[Federal Register Volume 84, Number 76 (Friday, April 19, 2019)]
[Notices]
[Pages 16484-16485]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2019-07441]


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ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY

[FRL-9992-03-OW]


Notice of Availability of the Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill 
Louisiana Trustee Implementation Group Draft Supplemental Restoration 
Plan and Environmental Assessment for the Lake Charles Science Center 
and Educational Complex Project Modification

AGENCY:  Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).

ACTION: Notice of availability; request for public comments.

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SUMMARY: On July 20, 2018, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) 
published a Notice of Availability of the Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill 
Louisiana Trustee Implementation Group (Louisiana TIG) Final 
Restoration Plan and Environmental Assessment #2: Provide and Enhance 
Recreational Opportunities (Final RP/EA #2). The Louisiana TIG is 
considering modifications to the original Lake Charles Science Center 
and Educational Complex (Lake Charles SCEC) project described in the 
Final RP/EA #2. The modifications being considered include collocating 
the Lake Charles SCEC with the Lake Charles Children's Museum (LCCM) as 
part of the shared Port Wonder facility on the north shore of Lake 
Charles. In accordance with the Oil Pollution Act of 1990 (OPA) and the 
National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA), the federal and state natural 
resource trustee agencies for the Louisiana TIG prepared a Draft 
Supplemental Restoration Plan and Environmental Assessment for the Lake 
Charles SCEC Project Modification (Draft Supplemental RP/EA). The Draft 
Supplemental RP/EA evaluates modifications to the Lake Charles SCEC 
project and alternatives considered by the Louisiana TIG under criteria 
set forth in the OPA Natural Resource Damage Assessment (NRDA) 
regulations and evaluates their environmental effects in accordance 
with the NEPA. The modifications under consideration to the Lake 
Charles SCEC project are consistent with the restoration alternatives 
selected in the Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill Final Programmatic Damage 
Assessment and Restoration Plan/Programmatic Environmental Impact 
Statement (PDARP/PEIS). The purpose of this notice is to inform the 
public of the availability of the Draft Supplemental RP/EA and to seek 
public comment on the document.

DATES: The Louisiana TIG will consider public comments received on or 
before May 20, 2019.
    Public Meeting: The Louisiana TIG will also take verbal comments at 
a public meeting that will be held at the Lake Charles Civic Center, 
Contraband Room, on May 8, 2019; Open House 5:30 p.m., Meeting 6:00 
p.m.; 900 Lakeshore Drive, Lake Charles, LA 70601.

ADDRESSES: Obtaining Documents: You may download the Draft Supplemental 
RP/EA at any of the following sites:

 http://www.gulfspillrestoration.noaa.gov
 http://www.la-dwh.com

    Alternatively, you may request a CD of the Draft Supplemental RP/EA 
(see FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT). You may also view the document 
at any of the public facilities listed at http://www.gulfspillrestoration.noaa.gov.
    Submitting Comments: You may submit comments on the Draft 
Supplemental RP/EA by one of the following methods:

 Via the Web: http://www.gulfspillrestoration.noaa.gov/restoration-areas/louisiana
 Via U.S. Mail: U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, P.O. Box 29649, 
Atlanta, GA 30345
 In Person: Verbal comments may be provided at the public 
meeting on May 8, 2019

    Once submitted, comments cannot be edited or withdrawn. The 
Louisiana TIG may publish any comment received on the document. Do not 
submit electronically any information you consider to be Confidential 
Business Information (CBI) or other information for which disclosure is 
restricted by statute. Multimedia submissions (audio, video, etc.) must 
be accompanied by a written comment. The written comment is considered 
the official comment and should include discussion of all points you 
wish to make. The Louisiana TIG will generally not consider comments or 
comment contents located outside of the primary submission (i.e. on the 
web, cloud, or other file sharing system). Please be aware that your 
entire comment, including your personally identifiable information, 
will become part of the public record. Please note that mailed comments 
must be postmarked on or before the comment deadline of 30 days 
following publication of this notice to be considered.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:
 Louisiana--Joann Hicks, 225-342-5477
 EPA--Tim Landers, 202-566-2231

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Introduction

    On April 20, 2010, the mobile offshore drilling unit Deepwater 
Horizon, which was being used to drill a well for BP Exploration and 
Production, Inc. (BP), in the Macondo prospect (Mississippi Canyon 252-
MC252), experienced a significant explosion, fire, and subsequent 
sinking in the Gulf of Mexico, resulting in an unprecedented volume of 
oil and other discharges from the rig and from the wellhead on the 
seabed. The Deepwater Horizon oil spill is the largest off shore oil 
spill in U.S. history, discharging millions of barrels of oil over a 
period of 87 days.
    The Trustees conducted the natural resource damage assessment for 
the Deepwater Horizon oil spill under the Oil Pollution Act of 1990 (33 
United States Code 2701 et seq.). Under the OPA, federal and state 
agencies act as trustees on behalf of the public to assess natural 
resource injuries and losses and to determine the actions required to 
compensate the public for those injuries and losses. The OPA further 
instructs the designated trustees to develop and implement a plan for 
the restoration, rehabilitation, replacement, or acquisition of the 
equivalent of the injured natural resources under their trusteeship, 
including the loss of use and services from those resources from the 
time of injury until the time of restoration to baseline (the resource 
quality and conditions that would exist if the spill had not occurred) 
is complete.
    The Deepwater Horizon oil spill Trustees are:
     U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA);
     U.S. Department of the Interior (DOI), as represented by 
the National Park Service, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, and Bureau 
of Land Management;
     National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), on 
behalf of the U.S. Department of Commerce;
     U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA);

[[Page 16485]]

     State of Louisiana Coastal Protection and Restoration 
Authority (CPRA), Oil Spill Coordinator's Office (LOSCO), Department of 
Environmental Quality (LDEQ), Department of Wildlife and Fisheries 
(LDWF), and Department of Natural Resources (LDNR);
     State of Mississippi Department of Environmental Quality;
     State of Alabama Department of Conservation and Natural 
Resources and Geological Survey of Alabama;
     State of Florida Department of Environmental Protection 
and Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission; and
     State of Texas Parks and Wildlife Department, General Land 
Office, and Commission on Environmental Quality.
    On April 4, 2016, the Trustees reached and finalized a settlement 
of their natural resource damage claims with BP in a Consent Decree 
approved by the United States District Court for the Eastern District 
of Louisiana. Pursuant to that Consent Decree, restoration projects in 
the Louisiana Restoration Area are now chosen and managed by the 
Louisiana TIG. The Louisiana TIG is composed of the following Trustees: 
CPRA, LOSCO, LDEQ, LDWF, LDNR, EPA, DOI, NOAA, USDA.

Background

    The original scope and design of the Lake Charles SCEC project were 
evaluated in the Final RP/EA #2, which was published on July 20, 2018. 
As proposed in the Final RP/EA #2, the Lake Charles SCEC project would 
enhance recreational opportunities by providing indoor and outdoor 
public visitation and outreach components, including fisheries 
extension, access, outreach, and education to the public. Following 
release of the Final RP/EA #2, the City of Lake Charles requested that 
the Louisiana TIG consider collocating the Lake Charles SCEC with the 
City's planned LCCM. The Louisiana TIG prepared the Draft Supplemental 
RP/EA to evaluate modifications to the Lake Charles SCEC project and 
consider alternatives, consistent with the purpose and need of the 
original project. Alternatives considered in the Draft Supplemental RP/
EA include the collocation of the Lake Charles SCEC and LCCM with 
variations of indoor and outdoor components to support recreational and 
educational opportunities. The Louisiana TIG prepared the Draft 
Supplemental RP/EA to inform the public about potential modifications 
to the Lake Charles SCEC project and to seek public comment.

Next Steps

    The public is encouraged to review and comment on the Draft 
Supplemental RP/EA. A public meeting is scheduled to also help 
facilitate the public review and comment process. A summary of comments 
received on the Draft Supplemental RP/EA and the Louisiana TIG's 
responses, where applicable, will be included in the Final Supplemental 
RP/EA. Public comments on the Draft Supplemental RP/EA will inform the 
Louisiana TIG's decision on whether to select the Lake Charles SCEC 
project, as modified, in the Final Supplemental RP/EA.

Administrative Record

    The documents comprising the Administrative Record for the Draft 
Supplemental RP/EA can be viewed electronically at https://www.doi.gov/deepwaterhorizon/adminrecord.

Authority

    The authority for this action is the Oil Pollution Act of 1990 (33 
U.S.C. 2701 et seq.), its implementing NRDA regulations found at 15 CFR 
part 990, and the NEPA (42 U.S.C. 4321 et seq.).

    Dated: April 2, 2019.
Benita Best-Wong,
Deputy Assistant Administrator, Office of Water.
[FR Doc. 2019-07441 Filed 4-18-19; 8:45 am]
 BILLING CODE 6560-50-P


