News Release
| Release Number: | 01-133 |
| Dated: | 9/19/2001 |
| Contact: | Heidi Y. Helwig, 503-808-4510 |
Portland, Ore. -- The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers is evaluating a permit application from The Nature Conservancy (TNC) which is seeking approval to fill a reach of the Chocktoot Drain in the Sycan Marsh near Chiloquin, Ore.
TNC proposes to fill a 7.75-acre area (about 13,500 feet long by 25 feet wide) in Lake County as part of an effort to restore the historic streams that transect Chocktoot Drain to their original alignments. This proposed work would be the first phase of a much larger project; the ultimate goal is to restore natural hydrologic and ecological function to about 5,000 acres of drained land within the marsh.
To begin the restoration project, all existing water control structures, including the inlet to the Chocktoot Drain, would be removed. The fill material used in the drain would be taken from berms, which run parallel to the waterway.
As part of its permit evaluation process, the Corps is requesting public review and comment on the proposed project prior to making its permitting decision for the work.
For a copy of the Corps' Public Notice 2001-00639, which describes the proposed project in detail, please write to U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, ATTN: CENWP-OP-GP, P.O. Box 2946, Portland, OR 97208-2946. A copy of the public notice is posted on the Corps' Internet site at http://www.nwp.usace.army.mil/op/g/notices/200100639.pdf. Photocopies of drawings supporting the proposed project are included in the public notice.
Written comments must reach the Corps by Sept. 24, 2001, and should be mailed to U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Attn: CENWP-OP-GP (Mary Headley), P.O. Box 2946, Portland, Ore., 97208-2946. Send e-mail comments to mary.j.headley@usace.army.mil.
The Corps also is soliciting input from federal, state and local agencies and officials, Indian Tribes, and other interested parties to help permit reviewers consider and evaluate the impacts of this proposed project on endangered species, historic properties, water quality, general environmental effects, and other public interest factors.
The Corps will evaluate the permit request under Section 404 of the Clean Water Act.