[Federal Register Volume 61, Number 31 (Wednesday, February 14, 1996)]
[Notices]
[Pages 5754-5755]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 96-3276]
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DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE
Department of the Army
Corps of Engineers
Notice of Intent To Prepare a Supplemental Environmental Impact
Statement for the Gulf Intracoastal Waterway, Corpus Christi Bay to
Port Isabel, TX
AGENCY: U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, DOD.
ACTION: Notice of intent with request for comments.
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SUMMARY: This notice provides a summary of the Corps of Engineers
ongoing and planned study activities to prepare a Supplemental
Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) for the Gulf Intracoastal Waterway
(GIWW)--Corpus Christi Bay to Port Isabel, Texas. The purpose of the
study is to develop a long-term plan for the placement of dredged
material from continued maintenance dredging of the GIWW. The Corps of
Engineers is soliciting public input as to the problems that need to be
addressed and other study efforts that may be needed. Additionally, a
series of public workshops to solicit input and concerns on this study
are planned within the next several months.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: If you have information or questions
concerning this notice or the study, or if you wish to be on the
mailing list for this study, please contact Mr. Rick Medina at (409)
766-3044 or Mr. Neil McLellan at (409) 766-3963, or you may write to:
U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, P.O. Box 1229, Galveston, Texas 77553-
1229.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
Introduction
This notice provides a summary of the ongoing and planned study
activities to prepare a Supplemental Environmental Impact Statement
(EIS) for the Gulf Intracoastal Waterway (GIWW)--Corpus Christi Bay to
Port Isabel, Texas. The purpose of the study is to develop a long-term
plan for the placement of dredged material from continued maintenance
dredging of the GIWW. Because of the public interest and concerns
related to dredging and dredged material, the U.S. Army Corps of
Engineers has decided to issue this notice and solicit public input
regarding the study. This in no way prejudges the significance of new
information and circumstances since 1975 nor predetermines the results
of the ongoing studies.
Study Background
This section of the GIWW is a 12-foot deep by 125-foot wide channel
which extends 117 miles from Corpus Christi Bay to Port Isabel through
the Laguna Madre. This reach of the GIWW serves the Ports of Port
Mansfield, Harlingen, Port Isabel, and Brownsville, transporting 2
million tons of commerce annually. This vital artery transports over
350 million gallons of gasoline to the Rio Grande Valley. Over 2
million cubic yards of material are dredged annually from this reach at
an average annual cost of $1.2 million dollars. Within this reach there
are 71 placement areas totaling over 9,000 acres.
The Laguna Madre is one of only three hypesaline lagoons in the
world. This shallow, productive estuary produces over 50% of the
State's coastal finfish harvest and serves as nursery grounds for the
important Gulf shrimp fishery. Seagrasses are a significant resource in
the Laguna and cover over 65 percent of the bay bottom. The seagrasses
also provide feeding grounds for the largest population of redhead
ducks in the world.
Interagency Coordination Team
To address the dredging and placement practices along the GIWW
within the Laguna Madre, the Corps of Engineers began efforts in
September 1994 to form an Interagency Coordination Team (ICT). Over the
next several months, extensive coordination and consultation occurred
to obtain the commitment of a broadbased Federal and State agency
involvement. The ICT first met in February 1995 and has met nine times
as of January 1996. In addition, the ICT has formed a Modelling Task
Force which has met three times. The ICT is comprised of found Federal
agencies and six State agencies. They include:
U.S. Army Corps of Engineers
U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service
National Marine Fisheries Service
Environmental Protection Agency
Texas General Land Office
Texas Water Development Board
Texas Parks and Wildlife Department
Texas Department of Transportation
Texas Natural Resource Conservation Commission
Corpus Christi Bay National Estuary Program (Advisory)
Study Process
The study process for developing a long-term dredged material
management plan for the Laguna Madre is reflected in the goals
established by the ICT.
[[Page 5755]]
These goals are, in paraphrase, to (1) identify environmental concerns
associated with the GIWW in the Laguna Madre, (2) develop scopes of
work needed to address environmental concerns, (3) ensure effective
team work among state and federal agencies, and (4) contribute to and
expedite completion of the dredged material management plan and
environmental study for the GIWW.
Study Status
To address these goals, the ICT has identified a problem list of
concerns in the Laguna Madre associated with dredging and dredged
material placement. Some of these concerns include:
Impacts on the benthic community
Effects of turbidity
Impacts on seagrass populations
Effects on circulation and hydrodynamics
Effects on fishery productivity
Contaminant concerns
Viability of alternate placement areas
Potential for beneficial uses of dredged material
The ICT has developed and approved several scopes of work to
perform the necessary scientific studies to address these concerns. A
variety of expertise is being utilized. The approved studies, the
contractors, date of study initiation, and the estimated costs are
shown below.
Environmental Monitoring of Dredging and Processes in the
Lower Laguna Madre. Texas A&M University, Conrad Blucher Institute--
August 1994--$300,000
Environmental Monitoring of Dredging and Processes in the
Vicinity of Baffin Bay. Texas A&M University, Conrad Blucher
Institute--October 1994--$328,769
Hydrographic Characterization and Bottom Characterization,
Laguna Madre, Texas. U.S. Army Waterways Experiment Station--February
1995--$586,550
Temporal and Spatial Effects of Open Water Dredge Material
Disposal on Habitat Utilization by Fishery Species in Laguna Madre,
Texas. National Marine Fisheries Service--July 1995--$581,800
Review of Available Water and Sediment Quality Data in the
Laguna Madre. Espey, Huston, and Associates--July 1995--$22,722
Several other studies are currently under consideration by the ICT.
The anticipated contractor and estimated costs include:
Extension of the Monitoring in the Lower Laguna Madre.
Texas A&M University, Conrad Blucher Institute--$190,000
Extension of the Monitoring in the Upper Laguna Madre.
Texas A&M University, Conrad Blucher Institute--$140,000
Sediment Characteristics, History, and Recent Transport,
Laguna Madre, Texas. University of Texas, Bureau of Economic Geology--
$310,000
Laguna Madre Fluid Mud Survey. U.S. Army Waterways
Experiment Station--$125,000
Laguna Madre Open Water Dredged Material Disposal Study.
U.S. Army Waterways Experiment Station--$165,000
Predictive Model of Seagrass Impact. Texas A&M University,
University of Texas Marine Science Institute, and Texas Parks and
Wildlife Department--$400,000
Hydrodynamic Circulation of the Upper and Lower Laguna
Madre. Contractor and cost are as yet undetermined
The total cost of both approved and proposed studies is
approximately $3,150,000, not including the Hydrodynamic Model.
Schedule
The efforts to date are considered to be the first year of a four-
year effort. The ICT has tentatively established this time frame to
complete the studies, develop the long-term management plan, and
prepare a supplemental Environmental Impact Statement. Should the study
results indicate, and the ICT agree, that the National Environmental
Policy Act (NEPA) process as described above should be modified, a
separate notice will be published describing how the Corps will achieve
NEPA compliance. In the interim, maintenance dredging of the GIWW will
continue only when necessary, although changes to the placement plan
will be made as study results warrant.
Public Participation
The ICT is soliciting public input as to the problems that need to
be addressed and other study efforts that may be needed. Every effort
will be made to address concerns identified. Additionally, a series of
public workshops to solicit input and concerns on this study are
planned within the next several months.
Dated: February 6, 1996.
Robert B. Gatlin,
Colonel, Corps of Engineers District Engineer.
[FR Doc. 96-3276 Filed 2-13-96; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3710-92-M
