[Federal Register: March 24, 1998 (Volume 63, Number 56)] [Notices] [Page 14074-14075] From the Federal Register Online via GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov] [DOCID:fr24mr98-43] ----------------------------------------------------------------------- DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE Department of the Army; Corps of Engineers Intent To Prepare a Draft Environmental Impact Statement (DEIS) for the New York and New Jersey Harbor Navigation Study: Feasibility Phase agency: U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, DoD. action: Notice of intent. ----------------------------------------------------------------------- summary: The New York District of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers is preparing a Draft Environmental Impact Statement (DEIS) to ascertain compliance with and lead to production of a National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) document in accordance with the President's Council of Environmental Quality (CEQ) Rules and Regulations, as defined and amended in 40 Code of Federal Regulations (CFR) Parts 1500-1508, Corps' Principles and Guidelines as defined in Engineering Regulation (ER) 1105-2-100 and ER 1105-1-200 and other applicable Federal and State environmental laws for the proposed deepening and navigation improvements to the New York and New Jersey Harbor. The study area includes the Federal Navigation waterways Ambrose and Anchorage Channels; New York and New Jersey Channels (the Kill Van Kull and Arthur Kill to Gulfport); Newark Bay Channel (from the Kill Van Kull to Elizabeth Channel); Bay Ridge and Red Hook Channel; Buttermilk Channel; and the Stapleton, Red Hook and Gravesend Anchorages; and the non-federal Port Jersey and Claremont Channels. for further information contact: Jenine Gallo, Project Biologist at (212) 264-4740 (4559), Planning Division, Corps of Engineers, New York District, 25 Federal Plaza, New York, New York 10278-0090. supplementary information: This study is authorized by Section 435 of the Water Resources Development Act of 1996 which reads: ``The Secretary shall conduct a comprehensive study of navigation needs at the Port of New York-New Jersey (including the South Brooklyn Marine and Red Hook Container Terminals, Staten Island, and adjacent areas) to address improvements, including deepening of existing channels to depths of 50 feet or greater, that are required to provide economically efficient and environmentally sound navigation to meet current and future requirements''. The study area is the Harbor of New York/New Jersey (hereinafter, the Harbor) which contains the largest port on the east coast, the port of New York and New Jersey, and is among the largest in the United States in terms of volume of commerce. Thirty billion gallons of petroleum are handled by the Port each year and make it the largest petroleum port in the country. The Port is also the third largest container port in the United States and the largest on the east coast of North America. The Port provides more than 166,000 port-related jobs, $20 billion in economic activity, and serves more than 17 million consumers in the States of New York and New Jersey. The Port handles this large volume of commerce despite the fact that it lacks sufficient depth to serve fully loaded ships of the latest designs to enter service. 1. The study area, located in the western Atlantic Ocean, consists of existing Federal Channels and Anchorages. Channels are: Ambrose; Bay Ridge; Red Hook; Buttermilk; Kill Van Kull; Claremont; Port Jersey; Newark Bay (including Port Newark and Elizabeth Channels); and Arthur Kill. Anchorages are Stapleton, Bay Ridge and Gravesend. The Port of New York and New Jersey is also included in the study area. The study area has been divided into six ``paths,'' having the Ambrose and Anchorage channels as common elements: the Kill Van Kull/ Newark Bay to Port Newark and Elizabeth; the Kill Van Kull and Arthur Kill to Howland Hook; the remaining Arthur Kill path and Arthur Kill to Howland Hook; the remaining Arthur Kill path from Howland Hook to Gulfport; the Stapleton, Bay Ridge, Red Hook and Buttermilk channels; the Port Jersey Channel and Claremont Terminal channels; and the Red Hook, Stapleton and Gravesend Anchorages. 2. Areas to be analyzed include the navigation channels and anchorages, and water areas adjacent to navigation channels and anchorages. A National Economic Development (NED) Plan will be developed to support container and petroleum facilities. Various depth alternatives will be evaluated for each channel and design vessel depths in excess of 50 feet of petroleum reaches will be analyzed and estimated quantities of material to be removed will be developed for each channel. The study assumes that the Arthur Kill Channel/Howland Hook Project, the Kill Van Kull Project, and the Port Jersey Project will have been dredged to -41, -45, and -41 feet MLW respectively prior to the construction of the Harbor Deepening project. Three types of environmental analyses will be conducted; impacts [[Page 14075]] associated with Land-Based Facility Improvements, impacts associated with Navigation Improvements, and analyses required for mitigation planning purposes. 3. Public scoping meetings are expected to be scheduled in April/ May 1998. Six meetings will be held in Brooklyn, Staten Island, Manhattan and New Jersey. Results from the public scoping meetings with the District and the Environmental Work Group (EWG), and federal, state and local agency coordination will be addressed in the DEIS. Parties interested in receiving notices of public scoping meetings or copies of the Scoping Document should contact: Jenine Gallo, USACE, New York District, 26 Federal Plaza, New York, NY 10278-0090. 4. Federal agencies interested in participating as a Cooperating Agency are requested to submit a letter of intent to Colonel Gary Thomas, District Engineer at the above address. 5. Estimated Date of the DEIS availability: September 1999. Gregory D. Showalter, Army Federal Register Liaison Officer. [FR Doc. 98-7621 Filed 3-23-98; 8:45 am] BILLING CODE 3710-06-M