Federal Register / Vol. 75, No. 35 / Tuesday, February 23, 2010 / Notices 8047 

detailed Environmental Impact 

Statement is not required. The draft 

guidance clarifies that the 

environmental impacts of a proposed 

action may be mitigated to the point 

when the agency may make a FONSI 

determination, and thereby ease the 

NEPA review requirements. When the 

FONSI depends on successful 

mitigation, however, such mitigation 

requirements should be made public 

and be accompanied by monitoring and 

reporting. The draft guidance reinforces 

and also applies to monitoring and 

reporting of mitigation commitments 

agencies make in an EIS and the Record 

of Decision that follows. CEQ has issued 

this draft guidance for 90 days of public 

comment. Draft guidance documents are 

now available at the Council on 

Environmental Quality Web site at 

http://www.nepa.gov. 

Public comments are requested on or 

before May 24, 2010. 

February 18, 2010. 

Nancy Sutley, 

Chair, Council on Environmental Quality. 

[FR Doc. 2010–3535 Filed 2–22–10; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 3125–W0–P 

DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE 

Department of the Army; Army Corps 

of Engineers 

Notice of Intent To Prepare a Joint 

Environmental Impact Statement and 

Environmental Impact Report for the 

Lower Walnut Creek General 

Reevaluation Report 

AGENCY: Department of the Army, U.S. 

Army Corps of Engineers; DOD. 

ACTION: Notice of Intent. 

SUMMARY: Pursuant to the National 

Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) and 

the California Environmental Quality 

Act (CEQA), the U.S. Army Corps of 

Engineers, Sacramento District (USACE) 

intends to prepare a joint environmental 

impact statement/environmental impact 

report (EIS/EIR) for the Lower Walnut 

Creek General Reevaluation Report 

(LWCGRR). USACE will serve as lead 

agency for compliance with NEPA, and 

the Contra Costa County Flood Control 

and Water Conservation District 

(CCCFCWCD) will serve as lead agency 

for compliance with CEQA. The 

LWCGRR will evaluate alternatives, 

including a locally preferred plan, for 

providing flood risk management and 

ecosystem restoration along the 

northern portion of the Walnut Creek 

watershed in the Central Coast of 

California. The approximate drainage 

area of the proposed action and analysis 

is 180 square miles. 

DATES: Written comments regarding the 

scope of the environmental analysis 

should be received by March 23, 2010. 

ADDRESSES: Written comments 

concerning this study and requests to be 

included on the LWCGRR mailing list 

should be submitted to Ms. Jamie 

LeFevre, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, 

Sacramento District, Attn: Planning 

Division (CESPK–PD–R), 1325 J Street, 

Sacramento, CA 95814. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Ms. 

Jamie LeFevre via telephone at (916) 

557–6693, e-mail at 

Jamie.M.Lefevre@usace.army.mil, or 

mail at (see ADDRESSES). 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

1. Proposed Action. USACE is 

preparing an EIS/EIR to analyze the 

environmental impacts associated with 

a range of alternatives for providing 

flood damage reduction and ecosystem 

restoration along the northern portion of 

the Walnut Creek watershed (Figure 1). 

2. Alternatives. The EIS/EIR will 

address an array of alternatives for 

providing flood risk management within 

the project area. Alternatives analyzed 

during the investigation may include, 

but are not limited to, a combination of 

one or more of the following flood risk 

management measures: modifying the 

channel cross section and building 

setback levees along the lower reaches 

of the creek to recreate a larger 

floodplain; increasing conveyance by 

raising levees; widening channels and 

floodway areas; dredging; and various 

floodplain management measures. 

Ecosystem restoration measures may 

include, but are not limited to: restoring 

riparian, wetland, and floodplain 

habitats for habitat restoration and/or 

providing fish passage. 

3. Scoping Process. 

a. A public scoping meeting will be 

held to present an overview of the 

LWCGRR and the EIS/EIR process, and 

to afford all interested parties with an 

opportunity to provide comments 

regarding the scope of analysis and 

potential alternatives. The public 

scoping meeting will be held at the 

Contra Costa County Public Works 

Department at 255 Glacier Drive in 

Martinez, CA on February 22, 2010, 

from 4 p.m. to 8 p.m. 

b. Potentially significant issues to be 

analyzed in depth in the EIS/EIR 

include project specific and cumulative 

effects on hydraulics, wetlands and 

other waters of the U.S., vegetation and 

wildlife resources, special-status 

species, esthetics, cultural resources, 

recreation, land use, fisheries, water 

quality, air quality, and transportation. 

c. USACE will consult with the State 

Historic Preservation Officer to comply 

with the National Historic Preservation 

Act and with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife 

Service and National Marine Fisheries 

Service to comply with the Endangered 

Species Act. USACE is also coordinating 

with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service 

to comply with the Fish and Wildlife 

Coordination Act. In addition, USACE 

or CCCFCWCD will need to obtain 

permits from the California Department 

of Fish and Game and the San Francisco 

Bay Regional Water Quality Control 

Board. 

d. A 45-day public review period will 

be provided for all interested parties 

individuals and agencies to review and 

comment on the draft EIS/EIR. All 

interested parties are encouraged to 

respond to this notice and provide a 

current address if they wish to be 

notified of the draft EIS/EIR circulation. 

4. Availability. The draft EIS/EIR is 

currently scheduled to be available for 

public review and comment in 2016. 

Dated: February 8, 2010. 

Thomas Chapman, 

COL, EN, Commanding. 

[FR Doc. 2010–3493 Filed 2–22–10; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 3720–58–P 

DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE 

Department of the Army; Corps of 

Engineers 

Notice of Intent To Prepare a Draft 

Environmental Impact Statement for 

the Proposed Duke Energy Carolinas, 

LLC, Offshore Wind Demonstration 

Project Within the Pamlico Sound, 

Dare County, NC 

AGENCY: Department of the Army, U.S. 

Army Corps of Engineers, DoD. 

ACTION: Notice of intent. 

SUMMARY: The U.S. Army Corps of 

Engineers (USACE), Wilmington 

District, Regulatory Division has 

received a request for Department of the 

Army authorization, pursuant to Section 

404 of the Clean Water Act and Section 

10 of the Rivers and Harbors Act, from 

Duke Energy Carolinas, LLC, to 

construct up to three (3) power 

generating wind turbines within the 

Pamlico Sound and to conduct research 

relating to the development of future 

offshore wind energy projects. This 

project is located within a 3-mile square 

area located approximately 7.3 miles 

west of Avon and 9.1 miles north of 

Frisco within the Pamlico Sound, NC. In 

order to maximize exposure to 

prevailing winds, the turbines will be 

oriented in a northwest to southeast 

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8048 Federal Register / Vol. 75, No. 35 / Tuesday, February 23, 2010 / Notices 

configuration (NW corner: Lat. 

35.23.9.78 N, Long. 75.39.26.32 W/SE 

corner: Lat. 35.22.4.26 N, Long. 

75.38.20.80 W). Construction will 

require barge-supported equipment to 

install the foundations supporting the 

turbines, rock aprons may be installed 

to protect the base of each structure, and 

an approximately 6-inch diameter 

electric cable will be buried within the 

bottom of Pamlico Sound for connection 

to an existing, land-based substation 

near the communities of either Avon, 

Buxton, Frisco, or Hatteras, NC. Power 

generated by this project would be 

supplied to the electric grid on Hatteras 

Island. The University of North Carolina 

at Chapel Hill (UNC) will conduct 

research on the project to evaluate water 

user conflicts, ecological risks, 

engineering obstacles, and measures to 

mitigate the effects of the turbines on 

the public. 

DATES: A public scoping meeting for the 

Draft Environmental Impact Statement 

(DEIS) will be held at the Dare County 

Justice Center, 962 Marshall C. Collins 

Drive, Manteo, NC, on Thursday, March 

18, 2010, beginning at 6 p.m. EST. 

Written comments will be received until 

April 2, 2010. 

ADDRESSES: Copies of comments and 

questions regarding scoping of the Draft 

EIS may be addressed to: U.S. Army 

Corps of Engineers, Wilmington District, 

Regulatory Division, ATTN: File 

Number SAW 2009–01880, Post Office 

Box 1000, Washington, NC 27889–1000. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 

Questions about the proposed action 

and DEIS may be directed to the 

Regulatory Division, Mr. David Lekson, 

telephone (910) 251–4595; or Ms. 

Tracey Wheeler, telephone (910) 251– 

4627. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Duke 

Energy Carolinas, LLC, is an investorowned utility that serves over 2 million 

customers within both North and South 

Carolina. Legislation was passed in NC 

to facilitate the development of this 

project and UNC completed a study on 

the feasibility of establishing wind 

turbines in NC’s coastal waters, entitled 

Coastal Wind, Energy for North 

Carolina’s Future, dated June 2009. The 

report includes a broad-scale analysis of 

environmental, engineering, and other 

issues that would likely affect wind 

energy development in NC’s coastal 

waters. The analysis took into account 

potential conflicts with birds, bats, 

marine mammals, threatened and 

endangered species, fisheries, geology, 

aviation and military use, recreation, 

commercial fishing, cultural resources, 

visual resources, and other factors. 

These environmental considerations 

were combined with wind power, 

geology and foundation analyses, and an 

economic feasibility analysis to produce 

a map depicting areas that are most 

suitable for wind energy development 

and that hold promise for future study. 

Duke Energy’s stated purpose of the 

project is to construct and operate a 

demonstration wind energy facility in 

the coastal waters of North Carolina in 

order to evaluate the ecological risks, 

engineering obstacles, and potential 

mitigation measures associated with 

water-based wind energy development 

in North Carolina. If commercial-scale 

wind energy development is deemed to 

be feasible, this demonstration project 

will also provide research data that can 

be used in development of future wind 

power projects. 

Proposed Impacts to Wetlands and 

Surface Waters: Issues to be addressed 

include, but are not limited to, potential 

adverse impacts to navigation, high 

quality tidal and non-tidal coastal 

wetlands, designated outstanding 

resource waters, endangered species, 

essential fish habitat, other fish and 

wildlife resources, military operations, 

commercial and recreational fishing 

interests, U.S. Coast Guard interests, 

tourism, aesthetics, and traditional and 

future public use of the Pamlico Sound. 

Scope of Investigations: Based upon 

the proposed impacts to navigable 

waters of the United States, including 

wetlands, Duke Energy has been advised 

by the USACE that an Environmental 

Impact Statement (EIS) should be 

prepared for the proposed project. The 

scope of the EIS investigation will 

include the following: Alternatives 

analyses, Affected environment, 

Environmental consequences, 

Secondary and Cumulative 

Environmental Impacts, and 

Compensatory Mitigation. 

Alternatives analyses: Council on 

Environmental Quality (CEQ) 

regulations (40 CFR 1502.14(a)) require 

an environmental impact statement 

(EIS) to ‘‘rigorously explore and 

objectively evaluate all reasonable 

alternatives’’ for a proposed action. The 

regulations (40 CFR 1502.14(b)) further 

require that substantial treatment be 

made of each alternative considered in 

detail, including the proposed action. 

The proposed project and a reasonable 

number of alternatives, including the no 

action alternative and constructing the 

wind turbines and ancillary facilities in 

other areas within and outside of 

eastern NC, will be evaluated and 

compared in the EIS. The factors used 

to compare the alternatives will be the 

same for each of the alternatives. 

Affected environment: CEQ 

regulations (40 CFR 1502.15) require the 

EIS to describe the environment of the 

areas to be affected or created by the 

alternatives under consideration. The 

data and analysis shall be 

commensurate with the importance of 

the impact. Based upon preliminary 

evaluation of the proposed project, it 

appears the primary areas of 

environmental concern will focus on 

navigable waters, benthic and watercolumn estuarine resources, coastal 

wetlands and other aquatic resource 

functions and values including 

mitigation of such losses. 

Environmental consequences: CEQ 

regulations (40 CFR 1502.16) state the 

EIS will include the environmental 

impacts of the alternatives including the 

proposed action, any adverse 

environmental effects which cannot be 

avoided should the proposal be 

implemented, the relationship between 

short-term uses of man’s environment 

and the maintenance and enhancement 

of long-term productivity, and any 

irreversible or irretrievable 

commitments of resources which would 

be involved in the proposal should it be 

implemented. The EIS will identify and 

disclose the direct impacts of the 

proposed project and study a reasonable 

number of alternatives. 

Secondary and cumulative 

environmental impacts: Cumulative 

impacts result from the incremental 

impact of the proposed action when 

added to past, present, and reasonably 

foreseeable future actions, regardless of 

what agency or person undertakes the 

action. Geographic information system 

data and mapping will be used to 

evaluate and quantify secondary and 

cumulative impacts of the proposed 

project with particular emphasis given 

to navigable waters, benthic and watercolumn estuarine resources, and 

wetlands. 

Mitigation: CEQ regulations (40 CFR 

1502.14, 1502.16, and 1508.20) require 

the EIS to include appropriate 

mitigation measures. The USACE has 

adopted, through the CEQ, a mitigation 

policy which embraces the concepts of 

‘‘no net loss of wetlands’’ and project 

sequencing. The purpose of this policy 

is to restore and maintain the chemical, 

biological, and physical integrity of 

‘‘Waters of the United States,’’ 

specifically wetlands. Mitigation of 

wetland impacts has been defined by 

the CEQ to include: avoidance of 

impacts (to wetlands), minimizing 

impacts, rectifying impacts, reducing 

impacts over time, and compensating 

for impacts (40 CFR 1508.20). Each of 

these aspects (avoidance, minimization, 

and compensatory mitigation) must be 

considered in sequential order. As part 

of the EIS, the applicant will develop a 

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Federal Register / Vol. 75, No. 35 / Tuesday, February 23, 2010 / Notices 8049 

compensatory mitigation plan detailing 

the methodology and approach to 

compensate for unavoidable impacts to 

waters of the United States, including 

wetlands. 

Based on the size, complexity, and 

potential impacts of the proposed 

project, Duke Energy has been advised 

by the USACE to identify and disclose 

the environmental impacts of the 

proposed project in an Environmental 

Impact Statement (EIS). Within the EIS, 

the Applicant will conduct a thorough 

environmental review, including an 

evaluation of a reasonable number of 

alternatives. After distribution and 

review of the Draft EIS and Final EIS, 

the Applicant understands that the 

USACE will issue a Record of Decision 

(ROD) for the project. The ROD will 

document the completion of the EIS 

process and will serve as a basis for 

permitting decisions by Federal and 

State agencies. 

Jefferson M. Ryscavage, 

Colonel, EN, Commanding. 

[FR Doc. 2010–3494 Filed 2–22–10; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 3720–58–P 

DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE 

Department of the Air Force 

Air University Board of Visitors 

Meeting 

ACTION: Notice of Meeting of the Air 

University Board of Visitors. 

SUMMARY: Under the provisions of the 

Federal Advisory Committee Act of 

1972 (5 U.S.C., Appendix, as amended), 

the Government in the Sunshine Act of 

1976 (5 U.S.C. 552b, as amended), and 

41 CFR 102–3.150, the Department of 

Defense announces that the Air 

University Board of Visitors’ meeting 

will take place on Monday, March 30th, 

2010, from 11 a.m. to 12 p.m. The 

meeting will be a conference call 

meeting and the conference number is 

334–953–1945. The purpose and agenda 

of this meeting is to provide 

independent advice and 

recommendations on matters pertaining 

to the proposal of a Ph.D. degree at Air 

University. Pursuant to 5 U.S.C. 552b, as 

amended, and 41 CFR 102–3.155 all 

sessions of the Air University Board of 

Visitors’ meeting will be open to the 

public. Any member of the public 

wishing to provide input to the Air 

University Board of Visitors should 

submit a written statement in 

accordance with 41 CFR 102–3.140(c) 

and section 10(a)(3) of the Federal 

Advisory Committee Act and the 

procedures described in this paragraph. 

Written statements can be submitted to 

the Designated Federal Officer at the 

address detailed below at any time. 

Statements being submitted in response 

to the agenda mentioned in this notice 

must be received by the Designated 

Federal Officer at the address listed 

below at least five calendar days prior 

to the meeting which is the subject of 

this notice. Written statements received 

after this date may not be provided to 

or considered by the Air University 

Board of Visitors until its next meeting. 

The Designated Federal Officer will 

review all timely submissions with the 

Air University Board of Visitors’ Board 

Chairperson and ensure they are 

provided to members of the Board 

before the meeting that is the subject of 

this notice. Additionally, any member of 

the public wishing to attend this 

meeting should contact either person 

listed below at least five calendar days 

prior to the meeting for information on 

base entry passes. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Dr. 

Dorothy Reed, Federal Designated 

Officer, Air University Headquarters, 55 

LeMay Plaza South, Maxwell Air Force 

Base, Alabama 36112–6335, telephone 

(334) 953–5159 or Mrs. Diana Bunch, 

Alternate Federal Designated Officer, 

same address, telephone (334) 953– 

4547. 

Bao-Anh Trinh, 

YA–3, Air Force Federal Register Liaison 

Officer. 

[FR Doc. 2010–3504 Filed 2–22–10; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 5001–05–P 

DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE 

Department of the Air Force 

Air University Board of Visitors 

Meeting 

ACTION: Notice of Meeting of the Air 

University Board of Visitors. 

SUMMARY: Under the provisions of the 

Federal Advisory Committee Act of 

1972 (5 U.S.C., Appendix, as amended), 

the Government in the Sunshine Act of 

1976 (5 U.S.C. 552b, as amended), and 

41 CFR 102–3.150, the Department of 

Defense announces that the Air 

University Board of Visitors’ meeting 

will take place on Monday, April 19th, 

2010, from 8 a.m.–5 p.m., and Tuesday, 

April 20th, 2010, from 8 a.m.–8 p.m. 

The meeting will be held in the Air 

University Commander’s Conference 

Room located in building 836. Please 

contact Dr. Dorothy Reed, 334–953– 

5159 for further details of the meeting 

location. 

The purpose of this meeting is to 

provide independent advice and 

recommendations on matters pertaining 

to the educational, doctrinal, and 

research policies and activities of Air 

University. The agenda will include 

topics relating to the policies, programs, 

and initiatives of Air University 

educational programs. 

Pursuant to 5 U.S.C. 552b, as 

amended, and 41 CFR 102–3.155 all 

sessions of the Air University Board of 

Visitors’ meeting will be open to the 

public. Any member of the public 

wishing to provide input to the Air 

University Board of Visitors should 

submit a written statement in 

accordance with 41 CFR 102–3.140(c) 

and section 10(a)(3) of the Federal 

Advisory Committee Act and the 

procedures described in this paragraph. 

Written statements can be submitted to 

the Designated Federal Officer at the 

address detailed below at any time. 

Statements being submitted in response 

to the agenda mentioned in this notice 

must be received by the Designated 

Federal Officer at the address listed 

below at least five calendar days prior 

to the meeting which is the subject of 

this notice. Written statements received 

after this date may not be provided to 

or considered by the Air University 

Board of Visitors until its next meeting. 

The Designated Federal Officer will 

review all timely submissions with the 

Air University Board of Visitors’ Board 

Chairperson and ensure they are 

provided to members of the Board 

before the meeting that is the subject of 

this notice. Additionally, any member of 

the public wishing to attend this 

meeting should contact either person 

listed below at least five calendar days 

prior to the meeting for information on 

base entry passes. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Dr. 

Dorothy Reed, Federal Designated 

Officer, Air University Headquarters, 55 

LeMay Plaza South, Maxwell Air Force 

Base, Alabama 36112–6335, telephone 

(334) 953–5159 or Mrs. Diana Bunch, 

Alternate Federal Designated Officer, 

same address, telephone (334) 953– 

4547. 

Bao-Anh Trinh, 

YA–3, Air Force Federal Register Liaison 

Officer. 

[FR Doc. 2010–3502 Filed 2–22–10; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 5001–05–P 

DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION 

Notice of Proposed Information 

Collection Requests 

AGENCY: Department of Education. 

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