Development of the Commencement Bay Natural Resource Damage Assessment Restoration Plan, Pierce County, WA

NATIONAL OCEANIC AND ATMOSPHERIC ADMINISTRATION

Department of Interior

Fish and Wildlife Service

[I.D. 021497A]

Development of the Commencement Bay Natural Resource Damage

Assessment Restoration Plan, Pierce County, WA

AGENCY: National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and

Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), Commerce; and Fish and Wildlife

Service (FWS), Interior.

ACTION: Notice of availability of a Restoration Plan and Final

Programmatic Environmental Impact Statement (RP/FEIS).

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SUMMARY: This notice advises the public that the Restoration Plan and

Final Programmatic Environmental Impact Statement (RP/FEIS) for the

Commencement Bay Natural Resource Damage Assessment (CB/NRDA)

restoration planning process is available for public review.

DATES: Written comments are requested by April 16, 1997.

ADDRESSES: Written comments on the RP/FEIS, requests for inclusion on

the RP/FEIS mailing list, and requests for copies of any documents

associated with the RP/FEIS should be directed to: Judy Lantor, U.S.

Fish and Wildlife Service, 3704 Griffin Lane SE., Suite 102, Olympia,

WA 98501-2192, phone (360) 753-6056/9440, or Dr. Robert Clark Jr.,

NOAA/NMFS Restoration Center NW, 7600 Sand Point Way NE., Seattle, WA

98115-0070, phone (206) 526-4338.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Judy Lantor, FWS, phone (360) 753-

6056/9440, or Dr. Robert Clark Jr., NOAA/NMFS, phone (206) 526-4338.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: A notice of availability (NOA) will be

mailed to all agencies, organizations, and individuals who participated

in the scoping process or were identified during the RP/EIS process.

Copies of the RP/FEIS have been sent to all participants who have

already requested copies.

A. Background

A Notice of Intent (NOI) to prepare the RP/EIS was published in the

Federal Register (59 FR 44711-2, August 30, 1994). Formal and informal

scoping meetings were held to provide the

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public with an early opportunity to engage in discussions regarding the

RP/EIS and to provide oral and written comments. The NOA of the draft

RP/EIS was published in the Federal Register (61 FR 41383-41384, August

8, 1996) with the comment period ending on October 8, 1996. Based on

comments received, modifications were made to the documents and a RP/

FEIS was prepared. The final RP will become part of the Record of

Decision. The background and rationale for this action were discussed

in the NOA and are not repeated here.

B. RP/FEIS

The purpose of preparing the RP/EIS is to coordinate and implement

restoration projects under the CB/NRDA. Since this is a programmatic

EIS, the management alternatives reflect general approaches to the

restoration of natural resources and services injured as a result of

releases of hazardous substances and discharges of oil in the

Commencement Bay environment. The five alternatives subjected to

detailed analysis were: (1) No action; (2) species-specific; (3)

habitat function; (4) acquisition of equivalent natural resources and

services; and, (5) integrated approach. The integrated approach, which

is a comprehensive plan based on the habitat function alternative, but

supplemented with the best features of the other alternatives, is the

FWS and NMFS/NOAA's preferred alternative. This alternative best meets

the needs of the CB/NRDA restoration goals and principles by maximizing

ecological benefits to a wider range of natural resources and their

associated services.

Dated: February 24, 1997.

Thomas J. Dwyer,

Acting Regional Director, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.

Dated: March 4, 1997.

Nancy Foster,

Deputy Assistant Administrator for Fisheries, National Marine Fisheries

Service.

[FR Doc. 97-6543 Filed 3-14-97; 8:45 am]

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