[Federal Register Volume 62, Number 74 (Thursday, April 17, 1997)]
[Notices]
[Pages 18755-18756]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 97-9922]


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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration
[I.D. 040997B]
RIN 0648-XX28


New Bedford Harbor Trustee Council, Draft Restoration Plan and 
Environmental Impact Statement (RP/EIS)

AGENCY: National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and 
Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), Commerce.

ACTION: Notice of availability of draft restoration plan and 
environmental impact statement (RP/EIS).

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SUMMARY: NMFS, acting as Administrative Trustee, announces the 
availability of the New Bedford Harbor Trustee Council's (Council) 
draft RP/EIS for the restoration of natural resources that have been 
injured by releases of hazardous substances, including polychlorinated 
biphenyls (PCBs), in the New Bedford Harbor Environment. Written 
comments are requested on the draft RP/EIS.

DATES: Written comments are requested by June 2, 1997.

ADDRESSES: Written comments on the draft RP/EIS, requests for inclusion 
on the draft RP/EIS mailing list, and requests for copies of any 
documents associated with the draft RP/EIS should be directed to: New 
Bedford Harbor Trustee Council, c/o NMFS, F/NEO2, 1 Blackburn Drive, 
Gloucester, MA 01930.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Jack Terrill, Coordinator, 508-281-
9136.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: A Notice of Availability will be mailed to 
all agencies, organizations, and individuals who participated in the 
scoping process or were identified during the RP/EIS process. Copies of 
the RP/EIS have been sent to all participants who have already 
requested copies.

A. Background

    New Bedford Harbor is located in southeastern Massachusetts at the 
mouth of the Acushnet River on Buzzards Bay. Adjacent to the harbor are 
the communities of Acushnet, Dartmouth, Fairhaven, and New Bedford. New 
Bedford Harbor is contaminated with high levels of hazardous 
substances, including PCBs, and is therefore on the U.S. Environmental 
Protection Agency's (EPA) Superfund National Priorities List, as well 
as being identified as a priority Superfund site by the Commonwealth of 
Massachusetts. Hazardous materials containing PCBs were discharged 
directly into the Acushnet River estuary and Buzzards Bay and 
indirectly via the municipal wastewater treatment system into the same 
bodies of water. The sources of these discharges were electronics 
manufacturers who were major users of PCBs from the time that their 
operations commenced in the late 1940s until 1977, when EPA banned the 
use and manufacture of PCBs.

B. Cooperating Agencies

    There are three natural resource trustees on the Council 
representing the Department of Commerce, the Department of the 
Interior, and the Commonwealth of Massachusetts. The Secretary of 
Commerce has delegated trustee responsibility to NOAA, with NMFS having 
responsibility for restoration. The Secretary of the Interior has 
delegated trustee responsibility to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. 
The Governor of Massachusetts has delegated trustee responsibility to 
the Executive Office of Environmental Affairs.

[[Page 18756]]

C. Funding

    The source of funding for the Council's actions is a $21 million 
restoration fund, established as a result of settlements between the 
Federal government, the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, and the 
companies responsible for releasing PCBs into New Bedford Harbor. A 
separate account funds the Harbor cleanup. By law and under the terms 
of the settlement agreements, the Council must finalize a restoration 
plan for the New Bedford Harbor Environment before funding restoration 
projects, although necessary plans and studies may be funded before 
completion of the plan.

D. Development of the Draft RP/EIS

    The Trustees determined that an EIS was the most appropriate means 
to ensure public participation in the development of restoration 
alternatives, and to analyze the environmental impact of those 
alternatives. A Notice of Intent to prepare the RP/EIS was published in 
the Federal Register (60 FR 10835, February 28, 1995) and initial 
scoping meetings were held in February and March 1995. Restoration 
priorities were determined from the list of resources identified as 
having a high probability of injury within the New Bedford Harbor 
environment and which would be likely candidates for restoration. The 
restoration priorities are: (1)Marshes or wetlands; (2)recreation 
areas; (3)water column; (4) habitats; (5)living resources; and 
(6)endangered species.

E. Request for Ideas

    A request for restoration ideas was published in the Federal 
Register (60 FR 52164-52169, October 5, 1995). As a result, 56 
restoration ideas were received from citizens, non-profit 
organizations, municipalities, academic institutions, state and Federal 
agencies, and private businesses. The ideas received are the 
alternatives analyzed in the RP/EIS. The ideas were reviewed by the 
Council's community and technical advisory committees and legal 
counsel. The Committees provided recommendations on which ideas should 
be preferred alternatives to the Council. The public was invited to 
comment and a public hearing was held on April 30, 1996. The Council 
then selected 12 preferred alternatives after considering the public 
comment and its committees' recommendation.

F. Alternatives Analyzed in the Draft RP/EIS

    The Council is proposing a combination of near-term, future and 
emergency actions, and plans and studies, as appropriate, that together 
would form the basis of an estuary-wide plan to restore the affected 
environment. This plan evaluates general restoration alternatives as 
well as specific restoration actions, and establishes a process for the 
evaluation, selection, and implementation of future restoration 
actions.

G. Preferred Alternatives

    From among the 56 ideas, the Council selected 12 preferred 
alternatives for near-term implementation. These ideas, by restoration 
priority, are as follows:
    Marshes or Wetlands
    - Hydrologic restoration of Padanaram Salt Marsh, Dartmouth
    - Hydrologic restoration of Nonquitt Marsh, Dartmouth
    Recreation Areas
    - Recreation and habitat improvements to Fort Taber Park, New 
Bedford
    - Riverside/Belleville Avenue Marine Recreational Park, New Bedford
    Water Column
    - Hurricane Barrier Box Culvert, New Bedford/Fairhaven
    Habitats
    - Eelgrass habitat restoration, New Bedford Harbor and Clarks Cove
    - Land acquisition, Sconticut Neck, Fairhaven
    Living Resources
    - Restoration and management of the New Bedford area shellfishery
    - Restoration of the Acushnet River herring run
    Endangered Species
    - Buzzards Bay tern restoration and habitat stabilization
    Plans and Studies
    - Wetlands restoration planning and implementation
    - New Bedford/Fairhaven Harbor Master Plan (aspects related to 
natural resources)
    On finalization of this plan, the Council will begin implementation 
of selected near-term alternatives.

H. Coordination with Ongoing Cleanup Actions

    Since the Harbor cleanup is ongoing, restoration actions must be 
coordinated with that process to maximize environmental benefits while 
ensuring that neither process negates or interferes with the other. As 
cleanup of the Harbor proceeds, more restoration options will become 
practicable. The Council proposes an event-based process of idea 
solicitation and selection to choose future restoration actions, 
periodically selecting restoration actions that are practicable, 
effective, and appropriate in the context of the ongoing cleanup. Full 
public involvement in Council decisionmaking will be maintained in all 
aspects of the process.

    Authority: 42 U.S.C. 4321 et seq. and 9601 et seq.

    Dated: April 10, 1997.
Rolland A. Schmitten,
Assistant Administrator for Fisheries, National Marine Fisheries 
Services.
[FR Doc. 97-9922 Filed 4-16-97; 8:45 am]
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