[Federal Register Volume 61, Number 90 (Wednesday, May 8, 1996)]
[Notices]
[Pages 20873-20874]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 96-11402]



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DEPARTMENT OF STATE

Office of the Secretary
[Public Notice 2378]


New International Bridge, Eagle Pass, Texas: Finding of No 
Significant Impact

SUMMARY: The Department of State is issuing a finding of no significant 
impact on the environment for the new international bridge project 
sponsored by the City of Eagle Pass International Bridge Board, Eagle 
Pass, Texas. A draft environmental assessment of the proposed Eagle 
Pass International Bridge II project was prepared for the sponsor, 
under the guidance and supervision of the Department of State, by Hicks 
& Company, of Austin, Texas; Groves and Associates, Inc., of San 
Antonio, Texas; and Mitrisin Associates, of Bethesda, Maryland. A 
public notice regarding the availability for inspection of the City of 
Eagle Pass International Bridge Board was published in the Federal 
Register on November 1, 1990, at 55 FR 46125. No comments were received 
from the public.
    Over 20 federal and state agencies reviewed the draft environmental 
assessment. All comments received from these agencies were responded 
to, either by expanding the analysis contained in the draft 
environmental assessment or by proposing mitigation measures, as 
appropriate. Additionally, the Permit applicant corresponded and met 
with several agencies to discuss ways of meeting their concerns and, 
where appropriate, to discuss mitigation measures. The outcome of this 
dialogue was recorded in correspondence. Agencies participating in this 
process were the Immigration and Naturalization Service, the Customs 
Service, the Food and Drug Administration, the Animal and Plant Health 
Inspection Service, the General Services Administration, the 
International Boundary and Water Commission-U.S. Section, the 
Department of Defense, the Department of Transportation, the U.S. Coast 
Guard, the Federal Highway Administration, the Interstate Commerce 
Commission, the Federal Emergency Management Agency, the Department of 
the Interior, the Department of Commerce, the

[[Page 20874]]

Environmental Protection Agency, the Department of State, and 
appropriate Texas State agencies, including Texas Parks and Wildlife 
Department, Texas Department of Transportation, Texas Historical 
Commission, and Texas Natural Resource Conservation Commission. The 
draft environmental assessment, the comments submitted by the agencies, 
the response to these comments, and all correspondence between the 
agencies and the Permit applicant addressing the agencies' concerns, 
together, constitute the final environmental assessment.
    Based on the final environmental assessment and information 
developed during the review of the City of Eagle Pass's application and 
of the draft environmental assessment, the Department of State has 
concluded that issuance of the Permit will not have a significant 
impact on the quality of the human environment within the United 
States. In accordance with Council on Environmental Quality 
Regulations, 40 CFR 1501.4 and 1508.13, and with Department of State 
Regulations, 22 CFR 161.8(c), an environmental impact statement 
therefore will not be prepared.
    A Finding of No Significant Impact was adopted on April 12, 1996.

ADDRESSES: Copies of the Finding of No Significant Impact may be 
obtained from M. Elizabeth Swope, Coordinator, U.S.-Mexico Border 
Affairs, Office of Mexican Affairs, Room 4258, Department of State, 
Washington, D.C. 20520 (Telephone: 202/647-8529).

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The Department of State (``the Department'') 
is charged with issuance of Presidential Permits for the construction 
of international bridges under the International Bridge Act of 1972, 86 
Stat. 731; 33 U.S.C. 535 et. seq., and Executive Order 11423, 33 Fed. 
Reg. 11741 (1968), as amended by Executive Order 12847 of May 17, 1993, 
58 Fed. Reg. 96 (1993).
    The City of Eagle Pass Bridge Board, Texas, has requested from the 
Department a Permit to build a new bridge (Eagle Pass II) across the 
Rio Grande River from the City of Eagle Pass, Texas, to Piedras Negras, 
Coahuila, Mexico. The proposed bridge will be located approximately 0.6 
miles south of the existing Eagle Pass International Bridge and 
immediately north of the international railroad bridge.
    The proposed project is comprised of the bridge structure, 
inspection facilities, and the ``Designated Truck Route,'' and will 
operate as a 24-hour per day crossing point. The bridge design includes 
reinforced concrete design and pre-stressed concrete beam design. The 
72-foot bridge roadway will provide six lanes, with sidewalks for 
pedestrians. The bridge structure will consist of a superstructure and 
a substructure.
    The new bridge will:
    <bullet> Provide an alternative route for 100 percent of commercial 
traffic from the existing Eagle Pass International bridge;
    <bullet> Accomodate projected population growth and economic growth 
in both Eagle Pass and Piedras Negras;
    <bullet> Provide for a ``Designated Truck Route'' that will direct 
commercial through-traffic out of downtown areas; the ``Designated 
Truck Route'' will begin at the GSA Import/Export facilities, ending at 
El Indio Highway (Hwy 1021), with five lanes, two in each direction, 
with a single turn lane. Traffic would be routed under the proposed new 
bridge and under the existing railroad bridge. The El Indio Highway 
tie-in will direct access to the Loop 431/FM3443 loop system, and thus 
to State Highway 57 and the Del Rio Highway (Hwy 277).
    <bullet> Enhance Eagle Pass/Piedras Negras' position as the primary 
port of entry for the State of Coahuila, Mexico.
    <bullet> Provide for temporary facilities lasting between five and 
ten years if GSA cannot immediately finance the general services 
building. This temporary facility would have between five and ten 
comercial truck docks, serving approximately 150 to 300 trucks a day.

    Dated: May 1, 1996.
M. Elizabeth Swope,
Coordinator, U.S.-Mexico Border Affairs, Office of Mexican Affairs.
[FR Doc. 96-11402 Filed 5-7-96; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4710-29-P