[Federal Register Volume 71, Number 203 (Friday, October 20, 2006)]
[Notices]
[Pages 61962-61963]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 06-8812]


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DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE

Department of the Army; Corps of Engineers


Notice of Availability of the Draft Environmental Impact 
Statement (DEIS) and the Announcement of a Public Hearing for the 
Proposed Potash Corporation of Saskatchewan Phosphate Mine Continuation 
Near Aurora, in Beaufort County, NC

AGENCY: Department of the Army, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, DoD.

ACTION: Notice.

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SUMMARY: The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (COE), Wilmington District, 
Regulatory Division has been reviewing the request for Department of 
the Army authorization, pursuant to Section 404 of the Clean Water Act 
and Section 10 of the Rivers and Harbor Act, from Potash Corporation of 
Saskatchewan Phosphate Division (PCS) for the continuation of its 
phosphate mining operation near Aurora, Beaufort County, NC. PCS 
proposes to expand its existing open pit phosphate mining operation 
into a 3,412 acre tract immediately adjacent to the current mine. This 
expansion would impact 2,408 acres of waters of the U.S. including 
wetlands adjacent to the Pamlico River and South Creek.

DATES: A Public Hearing will be held at Southside High School located 
at 5700 Highway 33 East, Chocowinity, Beaufort County, NC on December 
14, 2006 at 6:30 p.m. Written comments on the Draft EIS will be 
received until January 22, 2007.

ADDRESSES: Copies of comments and questions regarding the Draft EIS may 
be addressed to: U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Wilmington District, 
Regulatory Division. Attn: File Number 2001-10096, Post Office Box 
1890, Wilmington, NC 28402-1890. Copies of the Draft EIS can be 
reviewed on the Wilmington District Regulatory homepage at, http://www.saw.usace.army.mil/wetlands/regtour.htm, or contact Ms. Alex Phodes 
at (910) 251-4633, to receive written or CD copies of the Draft EIS.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Questions about the proposed action 
and DEIS can be directed to Mr. Tom Walker, Project Manager, Regulatory 
Division, telephone: (828) 271-7980 extension 222.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
    1. Project Description. The PCS Phosphate, Inc. Aurora (PCS) 
facility includes an open pit mining operation that supplies phosphate 
ore to its onsite manufacturing facilities producing sulfuric acid, 
phosphoric acid, purified acid, liquid fertilizer, superphosphoric 
acid, diammonium phosphate, defluoinated phosphate, animal feed and 
solid fertilizers. Phosphate mining activities began at this site in 
1965. On August 27, 1997, PCS was issued a Department of the Army 
permit to impact 1,268 acres of waters and wetlands to continue its 
mining operation into the current mine area. This action is more fully 
described in the August, 1996 Final Environmental Impact Statement for 
the Texasgulf Inc. Mine Continuation. PCS is nearing the end of the 
current mining area and is seeking to continue its mining operation 
into an adjacent 3,608 acre tract.
    2. Proposed Action. On November 2, 2000, PCS applied for Department 
of the Army authorization pursuant to Section 404 of the Clean Water 
Act and Section 10 of the Rivers and Harbors Act to continue its 
phosphate mining operation on the Hickory Point peninsula adjacent the 
Pamlico River and South Creek once reserves are depleted under the 
existing permitted area. The applicant's stated purpose and need for 
this project is to continue mining its phosphate reserve in an 
economically viable fashion. More specifically, the applicant's stated 
purpose and need is to implement a long-term systematic and cost-
effective mine advance within the project area for the ongoing PCS mine 
operation at Aurora, NC.
    The Corps circulated a Public Notice describing this application on 
January 2, 2001 (Action ID No. 200110096). PCS elected to further 
reduce proposed impacts to waters of the U.S. in response to comments 
on this Public Notice and submitted a revised permit application on 
August 13, 2001. The Corps circulated a second Public Notice on October 
4, 2001, describing the revised applicaiton. The proposed action 
includes a request for authorization to impact approximately 2,408 
acres of waters of the U.S. including wetlands to continue the mine 
advance into a 3,412 acre area located adjacent the Pamlico River and 
several of its tributaries. Waters and wetlands in the proposed impact 
area are more specifically described in the following table:

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                        Proposed Impacts                          Acres
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1. Creeks/Open Water...........................................       11
2. Brackish Marsh Complex......................................       38
3. Bottomland Hardwood Forest..................................      102
4. Herbaceous Assemblage.......................................      253
5. Scrub-Shrub Assemblage......................................      202
6. Pine Plantation.............................................      514
7. Hardwood Forest.............................................      508
8. Mixed Pine-Hardwood Forest..................................      564
9. Pine Forest.................................................      195
10. Ponds......................................................       19
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    Total......................................................    2,408
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    4. Alternatives. Several alternatives have been identified and 
evaluated through the scoping process, and further detailed description 
of all alternatives is disclosed in Section 2 of the Draft EIS. The 
applicant's preferred alternatives is to continue its mining activity 
into a 3,412 acre tract located immediately adjacent to the present 
mine.
    5. Scoping Process. A public scoping meeting was held on February 
28, 2001 and an interdisciplinary Review Team (Review Team) comprised 
of representatives from other state and federal regulatory and 
commenting agencies, environmental advocacy groups, the applicant, and 
CZR Incorporated (CZR) (third party consultant to the Corps in 
accordance with RGL-05-08). The Review Team was formed to identify 
major issues to be addressed in the EIS and to provide input on 
potential alternatives to be explored and potentially evaluated. As 
appropriate, the COE will initiate consultation with the U.S. Fish and 
Wildlife Service under the Endangered Species Act and the Fish and 
Wildlife Coordination Act, and with the National Marine Fisheries 
Service under the Magnuson-Stevens Act and Endangered Species Act. The 
Corps is coordinating with the North Carolina Division of Water Quality 
(NCDWQ) to ensure the Draft EIS has assessed the potential water 
quality impacts pursuant to Section 401 of the Clean Water Act and with 
the North Carolina Division of Coastal Management (NCDCM) to determine 
the project's consistency with the Coastal Zone Management Act. The 
Corps is also coordinating with the NCDCM and NCDWQ in the development 
of the EIS to ensure the process complies with State Environmental 
Policy Act (SEPA) requirements, as well as the NEPA requirements. The 
Draft EIS has been designed to consolidate both NEPA and SEPA processes 
to eliminate duplications.


[[Page 61963]]


    Dated: October 12, 2006.
John E. Pulliam, Jr.,
Colonel, U.S. Army, District Commander.
[FR Doc. 06-8812 Filed 10-19-06; 8:45 am]
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