[Federal Register Volume 75, Number 107 (Friday, June 4, 2010)]
[Notices]
[Pages 31834-31835]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2010-13398]
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DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION
Federal Railroad Administration
Adoption of Environmental Impact Statement; Availability of an
Environmental Reevaluation
AGENCY: Federal Railroad Administration (FRA), Department of
Transportation (DOT).
ACTION: Adoption and Recirculation of Final Environmental Impact
Statement and Notice of Availability of Environmental Reevaluation.
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SUMMARY: FRA is issuing this notice to advise the public and interested
agencies that FRA has decided to adopt portions of the Environmental
Impact Statement (EIS) issued by the Federal Transit Administration
(FTA) in 2004 for the construction of the Transbay Transit Center (TTC)
in San Francisco, California, in order to satisfy FRA's National
Environmental Policy Act obligations related to funding the train box
element of the TTC. Additionally, FRA has made available an
Environmental Reevaluation of the EIS, updating certain relevant
sections of the environmental analysis and describing design
modifications to the train box. Under applicable Council on
Environmental Quality (CEQ) regulations, FRA may adopt and recirculate
the FTA's Final EIS since FRA's proposed action is substantially the
same as the action covered by the FTA's EIS, and FRA has determined
that the FTA EIS meets the standard for an adequate statement under the
CEQ Regulations. In addition, under FRA's environmental procedures, FRA
is required to issue a reevaluation of the adequacy, accuracy and
validity of a final EIS in certain circumstances, which the agency has
also done for this project.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Melissa DuMond, Environmental
Protection Specialist, Federal Railroad Administration, 1200 New Jersey
Ave., SE, MS-20, Washington, DC 20590, Telephone: (202) 493-6366.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The FTA and the Transbay Joint Powers
Authority (``TJPA'') prepared a joint environmental impact statement/
environmental impact report for the Transbay Terminal/Caltrain
Downtown/Extension Redevelopment Project (``2004 EIS''). The 2004 EIS
included an analysis of the environmental impacts of the Caltrain
Downtown Extension, the establishment of a redevelopment area plan, and
the construction of the TTC on the site of the existing Transbay
Terminal at First and Mission Streets in San Francisco, California. The
purpose of the project is to improve public access to bus and rail
services, modernize the Transbay Terminal and improve service, reduce
non-transit vehicle usage, alleviate blight, and revitalize the
Transbay Terminal area. The TTC will replace the existing Transbay
Terminal, which was first built in 1939, because the existing Terminal
does not currently meet seismic safety or space utilization standards.
In addition to the above mentioned benefits, the 2004 EIS contemplated
a future high-speed rail system at the TTC in the form of a rail box
that could accommodate high-speed rail trains. On the basis of the 2004
EIS, the FTA issued a Record of Decision (ROD) in 2005. In response to
project modifications and refinements, the TJPA adopted five addenda to
the EIS, which are described in the Environmental Reevaluation.
The Transbay Terminal project is divided into two construction
phases, which have been refined through the five addenda to the 2004
EIS. Phase 1, which relates to the portion of the 2004 EIS adopted by
FRA, includes the above-grade portion of the TTC and limited below-
grade structural support work including the train box. Phase 2 includes
the construction of the Downtown Extension. Under this notice, the FRA
is adopting the portions of the 2004 EIS dealing with Phase 1
construction as it directly relates to the FRA's funding of the train
box under the High-Speed Intercity Passenger Rail Program.
The American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (``Recovery Act'')
provided $8 billion to the FRA as initial funding for the High-Speed
Intercity Passenger Rail Program. The Secretary of Transportation
selected the California High-Speed Rail Authority (``CHSRA'') to
receive up to $2.25 billion from the Recovery Act to fund the
development of high-speed intercity passenger rail service in
California. As the TTC has been demonstrated to be the only feasible
and practicable site in downtown San Francisco for the northern
terminus of the California high-speed rail system, FRA proposes to
provide up to $400 million of the CHSRA Recovery Act funding to the
TJPA in order to construct the train box designed to accommodate the
future high-speed rail service at the TTC. Constructing the train box
now results in substantial savings over options involving later
construction of high-speed rail facilities under an already completed
TTC.
The CEQ regulations allow Federal agencies, such as the FRA, to
adopt
[[Page 31835]]
environmental documents prepared by another Federal agency when the
proposed actions are ``substantially the same'' and the adopting agency
has concluded that the initial statement meets the standards for an
adequate statement under the CEQ regulations. 40 CFR 1506.3.
Furthermore, the CEQ regulations state that when the actions are
substantially the same, ``the agency adopting the agency's statement is
not required to recirculate it except as a final statement.'' Id. FRA
has conducted an independent review of the 2004 EIS for the purpose of
determining whether FRA could adopt it pursuant to 40 CFR 1506.3. FRA's
review concluded that FRA's action in funding the train box is
substantially the same as the action documented in the 2004 EIS, that
the EIS adequately assessed the environmental impacts associated with
the train box and meets the standards of the CEQ NEPA Regulations (40
CFR parts 1500 through1508), and that the FRA can adopt the 2004 EIS.
CEQ's regulations implementing NEPA strongly encourage agencies to
reduce paperwork and duplication. 40 CFR 1500.4. One of the methods
identified by CEQ to accomplish this goal is adopting the environmental
documents prepared by other agencies in appropriate circumstances. 40
CFR 1500.4(n), 1500.5(h), and 1506.3.
In order to comply with its obligations under Section 106 of the
National Historic Preservation Act, 16 U.S.C. 470 et seq., the FRA also
intends to join the existing Memorandum of Agreement (MOA) between the
FTA and the California State Historic Preservation Officer. That MOA
describes the roles and responsibilities of the parties and will allow
FRA to take into account the potential effect of the FRA's action on
historic properties pursuant to the requirements of Section 106. In
addition, the 2004 EIS includes a final determination according to the
requirements of Section 4(f) of the Department of Transportation Act of
1966. 49 U.S.C. 303. Section 4(f) requires that projects undertaken by
DOT must avoid using parks, recreational areas, wildlife and waterfowl
refuges, or public and private historical sites unless there is no
feasible and prudent alternative, and the action includes all possible
planning to minimize harm to the property. By adopting the 2004 EIS,
the FRA is also adopting the FTA's Final Section 4(f) Evaluation and
will therefore be in compliance with the requirements of that statute.
Furthermore, FRA's Procedures for Considering Environmental Impacts
(64 FR 28545, May 26, 1999) require the reevaluation of a Final EIS if
major steps toward implementation of the proposed action have not
commenced within three years from the date of approval of the final
EIS. The reevaluation is required to determine whether the final EIS is
still accurate, adequate and valid. As described above, the train box
was an element of the 2004 EIS; however, design modifications to the
train box occurred, and the Environmental Reevaluation provides an
update to those sections for which new information is available that is
pertinent to the proposed action in Phase 1 of the Transbay Terminal
project. In accordance with the Environmental Protection Agency's (EPA)
requirements regarding the filing of EISs, FRA has provided the EPA
with a notice of adoption and five copies of the FTA's Final EIS and
the Environmental Reevaluation. EPA will publish a notice of
availability of the Final EIS in the Federal Register consistent with
its usual practices. Because of the multi-volume size of the FEIS and
its continued availability in libraries in the affected community and
on the TJPA's and FRA's Web sites, FRA is not republishing the document
on its own. This would be costly, defeat CEQ's goals of reducing
paperwork and duplication of effort, and be of little or no additional
value to other agencies or the public. The Environmental Reevaluation
is also available on the TJPA's Web site (www.transbaycenter.org), on
the FRA's Web site (http://www.fra.dot.gov), and at libraries in San
Francisco, San Bruno, and Oakland, California. FRA has mailed a
notification of FRA's adoption and identified places where the 2004 EIS
and the Environmental Reevaluation are available to persons and parties
of record who have participated in the most recent phase of the 2004
EIS process, as well as to elected officials, local transit agencies,
regional agencies, local media, and potentially interested community
organizations. Comments on the 2004 EIS or the Environmental
Reevaluation may be submitted no later than June 28, 2010 to Melissa
DuMond at the address noted above.
The final stage in the environmental review process under NEPA is
the issuance of a Record of Decision by the agency describing the
agency's decision and the basis for it. Under the timelines included in
the CEQ regulation (40 CFR 1506.10), a Record of Decision cannot be
issued by an agency earlier than thirty days after the EPA publishes
its Federal Register notice notifying the public of the availability of
the final EIS. Any Record of Decision issued by the FRA will be
consistent with 40 CFR 1505.2 and section 15 of FRA's Procedures for
Considering Environmental Impacts.
Accordingly, FRA has adopted and is recirculating the 2004 EIS and
has issued an Environmental Reevaluation.
Issued in Washington, DC, on May 28, 2010.
Joseph C. Szabo,
Administrator.
[FR Doc. 2010-13398 Filed 6-3-10; 8:45 am]
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