Source: https://regulations.justia.com/regulations/fedreg/2010/10/29/2010-27354.html
Timestamp: 2020-07-14 17:45:25
Document Index: 582526647

Matched Legal Cases: ['arts 1500', 'art 1216', 'art 1216', 'arts 1500', 'art\n1216', 'art 1216']

National Environmental Policy Act; Wallops Flight Facility Shoreline Restoration and Infrastructure Protection Program, 66800-66802 [2010-27354] :: National Aeronautics And Space Administration :: Agencies And Commissions :: Regulation Tracker :: Justia
Justia Regulation Tracker Agencies And Commissions National Aeronautics And Space Administration National Environmental Policy Act; Wallops Flight Facility Shoreline Restoration and Infrastructure Protection Program, 66800-66802 [2010-27354]
National Environmental Policy Act; Wallops Flight Facility Shoreline Restoration and Infrastructure Protection Program, 66800-66802 [2010-27354]
Download as PDF 66800 Federal Register / Vol. 75, No. 209 / Friday, October 29, 2010 / Notices Dated: October 25, 2010. James Scott Sledge, Chief U.S. Copyright Royalty Judge. Affected Public: Business or other forprofit and not-for profit institutions. Estimated Number of Respondents: 1,283. Estimated Time per Response: 1 hour for manual responses and 0.75 hour for electronic responses. Estimated Total Annual Burden Hours: 1,075. Estimated Total Annual Cost: $0. [FR Doc. 2010–27333 Filed 10–28–10; 8:45 am] BILLING CODE 1410–72–P NATIONAL AERONAUTICS AND SPACE ADMINISTRATION [NOTICE: (10–143)] IV. Request for Comments Notice of Information Collection National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA). ACTION: Notice of information collection. AGENCY: The National Aeronautics and Space Administration, as part of its continuing effort to reduce paperwork and respondent burden, invites the general public and other Federal agencies to take this opportunity to comment on proposed and/or continuing information collections, as required by the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 (Pub. L. 104–13, 44 U.S.C. 3506(c)(2)(A)). DATES: All comments should be submitted within 60 calendar days from the date of this publication. ADDRESSES: All comments should be addressed to Lori Parker, National Aeronautics and Space Administration, Washington, DC 20546–0001. FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Requests for additional information or copies of the information collection instrument(s) and instructions should be directed to Lori Parker, NASA PRA Officer, NASA Headquarters, 300 E Street, SW., JF0000, Washington, DC 20546, (202) 358–1351, Lori.Parker@nasa.gov. SUMMARY: SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: WReier-Aviles on DSKGBLS3C1PROD with NOTICES I. Abstract As required in Section 305(b) of the National Aeronautics and Space Act of 1958 and the NASA Supplement to the Federal Acquisition Regulation, NASA R&D contracts require contractor/ recipient reporting of new technologies to NASA using NASA eNTRe system for electronic submissions and NASA Form 1679 for paper submissions. II. Method of Collection NASA will utilize a Web-base on-line form to collect this information. Approximately 65 per cent of the responses will be collected electronically. III. Data Title: AST–Technology Utilization. OMB Number: 2700–0009. Type of Review: Regular. VerDate Mar<15>2010 15:23 Oct 28, 2010 Jkt 223001 Comments are invited on: (1) Whether the proposed collection of information is necessary for the proper performance of the functions of NASA, including whether the information collected has practical utility; (2) the accuracy of NASA’s estimate of the burden (including hours and cost) of the proposed collection of information; (3) ways to enhance the quality, utility, and clarity of the information to be collected; and (4) ways to minimize the burden of the collection of information on respondents, including automated collection techniques or the use of other forms of information technology. Comments submitted in response to this notice will be summarized and included in the request for OMB approval of this information collection. They will also become a matter of public record. Lori Parker, NASA PRA Clearance Officer [FR Doc. 2010–27447 Filed 10–28–10; 8:45 am] BILLING CODE P NATIONAL AERONAUTICS AND SPACE ADMINISTRATION [Notice (10–142)] National Environmental Policy Act; Wallops Flight Facility Shoreline Restoration and Infrastructure Protection Program National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA). ACTION: Notice of availability of the Final Programmatic Environmental Impact Statement (PEIS) for the Wallops Flight Facility (WFF) Shoreline Restoration and Infrastructure Protection Program (SRIPP). AGENCY: Pursuant to the National Environmental Policy Act, as amended, (NEPA) (42 U.S.C. 4321 et seq.), the Council on Environmental Quality Regulations for Implementing the Procedural Provisions of NEPA (40 CFR Parts 1500–1508), and NASA’s NEPA policy and procedures (14 CFR Part 1216, subpart 1216.3), NASA has prepared and issued the Final PEIS for SUMMARY: PO 00000 Frm 00085 Fmt 4703 Sfmt 4703 the proposed SRIPP at WFF. The U.S. Department of the Interior, Bureau of Ocean Energy Management, Regulation, and Enforcement (BOEMRE), and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers have served as Cooperating Agencies in preparing the Final PEIS. NASA is proposing to implement a fifty-year design-life storm damage reduction project at its WFF on Wallops Island, Virginia. WFF is continuously faced with storm damage resulting in the implementation of emergency repairs. The project would be conducted to reduce the need for these emergency repairs and the potential for storminduced physical damage to the over $1 billion in Federal and State assets on Wallops Island. The Final PEIS examines in detail three project action alternatives, each expected to provide substantial damage reduction from storms with intensities ranging up to approximately the 100-year return interval storm. Although some reduction in flooding can be expected under each alternative, the primary purpose of the proposal is not flood protection, rather it is moving destructive wave energy further away from the Wallops Island shoreline and the infrastructure behind it. Alternative One, NASA’s preferred alternative, would include extending the existing Wallops Island seawall up to a maximum of 1,400 meters (m) (4,600 feet [ft]) south and placing an estimated 2.5 million cubic meters (MCM) (3.2 million cubic yards [MCY]) along the shoreline. Alternative Two would include the same seawall extension as Alternative One; however the sand placed along the shoreline would be less at approximately 2.2 MCM (2.9 MCY). Under this alternative, NASA would also construct a groin perpendicular to the shoreline at the south end of the project site to limit the volume of nearshore sand being transported from the restored Wallops Island beach to the south. Alternative Three would entail the same seawall extension as in Alternatives One and Two; however sand placement would be the least of the Alternatives at approximately 2.1 MCM (2.8 MCY). NASA would construct a single detached breakwater parallel to the shoreline at the south end of the project site to retain sand under Alternative Three. Under all three project alternatives, NASA would obtain the sand required for its initial beach nourishment from an unnamed shoal (referred to as Shoal A) located in Federal waters approximately 23 kilometers (km) (14 miles [mi]) east of Wallops Island. Sand for an expected nine future renourishment cycles could E:\FR\FM\29OCN1.SGM 29OCN1 WReier-Aviles on DSKGBLS3C1PROD with NOTICES Federal Register / Vol. 75, No. 209 / Friday, October 29, 2010 / Notices come from either Shoal A or a second offshore shoal in Federal waters referred to as Shoal B, approximately 31 km (19 mi) east of the project site. Additionally, NASA is considering transporting sand that accumulates on north Wallops Island to supplement its future renourishment needs (commonly known as ‘‘backpassing’’). It is estimated that up to half of the required renourishment volumes could be obtained from ‘‘backpassing.’’ The No Action Alternative is to not implement the WFF SRIPP, but to continue making emergency repairs to the existing Wallops Island seawall and infrastructure, as necessary. DATES: NASA will issue a Record of Decision (ROD) for the proposed SRIPP based on the Final PEIS no sooner than 30 days from the date of publication in the Federal Register of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s Notice of Availability of the Final PEIS. ADDRESSES: The Final PEIS may be reviewed at the following locations: (a) Chincoteague Island Library, 4077 Main Street, Chincoteague, Virginia 23336 (757–336–3460). (b) Eastern Shore Public Library, 23610 Front Street, Accomac, Virginia 23301 (757–787–3400). (c) Northampton Free Library, 7745 Seaside Road, Nassawadox, Virginia 23413 (757–414–0010). (d) NASA Wallops Flight Facility Technical Library, Building E–105, Wallops Island, Virginia 23337 (757– 824–1065). (e) NASA Headquarters Library, Room 1J20, 300 E Street, SW., Washington, DC 20546–0001 (202–358–0168). A limited number of hard copies of the Final PEIS are available, on a first request basis, by contacting Joshua Bundick, NASA WFF, Environmental Office, Code 250.W, Wallops Island, Virginia 23337; telephone 757–824– 2319; or electronic mail at Joshua.A.Bundick@nasa.gov. The Final SRIPP PEIS is available on the Internet in Adobe® portable document format at http:// sites.wff.nasa.gov/code250/shore line_eis.html. NASA’s ROD will be made available, once issued, on the same Web site as above and by request to the contact provided above. FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Additional information on the WFF SRIPP can be obtained by addressing an e-mail to wff_shoreline_eis@ma jordomo.gsfc.nasa.gov or by mailing to 250/NEPA Manager, WFF Shoreline Restoration and Infrastructure Protection Program, NASA Goddard Space Flight Center’s Wallops Flight Facility, Wallops Island, Virginia 23337. VerDate Mar<15>2010 15:23 Oct 28, 2010 Jkt 223001 Additional information about the WFF SRIPP and NASA’s NEPA process may be found on the internet at http:// sites.wff.nasa.gov/code250/shore line_eis.html. The Final PEIS addresses the environmental impacts associated with NASA’s proposed implementation of a 50-year design-life storm damage reduction program along the shoreline of Wallops Island. The environmental impacts of principal concern are those that could result from dredging sand from offshore shoals, removing sand from north Wallops Island, and from the construction of a sand retention structure at the south end of the project site. The three action alternatives considered in the Final PEIS would all provide the facilities on Wallops Island equal levels of storm damage reduction for the duration of the program. Each alternative would involve the establishment of an approximately 34 m (110 ft) wide dry beach along approximately 6,000 m (19,700 ft) of the Wallops Island shoreline to serve as a primary line of defense from destructive storm waves. In addition to the beach, a sand dune would be created to cover the ocean side of the existing and proposed seawall. The remaining portion of the fill would be placed underwater and would gradually slope to the east. It is expected that the fill alone would provide considerable damage reduction from a 30-year return interval storm. With the fill combined with the rock seawall, the project would provide substantial infrastructure damage reduction from up to an approximately 100-year return interval storm. A rock sand retention structure (a groin or breakwater) is included under Alternatives Two and Three, respectively, to slow the transport of sand from the project site and potentially reduce the amount of beach fill needed both initially and throughout the lifecycle of the project. All three alternatives would involve an initial construction phase and future follow-on maintenance cycles. The initial construction phase would likely include three distinct elements spanning three fiscal years: Year 1 Activities—The existing rock seawall would be extended approximately 400 m (1,315 ft) south. Additional lengthening (up to the 1,400 m [4,600 ft] total length) would be accomplished in future years as funding becomes available. Year 2 Activities—Approximately one third of the sand necessary for beach nourishment would be placed along the SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: PO 00000 Frm 00086 Fmt 4703 Sfmt 4703 66801 Wallops Island shoreline. Work would likely begin at the south end of the project site and would gradually move north. Sand placement would involve removing sand from Shoal A by hopper dredges and pumping the material onto the beach. Year 3 Activities—The remaining sand needed to complete the beach nourishment would be placed along the Wallops Island shoreline. Additionally, under Alternatives Two and Three, the sand retention structure would be constructed. Subsequent beach renourishment cycles would vary throughout the lifecycle of the proposed project. Factors dictating the frequency and magnitude of such actions would include project performance as revealed through ongoing monitoring, storm severity and frequency, and availability of funding. For each of the action alternatives considered in the PEIS, the renourishment cycle is anticipated to be every five years, totaling nine cycles over the fifty year design life of the project. In addition to the construction activities outlined for each of the three action alternatives, NASA would implement a rigorous monitoring program that would begin with construction in Year 1 and continue throughout the project. The intent of the monitoring program is to measure the performance of the project, and through adaptive management, make informed decisions regarding the need for renourishment, sand retention structures, and future storm damage reduction measures. Despite the programmatic nature of the PEIS, NASA included detailed information on the three action alternatives that it is considering for the SRIPP. Given the severity of shoreline erosion at Wallops Island and WFF’s vulnerability to storms, it is imperative that a storm damage reduction project be implemented as soon as possible. As a result, this PEIS includes such detail as structure dimensions and locations so that the selected alternative could be implemented and permitted without the need for additional NEPA documentation. In addition to structure dimensions and locations, this information includes beach fill volumes, dredging locations, and dredging operations. Proposed sand retention structures have been modeled and potential impacts evaluated at specific locations within the project area based on current conditions at Wallops Island. Utilizing an adaptive management approach, NASA would evaluate future actions that may include variations of the alternatives evaluated in the PEIS. E:\FR\FM\29OCN1.SGM 29OCN1 66802 Federal Register / Vol. 75, No. 209 / Friday, October 29, 2010 / Notices Given the dynamic nature of the ocean environment, and that exact locations and magnitude of renourishment cycles may fluctuate, additional NEPA documentation for subsequent actions may be prepared in the future, as appropriate. NASA published a Notice of Availability (NOA) of the Draft SRIPP Programmatic Environmental Impact Statement on February 26, 2010 (75 FR 8997). NASA mailed over 125 hard copies and/or compact disks (CDs) of the Draft PEIS to potentially interested Federal, State, and local agencies; organizations; and individuals. In addition, the Draft PEIS was made publicly available in electronic format on NASA’s Web site. The public review and comment period for the Draft PEIS closed on April 19, 2010. NASA received a total of 12 submissions (letters and e-mails) from Federal, State, and local agencies; organizations; individuals; and its Independent Technical Review team. The resulting 315 individual comments received spanned a broad range of topics; however the majority of commentors expressed concern regarding effects of the project on wildlife, fisheries, and sediment transport. The comments are addressed in the Final PEIS in Appendix N. NASA also formally consulted with resource agencies regarding potential effects of the program on Federally threatened and endangered species, Essential Fish Habitat, cultural and historic resources, and coastal resources. The outcomes of these consultations are summarized in the Final PEIS and are also included as appendices. Olga M. Dominguez, Assistant Administrator for Strategic Infrastructure. [FR Doc. 2010–27354 Filed 10–28–10; 8:45 am] BILLING CODE P NATIONAL ARCHIVES AND RECORDS ADMINISTRATION Agency Information Collection Activities: Proposed Collection; Comment Request National Archives and Records Administration (NARA). ACTION: Notice. WReier-Aviles on DSKGBLS3C1PROD with NOTICES AGENCY: NARA is giving public notice that the agency proposes to request extension of a currently approved information collection consisting of National Archives Trust Fund (NATF) Order Forms for Genealogical Research in the National Archives. The NATF SUMMARY: VerDate Mar<15>2010 15:23 Oct 28, 2010 Jkt 223001 forms included in this information collection are: NATF 81, National Archives Order for Copies of Ship Passenger Arrival Records; NATF 82, National Archives Order of Copies of Census Schedules; NATF 83, National Archives Order for Copies of Eastern Cherokee Applications; NATF 84, National Archives Order for Copies of Land Entry Files; NATF 85, National Archives Order for Copies of Pension or Bounty Land Warrant Applications; and NATF 86, National Archives Order for Copies of Military Service Records. The public is invited to comment on the proposed information collections pursuant to the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995. DATES: Written comments must be received on or before December 28, 2010 to be assured of consideration. ADDRESSES: Comments should be sent to: Paperwork Reduction Act Comments (NHP), Room 4400, National Archives and Records Administration, 8601 Adelphi Rd, College Park, MD 20740– 6001; or faxed to 301–713–7409; or electronically mailed to tamee.fechhelm@nara.gov. FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Requests for additional information or copies of the proposed information collections and supporting statements should be directed to Tamee Fechhelm at telephone number 301–837–1694, or fax number 301–713–7409. SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Pursuant to the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 (Pub. L. 104–13), NARA invites the general public and other Federal agencies to comment on proposed information collections. The comments and suggestions should address one or more of the following points: (a) Whether the proposed information collection is necessary for the proper performance of the functions of NARA; (b) the accuracy of NARA’s estimate of the burden of the proposed information collection; (c) ways to enhance the quality, utility, and clarity of the information to be collected; and (d) ways to minimize the burden of the collection of information on all respondents, including the use of information technology; and (e) whether small businesses are affected by this collection. The comments that are submitted will be summarized and included in the NARA request for Office of Management and Budget (OMB) approval. All comments will become a matter of public record. In this notice, NARA is soliciting comments concerning the following information collections: Title: Order Forms for Genealogical Research in the National Archives. PO 00000 Frm 00087 Fmt 4703 Sfmt 4703 OMB number: 3095–0027. Agency form numbers: NATF Forms 81, 82, 83, 84. 85, and 86. Type of review: Regular. Affected public: Individuals or households. Estimated number of respondents: 42,515. Estimated time per response: 10 minutes. Frequency of response: On occasion. Estimated total annual burden hours: 7,086. Abstract: Submission of requests on a form is necessary to handle in a timely fashion the volume of requests received for these records and the need to obtain specific information from the researcher to search for the records sought. As a convenience, the form will allow researchers to provide credit card information to authorize billing and expedited mailing of the copies. You can also use Order Online (http:// www.archives.gov/research_room/ obtain_copies/military_and_genealogy_ order_forms.html) to complete the forms and order the copies. Dated: October 22, 2010. Charles K. Piercy, Acting Assistant Archivist for Information Services. [FR Doc. 2010–27519 Filed 10–28–10; 8:45 am] BILLING CODE 7515–01–P NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION [Docket Nos. 50–317 and 50–318; NRC– 2010–0337] Calvert Cliffs Nuclear Power Plant, LLC; Calvert Cliffs Nuclear Power Plant, Unit Nos. 1 and 2; Notice of Withdrawal of Application for Amendment to Facility Operating License The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (the Commission) has granted the request of Calvert Cliffs Nuclear Power Plant, LLC, the licensee, to withdraw its January 29, 2010 application for proposed amendment to Facility Operating License Nos. DPR–53 and DPR–69 for the Calvert Cliffs Nuclear Power Plant, Unit Nos. 1 and 2, located in Calvert County, MD. The proposed amendment would have revised Technical Specification (TS) 3.4.10, ‘‘Pressurizer Safety Valves,’’ by modifying the existing Note within the TS. The Note allows the pressurizer safety valve lift settings to be outside the Limiting Condition for Operation limit as a result of temperature related lift setting drift, while the Unit is in applicable portions of Mode 3. E:\FR\FM\29OCN1.SGM 29OCN1
[Pages 66800-66802]
[FR Doc No: 2010-27354]
[Notice (10-142)]
National Environmental Policy Act; Wallops Flight Facility
Shoreline Restoration and Infrastructure Protection Program
ACTION: Notice of availability of the Final Programmatic Environmental
Impact Statement (PEIS) for the Wallops Flight Facility (WFF) Shoreline
Restoration and Infrastructure Protection Program (SRIPP).
SUMMARY: Pursuant to the National Environmental Policy Act, as amended,
(NEPA) (42 U.S.C. 4321 et seq.), the Council on Environmental Quality
Parts 1500-1508), and NASA's NEPA policy and procedures (14 CFR Part
1216, subpart 1216.3), NASA has prepared and issued the Final PEIS for
the proposed SRIPP at WFF. The U.S. Department of the Interior, Bureau
of Ocean Energy Management, Regulation, and Enforcement (BOEMRE), and
the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers have served as Cooperating Agencies in
preparing the Final PEIS.
NASA is proposing to implement a fifty-year design-life storm
damage reduction project at its WFF on Wallops Island, Virginia. WFF is
continuously faced with storm damage resulting in the implementation of
emergency repairs. The project would be conducted to reduce the need
for these emergency repairs and the potential for storm-induced
physical damage to the over $1 billion in Federal and State assets on
Wallops Island. The Final PEIS examines in detail three project action
alternatives, each expected to provide substantial damage reduction
from storms with intensities ranging up to approximately the 100-year
return interval storm. Although some reduction in flooding can be
expected under each alternative, the primary purpose of the proposal is
not flood protection, rather it is moving destructive wave energy
further away from the Wallops Island shoreline and the infrastructure
Alternative One, NASA's preferred alternative, would include
extending the existing Wallops Island seawall up to a maximum of 1,400
meters (m) (4,600 feet [ft]) south and placing an estimated 2.5 million
cubic meters (MCM) (3.2 million cubic yards [MCY]) along the shoreline.
Alternative Two would include the same seawall extension as Alternative
One; however the sand placed along the shoreline would be less at
approximately 2.2 MCM (2.9 MCY). Under this alternative, NASA would
also construct a groin perpendicular to the shoreline at the south end
of the project site to limit the volume of nearshore sand being
transported from the restored Wallops Island beach to the south.
Alternative Three would entail the same seawall extension as in
Alternatives One and Two; however sand placement would be the least of
the Alternatives at approximately 2.1 MCM (2.8 MCY). NASA would
construct a single detached breakwater parallel to the shoreline at the
south end of the project site to retain sand under Alternative Three.
Under all three project alternatives, NASA would obtain the sand
required for its initial beach nourishment from an unnamed shoal
(referred to as Shoal A) located in Federal waters approximately 23
kilometers (km) (14 miles [mi]) east of Wallops Island. Sand for an
expected nine future renourishment cycles could
[[Page 66801]]
come from either Shoal A or a second offshore shoal in Federal waters
referred to as Shoal B, approximately 31 km (19 mi) east of the project
site. Additionally, NASA is considering transporting sand that
accumulates on north Wallops Island to supplement its future
renourishment needs (commonly known as ``backpassing''). It is
estimated that up to half of the required renourishment volumes could
be obtained from ``backpassing.'' The No Action Alternative is to not
implement the WFF SRIPP, but to continue making emergency repairs to
the existing Wallops Island seawall and infrastructure, as necessary.
DATES: NASA will issue a Record of Decision (ROD) for the proposed
SRIPP based on the Final PEIS no sooner than 30 days from the date of
publication in the Federal Register of the U.S. Environmental
Protection Agency's Notice of Availability of the Final PEIS.
ADDRESSES: The Final PEIS may be reviewed at the following locations:
(a) Chincoteague Island Library, 4077 Main Street, Chincoteague,
Virginia 23336 (757-336-3460).
(b) Eastern Shore Public Library, 23610 Front Street, Accomac,
Virginia 23301 (757-787-3400).
(c) Northampton Free Library, 7745 Seaside Road, Nassawadox,
Virginia 23413 (757-414-0010).
(d) NASA Wallops Flight Facility Technical Library, Building E-105,
Wallops Island, Virginia 23337 (757-824-1065).
(e) NASA Headquarters Library, Room 1J20, 300 E Street, SW.,
Washington, DC 20546-0001 (202-358-0168).
A limited number of hard copies of the Final PEIS are available, on
a first request basis, by contacting Joshua Bundick, NASA WFF,
Environmental Office, Code 250.W, Wallops Island, Virginia 23337;
telephone 757-824-2319; or electronic mail at
The Final SRIPP PEIS is available on the Internet in Adobe[supreg]
portable document format at http://sites.wff.nasa.gov/code250/shoreline_eis.html. NASA's ROD will be made available, once issued, on
the same Web site as above and by request to the contact provided
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Additional information on the WFF
SRIPP can be obtained by addressing an e-mail to wff_shoreline_eis@majordomo.gsfc.nasa.gov or by mailing to 250/NEPA Manager, WFF
Shoreline Restoration and Infrastructure Protection Program, NASA
Goddard Space Flight Center's Wallops Flight Facility, Wallops Island,
Virginia 23337. Additional information about the WFF SRIPP and NASA's
NEPA process may be found on the internet at http://sites.wff.nasa.gov/code250/shoreline_eis.html.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:  The Final PEIS addresses the environmental
impacts associated with NASA's proposed implementation of a 50-year
design-life storm damage reduction program along the shoreline of
Wallops Island. The environmental impacts of principal concern are
those that could result from dredging sand from offshore shoals,
removing sand from north Wallops Island, and from the construction of a
sand retention structure at the south end of the project site.
The three action alternatives considered in the Final PEIS would
all provide the facilities on Wallops Island equal levels of storm
damage reduction for the duration of the program. Each alternative
would involve the establishment of an approximately 34 m (110 ft) wide
dry beach along approximately 6,000 m (19,700 ft) of the Wallops Island
shoreline to serve as a primary line of defense from destructive storm
waves. In addition to the beach, a sand dune would be created to cover
the ocean side of the existing and proposed seawall. The remaining
portion of the fill would be placed underwater and would gradually
slope to the east. It is expected that the fill alone would provide
considerable damage reduction from a 30-year return interval storm.
With the fill combined with the rock seawall, the project would provide
substantial infrastructure damage reduction from up to an approximately
100-year return interval storm. A rock sand retention structure (a
groin or breakwater) is included under Alternatives Two and Three,
respectively, to slow the transport of sand from the project site and
potentially reduce the amount of beach fill needed both initially and
All three alternatives would involve an initial construction phase
and future follow-on maintenance cycles. The initial construction phase
would likely include three distinct elements spanning three fiscal
Year 1 Activities--The existing rock seawall would be extended
approximately 400 m (1,315 ft) south. Additional lengthening (up to the
1,400 m [4,600 ft] total length) would be accomplished in future years
as funding becomes available.
Year 2 Activities--Approximately one third of the sand necessary
for beach nourishment would be placed along the Wallops Island
shoreline. Work would likely begin at the south end of the project site
and would gradually move north. Sand placement would involve removing
sand from Shoal A by hopper dredges and pumping the material onto the
Year 3 Activities--The remaining sand needed to complete the beach
nourishment would be placed along the Wallops Island shoreline.
Additionally, under Alternatives Two and Three, the sand retention
structure would be constructed.
Subsequent beach renourishment cycles would vary throughout the
lifecycle of the proposed project. Factors dictating the frequency and
magnitude of such actions would include project performance as revealed
through ongoing monitoring, storm severity and frequency, and
availability of funding. For each of the action alternatives considered
in the PEIS, the renourishment cycle is anticipated to be every five
years, totaling nine cycles over the fifty year design life of the
In addition to the construction activities outlined for each of the
three action alternatives, NASA would implement a rigorous monitoring
program that would begin with construction in Year 1 and continue
throughout the project. The intent of the monitoring program is to
measure the performance of the project, and through adaptive
management, make informed decisions regarding the need for
renourishment, sand retention structures, and future storm damage
Despite the programmatic nature of the PEIS, NASA included detailed
information on the three action alternatives that it is considering for
the SRIPP. Given the severity of shoreline erosion at Wallops Island
and WFF's vulnerability to storms, it is imperative that a storm damage
reduction project be implemented as soon as possible. As a result, this
PEIS includes such detail as structure dimensions and locations so that
the selected alternative could be implemented and permitted without the
need for additional NEPA documentation. In addition to structure
dimensions and locations, this information includes beach fill volumes,
dredging locations, and dredging operations. Proposed sand retention
structures have been modeled and potential impacts evaluated at
specific locations within the project area based on current conditions
at Wallops Island. Utilizing an adaptive management approach, NASA
would evaluate future actions that may include variations of the
alternatives evaluated in the PEIS.
[[Page 66802]]
Given the dynamic nature of the ocean environment, and that exact
locations and magnitude of renourishment cycles may fluctuate,
additional NEPA documentation for subsequent actions may be prepared in
the future, as appropriate.
NASA published a Notice of Availability (NOA) of the Draft SRIPP
Programmatic Environmental Impact Statement on February 26, 2010 (75 FR
8997). NASA mailed over 125 hard copies and/or compact disks (CDs) of
the Draft PEIS to potentially interested Federal, State, and local
agencies; organizations; and individuals. In addition, the Draft PEIS
was made publicly available in electronic format on NASA's Web site.
The public review and comment period for the Draft PEIS closed on April
19, 2010. NASA received a total of 12 submissions (letters and e-mails)
from Federal, State, and local agencies; organizations; individuals;
and its Independent Technical Review team. The resulting 315 individual
comments received spanned a broad range of topics; however the majority
of commentors expressed concern regarding effects of the project on
wildlife, fisheries, and sediment transport. The comments are addressed
in the Final PEIS in Appendix N. NASA also formally consulted with
resource agencies regarding potential effects of the program on
Federally threatened and endangered species, Essential Fish Habitat,
cultural and historic resources, and coastal resources. The outcomes of
these consultations are summarized in the Final PEIS and are also