M.A. Norden Company Site, AL; Modification of June 15, 1984, Clean Water Act Section 404(c) Final Determination

ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY

[FRL-5066-8]

M.A. Norden Company Site, AL; Modification of June 15, 1984,

Clean Water Act Section 404(c) Final Determination

AGENCY: U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.

ACTION: Notice of modification of section 404(c) final determination

and notice of availability.

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SUMMARY: The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has modified

the June 15, 1984, Clean Water Act section 404(c) Final Determination

concerning the Norden site in Mobile, Alabama. The modification means

that the M.A. Norden Company, Inc. may apply for a section 404 permit

to discharge dredged or fill material into waters of the United States

in order to construct an access road across the section 404(c)

prohibited site. EPA concludes that these proposed activities will not

result in unacceptable adverse effects under section 404(c).

EFFECTIVE DATE: The modification is effective August 29, 1994, upon

signature of EPA's Assistant Administrator for Water.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Specific details are available from

Paul Minkin (EPA) at (202) 260-1901. Copies of the modification are

available through the EPA Wetlands Hotline at (800) 832-7828.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Section 404(c) of the Clean Water Act

authorizes EPA to prohibit or restrict the use of portions of waters of

the United States for discharging dredged or fill material. In October,

1992, M.A. Norden Company, Inc. petitioned EPA to modify its 1984

section 404(c) Final Determination concerning the Norden site to enable

it to construct a road across the site to access adjacent uplands.

EPA announced Norden Company's request for modification of the

Norden Final Determination and requested public comment in the May 13,

1994, Federal Register (59 FR 25050). EPA formally notified the U.S.

Army Corps of Engineers Headquarters (Corps Headquarters) of the Norden

Company petition and requested any comments on the Norden Company

proposal. EPA also mailed copies of the Federal Register notice to

other parties believed to be interested in the proposed action.

EPA received no comments from the public in response to the Federal

Register notice. Corps Headquarters responded in a July 1, 1994, letter

to EPA and indicated that they had no comment at this time so that they

might maintain their ability to make an objective and independent

decision on a permit application from Norden Company, should EPA modify

their Final Determination. The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Alabama

Field Office (FWS), submitted comments in a June 7, 1994, letter. While

neither supporting nor objecting to reconsideration of the Final

Determination, they indicated that there may be less environmentally

damaging alternatives to the proposed road fill and that these

alternatives should be fully explored.

EPA carefully reviewed Norden Company's proposal, comments

submitted by Corps Headquarters and FWS, and the existing Norden

section 404(c) record. Based on this review, EPA concluded that

environmental impacts associated with the proposed road construction

would not result in unacceptable adverse effects to the Norden 404(c)

area. In reaching this decision, EPA considered that the impacts of the

current Norden Company proposal are significantly less than those of

the original proposal which precipitated the section 404(c) action. The

original Final Determination noted that the Norden site was a

``productive wetland, typical of the area, that contributes organic

material to the fish and shellfish communities of the Mobile Bay

estuary, provides valuable habitat for wildlife, and acts as a

pollutant filtering mechanism which helps to reduce degradation of

water quality in the adjacent open water system.'' The originally

proposed 25 acres of impacts to waters of the United States have been

reduced through the modification of the project so that approximately

1.5 acres will be impacted. In addition, the project will be

constructed in such a way as to allow for downstream transport of

detritus and continued connection to the Mobile Bay estuary.

The Norden Company has made a prima facie showing that there are no

practicable alternatives which are less environmentally damaging.

Alternate routes which would avoid the wetlands do not seem to be

practicable based on the information available. If the Final

Determination is modified, the project must still go through the Corps'

permit process, where the issue of practicable, less damaging

alternatives will receive thorough investigation. Under the

circumstances, the theoretical possibility of alternatives does not

make the limited impacts of the revised project unacceptable.

For these reasons, EPA has concluded that it is appropriate to

modify the original June 15, 1984, Final Determination to allow M.A.

Norden Company, Inc. to seek authorization from the U.S. Army Corps of

Engineers to discharge dredged or fill material into waters of the

United States associated with the construction of the road described in

the Norden Company's submissions to EPA on October 5, 1992, and August

5, 1993, and summarized above. Prior to any discharge activities,

however, the project must be authorized pursuant to applicable permits

issued by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers under section 404 of the

Clean Water Act and section 10 of the Rivers and Harbors Act.

Dated: August 29, 1994.

Robert Perciasepe,

Assistant Administrator for Water.

[FR Doc. 94-21999 Filed 9-6-94; 8:45 am]

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