green River,
Washington, August 1998,'' prepared by the Seattle District of the
Corps.
Tacoma Water's activities associated with the Second Supply
Project, the Additional Water Storage Project, and other management
activities on the City's watershed lands have the potential to impact
species subject to protection under the Act. Section 10 of the Act
contains provisions for the issuance of incidental take permits to non-
Federal landowners for the take of endangered and threatened species,
provided the take is incidental to otherwise lawful activities and will
not appreciably reduce the likelihood of the survival and recovery of
the species in the wild. In addition, the applicant must prepare and
submit to the Services for approval an HCP containing a strategy for
minimizing and mitigating all take associated with the proposed
activities to the maximum extent practicable. The applicant must also
demonstrate that adequate funding will be provided to ensure the HCP
will be implemented and monitored throughout the proposed 50-year life
of the HCP.
Activities proposed for coverage under the Incidental Take Permit
include the following:
[[Page 3067]]
(1) Water withdrawal at Tacoma Water's Headworks for Municipal and
Industrial Water Supply, which will reduce flows and have concomitant
habitat effects downstream, including the bypass of fish at the
Headworks intake, and inundate the impoundment area;
(2) Water withdrawal from the North Fork Well Field for Municipal
and Industrial Water Supply, which will potentially reduce flows in the
North Fork Green River above Howard Hanson Dam reservoir;
(3) Construction of Headworks improvements (anticipated to occur
during a 2-year period from the third quarter of 1999 through the third
quarter of 2001). Such construction will cause:
(a) Bypassing of fish at the Headworks intake during construction;
(b) Raising the Headworks diversion dam by about 6.5 feet (2
meters) which will extend the inundation pool to about 2,570 feet (811
meters) upstream of the Headworks diversion;
(c) Realigning and enlarging the existing intake and adding
upgraded fish screens and bypass facilities for downstream passage;
(d) Reshaping the Green River channel downstream of the existing
diversion to accommodate the future installation of an efficient trap
and haul facility for upstream fish passage; and
(e) Installing, monitoring, and maintening the instream structures
in the impoundment for fisheries mitigation for raising the Headworks
dam;
(4) Fish and water quality impacts related to the Headworks
improvement construction;
(5) Operation and maintenance of a wetland restoration project at
Auburns Narrows associated with the Second Supply Project;
(6) Operation of a downstream fish bypass facility at the
Headworks;
(7) Tacoma watershed forest management activities;
(8) Monitoring of downstream fish passage through a proposed fish
passage facility at Howard Hanson Dam associated with the Additional
Water Supply Project;
(9) Monitoring and maintenance of Additional Water Supply Project
fish habitat restoration projects and Additional Water Supply Project
fish and wildlife habitat mitigation projects; and
(10) Restoration of anadromous fish above Howard Hanson Dam by
trapping and hauling of adults returning to the Headworks and, if found
beneficial to restoration efforts, possible planting of hatchery
juveniles.
Alternatives for the environmental review cover two distinct sets
of activities: (1) The withdrawal of water at the Tacoma Water Supply
Intake (Headworks) at River Mile 61.0 and associated water withdrawal
activities and (2) the management of City-owned forestlands in the
upper Green River watershed above the Headworks. For the purposes of
clarity, the alternatives for water withdrawal are considered separate
from the alternatives for forestland management.
Water withdrawal alternatives include (1) No Action (continue
current water withdrawal practices); (2) Proposed Action (with primary
features including upstream and downstream fish passage, water flow
management for anadromous fish, and riparian habitat restoration); (3)
Reduced Withdrawal Alternative (supply Tacoma's service area only); (4)
Reduced Withdrawal Alternative (supply Tacoma Water's current service
area and the Lakehaven Utility District); and (5) supply Tacoma,
Seattle, and South King County communities without the Howard Hanson
Dam Additional Water Storage Project.
Forestland management alternatives include (1) No Action (continue
current forest management and timber harvest practices); (2) Proposed
Action (with primary features including species-specific protection
measures for wildlife species of interest); (3) Management of Tacoma
City Lands in the Upper Green River Watershed with no timber harvest;
and (4) Management of Tacoma City Lands in the Upper Green River
Watershed with timber harvesting to create or enhance fish and/or
wildlife habitat only.
The environmental review of this project will be conducted in
accordance with the requirements of the National Environmental Policy
Act of 1969, as amended (42 U.S.C. 4321 et seq.), National
Environmental Policy Act Regulations (40 CFR parts 1500 through 1508),
other appropriate Federal laws and regulations, and policies and
procedures of the Services for compliance with those regulations.
Dated: January 13, 1999.
Kevin Collins,
Chief, Endangered Species Division, Office of Protected Resources,
National Marine Fisheries Service.
Dated: January 11, 1999.
Thomas Dwyer,
Acting Regional Director, Region 1, Fish and Wildlife Service,
Portland, Oregon.
[FR Doc. 99-1227 Filed 1-19-99; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3510-22-F
