82 FR 36760 - Notice of Availability of The Great Lakes and Mississippi River Interbasin Study-Brandon Road Draft Integrated Feasibility Study and Environmental Impact Statement-Will County, Illinois

DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE
Department of the Army, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers

Federal Register Volume 82, Issue 150 (August 7, 2017)

The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) has posted The Great Lakes and Mississippi River Interbasin Study--Brandon Road Draft Integrated Feasibility Study and Environmental Impact Statement--Will County, Illinois (GLMRIS-Brandon Road Report) on http://glmris.anl.gov. The GLMRIS--Brandon Road Report presents a plan to address the transfer of aquatic nuisance species (ANS) from the Mississippi River Basin to the Great Lakes Basin through an aquatic connection in the Chicago Area Waterway System. The purpose of this study is to evaluate structural and nonstructural options and technologies near the Brandon Road Lock and Dam to prevent the upstream transfer of ANS. USACE analyzed and evaluated available controls to address ANS of concern and formulated alternatives specifically for the Brandon Road site. USACE also evaluated the potential impacts of the alternatives and ways to minimize such impacts. USACE conducted the GLMRIS-Brandon Road Study in consultation with other Federal agencies, Native American tribes, state agencies, local governments, non-governmental organizations, and industry.

[Federal Register Volume 82, Number 150 (Monday, August 7, 2017)]
[Notices]
[Pages 36760-36761]
From the Federal Register Online  [www.thefederalregister.org]
[FR Doc No: 2017-16597]


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DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE

Department of the Army, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers


Notice of Availability of The Great Lakes and Mississippi River 
Interbasin Study--Brandon Road Draft Integrated Feasibility Study and 
Environmental Impact Statement--Will County, Illinois

AGENCY: Department of the Army, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers.

ACTION: Notice of availability.

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SUMMARY: The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) has posted The Great 
Lakes and Mississippi River Interbasin Study--Brandon Road Draft 
Integrated Feasibility Study and Environmental Impact Statement--Will 
County, Illinois (GLMRIS-Brandon Road Report) on http://glmris.anl.gov. 
The GLMRIS--Brandon Road Report presents a plan to address the transfer 
of aquatic nuisance species (ANS) from the Mississippi River Basin to 
the Great Lakes Basin through an aquatic connection in the Chicago Area 
Waterway System. The purpose of this study is to evaluate structural 
and nonstructural options and technologies near the Brandon Road Lock 
and Dam to prevent the upstream transfer of ANS. USACE analyzed and 
evaluated available controls to address ANS of concern and formulated 
alternatives specifically for the Brandon Road site. USACE also 
evaluated the potential impacts of the alternatives and ways to 
minimize such impacts.
    USACE conducted the GLMRIS-Brandon Road Study in consultation with 
other Federal agencies, Native American tribes, state agencies, local 
governments, non-governmental organizations, and industry.

DATES: There will be a 45-day public review period for comments on this 
document beginning Monday August 7, 2017, through Thursday September 
21, 2017. Comments will be accepted through the GLMRIS project Web site 
at http://glmris.anl.gov, by letter and at public meetings. Public 
meeting dates and locations are to be determined. See SUPPLEMENTARY 
INFORMATION section for instructions on how to submit public comments.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: For further information and/or 
questions about GLMRIS-Brandon Road, please contact Andrew Leichty, 
Program Manager, by mail: U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Rock Island 
District, Clock Tower Building (ATTN: Leichty), P.O. Box 2004, Rock 
Island, IL 61204-2004, by phone: 309-794-5399; or by email: 
[email protected].

[[Page 36761]]

    For media inquiries, please contact Allen Marshall, District 
Spokesperson, by mail: U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Rock Island 
District, Clock Tower Building (ATTN: Marshall), P.O. Box 2004, Rock 
Island, IL 61204-2004, by phone: 309-794-5204; or by email: 
[email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

1. Background

    The GLMRIS authority directed USACE to identify the range of 
options and technologies available to prevent the spread of ANS between 
the Great Lakes and Mississippi River Basins through the Chicago 
Sanitary and Ship Canal and other aquatic pathways. The goal of the 
GLMRIS-Brandon Road Study is to prevent the upstream transfer of ANS 
while minimizing impacts to existing waterways uses and users. USACE 
conducted the GLMRIS-Brandon Road Study in consultation with other 
Federal agencies, Native American tribes, state agencies, local 
governments, non-governmental organizations, and industry.

2. The GLMRIS-Brandon Road Report

    The GLMRIS-Brandon Road Report identified six potential 
alternatives including no new action (continuing current efforts), a 
nonstructural alternative, three technology alternatives using an 
electric barrier and/or complex noise, and lock closure. The 
effectiveness of these alternatives was considered against the three 
different modes of ANS transport--swimming, floating, and hitchhiking. 
Selection of the Tentatively Selected Plan (TSP) required careful 
evaluation of each alternative's 1. reduction in the probability of 
establishment in the Great Lakes Basin; 2. life safety risk; 3. system 
performance robustness; and 4. costs, which include construction, 
mitigation, operation and maintenance, repair, replacement and 
rehabilitation, and navigation impacts. The evaluation also included 
careful consideration of cost effectiveness and incremental cost 
analyses; significance of the Great Lakes Basin ecosystem; and 
acceptability, completeness, efficiency, and effectiveness. The GLMRIS-
Brandon Road Report identifies potential adverse impacts that 
alternatives may have on existing uses and users of the waterways. 
Based on the results of the evaluation and comparison of the 
alternatives, the TSP is the Technology Alternative--Complex Noise with 
Electric Barrier, which includes the following measures: Nonstructural 
measures, complex noise, water jets, engineered channel, electric 
barrier, flushing lock, boat ramps, and mooring area.

3. Public Participation

    USACE will accept comments related to the GLMRIS-Brandon Road 
Report until September 21, 2017. Comments may be submitted in the 
following ways:
     GLMRIS Project Web site: Use the web comment function 
found at http://glmris.anl.gov.
     Mail: Send comments to U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, 
Chicago District, ATTN: GLMRIS-Brandon Road Comments, 231 S. LaSalle 
St., Suite 1500, Chicago, IL 60604. Comments must be postmarked by 
September 21, 2017.
     Public Meetings: Public meeting dates, times and locations 
are to be determined; USACE asks those wanting to make oral comments to 
register on the GLMRIS project Web site at http://glmris.anl.gov. Each 
individual wishing to make oral comments shall be given three (3) 
minutes, and a stenographer will document oral comments.
    Public meetings will begin with a brief presentation regarding the 
study and the formulated alternatives followed by an oral comment 
period. During each meeting, USACE personnel will also collect written 
comments on comment cards. Additional information about public meetings 
including dates, times and locations will be posted on the GLMRIS 
project Web site at http://glmris.anl.gov as soon as that information 
is available.
    Comments, including the names and addresses of those that comment, 
received during the comment period will be posted on the GLMRIS project 
Web site. Comments submitted anonymously will be accepted, considered, 
and posted. Commenters may indicate that they do not wish to have their 
name or other personal information made available on the Web site. 
However, USACE cannot guarantee that information withheld from the Web 
site will be maintained as confidential. Persons requesting 
confidentially should be aware that, under the Freedom of Information 
Act, confidentiality may be granted in only limited circumstances.

4. Authority

    This action is being undertaken pursuant to the Water Resources and 
Development Act of 2007, Section 3061(d), Public Law 110-114, and the 
National Environmental Policy Act of 1969 (NEPA), 42 U.S.C. 4321, et 
seq., as amended.

     Dated: July 28, 2017.
Dennis W. Hamilton,
Chief, Programs and Project Management Division.
[FR Doc. 2017-16597 Filed 8-4-17; 8:45 am]
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