Federal Register / Vol. 76, No. 215 / Monday, November 7, 2011 / Notices 68741 

Dated: November 3, 2011. 

Todd A Stevenson, 

Secretary. 

[FR Doc. 2011–28845 Filed 11–3–11; 11:15 am] 

BILLING CODE 6355–01–P 

DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE 

Department of the Army, Corps of 

Engineers 

Notice of Intent To Prepare a Draft 

Environmental Impact Statement/ 

Environment Impact Report (DEIS/ 

DEIR) for a Permit Application for the 

Proposed San Elijo Lagoon 

Restoration Project, City of Encinitas, 

San Diego County, CA 

AGENCY: United States Army Corps of 

Engineers, Los Angeles District, 

Regulatory Division, Defense. 

ACTION: Notice of Intent (NOI). 

SUMMARY: The United States (U.S.) 

Army Corps of Engineers (Corps), in 

conjunction with the County of San 

Diego Department of Parks and 

Recreation (County Parks), is preparing 

a joint Environmental Impact 

Statement/Environmental Impact Report 

(EIS/EIR) for the proposed San Elijo 

Lagoon Restoration Project (SELRP). The 

Corps will be lead agency under 

National Environmental Protection Act 

(NEPA) and County Parks will be the 

lead agency under the California 

Environmental Quality Act (CEQA). The 

development of the EIS/EIR and 

associated technical studies are being 

completed to determine the Agency 

Preferred Alternative, which would 

improve and/or restore wetland 

functions and services within the San 

Elijo Lagoon. Given the complexity of 

the alternatives analysis and range of 

potentially significant issues, the 

appropriate environmental document 

was determined by the Corps and 

County Parks to be a combined EIS/EIR, 

respectively. The Corps and the County 

Parks have agreed to jointly prepare the 

EIS/EIR to optimize efficiency and avoid 

duplication. The EIS/EIR is intended to 

be sufficient in scope to address federal, 

state, and local requirements for 

environmental analysis and permitting. 

Implementing the Agency Preferred 

Alternative would require a Department 

of the Army permit pursuant to Section 

404 of the Clean Water Act, which 

regulates the discharge of dredged, 

excavated, or fill material in wetlands, 

streams, rivers, and other waters of the 

U.S. and the potential impacts on the 

human environment from such 

activities. To be authorized by the 

Corps, the Agency Preferred Alternative 

must also comply with the Section 

404(b)(1) Guidelines (40 Code of Federal 

Regulations [CFR] Part 230) and may not 

be contrary to the public interest. 

Federal agencies coordinating in the 

development of the EIS include the U.S. 

Fish and Wildlife Service (Service), 

National Marine Fisheries Service 

(NMFS), and Environmental Protection 

Agency (EPA). State agencies 

coordinating in the development of the 

EIR include Department of Fish and 

Game (CDFG), California Coastal 

Commission (CCC), San Diego Regional 

Water Quality Control Board (RWQCB), 

State Water Resources Control Board, 

California Department of Transportation 

(Caltrans), and San Diego Association of 

Governments (SANDAG). 

The EIR/EIS is currently evaluating 

three alternative restoration designs, the 

No Project/No Action alternative, and 

associated maintenance and long-term 

management and maintenance 

measures. In addition, alternatives are 

being evaluated to determine if project 

phasing is necessary to maintain 

adequate habitat for sensitive aquatic 

species, including light footed clapper 

rail (Rallus longirostris levipes) and 

potentially western snowy plovers 

(Charadrius alexandrines nivosus) and 

California least terns (Sterna antillarum 

browni) . The study area encompasses 

approximately 960 acres within and 

adjacent to the Reserve, but final project 

size may vary, depending on the 

outcome of the alternatives analysis. 

Additional details and alternative 

designs are provided in Section 4. 

Should the project receive a permit, it 

is anticipated that construction of the 

SELRP would begin in fall 2014. The 

study area boundaries for the SELRP are 

generally defined to include publicly 

owned parcels where restoration 

activities could occur. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 

Comments and questions regarding 

scoping of the Draft EIS/EIR may be 

addressed to Ms. Michelle Mattson, 

Senior Project Manager, U.S. Army 

Corps of Engineers, Los Angeles District, 

Regulatory Division, Carlsbad Field 

Office, Attn: CESPL–2009–00575–MLM, 

6010 Hidden Valley Road, Suite 105, 

Carlsbad, CA 92011 or comment letters 

can also be sent via electronic mail to 

Michelle.L.Mattson@usace.army.mil. 

The project title ‘‘San Elijo Lagoon 

Restoration Project, CESPL–2009– 

00575–MLM’’ should be included in the 

electronic mail’s subject line and the 

commenter’s physical mailing address 

within the body of the letter. Michelle 

Mattson can be reached at (760) 602– 

4835. Comments and questions can also 

be sent to Ms. Megan Hamilton, County 

of San Diego Department of Parks and 

Recreation, 5500 Overland Avenue, 

Suite 410, San Diego CA 92123 or via 

electronic mail to 

Megan.Hamilton@sdcounty.ca.gov. 

Megan Hamilton can be reached at (858) 

966–1377. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

1. Project Site and Background 

Information: San Elijo Lagoon is located 

in the city of Encinitas, San Diego 

County, California. The lagoon is the 

terminus of the Escondido Creek and La 

Orilla Creek watersheds at the Pacific 

Ocean. The study area is composed of 

approximately 961 acres, which are 

separated into four basins or areas (East 

Basin, Central Basin, West Basin, and 

Coastal Area). The lagoon provides 

habitat for resident and migratory 

species, some of which are sensitive or 

listed as federally-threatened or 

endangered under the Endangered 

Species Act (ESA). 

Due to encroachment by 

development, restricted tidal influence, 

and the increase of freshwater from the 

watershed, the San Elijo Lagoon has 

gradually degraded over time. Tidal 

influence has been restricted by 

infrastructure and development at the 

inlet of the lagoon. The Pacific Coast 

Highway (PCH), the North County 

Transit District (NCTD) railroad, and 

Interstate 5 (I–5) all traverse the lagoon 

and further modify tidal and freshwater 

circulation patterns and increased 

sediment accumulation from the 

watershed. Freshwater input has 

increased as a result of residential and 

commercial land uses in the 77-squaremile hydrologic watershed. Because of 

these hydrologic changes, lagoon habitat 

is rapidly transitioning from mudflats to 

mid-marsh habitat through the rapid 

expansion of cordgrass (Spartina spp.) 

and pickleweed (Sarcoconia pacifica) 

and the East Basin supports large areas 

of freshwater marsh vegetated primarily 

by cattails (Typha spp.). The changes 

have also decreased the quality of water 

in the lagoon causing elevated bacteria 

levels and increased the occurrences of 

beach closures during high flow events. 

Mechanical breaching of the ocean 

inlet is routinely performed to maintain 

tidal flushing within the lagoon, but 

benefits are only temporarily realized 

due to the physical and hydrological 

changes previously mentioned. If no 

action is taken to restore the lagoon, 

functions and services will continue to 

degrade, further reducing the diversity 

of estuarine habitats and increasing 

freshwater wetland and riparian 

habitats. Sensitive flora and fauna 

currently dependent on the estuarine 

conditions will continue to be adversely 

mstockstill on DSK4VPTVN1PROD with NOTICES

68742 Federal Register / Vol. 76, No. 215 / Monday, November 7, 2011 / Notices 

affected. The SELRP is an effort to 

restore estuarine functions and services 

to the greatest extent practicable in light 

of permanent constraints. Depending on 

the restoration alternative chosen 

through development of the Draft EIS/ 

EIR, the SELRP would improve tidal 

influence by modifying and maintaining 

the existing inlet of the lagoon or by 

constructing a new, permanently open 

lagoon inlet. Habitat diversity and other 

wetland functions and services would 

also be improved by modifying existing 

tidal channels, grading new tidal 

channels, and/or by grading areas 

specified by a range of tide elevations. 

The basic project purpose of the 

proposed SELRP is to restore tidal 

wetlands; this is a water dependent 

activity. The overall project purpose of 

the SELRP is to enhance and restore the 

physical and biological functions and 

services of the lagoon by increasing the 

tidal prism to support a diverse range of 

habitat types. 

The overarching goal of the SELRP is 

to protect, restore, and then maintain, 

via and adaptive management the San 

Elijo Lagoon ecosystem and the adjacent 

uplands to support a diversity of 

estuarine and brackish marsh habitats 

and associated native species of 

southern California. 

This goal can be further refined into 

three categories of objectives: 

1. Physical restoration of lagoon 

estuarine hydrologic functions, 

2. Biological restoration of lagoon 

estuarine habitats, and 

3. Management and maintenance of 

the lagoon to ensure long-term viability 

of the restoration efforts. 

2. Proposed Action: Three restoration 

alternatives and the No Project/No 

Action alternative are being evaluated in 

the EIR/EIS. All the restoration 

alternatives are designed to counteract 

the conversion trend to freshwater 

habitats and restore a range of estuarine 

habitat types. Therefore, increasing tidal 

influence is the primary action being 

evaluated to restore ecological functions 

and services. Two alternatives retain the 

existing tidal inlet and one constructs a 

new inlet further south. Restoration 

alternatives evaluate varying degrees of 

dredging and filling portions of the 

three basins (West, Central, and East 

Basin) to restore or create a diversity of 

estuarine habitat types. Excess sediment 

from dredging could be discharged on 

the adjacent beach or in the nearshore 

zone west of the lagoon, if it is 

identified as suitable beach sand 

material. Maintenance and adaptive 

management strategies are also being 

evaluated for each alternative (i.e. new 

inlet channel maintenance would differ 

from the existing inlet channel 

maintenance). 

Through the EIS/EIR process, an 

Agency Preferred Alternative will be 

chosen and a Restoration Plan will be 

developed. The Restoration Plan will be 

consistent with the goals and objectives 

listed above and will fit within the 

overall management strategies identified 

in the San Elijo Lagoon Enhancement 

Plan (County Parks 1996) and the San 

Elijo Lagoon Action Plan (San Elijo 

Lagoon Conservancy 1998). 

3. Issues: A number of potential 

environmental issues will be addressed 

in the EIS/EIR for each alternative. 

Additional issues may be identified 

during the scoping process, but issues 

initially identified as potentially 

significant or that are believed to be of 

local concern are as follows: 

• Geology and Soils: Permanent 

impacts through the removal of 

sediment accumulated in the lagoon and 

on-going impacts resulting from asneeded maintenance activities. 

• Coastal Processes: Temporary 

impacts during construction, permanent 

impacts depending on tidal inlet 

location, and on-going impacts resulting 

from as needed maintenance activities. 

• Hydrology: Temporary impacts 

during construction, permanent changes 

in water circulation, and on-going 

impacts resulting from as-needed 

maintenance of the tidal inlet and/or 

interior dredging. 

• Water & Aquatic Sediment Quality: 

Impacts during construction, including 

turbidity, and potential impacts 

resulting from as-needed maintenance 

activities. 

• Aquatic & Terrestrial Biological 

Resources: Temporary and permanent 

impacts to existing species. 

• Cultural & Paleontological 

Resources: Impacts to archaeological 

resources, human remains, and sacred 

sites. 

• Land Use: Temporary or permanent 

impacts to beach use depending on inlet 

location. 

• Recreation: Temporary impacts to 

existing trail use during construction 

and potential on-going impacts resulting 

from as-needed maintenance activities. 

• Visual Resources: Temporary 

impacts during construction and 

permanent impacts associated with 

changes in vegetation communities and 

regular tidal flooding. 

• Transportation and Traffic: Impacts 

during construction and potential ongoing impacts resulting from as-needed 

maintenance activities. 

• Air Quality/Greenhouse Gas 

Emissions: Impacts during construction 

and on-going impacts resulting from asneeded maintenance activities. 

• Noise: Impacts during construction 

and on-going impacts resulting from 

dredging or other construction 

equipment during as-needed 

maintenance activities. 

• Hazards and Hazardous Materials: 

Impacts during construction and ongoing impacts resulting from as-needed 

maintenance activities. 

• Public Services and Utilities: 

Impacts during construction and ongoing impacts resulting from as-needed 

maintenance activities. 

4. Alternatives: Since 1996, various 

interested parties have devised 

restoration concepts and considered 

alternative configurations of 

infrastructure that traverse the lagoon. 

Through an intensive process, four 

conceptual alternatives have been 

identified to be carried forward for 

engineering refinement and 

environmental evaluation: 

• Alternative 1A—Intertidal 

Alternative (existing inlet) 

• Alternative 1B—Habitat Diversity 

Alternative (existing inlet) 

• Alternative 2A—Habitat Diversity 

Alternative (inlet relocated south) 

• No Project/No Action 

There are common design features 

that would be implemented in each 

alternative, such as micro-grading and 

the use of short cobble-blocking 

structures at the inlet. The range and 

characteristics of the alternatives 

addressed in the EIS/EIR will be more 

fully developed based on input from the 

scoping process and specialized 

hydrological and biological technical 

studies that are underway. 

5. Scoping Process: The Corps and 

County Parks will jointly conduct a 

series of public scoping meetings to 

receive public comments regarding the 

appropriate scope and content for the 

SELRP Draft EIS/EIR and to assess 

public concerns. Additionally, a public 

hearing will be held during the public 

comment period once the Draft EIS/EIR 

is released. Participation in the public 

meetings by federal, state, and local 

agencies; Native American Tribes; and 

other interested organizations and 

persons is encouraged. Parties interested 

in being added to the electronic mail 

notification list for any projects 

associated with the SELRP can register 

at http://www.spl.usace.army.mil/ 

regulatory/ under the Public Notice tab, 

Distribution List registration. This list 

will be used in the future to notify the 

public about scheduled hearings and 

availability of future public notices. 

Parties interested in obtaining 

additional information about the SELRP 

can also visit http://www.sanelijo.org/ 

restoration. 

mstockstill on DSK4VPTVN1PROD with NOTICES

Federal Register / Vol. 76, No. 215 / Monday, November 7, 2011 / Notices 68743 

A series of public scoping meetings 

will be held on the following dates and 

locations: 

1. Carlsbad: November 15, 2011 at 1 

p.m., U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service, 

Conference Room 1, 6010 Hidden Valley 

Road, Suite 101, Carlsbad, California 

92011. 

2. Encinitas: November 29, 2011 at 6 

p.m., City of Encinitas Community 

Center, 1140 Oakcrest Park Drive, 

Encinitas, CA 92024. 

3. Solana Beach: December 1, 2011 at 

6 p.m., City of Solana Beach Council 

Chambers, 635 South Highway 101, 

Solana Beach, CA 92075. 

Comments on the proposed action, 

alternatives, or any additional concerns 

should be submitted in writing. Written 

comment letters will be accepted 

through December 18, 2011. 

The following permits and 

consultations are expected: 

• Corps CWA Section 404 Permit 

• RWQCB CWA Section 401 Water 

Quality Certification 

• Service Section 7 Consultation 

• National Historic Preservation Act 

Section 106 consultation 

• CDFG Section 1600 Streambed 

Alteration Agreement 

• CCC Development Permit 

• State Lands Commission Lease 

• U.S. Coast Guard Navigation Permit 

(new inlet only) 

• State Department of Parks and 

Recreation Encroachment Permit 

6. Availability of the DEIS/DEIR: The 

Draft EIS/EIR is expected to be 

published and circulated by fall 2012, 

and public meetings will be held after 

its publication. 

Dated: October 26, 2011. 

Mark Cohen, 

Deputy Chief, Regulatory Division, Corps of 

Engineers. 

[FR Doc. 2011–28741 Filed 11–4–11; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 3720–58–P 

DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION 

Notice of Proposed Information 

Collection Requests 

AGENCY: Department of Education. 

ACTION: Comment Request. 

SUMMARY: The Department of Education 

(the Department), in accordance with 

the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 

(PRA) (44 U.S.C. 3506(c)(2)(A)), 

provides the general public and Federal 

agencies with an opportunity to 

comment on proposed and continuing 

collections of information. This helps 

the Department assess the impact of its 

information collection requirements and 

minimize the reporting burden on the 

public and helps the public understand 

the Department’s information collection 

requirements and provide the requested 

data in the desired format. The Director, 

Information Collection Clearance 

Division, Privacy, Information and 

Records Management Services, Office of 

Management, Office of Management, 

invites comments on the proposed 

information collection requests as 

required by the Paperwork Reduction 

Act of 1995. 

DATES: Interested persons are invited to 

submit comments on or before January 

6, 2012. 

ADDRESSES: Comments regarding burden 

and/or the collection activity 

requirements should be electronically 

mailed to ICDocketMgr@ed.gov or 

mailed to U.S. Department of Education, 

400 Maryland Avenue SW., LBJ, 

Washington, DC 20202–4537. Please 

note that written comments received in 

response to this notice will be 

considered public records. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Section 

3506 of the Paperwork Reduction Act of 

1995 (44 U.S.C. Chapter 35) requires 

that Federal agencies provide interested 

parties an early opportunity to comment 

on information collection requests. The 

Director, Information Collection 

Clearance Division, Regulatory 

Information Management Services, 

Office of Management, publishes this 

notice containing proposed information 

collection requests at the beginning of 

the Departmental review of the 

information collection. The Department 

of Education is especially interested in 

public comment addressing the 

following issues: (1) Is this collection 

necessary to the proper functions of the 

Department; (2) will this information be 

processed and used in a timely manner; 

(3) is the estimate of burden accurate; 

(4) how might the Department enhance 

the quality, utility, and clarity of the 

information to be collected; and (5) how 

might the Department minimize the 

burden of this collection on the 

respondents, including through the use 

of information technology. 

Dated: November 1, 2011. 

Darrin King, 

Director, Information Collection Clearance 

Division, Privacy, Information and Records 

Management Services, Office of Management. 

Office of Elementary and Secondary 

Education 

Type of Review: Extension. 

Title of Collection: College Assistance 

Migrant Program (CAMP). 

OMB Control Number: 1810–0689. 

Agency Form Number(s): N/A. 

Frequency of Responses: Annually. 

Affected Public: State, Local or Tribal 

Government. 

Total Estimated Number of Annual 

Responses: 37. 

Total Estimated Annual Burden 

Hours: 1,184. 

Abstract: For the College Assistance 

Migrant Program, a customized Annual 

Performance Report that goes beyond 

the generic 524B is requested to 

facilitate the collection of more 

standardized and comprehensive data 

tools that provide information for the 

Government Performance Reporting Act, 

which improves the overall quality of 

data collection, and increases the 

quality and quantity of data that may be 

used to inform policy decisions. 

Copies of the proposed information 

collection request may be accessed from 

http://edicsWeb.ed.gov, by selecting the 

‘‘Browse Pending Collections’’ link and 

by clicking on link number 4747. When 

you access the information collection, 

click on ‘‘Download Attachments’’ to 

view. Written requests for information 

should be addressed to U.S. Department 

of Education, 400 Maryland Avenue 

SW., LBJ, Washington, DC 20202–4537. 

Requests may also be electronically 

mailed to ICDocketMgr@ed.gov or faxed 

to (202) 401–0920. Please specify the 

complete title of the information 

collection and OMB Control Number 

when making your request. 

Individuals who use a 

telecommunications device for the deaf 

(TDD) may call the Federal Information 

Relay Service (FIRS) at 1–(800) 877– 

8339. 

[FR Doc. 2011–28753 Filed 11–4–11; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 4000–01–P 

DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY 

Federal Energy Regulatory 

Commission 

[Project No. 13417–002] 

Western Technical College; Notice of 

Application Tendered for Filing With 

the Commission and Soliciting 

Additional Study Requests 

Take notice that the following 

hydroelectric application has been filed 

with the Commission and is available 

for public inspection. 

a. Type of Application: Minor 

License. 

b. Project No.: 13417–002. 

c. Date filed: October 21, 2011. 

d. Applicant: Western Technical 

College. 

e. Name of Project: Angelo Dam 

Hydroelectric Project. 

f. Location: The project would be 

located on the La Crosse River in the 

mstockstill on DSK4VPTVN1PROD with NOTICES