[Federal Register Volume 74, Number 38 (Friday, February 27, 2009)]
[Notices]
[Page 8915]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: E9-4197]


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DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE

Department of the Army; Corps of Engineers


Notice of Availability of the Record of Decision for the Final 
Environmental Impact Statement for the Brazos River Harbor Navigation 
District's (Port Freeport) Proposed Widening of the Freeport Harbor 
Ship Channel

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

ACTION: Notice of availability.

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SUMMARY: The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Galveston District announces 
the availability of the Record of Decision (ROD), for the Final 
Environmental Impact Statement (FEIS) for the Port Freeport's proposal 
to widen the Freeport Harbor Ship Channel. The FEIS was made available 
for public review and comment on January 11, 2008. Comments received 
during the FEIS comment period are addressed in the ROD. The ROD 
discloses the decision to issue a Department of the Army permit for the 
proposed project.

DATES: The waiting period for the FEIS ended February 11, 2008. The ROD 
was signed on February 3, 2009.

ADDRESSES: Questions about this action may be addressed to the USACE, 
Galveston District, Attn: Sam J. Watson, P.O. Box 1229, Galveston, TX 
77553-1229; or by calling 409-766-3946.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
    Authority: This Federal Action is in consideration of a Department 
of the Army Permit application for work under Section 10 of the Rivers 
and Harbors Act of 1899 (33 U.S.C. 403), Section 404 of the Clean Water 
Act (33 U.S.C. 1344) and Section 103 of the Marine Protection and 
Sanctuaries Act (MPRSA) (33 U.S.C. 1413).
    Background: In April 2005, Port of Freeport submitted a Department 
of Army Permit Application to widen portions of the Freeport Harbor 
Jetty Channel and all of the Freeport Harbor Entrance Channel from 400 
feet (ft) to 600 ft. It was determined that an Environmental Impact 
Statement would be required for the proposed project. Since the 
November 29, 2005 Scoping Meeting, the consulting firm of PBS&J, under 
the direction of the Galveston District, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers 
(USACE), prepared an Environmental Impact Statement for the proposed 
project. The ROD is now available to the public.
    Availability of the ROD: The ROD for the proposed Freeport Channel 
Widening project is being made available to Federal, State, and local 
agencies and all interested parties. The ROD can be viewed or 
downloaded at: http://www.swg.usace.army.mil/reg/.
    Location: The project is located in the Freeport Harbor Channel, 
Brazoria County, TX. Specifically, the project site is located along 
the northern edge of the Freeport Harbor Jetty and Entrance Channels, 
between the towns of Surfside and Quintana, TX. The project can be 
located on the U.S. Geological Survey quadrangle map entitled Freeport, 
TX. Approximate UTM Coordinates: NAD 83, UTM 14N, 861095.730029, 
3206475.762543.
    Project Description: The project includes widening the Freeport 
Harbor Jetty Channel beginning at Channel Station 63+35 with a gradual 
widening, at the authorized depth, up to an additional 150 feet (ft) 
for about 1,835 ft to Channel Station 45+00. From that point to Channel 
Station 40+00 the widening would be less gradual from the additional 
150 ft to an additional 200 ft. Through the rest of the Jetty Channel 
and to the end of the Freeport Harbor Entrance Channel (Channel Station 
-260+00), the channel would be widened an additional 200 ft. The length 
of channel proposed for widening is about 6.1 miles, of which 5.7 miles 
would be widened by 200 ft. The project depth will remain at the 
authorized depth of 45 ft in the Jetty Channel and 47 ft in the 
Entrance Channel. The widening would generate approximately 3.2 million 
cubic yards (mcy) of new work dredged material. Approximately 2.9 mcy 
of the new work material would consist of clay material and about 
300,000 cubic yards (cy) would consist of silty/sand material. The 
ocean dredged material disposal sites (ODMDS) previously designated for 
the existing Freeport Harbor Ship Channel, would be used for placement 
of the 2.9 mcy of clay/silt material and maintenance material. The 
300,000 cy of silty/sand material would be used beneficially and placed 
on Quintana Beach in front of the Seaway upland confined placement 
area.

Brenda S. Bowen,
Army Federal Register Liaison Officer.
[FR Doc. E9-4197 Filed 2-26-09; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3720-58-P