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[Federal Register Volume 89, Number 225 (Thursday, November 21, 2024)]
[Notices]
[Pages 92143-92145]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2024-27302]

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DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR

[FWS-R4-ES-2024-N052; FVHC98220410150-XXX-FF04H00000]

Deepwater Horizon Natural Resource Damage Assessment Alabama 
Trustee Implementation Group Final Restoration Plan IV and 
Environmental Assessment: Wetlands, Coastal, and Nearshore Habitats; 
Nutrient Reduction; Birds; Oysters; and Provide and Enhance 
Recreational Opportunities and Finding of No Significant Impact

AGENCY: Department of the Interior.

ACTION: Notice of availability.

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[[Page 92144]]

SUMMARY: The natural resource trustee agencies for the Alabama Trustee 
Implementation Group (Alabama TIG) have prepared the ``Final 
Restoration Plan IV and Environmental Assessment: Wetlands, Coastal, 
and Nearshore Habitats; Nutrient Reduction; Birds, Oysters; and Provide 
and Enhance Recreational Opportunities'' (Final RP/EA) and a Finding of 
No Significant Impact (FONSI). The Final RP/EA selects projects to 
partially restore resources injured in the Deepwater Horizon (DWH) oil 
spill. The Final RP/EA evaluates a reasonable range of 11 project 
alternatives under the Oil Pollution Act (OPA), including criteria set 
forth in the OPA natural resource damage assessment (NRDA) regulations, 
and the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) and its implementing 
regulations. A No Action alternative is also analyzed for each 
restoration type. The total cost to implement the Alabama TIG's seven 
preferred alternatives is approximately $24,000,000.

ADDRESSES: Obtaining Documents: You may download the Final RP/EA and 
FONSI at https://www.gulfspillrestoration.noaa.gov/restoration-areas/alabama. Alternatively, you may request a USB flash drive containing 
the Final RP/EA and FONSI (see FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT).

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Nanciann Regalado, at 
[email protected] or 678-296-6805. Individuals in the United 
States who are deaf, deafblind, hard of hearing, or have a speech 
disability may dial 711 (TTY, TDD, or TeleBraille) to access 
telecommunications relay services. Individuals outside the United 
States should use the relay services offered within their country to 
make international calls to the point-of-contact in the United States.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Introduction

    On April 20, 2010, the mobile offshore drilling unit Deepwater 
Horizon, which was drilling a well for BP Exploration and Production, 
Inc. (BP), experienced a significant explosion, fire, and subsequent 
sinking in the Gulf of Mexico, resulting in the release of millions of 
barrels of oil and other discharges into the Gulf. Under the authority 
of the Oil Pollution Act 1990 (OPA; 33 U.S.C. 2701 et seq.), designated 
Federal and State Trustees, acting on behalf of the public, assessed 
the injuries to natural resources and prepared the ``Deepwater Horizon 
Oil Spill Final Programmatic Damage Assessment and Restoration Plan and 
Final Programmatic Environmental Impact Statement'' (Final PDARP/PEIS), 
and subsequent Record of Decision (ROD), which sets forth the 
governance structure and process for DWH restoration planning under the 
OPA's natural resource damage assessment (NRDA). On April 4, 2016, the 
United States District Court for the Eastern District of Louisiana 
entered a Consent Decree resolving civil claims by the Trustees against 
BP.
    The Alabama TIG is composed of the Alabama Department of 
Conservation and Natural Resources, the Geological Survey of Alabama, 
the Environmental Protection Agency, the U.S. Department of the 
Interior, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, and the 
U.S. Department of Agriculture. The Alabama TIG selects and implements 
restoration projects under the TIG's management authority in accordance 
with the Consent Decree. The Final PDARP/PEIS, ROD, Consent Decree, and 
information on the DWH Trustees can be found at https://www.gulfspillrestoration.noaa.gov/restoration-planning/gulf-plan.

Background

    On April 19, 2024, the Alabama TIG announced on its website that it 
had reviewed projects analyzed in previous restoration plans; 
identified projects that could provide restoration benefits to the 
Alabama restoration area if selected, continued, or expanded upon; and 
had initiated drafting its fourth restoration plan and environmental 
assessment. The RP/EA includes a reasonable range of 11 restoration 
alternatives (projects) for the 5 restoration types indicated in the 
plan's title. On June 24, 2024, the Alabama TIG released the Draft RP/
EA IV for a 30-day public review period (89 FR 52498). The Alabama TIG 
accepted public comments through July 24, 2024. To facilitate public 
understanding of the document, the Alabama TIG held a webinar on July 
10, 2024, during which public comments were solicited. After the public 
review period closed, the Alabama TIG reviewed the comments received, 
prepared responses to those comments, finalized the plan, and prepared 
a FONSI.

Overview of the Alabama TIG's Final RP/EA

    The Final RP/EA and FONSI are being released in accordance with 
OPA, its implementing NRDA regulations found in the Code of Federal 
Regulations (CFR) at 15 CFR part 990, the National Environmental Policy 
Act (42 U.S.C. 4321 et seq.) and its implementing regulations found at 
40 CFR parts 1500-1508, the Final PDARP/PEIS, and the Consent Decree. 
The Final RP/EA provides OPA and NEPA analyses for a reasonable range 
of 11 alternatives listed below under the restoration types from which 
funds will be allocated. One project, Lower Perdido Islands Habitat 
Restoration--Phase II, will be funded through two restoration type 
allocations: the Wetlands, Coastal, and Nearshore Habitat restoration 
type and the Birds restoration type. Two projects, the Lower Perdido 
Islands Habitat Restoration--Phase II project and the Walker Island 
Expansion project, were considered under both the Wetlands, Coastal, 
and Nearshore Habitat restoration type and the Birds restoration type 
and are shown under both restoration types below. The seven 
alternatives selected for implementation are denoted with an asterisk 
(*).
    Wetlands, Coastal, and Nearshore Habitats Restoration Type:

 Lower Perdido Islands Habitat Restoration Phase II*
 Walker Island Expansion

    Nutrient Reduction Restoration Type:

 Puppy Creek--Juniper Creek--Big Creek Nutrient Reduction*
 Bayou la Batre Nutrient Reduction

    Birds Restoration Type:

 Stewardship of Coastal Alabama Beach Nesting Bird Habitat*
 Lower Perdido Islands Habitat Restoration--Phase II*
 Walker Island Expansion

    Oysters Restoration Type:

 Improving Resilience for Oysters by Linking Brood Reefs and 
Sink Reefs (Large-scale)--Component 4--Mid-lower Mobile Bay, AL*
 Oyster Grow-Out and Restoration Reef Replacement--5-year 
continuation*
 Oyster Grow-Out and Restoration Reef Replacement--3-year 
continuation

    Provide and Enhance Recreational Opportunities Restoration Type:

 Bayfront Park Restoration and Improvement Phases Ia and Ib*
 Laguna Cove Little Lagoon Natural Resource Protection--Large 
Scale Amenities
 Laguna Cove Little Lagoon Natural Resource Protection--Small 
Scale Amenities*

    The total estimated cost to implement the seven selected 
alternatives is approximately $24,000,000. Restoration planning in the 
Alabama Restoration Area will continue.

Administrative Record

    The documents comprising the Administrative Record for the Final 
RP/EA can be viewed electronically at https://www.doi.gov/deepwaterhorizon/adminrecord under folder 6.5.3.2.5.

[[Page 92145]]

Authority

    The authority for this action is the Oil Pollution Act of 1990 (33 
U.S.C. 2701 et seq.), its implementing Natural Resource Damage 
Assessment regulations found at 15 CFR part 990, and the National 
Environmental Policy Act of 1969 (42 U.S.C. 4321 et seq.) and its 
implementing regulations found at 40 CFR parts 1500-1508.

Mary Josie Blanchard,
Department of the Interior, Director of Gulf of Mexico Restoration.
[FR Doc. 2024-27302 Filed 11-20-24; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4333-15-P
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