[Federal Register Volume 62, Number 65 (Friday, April 4, 1997)]
[Notices]
[Page 16143]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 97-8602]


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DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE
Department of the Army, Corps of Engineers


Intent To Prepare a Draft Supplemental Environmental Impact 
Statement [SEIS] for Remaining Construction of Main Stem Mississippi 
River Levees between Cape Girardeau, Missouri, and Head of Passes, 
Louisiana

AGENCY: U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Vicksburg District, DOD.

ACTION: Notice of Intent.

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SUMMARY: The Corps of Engineers is undertaking the Mississippi River 
and Tributaries Project in order to provide flood protection from the 
``project flood.'' As part of that project, the Corps has proposed 
enlarging levees and constructing berms and other appurtenances to 
provide that level of flood protection. The enlargement of remaining 
levees and appurtenant features within the boundaries of the Lower 
Mississippi Valley Division of the Corps would result in the loss of 
bottom-land hardwoods and forested wetlands and would have impacts on 
waterfowl and fisheries habitat. In order to determine the impacts of 
this element of the project, the Corps intends to prepare a SEIS. That 
SEIS will include an evaluation of the no-action alternative, 
completion of the original project plan, and alternative plans that 
incorporate various design features that reduce negative environmental 
impacts.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:
Marvin Cannon (telephone (601) 631-5437), CELMK-PD-Q, 4155 Clay Street, 
Vicksburg, Mississippi 39180-3435.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The Mississippi River and Tributaries 
Project was authorized by Congress in 1928. The project is designed to 
control a ``project flood'' with a discharge of 3 million cubic feet 
per second in the alluvial valley of the lower Mississippi River. A 
final Environmental Impact Statement for this project was filed with 
the Council on Environmental Quality on 8 April 1976.
    1. Proposed Action: The proposed action is construction of the 
Mississippi River Mainline Levee Enlargement and Berm Construction 
Feature of the Mississippi River and Tributaries Project on the 
Mississippi River between Cape Girardeau, Missouri, and Head of Passes, 
Louisiana. As currently proposed, the recommended plan would include 
the use of some or all of the following alternative mitigation 
measures--avoiding significant resources, using relief wells to reduce 
the amount of borrow area and replace berms, using hydraulic dredges to 
obtain dredged material from the river for berm construction to reduce 
the amount of borrow area, using construction measures that allow 
either reforestation of lands or creation of high quality fisheries, 
reforesting some lands, and purchasing and reforesting agricultural 
lands.
    2. Alternatives: Preliminary alternatives that will be evaluated 
include no-action, completion of the original plan, and a plan that 
incorporates environmental design features and results in no net losses 
to significant resources in the project area.
    3. a. Public scoping meetings will be held at various locations 
within the project area. Initial public scoping meetings will be held 
in May or June 1997. The public will be notified of each of these 
meetings in advance. The studies will analyze impacts to significant 
environmental resources such as impacts to bottom-land hardwoods, 
wetlands, migratory birds, bats, water quality, endangered species, 
waterfowl, and fisheries. Public meetings to present the results of 
these studies and a recommended plan of action are scheduled to be held 
in February 1998 while the draft SEIS is under review by the public. In 
addition, workshops will be conducted to discuss issues, inform 
interested parties of the progress of the studies, and afford 
additional opportunity for public input. These workshops will be 
scheduled as needed and where most convenient for the analysis being 
conducted.
    b. The draft SEIS is scheduled for public review in February 1998.
Gary W. Wright,
Colonel, Corps of Engineers, District Engineer.
[FR Doc. 97-8602 Filed 4-3-97; 8:45 am]
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