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[House Document 106-298]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]

106th Congress, 2d Session - - - - - - - - - - - House Document 106-298 

 
   NOTIFICATION FROM THE SECRETARY OF THE ARMY SUPPORTING THE SOUTH 
                   SACRAMENTO COUNTY STREAMS PROJECT

                             COMMUNICATION

                                  FROM

     THE ASSISTANT SECRETARY OF THE ARMY, THE DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE

                              TRANSMITTING

A NOTIFICATION FROM THE SECRETARY OF THE ARMY SUPPORTING THE 
  AUTHORIZATION AND, SUBJECT TO THE SACRAMENTO AREA FLOOD CONTROL AGENCY 
  ADOPTING AND ENFORCING MEASURES WHICH WOULD PRESERVE THE PROJECT'S 
  LEVEL OF FLOOD PROTECTION, PLANS TO IMPLEMENT THE SOUTH SACRAMENTO 
  COUNTY STREAMS THROUGH THE NORMAL BUDGET PROCESS

   October 4, 2000.--Referred to the Committee on Transportation and 
                Infrastructure and ordered to be printed

                               __________

                    U.S. GOVERNMENT PRINTING OFFICE
79-011                     WASHINGTON : 2000

                            Department of the Army,
                         Office of the Assistant Secretary,
                                Washington, DC, September 21, 2000.
Hon. J. Dennis Hastert,
Speaker of the House of Representatives,
Washington, DC.
    Dear Mr. Speaker: Section 101(a)(8) of the Water Resources 
Development Act (WRDA) of 1999, authorized construction of a 
flood damage reduction, ecosystem restoration, and recreation 
project for the South Sacramento County Streams, California. 
The Secretary of the Army supports the authorization and, 
subject to the Sacramento Area Flood Control Agency adopting 
and enforcing measures which would preserve the project's level 
of flood protection, plans to implement the project through the 
normal budget process.
    The project is described in the report of the Chief of 
Engineers dated October 6, 1998, which includes other pertinent 
reports and comments. The views of the State of California and 
the Department of the Interior are set forth in the enclosed 
report. I am submitting this report in partial response to a 
resolution adopted by the House Committee on Public Works on 
May 8, 1964.
    The project would provide flood protection to the Morrison 
Creek stream group in Sacramento County, an area located south 
and east of the city of Sacramento. The plan includes raising 
and extending the ring levee around the Sacramento Regional 
Wastewater Treatment Plant (SRWTP); raising the Beach Lake 
levee; strengthening and raising levees on Morrison, Elder, 
Florin, and Unionhouse Creeks and constructing floodwalls along 
these creeks; retrofitting 17 bridges; and removing another 
bridge. In all, the project would involve constructing about 
1.3 miles of new levees, raising about 4.6 miles of existing 
levees, strengthening about 7.7 miles of existing levees, and 
constructing about 12.6 miles of new floodwalls. Flood damage 
reduction features would provide a 500-year level of protection 
and reduce average annual flood damages by about 83 percent.
    Construction of the project will result in the loss of fish 
and wildlife habitats, which would be mitigated by the 
purchase, creation, and preservation of other comparable 
habitats. Several threatened or endangered species would be 
adversely affected, including the vernal pool fairy shrimp, 
giant garter snake, and Swainson's hawk. Mitigation for losses 
of general fish and wildlife resources would be on about 1.1 
acres of land in the Bufferlands, an open area surrounding the 
SRWTP. Mitigation for vernal pool fairy shrimp and the giant 
garter snake would take place on about 7.7 acres of land at the 
Wildlands mitigation bank located in Placer County, about 24 
miles northeast of Sacramento. Mitigation for Swainson's hawk 
habitat would be on about 14 acres of land in the Beach Stone 
Lakes area.
    At the request of the project's flood control sponsor, the 
project includes a $2,000,000 program to mitigate for the 
potential minor adverse impacts that project might have on 
residents of the Beach-Stone Lakes area. The program is not 
economically justified nor is it required from a Federal 
standpoint, and therefore, not eligible for Federal funding. 
The program would also mitigate for flood damages that would 
continue to occur. The Sacramento Area Flood Control Agency 
would fund and carry out this program.
    The project also includes the restoration of about 215 
acres of wildlife habitat including open water wetlands, 
riparian, and grassland cover on four sites in the Bufferlands 
near the SRWTP. This area has historically been a wetland area 
supporting migratory waterfowl and other animals. This 
ecosystem restoration would contribute to the recovery of many 
declining or threatened species and increase the diversity of 
wildlife in the region. Project outputs would be the 
restoration of fish and wildlife habitats, benefits that are 
not amenable to measurement using monetary values. Therefore, 
to insure that an efficient plan was developed the Army Corps 
of Engineers used cost effectiveness and incremental analysis 
techniques to evaluate alternative restoration plans. The 
project's ecosystem restoration features would result in an 
increase of approximately 159 annual habitat units in the 
project area, which justifies the cost of the ecosystem 
restoration features, and provides the habitat improvements in 
the most cost-effective manner. The non-Federal sponsor for the 
ecosystem restoration measures would be the Sacramento County 
Regional Sanitation District.
    The project would also include the construction of 
recreation features consisting of approximately 4.2 miles of 
bicycle and pedestrian trails along the Beach Lake and Morrison 
Creek west bank levees. The asphalt and concrete trails would 
be located on the levee service road. Signage, security gates 
at access points, and an underpass at the Union Pacific 
Railroad bridge over Morrison Creek would be provided. The City 
of Sacramento would be the non-Federal sponsor for these 
recreation features.
    At October 2000 price levels, the Army Corps of Engineers 
estimates that the first cost of the authorized project is 
about $66,200,000. The cost includes about $60,614,000 for 
flood damage reduction, about $4,360,000 for ecosystem 
restoration, and about $1,226,000 for recreation. Following the 
cost sharing provisions of WRDA 1986, as amended by Sections 
202(a) and 210 of WRDA 1996, the Federal share would be about 
$41,550,000, and the non-Federal share would be about 
$24,650,000. The non-Federal sponsor for the flood damage 
reduction features would be responsible for implementing the 
flood damage mitigation program, the cost of which is included 
in the first cost of the project. In addition, the non-Federal 
sponsor would develop and adopt a comprehensive flood plain 
management plan for the project area.
    The authorized project is not the national economic 
development (NED) plan. The NED plan is identical to the 
recommended plan except that it does not include the 
$2,000,000, non-Federal flood damage mitigation program. The 
program is not economically justified nor is it required for 
implementation of the Federal project. Based on October 2000 
price levels, the first cost of the NED plan is estimated at 
$64,200,000, of which $41,550,000 would be Federal, and 
$22,650,000 would be non-Federal. In accordance with Federal 
policy, the sponsor will be responsible for all costs of the 
recommended plan that are greater than the Federal share of the 
cost of the NED Plan. In a letter dated September 16, 1998, the 
Sacramento Area Flood Control Agency stated their willingness 
and capability to cost share in this manner.
    Implementation of the project will be subject to certain 
non-Federal cost sharing, financing, and other applicable items 
of local cooperation, which are described in the report of the 
Chief of Engineers. To insure that the level of flood 
protection is maintained over the 50-year economic life, 
implementation of the project will be further subject to the 
requirement that the non-Federal sponsor prescribe and enforce 
regulations, or undertake other actions, to maintain the 
authorized level of flood protection.
    The Sacramento Area Flood Control Agency has already 
constructed the levee protecting the SRWTP, and has requested 
credit for this work in accordance with Section 104 of WRDA 
1986. We provided preliminary approval of the credit in 
September 1996, and construction of the levee was completed in 
1997. The cost of the work accomplished by the sponsor is 
$7,450,000, which represents the estimate of the costs had the 
levee been constructed as a Federal project. However, the 
actual amount of the credit will be less than this amount. In 
accordance with Section 104 of WRDA 1986, credit is not 
available against the 5 percent cash contribution required by 
Section 103(a)(1)(A) of WRDA 1986. Credit is available against 
the non-Federal cost of lands, easements, rights-of-way, and 
relocations; and for any additional cash necessary to realize 
the required 35 percent minimum non-Federal contribution. 
Therefore, the estimated credit is about $5,910,000, which is 
reflected in the cost sharing for the project.
    The Chief of Engineers has found that the improvements 
undertaken by the sponsor for the flood damage reduction 
features are integral to and compatible with the proposed 
project, and recommends that the non-Federal sponsor receive 
credit for this work. The actual credit will be subject to an 
audit of the sponsor's actual expenditures and the final 
resolution of the Endangered Species Act violation that 
occurred during construction of the SRWTP levee. The credit 
will be further subject to a final resolution of the Endangered 
Species Act violation, and any additional costs incurred by the 
Sacramento Area Flood Control Agency to resolve this violation 
will not be eligible for credit.
    The Office of Management and Budget advises that subject to 
non-Federal interests adopting and enforcing measures that 
preserve the level of flood protection, there is no objection 
to the submission of the report to the Congress. A copy of its 
letter is enclosed in the report.
            Sincerely,
                                        Joseph W. Westphal,
                     Assistant Secretary of the Army (Civil Works).

                                  
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