[Federal Register Volume 85, Number 70 (Friday, April 10, 2020)]
[Notices]
[Pages 20274-20275]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2020-07264]


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ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY

[FRL-10006-92-OW]


Notice of Availability of the Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill 
Louisiana Trustee Implementation Group Final Restoration Plan and 
Environmental Assessment #6: Wetlands, Coastal, and Nearshore Habitats 
and Finding of No Significant Impact

AGENCY: Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).

ACTION: Notice of availability.

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SUMMARY: 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 Trustee Implementation 
Group (Louisiana TIG) prepared the Final Restoration Plan and 
Environmental Assessment #6: Wetlands, Coastal, and Nearshore Habitats 
(Final RP/EA #6). The Final RP/EA #6 describes and, in conjunction with 
the associated Finding of No Significant Impact (FONSI), selects three 
restoration project alternatives considered by the Louisiana TIG to 
restore and conserve wetlands, coastal, and nearshore habitats injured 
as a result of the Deepwater Horizon oil spill. The Louisiana TIG 
evaluated these alternatives under criteria set forth in the OPA 
natural resource damage assessment (NRDA) regulations, and also 
evaluated the environmental consequences of the restoration 
alternatives in accordance with the NEPA. The selected projects 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 
Federal Trustees of the Louisiana TIG have determined that 
implementation of the Final RP/EA #6 is not a major federal action 
significantly affecting the quality of the human environment within the 
context of the NEPA. They have concluded a FONSI is appropriate, and, 
therefore, an Environmental Impact Statement will not be prepared. This 
notice informs the public of the approval and availability of the Final 
RP/EA #6 and FONSI.

ADDRESSES: Obtaining Documents: You may download the Final RP/EA #6 and 
FONSI at any of the following sites:

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


[[Page 20275]]


    Alternatively, you may request a CD of the Final RP/EA #6 and FONSI 
(see FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT). You may also view the document 
at any of the public facilities listed at http://www.gulfspillrestoration.noaa.gov.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 
 Louisiana--Joann Hicks, 225-342-5477
 EPA--Douglas Jacobson, 214-665-6692

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 the release of 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 offshore 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 U.S.C. 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);
     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 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

    A Notice of Availability of the Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill 
Louisiana Trustee Implementation Group Draft Restoration Plan and 
Environmental Assessment #6: Wetlands, Coastal, and Nearshore Habitats 
(Draft RP/EA #6) was published in the Federal Register at 84 FR 70186 
on December 20, 2019. The Louisiana TIG hosted a public webinar on 
January 8, 2020, and the public comment period for the Draft RP/EA #6 
closed on January 21, 2020. The Draft RP/EA #6 evaluated four 
restoration project alternatives in accordance with the OPA and the 
NEPA. The Louisiana TIG considered the public comments received on the 
Draft RP/EA #6 which informed the Louisiana TIG's analyses and 
selection of three restoration projects for implementation in the Final 
RP/EA #6. A summary of the public comments received and the Trustees' 
responses to those comments are included in Chapter 7 of the Final RP/
EA #6.

Overview of the Final RP/EA

    The Final RP/EA is being released in accordance with the OPA, NRDA 
implementing regulations, and the NEPA. In the Final RP/EA #6, the 
Louisiana TIG selects the following preferred project alternatives in 
the Wetlands, Coastal, and Nearshore Habitats restoration type:
     West Grand Terre Beach Nourishment and Stabilization;
     Golden Triangle Marsh Creation; and
     Biloxi Marsh Living Shoreline.
    The Louisiana TIG has examined the injuries assessed by the 
Deepwater Horizon Trustees and evaluated restoration alternatives to 
address the injuries. In the Final RP/EA #6, the Louisiana TIG presents 
to the public its plan for providing partial compensation for lost 
wetlands, coastal, and nearshore habitats. The selected projects are 
intended to continue the process of using restoration funding to 
restore and conserve wetlands, coastal, and nearshore habitats injured 
by the Deepwater Horizon oil spill. The total estimated cost of the 
selected projects is approximately $209 million. Additional restoration 
planning for the Louisiana Restoration Area will continue.

Administrative Record

    The documents comprising the Administrative Record for the Final 
RP/EA #6 and FONSI 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: March 31, 2020.
Benita Best-Wong,
Deputy Assistant Administrator, Office of Water.
[FR Doc. 2020-07264 Filed 4-9-20; 8:45 am]
 BILLING CODE 6560-50-P


