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[Federal Register Volume 77, Number 33 (Friday, February 17, 2012)]
[Notices]
[Pages 9635-9637]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Printing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2012-3751]

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DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE

Department of the Army; Corps of Engineers

Notice of Availability of a Draft Environmental Impact Statement 
in Cooperation With the North Carolina Department of Transportation for 
the Improvement of a 27.3 Mile Segment of US Highway 64 in Tyrrell and 
Dare Counties, NC

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

ACTION: Notice of Availability.

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SUMMARY: The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (COE), Wilmington District, 
Wilmington Regulatory Division is issuing this notice to advise the 
public that a State of North Carolina funded Draft Environmental Impact 
Statement (DEIS) has been prepared for the improvement of US 64 to a 
multilane facility, and replacement of the Lindsay C. Warren bridge, in 
Tyrrell and Dare Counties, North Carolina (TIP Projects R-2544 and R-
2545).

DATES: Written comments on the DEIS will be received until April 2, 
2012.

ADDRESSES: Bill Biddlecome, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Washington 
Regulatory Field Office, 2407 West 5th Street, Washington, NC 27889 or 
Gregory J. Thorpe, Ph.D., Project Development and Environmental 
Analysis Unit, North Carolina Department of Transportation, 1548 Mail 
Service Center, Raleigh, North Carolina 27699-1548.

[[Page 9636]]

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Questions about the proposed action 
and the DEIS can be directed to Mr. Bill Biddlecome, COE--Regulatory 
Project Manager, telephone: (910) 251-4558 or Mr. Ted Devens, Project 
Development Engineer, telephone: (919) 707-6018.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The COE in cooperation with the North 
Carolina Department of Transportation (NCDOT) has prepared a Draft 
Environmental Impact Statement (DEIS) on a proposal to make 
transportation improvements to a 27.3 mile segment of existing US 
Highway 64 in Tyrrell (TIP No. R-2545) and Dare (TIP No. R-2544) 
Counties, North Carolina, from a two-lane to a multiple-lane roadway, 
including replacement of the Lindsay C. Warren Bridge over the 
Alligator River.
    The purpose of the proposed project is to reduce US 64 hurricane 
evacuation time to better meet state clearance goals in the project 
study area, to insure consistency with North Carolina's Strategic 
Highway Corridor Plan (which seeks long-term interconnectivity of 
consistent transportation corridors in North Carolina) and the 
Intrastate Highway System, and to maintain a bridge across the 
Alligator River that meets the needs of highway users.
    This project is being reviewed through a Merger 01 process that is 
designed to streamline the project development and permitting 
processes; the process was mutually developed by NCDOT, COE, the North 
Carolina Department of Environment and Natural Resources (Division of 
Water Quality and Division of Coastal Management), the Federal Highway 
Administration (not applicable for this project), and supported by 
other stakeholder agencies and local units of government. Other 
partnering agencies on this project's Merger 01 team include the: U.S. 
Environmental Protection Agency; U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service; 
National Marine Fisheries Service, U.S. Coast Guard, N.C. Wildlife 
Resources Commission; N.C. Department of Cultural Resources, N.C. 
Division of Marine Fisheries, and the Alligator River National Wildlife 
Refuge. During the NEPA/SEPA decision-making phase of transportation 
projects, the Merger process provides a forum for appropriate agency 
representatives to discuss and reach consensus on the identification 
and selection of project alternatives that meet project purpose and 
need requirements, as well as the regulatory requirements of Section 
404 of the Clean Water Act.
    In 1989, US 64 was designated as part of the State's Intrastate 
System under Chapter 136 of the North Carolina General Statutes. In 
January 1999, NCDOT initiated a study to improve US 64 to a multi-lane 
facility from Columbia in Tyrrell County east to US 64/US 264 in Dare 
County. A series of meetings were held with local officials and 
residents of East Lake and Manns Harbor. There was general support for 
the project from local officials and residents.
    In 2002, the project was presented to Federal and State Resource 
and Regulatory Agencies to gain concurrence on the purpose and need for 
the project. Following the meeting, it was agreed that further work on 
the US 64 project would be postponed pending completion of a revised 
Hurricane Evacuation study. The hurricane model revisions were 
completed in 2005. Model development was accomplished in conjunction 
with an Oversight Committee consisting of representatives from NCDOT, 
FHWA, numerous state and federal environmental resource and regulatory 
agencies, and Emergency Management officials from North Carolina's 
coastal counties. It was agreed that an 18-hour standard for clearance 
times would be applied to a Category 3 storm with 75 percent tourist 
occupancy of the Outer Banks. The 18-hour goal was adopted by the North 
Carolina Legislature in 2005. Following the completion of the new 
Hurricane Evacuation Study, the project was reinitiated as a State 
funded Environmental Impact Statement.
    A scoping meeting was conducted on February 6, 2007 followed by a 
Public Officials Meeting and Citizens Informational Workshop on March 
14, 2007. Public officials from Tyrrell and Dare Counties and the Towns 
of Columbia and Manteo attended the public officials meeting. There was 
unanimous support for the project from all local officials. A NEPA/404 
Merger 01 Purpose and Need meeting was conducted on June 14, 2007. The 
Merger Team agreed that a suitable Purpose and Need exists for the 
project.
    NEPA/404 Merger 01 meetings to determine Alternatives to be Studied 
were held on June 19 and August 21, 2008. Concurrence was not reached 
by the Merger Team. The Team provided issue briefs to the next-level 
Merger Management Team, which includes representatives from COE, North 
Carolina Department of Environment and Natural Resources Division of 
Water Quality, Federal Highway Administration, and NCDOT. At a meeting 
on October 16, 2008, the Merger Management Team agreed on the 
alternatives to be studied in detail in the DEIS, including lane, 
shoulder, and median widths; bridge navigation height, and corridor 
locations. On October 20, 2008, the full Merger Team concurred on 
typical sections in Tyrrell County and Tyrrell and Dare county corridor 
locations. They further concurred that additional environmental 
analysis would be conducted to determine alignments to be evaluated in 
detail in the DEIS within the selected corridors.
    Upon completion of the DEIS, NCDOT submitted a request to COE to 
solicit comment from the public in order to identify the Least 
Environmentally Damaging Practicable Alternative (LEDPA) for the 
project. The Merger Team will meet again during late 2012 to select a 
LEDPA; however multiple meetings are anticipated which results in a 
concurrence expectation of late 2012 or early 2013.
    Citizen public hearings are being scheduled by NCDOT for early 
spring 2012, at which time citizens will be able to voice their 
opinions on the current alternatives under study. Citizen input will be 
considered during LEDPA deliberations by the Merger Team. After a LEDPA 
decision is made, the recommended alternative(s) will be reported in a 
Final Environmental Impact Statement (FEIS), along with any 
supplementary studies or additional information that is collected after 
the DEIS.
    The DEIS is electronically available on the COE's Web site at: 
http://www.saw.usace.army.mil/Wetlands/Projects/US 64Improvements and 
also available on the NCDOT Web site at: http://www.ncdot.gov/projects/us64improvements/. Any person having difficulty viewing the document 
online can contact the COE project manager or the NCDOT project manager 
for a CD copy of the document. Hardcopies of the DEIS are available at 
the NCDOT's Resident Engineer's Office in Manteo, public libraries in 
Manteo and Columbia, and county offices in Manteo and Columbia.
    After distribution and review of the DEIS and Final Environmental 
Impact Statement, the Applicant (NCDOT) understands that COE, in 
coordination with NCDOT, will issue a Record of Decision (ROD) for the 
project. The ROD will document the completion of the EIS process and 
will serve as a basis for permitting decisions by federal and state 
agencies.
    To ensure that the full range of issues related to this proposed 
action is addressed and all significant issues are identified, comments 
and suggestions are invited from all interested parties. Comments or 
questions concerning this proposed action and the EIS should be 
directed to COE at the address provided.

[[Page 9637]]

The Wilmington District will periodically issue Public Notices 
soliciting public and agency comment on the proposed action and 
alternatives to the proposed action as they are developed.

    Dated: February 8, 2012.
Henry M. Wicker,
Acting Chief, Wilmington Regulatory District.
[FR Doc. 2012-3751 Filed 2-16-12; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3720-58-P
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