### 11085 Federal Register / Vol. 77, No. 37 / Friday, February 24, 2012 / Notices

orientation. Currently, Cambria has a population of approximately 6,400 permanent residents with a substantial tourist and second home population.

The CCSD provides water supply, wastewater collection and treatment, fire protection, garbage collection, and a limited amount of street lighting and recreation. The CCSD currently serves a population of about 6,400 as well as a large number of visitors to the Central Coast and covers approximately four square miles. The relatively remote location of Cambria has resulted in the area relying solely upon local groundwater for its water supply.

3. Proposed Project. To study, plan, and implement a project to provide for a reliable water supply for the community of Cambria in San Luis Obispo County, CA.

4. Alternatives. Potential water supply alternatives were compiled from studies conducted by the CCSD over a period of more than ten years identifying and evaluating potential sources of additional potable water for CCSD. The alternatives initially being considered for the proposed project include seawater desalination, local and imported surface water, groundwater, hard rock drilling, and seasonal reservoir storage.

5. Scoping Process. a. Potential impacts associated with the proposed project will be fully evaluated. Resource categories that will be analyzed include: Physical environment, geology, biological resources, air quality, water quality, recreational usage, aesthetics, cultural resources, transportation, noise, hazardous waste, socioeconomics and safety.

b. The Corps intends to hold a public scoping meeting(s) for the EIS/EIR to aid in the determination of significant environmental issues associated with the proposed project. Affected federal, state and local resource agencies, Native American groups and concerned interest groups/individuals are encouraged to participate in the scoping process. Public participation is critical in defining the scope of analysis in the Draft EIS/EIR, identifying significant environmental issues in the Draft EIS/ EIR, providing useful information such as published and unpublished data, and knowledge of relevant issues and recommending mitigation measures to offset potential impacts from proposed actions. The time and location of the public scoping meeting will be advertised in letters, public announcements and news releases.

c. Individuals and agencies may offer information or data relevant to the environmental or socioeconomic impacts of the proposed project by submitting comments, suggestions, and requests to be placed on the mailing list for announcements to (see **ADDRESSES**) or the following email address: kathleen.s.anderson@usace.army.mil

.

d. The project will require concurrence by the California Coastal Commission with the federal Coastal Consistency Determination in accordance with the Coastal Zone Management Act, as well as certification under Section 401 of the Clean Water Act from the Regional Water Quality Control Board. Depending upon the recommended alternative, the project may also require additional real property rights for construction and operation of a facility, and compliance with the Endangered Species Act.

6. Scoping Meeting Date, Time, and
Location. The Public Scoping Meeting will take place on March 15, 2012, 7 p.m. to 9 p.m., Veterans Hall, 1000 Main Street, Cambria, CA 93428.

7. Availability of the Draft EIS/EIR. The Draft EIS/EIR is scheduled to be published and circulated in September 2012. Pursuant to CEQA, a public hearing on the EIS/EIR will be held by the CCSD following its publication.

Dated: February 15, 2012. R. Mark Toy, Colonel, U.S. Army, Commander and District Engineer, Los Angeles District.

[FR Doc. 2012–4313 Filed 2–23–12; 8:45 am]

**BILLING CODE 3720–58–P**

**DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE**

**Department of the Army; Corps of Engineers** 

**Intent To Prepare a Draft Environmental Impact Statement (EIS)**  **for the Installation of a Terminal Groin Structure at Lockwood Folly Inlet and**  **to Conduct Supplemental Beach Nourishment Along the Eastern**  **Oceanfront Shoreline of Holden Beach, in Brunswick County, NC** 

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

**ACTION :**  Notice of intent.

**SUMMARY :**  The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE), Wilmington District, Wilmington Regulatory Field Office has received a 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 the Town of Holden Beach to develop and implement a shoreline protection plan that includes the installation of a terminal groin structure on the west side of Lockwood Folly Inlet (a federally maintained navigational channel) and the nourishment of the oceanfront shoreline along the eastern end of Holden Beach.

**DATES :**  A public scoping meeting for the Draft EIS will be held at Holden Beach Town Hall, located at 110 Rothschild Street in Holden Beach, on March 8, 2012 at 6 p.m. Written comments will be received until March 26, 2012.

**ADDRESSES :**  Copies of comments and questions regarding scoping of the Draft EIS may be submitted to: U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Wilmington District, Regulatory Division. ATTN: File Number 2011–01914, 69 Darlington Avenue, Wilmington, NC 28403.

**FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT :**  Questions about the proposed action and Draft EIS can be directed to Mr. Mickey Sugg, Project Manager, Wilmington Regulatory Field Office, telephone: (910) 251–4811. Additional description of the Town’s proposal can be found at the following link, http:// www.saw.usace.army.mil/WETLANDS/ Projects/index.html, under Holden Beach Terminal Groin and Nourishment Project.

**SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION :**  1. Project Description. Over the past decades, the eastern end of Holden Beach has experienced consistent and relatively severe erosional conditions along the oceanfront shoreline and primary dune system. As a result of chronic erosion, the Town has implemented, typically in coordination with the U.S. Corps of Engineers federal channel maintenance dredging, periodic beach nourishment activities within this eastern stretch and near the inlet. These measures have been short-term in nature; and it is the Town’s desire to implement a long-term beach and dune stabilization strategy. As stated by the Town, this strategy would help protect public and private infrastructure from future storms. Their proposal includes constructing a terminal groin near the Lockwood Folly Inlet (western side) and conducting supplemental sand placement along the eastern end of the island. Final locations and placement of sand will be determined during the project design process. For the groin structure, final location and design has yet to be determined. No groin structure is proposed on the opposite, or eastern, side of Lockwood Folly Inlet.

2. Issues. There are several potential environmental and public interest issues that will be addressed in the EIS. Additional issues may be identified during the scoping process. Issues initially identified as potentially significant include:


### 11086 Federal Register / Vol. 77, No. 37 / Friday, February 24, 2012 / Notices

a. Potential impacts to marine biological resources (benthic organisms, passageway for fish and other marine life) and Essential Fish Habitat.

b. Potential impacts to threatened and endangered marine mammals, birds, fish, and plants.

c. Potential impacts associated with using inlets as a sand source.

d. Potential impacts to adjacent shoreline changes on the east side Lockwood Folly Inlet, or along the Town of Oak Island.

e. Potential impacts to Navigation, commercial and recreational.

f. Potential impacts to the long-term management of the inlet and oceanfront shorelines.

g. Potential effects on regional sand sources and how it relates to sand management practices and North Carolina’s Beach Inlet Management
Practices.

h. Potential effects of shoreline protection.

i. Potential impacts on public health and safety.

k. Potential impacts to recreational and commercial fishing.

l. The compatibility of the material for nourishment.

m. Potential impacts to cultural

resources.

n. Cumulative impacts of past, present, and foreseeable future dredging and nourishment activities.

3. Alternatives. Several alternatives and sand sources are being considered for the development of the protection plan. These alternatives will be further formulated and developed during the scoping process and an appropriate range of alternatives, including the no federal action alternative, will be considered in the EIS.

4. Scoping Process. A public scoping meeting (see **DATES**) will be held to receive public comment and assess public concerns regarding the appropriate scope and preparation of the Draft EIS. Participation in the public meeting by federal, state, and local agencies and other interested organizations and persons is encouraged.

The USACE will consult with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service under the Endangered Species Act and the Fish and Wildlife Coordination Act; with the National Marine Fisheries Service under the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act and the Endangered Species Act; and with the North Carolina State Historic Preservation Office under the National Historic Preservation Act. Additionally, the USACE will coordinate the Draft EIS with the North Carolina Division of Water Quality (NCDWQ) to assess 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 projects consistency with the Coastal Zone Management Act. The USACE will closely work with NCDCM and NCDWQ in the development of the EIS to ensure the process complies with all State Environmental Policy Act (SEPA) requirements. It is the intention of both the USACE and the State of North Carolina to consolidate the NEPA and SEPA processes thereby eliminating duplication.

6. Availability of the Draft PEIS. The Draft EIS is expected to be published and circulated by early 2013. A public hearing will be held after the publication of the Draft EIS.

Dated: February 14, 2012. S. Kenneth Jolly, Chief, Regulatory Division.

[FR Doc. 2012–4305 Filed 2–23–12; 8:45 am]

**BILLING CODE 3720–58–P**

**DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE**

**Department of the Army; Corps of Engineers** 

**Revised Notice of Intent To Prepare a Draft Environmental Impact Statement**  **for the Brunswick County Beaches, NC, Coastal Storm Damage Reduction**  **Project**

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

**ACTION :**  Notice of Intent.

**SUMMARY :**  The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE), Wilmington District (Corps) is currently conducting a General Reevaluation Report (GRR) for the Brunswick County Beaches, NC, Coastal Storm Damage Reduction (CSDR) Project. The Corps intends to prepare a Draft Environmental Impact Statement (DEIS) to evaluate the impacts of the proposed CSDR alternatives to reduce coastal storm damages from beach erosion in the towns of Holden Beach, Oak Island, and Caswell Beach, North Carolina. An array of structural, non-structural, and no action alternatives are being evaluated. Current analyses suggest that the dune and berm beach fill alternative maximizes net CSDR benefits for the project area beaches and provides additional environmental and recreation benefits. An offshore borrow area has been identified within the Southwestern portion of Frying Pan Shoals (FPS) (located off the coast of Cape Fear, North Carolina) to provide beach compatible sediment for the 50-year life of the project.

The DEIS is being prepared in accordance with the requirements of the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) of 1969, as amended, and will address the relationship of the proposed action to all other applicable Federal and State Laws and Executive Orders.

**DATES :**  The earliest the DEIS will be available for public review would be August 2013.

**FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT :**  Questions about the proposed action and DEIS can be answered by Mr. Doug Piatkowski, Environmental Resources Section; U.S. Army Engineer District, Wilmington; 69 Darlington Avenue, Wilmington, North Carolina 28403; telephone: (910) 251–4908; email: douglas.piatkowski@usace.army.mil.

**SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION :** 

1. Previous Notice of Intent (NOI) publication. This notice is a revision of an August 26, 2003, NOI (68 FR 51257) to prepare a DEIS and is prepared in response to changes in the proposed action, availability of new information relative to the proposal and associated impacts, and the significant amount of time which has passed since the last
NOI.

2. Authority. Federal improvements for CSDR along a segment of the ocean shoreline in Brunswick County, North Carolina, were authorized by the Flood Control Act of 1966 (Pub. L. 89–789). The most applicable text is copied below.

The project for hurricane-flood control protection from Cape Fear to the North Carolina—South Carolina State line, North Carolina, is hereby authorized substantially in accordance with the recommendations of the Chief of Engineers in House Document Numbered 511, Eighty-ninth Congress.

3. Project Purpose. The project purpose is reduction of damages from beach erosion for the towns of Caswell Beach, Oak Island (the former towns of Long Beach and Yaupon Beach have been incorporated as the Town of Oak Island), and Holden Beach, North Carolina. If implemented, the project would also enhance the beach area available for recreation use and provide habitat for a variety of plants and animals.

Significant environmental resources to be addressed in the DEIS include, but are not limited to: (1) Endangered and threatened species; (2) Marine and estuarine resources; (3) Upland beach and dune resources; (4) Fish and wildlife and their habitats; (5) Essential Fish Habitat (EFH) and Cape Fear Sandy Shoals; (6) Water and air quality; (7) Socioeconomic resources; (8) Cultural