FINDING OF NO SIGNIFICANT IMPACT 1000 Road Realignment, Town of Pe Ell FEMA-1734-DR-WA Project Worksheet PW 912 v 2 In early December 2007, a fierce storm of wind and rain resulted in extensive flooding in Lewis County and other counties in western Washington. During the storm event, floodwaters of the Chehalis River eroded and washed away the slope supporting the 1000 Road, causing failure of a 500-feet-long by 20-feet-wide section (project location). This road provided access to the Town of Pe Ell’s water supply intake from Lester Creek, which is across the Chehalis River by bridge and south-southwest of the project location. It also provided the route by which the water supply lines reached the Town’s water treatment and distribution system. The bridge was also destroyed by the flood. The Town of Pe Ell applied through the Washington State Emergency Management Division (EMD) to the U.S. Department of Homelands Security’s Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) for financial assistance under the Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief and Emergency Assistance Act, as amended, to make permanent a temporary realignment for the damaged portion of 1000 Road, which is located about 30 to 40 feet above and east of the river. FEMA provided emergency funding to construct a temporary realignment, a 725-feet-long emergency road upslope of the slide-damaged 1000 Road. A permanent road in this alignment will be necessary to provide for the operation and maintenance of the Lester Creek intake and water lines and for the construction of the replacement bridge. The bridge’s replacement will be funded by sources other than FEMA; therefore, it is not part of the grant application. Construction of the permanent road would require the placement and compaction of materials above the temporary, emergency road base. The material would consist of over 1,400 cubic yards (about 2,100 tons) of 24-inch-thick crushed surfacing base course material. Overlying this base would be 8 inches of crushed rock top course (400 cubic yards, or 515 tons). The temporary road already includes an 18-inch-wide French drain in its design for subsurface seepage. This design would not be altered with the permanent road. The Town of Pe Ell will provide environmental mitigation measures and comply with Environmental and Historic Preservation regulations by 1) implementing its standard road design and construction Best Management Practices in accordance with its standard practices; 2) halting the project, taking all reasonable measures to avoid or minimize harm, and contacting FEMA if historically or archaeologically significant materials or sites (or evidence thereof) are discovered during the implementation of the project; and 3) applying for and securing appropriate Federal, State and local permits. In accordance with the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) of 1969 and FEMA’s implementing regulations, FEMA prepared a Draft Environmental Assessment (EA) to identify and evaluate potential environmental impacts resulting from the alternatives presented in the EA and to determine whether to prepare an Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) or a Finding of No Significant Impact (FONSI). Alternatives evaluated in the EA include: 1) No Action by not funding the project, 2) Convert Emergency Road to Permanent Road (Preferred Action), and 3) Repair Original Road. No other alternatives were considered. The Draft EA was submitted for public review and comment. FEMA did not receive any comments on the Draft EA. FINDINGS Based upon the attached EA and in accordance with FEMA’s regulations in 44 Code of Federal Regulations (CFR) Part 10 for environmental consideration, including Executive Orders (EOs) addressing floodplains (EO11988), wetlands (EO11990), and environmental justice (EO 12898), FEMA determined the proposed project will not significantly affect the quality of the natural and human environment. As a result of this FONSI, an EIS will not be prepared (44CFR Part 10.8) and the project, as described in the attached EA may proceed. APPROVAL Signed By: Mark Eberlein 11/13/08 __________________________________________________________ Mark G. Eberlein Date Regional Environmental Officer FEMA Region 10 FONSI, 1000 Road Realignment FEMA-1734-DR-WA 11/17/2008 2