FINDING OF NO SIGNIFICANT IMPACT
Hazard Mitigation Actions under Section 406 and 404 (Stafford Act)
Federal Emergency Management Agency

The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) administers the Public Assistance Grant Program and the Hazard Mitigation Grant Program. The Public Assistance Grant Program funds the restoration of eligible facilities that have sustained damage due to a Presidentially declared disaster. Section 406 of the Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief and Emergency Assistance Act authorizes the Public Assistance Grant Program to fund additional measures, not required by applicable codes and standards, that would enhance a facility's ability to resist similar damage in future events. The Hazard Mitigation Grant Program, authorized under Section 404 of the Stafford Act, funds measures intended to benefit undamaged facilities and measures not directly related to the damaged elements for which restoration work on a facility is performed. Hurricane Katrina devastated the State of Mississippi, impacting many eligible facilities but creating opportunities for incorporating these hazard mitigation measures to prevent recurrence of similar damage from future, similar disaster events. 

FEMA proposes two alternative actions for the funding of hazard mitigation measures for eligible facilities: (1) the use of Section 406 and Section 404 funds for incorporating mitigation measures to existing facilities during their repair and (2) the use of funds for the relocation, reconstruction, or other construction action needed for eligible facilities as a hazard mitigation measure. 

In accordance with the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA), FEMA has prepared a Programmatic Environmental Assessment (PEA) for Hazard Mitigation Actions in the State of Mississippi for FEMA-DR-1604-MS (September 2005) to evaluate the impacts of the two alternative actions on the human environment. The PEA also analyzes the impacts of taking no action, in compliance with NEPA. The PEA is available online at http://www.fema.gov/ehp/docs or by contacting the undersigned at (601) 965-2483. FEMA has prepared this PEA to streamline compliance with NEPA and to expedite the provision of hazard mitigation funding for eligible facilities. FEMA will apply the PEA to the alternative actions described above throughout the State of Mississippi. For actions with impacts not described in the PEA or for action-specific considerations that require additional analysis, as suggested by the PEA, FEMA will prepare a Supplemental Environmental Assessment (SEA) that tiers from the PEA. The PEA, and SEAs as appropriate, will provide the required NEPA clearance. They will also provide, along with appropriate consultations, a means for FEMA to address compliance with other Federal environmental laws and regulations, including the Endangered Species Act and National Historic Preservation Act.

Based upon the information contained in the PEA, the potential direct, indirect, and cumulative impacts resulting from implementation of the alternative actions, and in accordance with FEMA’s regulations in 44 CFR Part 10 (Environmental Considerations) and Executive Orders 11988 (Floodplain Management), 11990 (Protection of Wetlands), and 12898 (Environmental Justice), the following is concluded:

A Finding of No Significant Impact (FONSI). Therefore, an Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) process will not required based on the fact that there will be no long-term adverse direct, indirect, or cumulative impacts on the natural environment resulting from FEMA actions, as identified in the PEA, taken for the purpose of hazard mitigation. This FONSI is based upon the proposed action fitting one of the alternatives described in the PEA and meeting all conditions prescribed for that particular alternative.  In those instances where the proposed action does not conform to the described alternative actions or to all the conditions, an SEA and corresponding FONSI would be prepared to address the differences.

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Alessandro Amaglio	Date
Environmental Liaison Officer, FEMA-DR-1604-MS