Tennessee Valley Authority
Muscle Shoals Reservation Redevelopment
Colbert County, Alabama
On June 18, 2009, TVA issued a notice of intent (NOI) to prepare an environmental impact statement (EIS) addressing the impacts of the disposal and alternative future uses of approximately 1,380 acres of land on its Muscle Shoals Reservation (MSR) in Colbert County, Alabama. A map of the MSR and the NOI are presented below.
The redevelopment of unused parts of the MSR is consistent with TVA’s economic development mission. Due to its central location, flat terrain, highway access, and availability of utilities, the surrounding cities and counties have expressed interest in the redevelopment of the MSR for many years. In response to these requests, TVA previously made a few areas on the periphery of the MSR available for commercial use. The currently proposed actions would make a much larger area available for a variety of redevelopment activities.
TVA will not sell or develop the walking trails or public use areas north of Reservation Road, but could allow enhancement of those areas for public use.
Public Involvement
An open-house style public meeting was held on July 14, 2009, at Muscle Shoals High School to determine the scope and environmental issues that should be addressed in the EIS. Comments were solicited at the meeting, through the mail, by fax, and online. Comments received and environmental issues will be summarized in a scoping report that will be available to the public in the fall of 2009.
Additional information
Upon consideration of the scoping comments on this land redevelopment planning process, TVA will determine the project scope, identify environmental issues, and develop alternatives to be addressed in the EIS. In addition to summarizing comments and environmental issues, the scoping report will discuss the No Action and Action Alternatives for the proposed land disposal and redevelopment proposal.
Following analysis of the environmental consequences of each alternative, TVA will prepare a draft EIS for public review and comment. Notice of availability of the draft EIS will be published by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency in the Federal Register. TVA will solicit comments on the draft EIS in writing and at a public meeting to be held in the project area. TVA expects to release the draft EIS in the spring of 2010 and the final EIS in late summer of 2010.
Mailing List
To be added to the Muscle Shoals Reservation Redevelopment mailing list, please sign up here. This list will allow TVA to forward other information, such as the draft EIS, for review and comment during the remainder of the environmental review process.
Please note that any comments received, including names and addresses, will become part of the administrative record and will be available for public inspection.
Documents
PDF files require Adobe Acrobat Reader
Map of Muscle Shoals Reservation (PDF, 276 kb)
Contact
For more information, contact:
Stanford E. Davis, Senior NEPA Specialist
Tennessee Valley Authority
400 West Summit Hill Drive, WT 11D
Knoxville, TN 37902-1499
sedavis2@tva.gov
Fax: (865) 632-3451; TVA Environmental Information Center Phone:
(800) 882-5263