[Federal Register: January 19, 2006 (Volume 71, Number 12)]
[Notices]
[Page 3060-3061]
From the Federal Register Online via GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov]
[DOCID:fr19ja06-39]
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DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE
Department of the Army; Corps of Engineers
Intent To Prepare a Draft Supplemental Environmental Impact
Statement/Environmental Impact Report for the Yuba River Basin Project,
Yuba County, CA
AGENCY: Department of the Army, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, DoD
ACTION: Notice of intent.
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SUMMARY: In accordance with the National Environmental Policy Act
(NEPA) and the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA), the U.S.
Army Corps of Engineers (Corps), Sacramento District, is preparing a
Draft Supplemental Environmental Impact Statement/Environmental Impact
Report (SEIS/EIR) to reevaluate the previously authorized plan and
other alternatives to reduce flood damages and restore riparian and
aquatic habitat in the lower Yuba River Basin, part of the Feather
River Basin, and the city of Marysville, in Yuba County, CA. This
notice replaces the one previously published in the Federal Register on
March 17, 2004 (69 FR 12646). The general reevaluation is needed
because recent technical, environmental, and economic studies have
indicated that additional refinement and reformulation are needed to
determine the feasibility and extent of Federal and non-Federal
interest in the project. The basic study authority for the Yuba River
Basin study was provided under the Flood Control Act of 1962.
ADDRESSES: Send written comments and suggestions concerning this study
to Mr. Robert Koenigs, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Sacramento
District, Attn: Planning Division (CESPK-PD-R), 1325 J Street,
Sacramento, CA 95814. Requests to be placed on the mailing list should
also be sent to this address.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Mr. Robert Koenigs, E-mail at
Robert.L.Roenigs@usace.army.mil, telephone (916) 557-6712, or fax (916)
557-7856.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
1. Public Involvement
The Yuba River Basin project will be coordinated between Federal,
State, and local governments; local stakeholders; special interest
groups, and any other interest individuals and organizations. The Corps
will announce availability of the draft supplemental document in the
Federal Register and other media, and will provide the public,
organizations, and agencies with an opportunity to submit comments,
which will be addressed in the Final SEIS/EIR. A 45-day public review
period will be provided for individuals and agencies to review and
comment on the SEIS/EIR. All interested parties should respond to this
notice and provide a current address if they wish to be notified SEIS/
EIR circulation.
2. Project Information
The Yuba River Basin is located in western Yuba County about 50
miles north of Sacramento. The authorized project focused on
approximately 21 miles of levees along the Yuba and Feather Rivers in
the variety of Marysville, CA. The Yuba River Basin study area was
divided into three reaches: Reach 1--Yuba River/Feather River; reach
2--Feather River (including Bear River and WP Interceptor Canal area);
and reach 3--Marysville ring levee.
The Feasibility Report and Final EIS/EIR were completed in April
1998. Congress authorized the project in the Water Resources
Development Act of 1999, and the Record of Decision was signed in June
2000. The authorized project included specific levee modifications on
6.1 miles of the left bank of the Yuba River upstream of the confluence
with the Feather River; 10 miles of levee on the left bank of the
Feather River downstream of the confluence of the Yuba River; and 5
miles of the Marysville ring levee. The levee modification work as
authorized was intended to bring the level of flood protection for
these levees up to about a 200-year level of protection.
Since the final Yuba River Basin project was authorized,
geotechnical investigations and updated hydrology have identified
previously unknown levee foundation problems in portions of the study
area/authorized project. Levees along the Bear River and the WP
Interceptor Canal have also been shown to have stability and seepage
problems that may cause flooding in lower Yuba County. Because flooding
is still a significant problem for the affected communities along the
Yuba, Feather, and Bear Rivers, the State of California Reclamation
Board has requested that the Corps initiate a general reevaluation of
the project to determine a new feasible project.
[[Page 3061]]
3. Proposed Action
The proposed action would be a general reevaluation of the
authorized project and other alternative plans to provide the level of
flood protection previously planned and to restore riparian and aquatic
habitats in the project area.
4. Alternatives
Potential alternatives to reduce flood damages and restore riparian
and aquatic habitat could include: (1) No Action, (2) Modified
Authorized Project Features and other Levee Improvements, and (3)
Modified Authorized Project Features, other Levee Improvements, and
Setback Levees. Features of the alternatives could include modifying
existing levees, constructing new setback levees, creating seasonal or
permanent wetland areas, and planting native riparian and wetland
species.
Dated: January 6, 2006.
Ronald N. Light,
Colonel, Corps of Engineers, District Engineer.
[FR Doc. 06-483 Filed 1-18-06; 8:45 am]
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