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- Supplemental EA Available for the Trinity River Restoration Program's Indian Creek Rehabilitation Site Project
News Release Archive
Supplemental EA Available for the Trinity River Restoration Program's Indian Creek Rehabilitation Site Project
Media Contact:
Jeffrey S. McCracken, 916-978-5100, 12/27/2006 21:19
For Release: December 27, 2006
Under guidance of the Trinity River Restoration Program (TRRP) and in response to public comment and technical review, the Bureau of Reclamation (the Federal lead agency) and the Trinity County Planning Department (the State lead agency) have developed a new alternative (Alternative 3) for the Indian Creek Rehabilitation Site: Trinity River Mile 93.7 to 96.5 (Project).
A Project description and impact analysis for the new alternative will be available for a 45-day public review and comment period starting December 29, 2006, as part of a Supplemental Environmental Assessment/ Recirculated Partial Draft Environmental Impact Report (SEA/RPDEIR). The joint supplemental document meets National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) and California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) requirements.
While the purpose and need of the Project remains unchanged - to increase juvenile salmonid rearing habitat and reduce Trinity River flow impacts to structural improvements - the new alternative provides opportunities to: (1) maximize side channel habitat and (2) minimize impacts by decreasing in channel construction, reducing the overall quantity and area of excavation, and reclaiming onsite materials for use as spawning gravel at future project sites. Although no in-channel excavation is considered, this new alternative has similar flow conveyance benefits as the previously described Proposed Action.
The new alternative would utilize on-site processing of excavated alluvial materials (e.g., sand, gravel, cobbles) and dredge tailings as a source for spawning gravel enhancement efforts up-river. Such re-use of on-site materials would not only reduce potential environmental impacts resulting from placement of excavated materials within the Project boundary but would also restore additional floodplain areas by removing dredge tailings. Export of processed gravels from the Project site would, however, require seasonal increases in truck traffic on State and local haul routes.
Trinity County has received financial support for Project implementation from the California Department of Fish and Game's Fisheries Restoration Grant Program and from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's (EPA) Targeted Watershed Grants Program. Trinity County is working as a partner agency under the EPA program with the Yurok Tribe and the Trinity County Resource Conservation District.
The SEA/RPDEIR may be viewed at the TRRP Office, 1313 South Main Street; at the Trinity County Library, 211 North Main Street; or at the Trinity County Planning Department, 60 Glen Road, in Weaverville, CA. By Friday, December 29, 2006, the SEA/RPDEIR will be available on Reclamation's NEPA website at http://www.usbr.gov/mp/nepa/nepa_project_details.php?Project_ID=2094. The document will also be posted on the TRRP website at http://www.trrp.net/implementation/IndianCreek.htm".
Comments on the SEA/RPDEIR are due by Tuesday, February 13, 2007, to Mr. Brandt Gutermuth, Trinity River Restoration Program, P.O. Box 1300, Weaverville, CA 96093 or e-mail bgutermuth@mp.usbr.gov. Comments will be consolidated and responded to in an EA/Final EIR along with comments received on the original EA/Draft EIR.
The final document will be used by Federal and State agencies to satisfy NEPA/CEQA requirements and provide the basis for the various permits, authorizations, and approvals needed to implement the project. The preferred alternative is scheduled for implementation during summer 2007 when impacts to fish and wildlife from in-channel work may be minimized.
Please direct any questions on the Project to the Trinity County Planner, Mr. Joshua Allen, at 530-623-1351, extension 3411, or e-mail jallen@trinitycounty.org , or to Mr. Gutermuth at 530-623-1806 or e-mail bgutermuth@mp.usbr.gov.
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