83 FR 34558 - Availability of the Final Environmental Impact Statement for the Northern Integrated Supply Project, Larimer and Weld Counties, Colorado

DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE
Department of the Army, Corps of Engineers

Federal Register Volume 83, Issue 140 (July 20, 2018)

The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (Corps) Omaha District has prepared a Final Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) to analyze the direct, indirect, and cumulative effects of a water supply project called the Northern Integrated Supply Project (NISP or Project) in Larimer and Weld Counties, CO. The purpose of NISP is to provide the Participants, a group of 15 water providers and communities, with approximately 40,000 acre-feet (AF) per year of new, reliable municipal water supply through a regional project coordinated by the Northern Colorado Water Conservancy District (Northern Water). NISP would result in direct impacts to jurisdictional waters of the U.S., including wetlands. The placement of fill material into waters of the U.S. requires authorization from the Corps under Section 404 of the Clean Water Act. Northern Water is the applicant for the Section 404 permit, acting on behalf of the Participants. In accordance with Section 176 of the Clean Air Act a Draft General Conformity Determination has been prepared for the Project.

[Federal Register Volume 83, Number 140 (Friday, July 20, 2018)]
[Notices]
[Pages 34558-34559]
From the Federal Register Online  [www.thefederalregister.org]
[FR Doc No: 2018-15427]


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DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE

Department of the Army, Corps of Engineers


Availability of the Final Environmental Impact Statement for the 
Northern Integrated Supply Project, Larimer and Weld Counties, Colorado

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

ACTION: Notice of availability.

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SUMMARY: The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (Corps) Omaha District has 
prepared a Final Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) to analyze the 
direct, indirect, and cumulative effects of a water supply project 
called the Northern Integrated Supply Project (NISP or Project) in 
Larimer and Weld Counties, CO. The purpose of NISP is to provide the 
Participants, a group of 15 water providers and communities, with 
approximately 40,000 acre-feet (AF) per year of new, reliable municipal 
water supply through a regional project coordinated by the Northern 
Colorado Water Conservancy District (Northern Water). NISP would result 
in direct impacts to jurisdictional waters of the U.S., including 
wetlands. The placement of fill material into waters of the U.S. 
requires authorization from the Corps under Section 404 of the Clean 
Water Act. Northern Water is the applicant for the Section 404 permit, 
acting on behalf of the Participants. In accordance with Section 176 of 
the Clean Air Act a Draft General Conformity Determination has been 
prepared for the Project.

DATES: Written comments on the Final EIS and the Draft General 
Conformity Determination will be accepted on or before September 4, 
2018.

ADDRESSES: Send written comments regarding NISP, the Final EIS, and the 
Draft General Conformity Determination to John Urbanic, NISP EIS 
Project Manager, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Omaha District, Denver 
Regulatory Office, 9307 South Wadsworth Boulevard, Littleton, CO 80128, 
or by email to [email protected]. Requests to be placed on or be 
removed from the NISP mailing list should also be sent to this address.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: John Urbanic, NISP EIS Project 
Manager, telephone 303-979-4120, fax at 303-979-0602, or email at 
[email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The Final EIS was prepared in accordance 
with the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969, as amended (NEPA), 
and the Corps' regulations for NEPA implementation (33 Code of Federal 
Regulations [CFR] Parts 230 and 325, Appendix B). The Corps, Omaha 
District, Denver Regulatory Office is the lead federal agency 
responsible for the Final EIS. Information contained in the EIS serves 
as the basis for a decision regarding issuance of a Section 404 Permit. 
It also provides information for local and state agencies that have 
jurisdictional responsibility for affected resources.
    The Corps released a Draft EIS for NISP on April 30, 2008 and a 
Supplemental Draft EIS on June 19, 2015. The Corps has considered the 
comments received on the Draft and Supplemental Draft EIS in the 
development of the Final EIS. The purpose of the Final EIS is to 
provide decision-makers and the public with information pertaining to 
the Project, disclose environmental impacts of the alternatives, and 
identify mitigation measures to reduce impacts. In NISP, Northern Water 
proposes to construct Glade Reservoir with a total storage capacity of 
approximately 170,000 AF. The Project would also involve rehabilitating 
the existing diversion and intake structure in the Cache la Poudre 
River as well as constructing a new diversion and intake structure, 
forebay, pumping facility, and outlet channel. Glade Reservoir would 
inundate approximately 7 miles of U.S. Highway 287 and a section of the 
Munroe (North Poudre Supply) Canal, requiring a relocation of the 
highway and the canal. Northern Water also proposes to construct the 
South Platte Water Conservation Project (SPWCP) which includes Upper 
Galeton Reservoir with a total storage capacity of approximately 45,624 
AF. The SPWCP includes the construction of a new diversion and intake 
structure in the South Platte River, pumping facilities, and new 
pipelines for Upper Galeton Reservoir.
    This FEIS evaluates the effects of the following alternatives to 
NISP: Alternative 1--No Action Alternative; Alternative 2M--Glade 
Reservoir with modified conveyance and the South Platte Water 
Conservation Project (Applicant's Preferred Alternative); Alternative 
2--Glade Reservoir and the South Platte Water Conservation Project; 
Alternative 3--Cactus Hill Reservoir, Poudre Valley Canal Diversion, 
and the South Platte Water Conservation Project; and Alternative 4--
Cactus Hill Reservoir, with multiple diversion locations, and the South 
Platte Water Conservation Project.
    In accordance with Section 176 of the Clean Air Act and the 
Environmental Protection Agency's general conformity regulations (40 
CFR part 93, subpart B), a Draft General Conformity Determination has 
been prepared for the Project. Section 176 of the Clean Air Act 
requires federal agencies to ensure that their actions conform to 
applicable implementation plans for achieving and maintaining the 
National Ambient Air Quality Standards for criteria air pollutants. The 
Corps has prepared a Draft Conformity Determination for the Project and 
has included it in Chapter 4.14.7 of the Final EIS. The Draft General 
Conformity Determination finds that all alternatives of the Project 
conform with the State Implementation Plan.
    The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency Region VIII, U.S. Fish and 
Wildlife Service, Bureau of Land Management, Colorado Department of 
Transportation, Colorado Department of Natural Resources, Colorado 
Department of Public Health and Environment, and Larimer County 
participated as cooperating agencies in the development of the Final 
EIS.
    Copies of the Final EIS will be available for review at:

[[Page 34559]]

    1. Colorado State University Morgan Library, 1201 Center Avenue, 
Fort Collins, CO 80521.
    2. Poudre River Public Library District--Old Town Library, 201 
Peterson Street, Fort Collins, CO 80524.
    3. Poudre River Public Library--Harmony Library, 4616 S. Shields 
Street, Fort Collins, CO 80526.
    4. University of Northern Colorado, James A. Michener Library, 14th 
Avenue and 20th Street, Greeley, CO 80639.
    5. Fort Morgan Public Library, 414 Main Street, Fort Morgan, CO 
80701.
    6. Windsor Recreation Center, 250 11th Street, Windsor, CO 80550.
    7. Northern Colorado Water Conservancy District, 220 Water Avenue, 
Berthoud, CO 80513.
    8. U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Denver Regulatory Office, 9307 S. 
Wadsworth Boulevard, Littleton, CO 80128.
    Electronic copies of the Final EIS and supporting documents may be 
obtained from the Denver Regulatory Office or its website at: http://www.nwo.usace.army.mil/Missions/Regulatory-Program/Colorado/EIS-NISP.

    Dated: July 2, 2018.
Kiel Downing,
State Regulatory Program Manager, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Omaha 
District, Denver Regulatory Office.
[FR Doc. 2018-15427 Filed 7-19-18; 8:45 am]
 BILLING CODE 3720-58-P