PUBLIC NOTICE. US Army Corps of Engineers" NOTICE OF AVAILABILITY OF A DRAFT EIS/EIR

Transcription

1 PUBLC NOTCE US Army Corps of Engneers" NOTCE OF AVALABLTY OF A DRAFT ES/ER LOS ANGELES DSTRCT Publc Notce/Applcllo n No.: JWM Comment Perod: October through November )rojcct Manager: John W. Markham (805) Applcant Contact Port of Long Beach (Port) Mr. R chard D. Cameron P.O. Box 570 Drector of Envronmental Plannng Long Beach. CA Port of Long Beach P.O. Box 570 Long Beach. CA cameron@polb.com Locaton The 160-acre Pcr S ste s located n the Port of Long Beach. Termnal sland Harbor Dstrct. Los Angeles County. Cal forn a. The Cerrtos Channel and Back Channel are located on the north and east boundares orthe Pcr S ste. respectvely (at: lac on: -1 J ). See page 10 of ths nolce. Actvtv The proposed project nvolves the development of Per S and the wden ng of the Cerrtos Channel and mprovements to the Back Channel for navgatonal safety. The constructon footpr nt encompasses approxmately 210 acres of land and water. For morc nformaton see pages 6-9 of ths notce. nterested partes are hereby notfed that an appl caton has been receved fo r a Department of the Army permt fo r the actvty descrbed heren and shown on the attached drawng(s). nterested pm1es are nvted to provde ther vews on the proposed work. whch wll become a part of the record and wll be consdered n the decson. Ths permt wll be ssued or dened under Secton 404 of the Clean Water Act of 1972 (33 U.S.c. 1344). Comments should be maled to: U.S. Army Corps of Engneers. Los Angeles Dstrct Regulatory Branch - Ventura Feld Offce A nl': CESPL-RG-N JWM 2151 Alessandro Drve. Sute 110 Ventura. Calforna Alternatvely comments Clm be sent ccctroncllly to: john.w.markharn@ usacc.arrny.rnl

2 Evaluaton f actors The decson whether to ssue a permt w ll be based on an evaluaton of the probable mpact ncludng cumulatve mpacts of the proposed actvty on the publc nterest. That dccson wll reflect the natonal concern for both protecton and utlzaton of mportant resources. The beneft whch reasonably may be expected to accrue from the proposal must be balanced aganst ts reasonably foreseeable detrments. All factors whch may be relevant to the proposal wll be consdered ncludng the cumulatve effects thereof. Factors that wll be consdered nclude conservat on. econom cs. aesthetcs. general envronmental concerns. wet lands. cultural values. fsh and wldlfe values. flood hazards. flood plan values. land Lse. navgaton. shorel ne eroson and accreton. recreaton. water supply and conservaton. water qual ty. energy needs. safety. food producton and. n general. the needs and welfare of the people. n addton. f the proposal would dscharge drcdgcd or fll materal. the evaluaton of the actvty w ll nclude applcaton of the EPA Gudel nes (40 CFR 230) as requred by Secton 404 (b)( t ) of the Clean Water Act. The Corps o f Engneers s solctng commcnts from the publc: Federal. state. and local agences and offcals; ndan trbes; and other nterested partes n order to consder and evaluate the mpacts of ths proposed actvty. Any comments receved wll be consdered by the Corps of Engneers to determne whether to ssue. modfy. condton or deny a permt for ths proposal. To make th s decson comments are used to assess mpacts on endangered speces. hstorc propertes. water qualty. general envronmental effects and the other publc nterest factors l sted above. Comments arc used n the prcparaton of an Envronmental Assessment and/o r an Envronmcntallmpact Statement pursuant to the Natonal Envronmental Po l cy Act. Comments are a lso used to determne the need for a publc hearng and to determ ne the overall publc nterest of the proposed actv ty. Prelmm'l)' le\'cw of Sclccted Factors [ S lctcrmnaton- The Corps has determned thm an envronmental mpacl statement s requred for the proposed work and ths publc notce supplements the Notce of ntent to Prepare a Draft Envronmental mpact Statement (DES) that was publ shed n the Federal Regster on Septembcr The nformaton n the OES wll be suffcent for the Corps to make a decson regardng the ssuance of a Secton O/Sec t on 404 pcrmt fo r the proposed marne termnal development at Per S and navgatonal safety m provements w thn the Back C hannel. The document wll be ajont Federal and state document. The lead State agency for purposes of the Calforna Envronmenta l Qualty Act (CEQA) s the )ort of Long Beach (Po rt). The Corps and Port have worked cooperatvely to prepare a jo nl Draft Envronmental mpact StatemcntlEnvronmentallmpact Report (DES/OER). and to coordnate the publc notcng and hearng processes under Federal and state laws. The mpact anal yss wll fo llow the drectves n 33 CFR 325 wh ch req ures thm t be lmted to the mpacts of the specfc actvtes requrn g a 404 permt and only those portons of the project outsde of"waters of the Unted States" over whch the Corps has suffcelll control and responsblty to warrant Federal revew. The Corps wll extend the geographc scope of the envronmental analyss beyond the boundares or "waters of the Unted States" n certan areas to address ndrect and cumulatve mpacts of the regulated actvtes. and to address connected actons pursuant to Natonal Env ronmenta l Polcy Act (NEPA) gudelnes (40 CFR 1508(a)fl D. n these upland areas. the Corps wll evaluate mpacts to the envronment and dentfy feasble and reasonable mtgaton measures and the approprate state or local agences wth <unhort y to mplement these measures f they are outsde 2

3 the authorty of the Corps. However. the Corps wll exercse ts ndependent expertse andjudgmcnt n addressng ndrect and cumulatve mpacts to upland areas due to ssuance of the proposed Secton 404 permt. A copy of the DES/ER s avalable for publc revew at the foll ow ng locatons: Port of Long Beach Harbor Admnstraton Buldng. 925 Harbor Plaza. Long Beach Long Beach C ty Clcrk. 333 w. Ocean Boulevard. Long Beach Long Beach Man Lbrary. 101 Pac fc Avenue. Long Beach San Pedro Regonal Branch Lbrary. 931 Gaffey Street. San Pedro Wlmngton Branch Lbrary_ 1300 N. Avalon Boulevard. Wlmngton The Draft ES/ER also wll be made avalable for publ c revew at the followng webste: Water OUl.lltv- The appl cant s requred to obtan water qual ty certfcaton undcr Secton 401 of the Clean Water Act. from the Calforna Regonal Water Qualty Control Board. Secton 401 requres that any applcant for an ndvdual Secton 404 pennt provde proof of water qualty certfcaton to the Corps of Engneers pror to permt ssuance. Coashll Zone Managcmcnt- for those projects n or affectng the coastal zone. the Federal Coastal Zone Management Ac t requres that pror to ssung the Corps authorzaton for the project. the applcanlmust obtan concurrence from the Calforna Coastal Comm sson that the project s consstent wth the State's Coastal Zone Management Plan. The applcant has certfed that the pro(x>sed actvty would comply w th and would be conducted n a manner that s consstent wth the approved State Coastal Zone Management Program. The Dstrct Engneer hereby requests the Calforna Coastal Commsson's concurrence or nonconcurrence. Cutunll Resources Termnal sland. whch ncludes Per S. was constructed predomnantl y from hydraulcally dredged sedments derved from other locatons wthn the Ports of Long Beach and Los Angeles and dscharged nto areas contaned by earthen dkes wth rprap faces. The hydraulc flls are generall y 30 to 45 fee t thck. Addtonal (engneered). rangng n thckness from approx mately 10 to 25 feel. was placed on top of the hydraulc fll. The proposed project area has been further dsturbed by past ol and gas drll ng operatons and more recentl y. remedaton of ol and gas drllng wastes placed wthn shallow m(x>undments or sumps.-' Cultural resources were not observed durng constructon. operaton. or remedaton of these facl tes. n addton. there arc no s tes lsted on the Natonal Regster of Hstorc Places wthn the proposed project area or ts vcnty (Natonal Park Servce. March 2011). Further there are no structures wthn the proposed project area that are potentally el gbl e for lstng as hstorc resources (ntal Study. Per S Marne Termnal alld Back Channel mprovements. Port of Long Beach. January 2007). The Port notfed the Natve Amercan Hertage Commsson (NA HC) on September of the avalab l ty of the DES/ER. A copy of th s Publ c Notce wll be dstrbuted to Trbal representatves desgnated by the NA HC. Ths revew consttutes lhe extent of cultural resources nvestgat ons by the Dstrct Engneer. and he s othcnvse unaware of the presence of such resources. Based upon the above nformaton. the Corps has made a prelmnary detennnaton that there are no cultural or hstorc resources located wthn the proposed project area. and that the proposed project would have ""no potental to cause ettects" upon cultural or hstorc resources. Wth th s Publc Notce. the Corps s seekng comment from the Statc H storc Prcsc rvaton Offce or other nterested partcs regardng these determnatons. 3

4 Enthmgcrcd Spcccs- Table 1 Federal and State-l sted speces w th n the project area and vcnty S nn Commo... N.me SCw"'UoC N.me Hab.tat Use f ederal "". N.sts lt d.slgl sr:. on 401); C.htoml.a lent tem S twml.anolllrum browrw E EFP torage. over.n.allow w.a:er nea r nest ste. PfH. nt Ap rl-... ugust Roosa on breakw.ltfls fof.ages o... r C.'ltom. bfowf'l P. ec.ou;; OCCfd«7.h;; O.h E OP«l wat«: rha on.:.r Of stnjcturh; bc.l... clltomcu;; r.sent...lr Ame-nc.J n "oe f.lcon 'htte" snowy plo... er Faloo fy9fyw :.n.tum Oellstotd E FP Ch. r;rdnu ;;.fexandrklus nvo.:u;; NH n hf nner H.J1tot on V'\t Thos. Gef.d Desmond..md Scnuylef F Helm brdge s tor.agt'5 on brds tnrouanout ll. h.llbor $.... mr.na n Colfom. 1.Jst tem T CSC... estlng Ste at p but no MStJng n Nft:.d on P n OQB nd B.aca PlmtMf Rynchop: ngh - esc 2004: b.ges over.a'h neom neg. [present.;1l1.- On. obhrv""d on not.. n Lang B.aeh Oute't -ta.rb«11'\ 2()0Ct; one ". p..d on BurroWng owl Atlle". cuncwana hyptkjea - esc P.r 400 to 2(1 03 and obu'v.d.ftt.. on Per 400 fl ZtlO but no contrm.d nhtlna A Now n nner H.wDot on nprap ar L.oggemead W\nke LllT"';; ludovk:flnu - esc dodtlphng n.bltat; no... stng n.but n Pro'eel ar. M e " and A :;.300t'$ CN&; 1\" '" $11*"9..:uv;x CN' " CNlb; N 1«<. f E"' nghfl; 1 '"' thrh:. Md; esc '"' C.. 01 S"..c" eonc.m f'*t1n9 popcn.tjon fn btt».r th:j b J Fp t'r 1J(Or.C:#d The federally endangered Cal forna least tern has been observed nestng on Termnal sland snce 1974 (KBC 2007). Snce the Los Angeles Harbor Department has provded nestng habtat for ths speces pursuant to a Memorandum of Agreement (MOA) wth the USFWS. USACE. and CDFG for management of a S-acre least tern nestng s te. wh ch has been located on Per 400 fo r the past ten years. The number of nests at the ste vares from year to year. but was 669 n 2007 (KB C 2007). Prevous forag ng studes conducted n the harbor have found that least terns forage fo r small fsh prmarly over shallow water (generall y less than 20 feet deep) predomnant ly n the Outer Harbor. and rarel y n thc nner Harbor (KBC ). The proposed project footprnt gcnerall y conssts of waler depths greater than 30 feet. and thus contans lttle potcnt al foragng habtat for ths speces. The Port does not contan desgnated crtcal habtat for ths speces. The federall y threatened western snowy plover was observed on Per 400 durng the least tern nestng surveys n 2003 through Th s speces appears to have been usng the area as a stop-over durng m graton. and was never observed nestng durng the f ve-year survey perod (KBC 2007). Th s speces generally forages for nvertebrates n the wet sand and am ongst surf-cast kelp wthn the ntertdal l one n dry. sa ndy areas above the hgh tde on salt pa ns on spol s tes. and along the edges of salt marshes. salt ponds. and lagoons ewes/ern SnollY Plover Pacfc Coasl Populaton Draft Reco\'ely Plan U.S. Fsh and Wld lfe Servce. May 200 1). Ths speces s not expected to utl ze the proposed project area or ts vcnty for foragng or nestng. The Port does not contan desgnated crtcal hab tat for ths speces. 4

5 The federa ll y endangered sa lt marsh brd's beak (Cordy/an/hls marlmlls NUll. ex Benlh. ssp. Marll1llls) s lsted under the Cal fo rn a Natural Dversty Database (C DDB. Calforna Department of Fsh and Game. 2011) as occurr ng wth n the vcnty of the proposed project. Port bologsts are currently nvestgatng the locaton and extent of pror occurrences and wll be conductng reconnassance surveys fo r ths speces wth n the proposed project area and ts vc nty. No addtonal federally lsted anmal speces. federall y lsted plant speces. or desgnated crtcal habtat have been dentfed as occurr ng wthn the proposed project area or ts vcnty. Gven the relatve lack of shallow water wthn the vcnty of the proposed project footprnt and the avalablty of more sutable foragng habtat elsewhere wthn the Harbor. the proposed project s not expected to adversely atect foragng behavor for Calforna least tern. n addton. the proposed project s not expected to alter nestng behavor or locatons for ths speces. bascd upon the current hgh level of actvty on termnal sland and the dstance of the exstng tern nestng stes (approxmately lnear feel) from the southwest project boundary. Based upon the above nformaton. the Corps has made a prel mnary determnaton that the proposed project would have no effect upon the federally endangered Calforna least tern. the federally threatened western snowy plover. or ther desgnated crtcal habtat. n add ton. the Corps wll coordnate wth the U.S. Fsh and Wldlfe Servce as requred under the Endangered Speces Act should salt marsh brd's beak or sutable habtat for ths speces be dentfed wth n the proposed project area or ts vcnty. Essental Fsh Habtat- accordance wth the 1996 amendments to the Magnuson-Stevens Fshery Management and Conservat on Act. an assessment of Essental Fsh Habtat (EFH) s necessary for proposed federal actons. The Proposed Project s located wth n an area desgnated as EF- for two Fshery Management Plans (FMPs): Coastal Pelagc and Pacfc Coast Groundfsh. Dfthe 94 speces federa ll y managed under these plans. four Coastal Pelagc and eght Pac f c Coast Groundfsh speces are known to occur n the Long Beach Harbor area. EfH for several speces s present n the harbor. ncl ud ng eelgrass (Zostera marna) and soft-bo ttom hab tat. and hard-substrate habtat n the form of rprap. W th respect to eelgrass. desgnated a Habtat Area of >artcular Concern for groundf sh surveys of the harbor n 2008 de ntfed eelgrass beds n Los Angeles Harbor along Cabrllo Beach and on the easl sde of Per 300 (SAle 2010). and a more recent survey dentfed eelgrass beds n Cerrtos Channel just cast of the -em Brdge (M BC 2011). wth n the dredge footprnt of the proposed project. Potental mpacts to marne bota and habtats durng constructon would occur from dredgng. Dredgng would destroy eelgrass beds present n the project footprnt. wheh provde sutable spawnng. foragng. and covcr habtat for a varety of f sh and nvertebrate speces. Dredgng would also mpact the epbenthc and benthc organsms present n soft-bottom habtat n the dredge footprnt. whch are an mportant food source for many fsh speces. ncludng the managed speces of the Pacfc Groundfsh FMP. Removal of ex stng rprap fo r constructon actvtes would also remove assocated hard substrate commun tes and habtat structure for fsh from the water column. Adverse mpacts on eelgrass beds would ndrectly affect fs h and nvertebrate populatons due to loss of spawnng. foragng and cover hab tat. The recently dscovered eelgrass bed s the frst documented occurrence of eelgrass n Long Beach Harbor and wt hout m tgaton. dredgng could sgnfcantly mpact ts persstence n the harbor. Adverse short-term mpacts on soft-bottom and hardsubstrate communtes would ndrectly affect lsh populatons from loss of forage opportuntes. 5

6 However. these mpacts would altect a small porton of the harbor and. except for the morta lty of benthc organsms. would last only d urng constru cto n. Follow ng constructon. th e benth c communtes would recolonze both soft-bottom and the new hard substrate habtats. The proposed dredgng. fllng. ple drvng and wharf constructon actvtes would temporarly ncrease turbdty. no se. and vbraton levels wthn the proposed project area and ts vcnty result ng n dsturbances to normal fsh behavor n the water column and n or near the channel bottom. The vast majorty of f sh wou ld be expected to temporarly avod the n-water actvtes. although some may reman to feed on nvertebrates released from the sedments. Drect or ndrect f sh mortal ty has not been observed n the Outer Harbor as a result of dredgng actvtes assocated w th the Deep Draft Navgaton mprovements Project (Per 400) (USACE and LA HD 1992). Prevous studes have also shown that large-scale channel dredgng and landfll operatons n the 1980s and 1990s d d not lead to lo ng-term adverse effects on fsh populat o ns (M EC SAC and MEC 1996 MEC 2002 MBC 2009b and SA C 20 10). Nose and dsturbance assocated wth constructon actvtes. part c ul arly p le drvng. could result n short-term adverse effects on aquatc habtat and cause fsh klls. but because nose and dsturbance from boat traffc and other actvtes n the Port are part of the ambent condtons. f sh mpacts assocated wth the proposed proj ect are expected to be temporary and mnor. n order to reduce the ge neraton and mgraton of suspended sedments wthn the proposed project footprnt and ts vcnty the Corps would requre the mplementaton of best management practces (BMPs) commensurate w th observed tu rb dty levels (e.g.. more frequent or qua1lltatve montorng of water qualty. slowng or cessaton of dredgng actvtes. nstallaton of slt curtans). n addton. the Corps would req ure sound abatement BM Ps to red uce both no se and vbratons from ple drvng actv tes. ncludng vbraton or hydraul c nserton technques. "softmstartrampng-up" for ple drvng (.e. approx mately 40 to 60 percent energy levels wth no less than a one-mnute nterval between each strke for a fve-mnute perod). drlled or augured holes for cast-n place pl es. bubble curtan technologes. and so llnd aprons where feas ble. The proposed dscharge of dredge materal wthn a confned aquat c dsposal facl ty (e.g.. Port of Long Beach Mdd le Harbor) s not expected to result n add t onal mpacts to fede rall y l sted speces or ther prey base. However. the proposed dsc harge of dredge materal wth n an uncon fned aquatc dsposal ste (e.g.. Western Anchorage dsposal ste and/or LA-2 ocean dsposal ste) may adversely affect benthc organsms (fsh. nvertebrates) located wth n the proposed fll area and ts mmedate vcnty. Dsposal at the Western Anchorage and LA-2 stes would req u re revew by members of the Dredged Materals Management Taskforce (DMMT). ncludng the Natonal Marne Fsheres Servce (NMf S). and fnal approval by the Corps. U.S. Envronmental Protect on Agency. and the Regonal Water Qualty Control Board follow ng chemcal. and f necessary. boassay testng o r the materal. Based upon th s nfonnatoll. the Corps ntends to consult w th the Natonal Mar ne Fsheres Servce (NMFS) for drect (e.g.. dredgng. fll ng) and ndrect (e.g.. turbdty. shadng) effects upon essental fsh hab tat. and wll also req u re the applcant to provde compensaton for unavodable mpacts to eelgrass consstent wt h the most recent verson of the Southern Calforn a Eelgrass Mtgaton Polcy (SCEMP) (NMFS and CDFG 1991). 6

7 Project PU'POSC and Pro nosed Actvty for Whch : Permt s Rcgured- The overall purpose of the proposed project s to construct a contaner term nal to ncrease emcency n order to accommodate a porton of the predcted future contanerzed cargo throughput volume and the modem cargo vessels that transport those goods to and frolll the Port. The applcant (Port) requres authorzaton pursuant to Secton 404 of the Clean Water Act Secton 10 of the Rvers and Harbors Act. and Secton 103 of the Marne Protecton. Research. and Sanctuares Act. to mplement varous regulated actv t es wthn waters of the U.S.. ncludng dredgng excavaton 10 create open water. wharf constructon and d sposal of dredged materal. These project elements are descrbed n deta l below. Addtonal Project nformaton The basc object ves of the proposed project consst of the followng: Construct and operate marne termnal facltes that max mze the use of exstn g waterways. ava lable shorelne. and exstng land: Construct and operate be rthng and nfrastruc ture to accommodate fo recasted cargo vol umes: Provde effcent access to land-based ra l and truck nfrastructure systems that max mzes the use or ral : Provde channel mprovements that would mprove navgatonal safety n the Back Channel: and Fulfll the Port's ob lgat ons under the Publc Trust Doctrne the Tdeland Trust and the Calforna Coastal Act to full y utl ze the tdelands wth n the Hat'bor Dstr ct. The development of Per S and Back Channel mprovements would resul t n an approx mately l60-acre marne contaner termnal. and wo uld ncl ude the followng elcments: property acquston: dredgng wharf co nstructon other watersde mprovements. and contaner cranes; contaner yard and assocated structures: lerm nal buldngs and other structures: truck gates. assocated st ructures and road work: ntermodal ra l yard. structures. and dual ral lead: and utlty and ol facl ty relocaton. These project elements are descrbed below. The estmated duraton of the proposed project s 22 (consecutve) months. Dredgng of Cerrtos Channel and Exca\'alon of Adjacent Uplands n order to allow for be rth ng o f larger-cl ass vessels and to mprove navgatonal safety wth n the Cerrtos Channel. the pro posed project would nvolve wdenng of Cerrtos Channel to 808 feet betwecn Per A and fut ure Per S perhead lnes. ncludng dredgng of approx mately cubc yards of materal from the Cerr tos Channel and excavaton of approxmately cubc yards of rock and sedment frol11 1he adjaccll wharf (total dsturbance area o f approx mately 39 acres). and realgnment of approx mately feet of the exstng r prap dke structure. Excavaton would result n a converson of 10.3 acres of upl ands to open water. The mnmum and maxmum dredge depths extendng 80 feet north of the future Per S perhead lne would be -60 feet MLLW and -62 feet MLL W respectvely. ncludng a 2-fo01 over-dredge allowance (overdepth). The proposed project would also nclude the nstallaton of a foot long 3- foot-thck. and 60- to 65-fool-deep solcement-bentonte barrer along the waterfront n order to prevent m xn g of shallow (tdal) groundwater wth stablzed sump materal rema nng from pror ol processng and remedaton actvtes. 7

8 Dred gn g Wharf EXCllv:lton and Stablzaton of Rack C hannel n order to mprove navgatonal safety wthn the Back Channel. the proposed project would also nvolve dredgng the Back Channel to a wdth of 323 feet and a depth or 52 feet (M LL W) plus up to 2 reet or overdepth. and dredgng the Back Channel Turnng Basn at pers C. D. and S to a dameter of feet and a depth of -52 feet (M LL W) plus up to 2 fect of overdepth. Total volumes of dredged and excavated materal would be approxmately cubc yards of channel sedment and approx mately cubc yards of rock and sol from the adjacent wharr. Smlar to Cerrtos Channel the Back Channel sde slopes would be stablzed through the nstall aton of a sol cement embankment stablzaton on both sdes of the Back Channel and rnecessary. at the turnng basn. as wel l as through the placement of approxmately tons of rp-rap on the exposed slope. )e r S Wharf At presenl the Per S shorelne conssts of a rocky slope along a non-unrorm algnment and depth. mprovements to the shore lne and adjacent upland areas are proposed n order to safely and effcently accommodate larger class. modern contaner transport vessels. Specfcally. these mprovements would nclude the nstallaton of approxmately tons of mported quarry rock lo r eroson protecton. nstallaton of approxmately concrete support p les (up to 110 feet n length). and constructon of a lnear- loot. steel-renforced concrete wharf and assocated crane rals and utltes. Cont:lner Termnal The proposed project would nclude constructon of a new 160-acre contaner termnal at Per S. ncludng LEEO-cert f ed termnal buldngs abovc and below-ground utltes. storm dran system. 12 ral-mounted electrc-powered gantry cranes. and ntennodal ral yard (O-oadng tracks). served by a new lead track along the termnal's southwest corner. Modfcaton of Exstng F:lcltes and nfrastructure n order to allow for navgatonal safety n thc Back Channel the proposed project would nvolve removal of an abandoned powcr plant ntake structure (Long Beach Generat ng Staton). relocaton of an ol faclty. realgnment of approxmately feet of the exstng Per T east lead track. and potental modfcatons to the outfall structure of the adjacent Long Beach Generatng Staton.»sposal of Dredged and Exc:wated Wharf M:ttcr<ll The proposed project would nclude dsposal of approxmately cubc yards of dredged materal and cubc yards of excavated wharf matcral from Cerrtos ChanneL and cubc yards of dredged materal and approx mately cubc yards or excavated wharf materal from Back C hannel at the prevously approved Mddle Harbor Redevelopmcnt landflls (.e.. Pers D. E. and F). frequred by tmng or capacty constrants at the Mddle Harbor stes. a small amount of chemcally-sutable dredged materal could be dsposed of at the Western Anchorage Dsposal Ste and the approved LA -2 ocean dsposal ste follo\vng testng and agency approval. NEPA (40 C.F.R [a]) and CEQA Gudelnes ( ) req ure that an ES and an ER examne a range of reasonable alternatves to a project that meet most of the basc project objectves. whle reducng tbe severty of potentally sgnfcant envronmental mpacts. Addtonall y. when proposed mpacts fall wthn Clean Water Act jursdcton. alternatves must be evaluated pursuant to the Clean Water Act Secton404(b)(1) Gudelnes (Gudelnes) (40 CFR 230). The purpose of these gudelnes s to restore and mantan the chemcal. physcal. and bologcal ntegrty of waters of the U.S. through thc control of dscharges of dredged or fll materal. As 8

9 stpulated n the Gudelnes. dredged or fll mater al should 110t be dscharged nto the aquatc ecosystem. unless t can be demonstrated that such a dscharge would not have an unacceptable adverse mpact ether ndvdually or n combnaton wth known andlor probable mpacts of other actvtes affectng the ecosystems of concern. Consstent w th these gudelnes. the USACE s requred 10 select the least envronmentally damagng practcable alternat ve (LEDPA). The followng alternatves were cons dered durng preparaton of tle Draft ES/ER. ncludng al ternat ve termnal confguratons and locatons: ) Stes olltsde the Port of Long Beach: 2) Alternatve stes wthn the Port of Long Beach: 3) Ral yard alternatve: 4) Auto termnal alternatve: 5) Three-Berth Alternatve - Contaner Termnal wth Ral Access Full-Length Wharf. and Back Channel mprove ments (Proposed Project): 6) Two-Berth Alternatve - Contaner Termnal w th Ral Access. Reduced-Length Wharf. and Back C han nel mprovements: 7) Mult-Use Storage Alternat ve (No Federal Acton) - Mult-Use Storage Fac l ty w thout Wharf or Back Channel mprovements: and. 8) No Project Alternatve. All except the No Project Alternat ve would meet at least some of the basc objectves of the Projecl. Three of the seven alternatves met the majorty o f the Proposed Project's objectves and were selected \0 be carred fo rward for detaled analys s (Drafl ES/ER. Secton 1.6.3). A lternatves consdered but not carred forward are d scussed n Draft ES/ER Sect on For addtonal nformaton please contact John W.Markham of' my staff at (805) or john.w.markham@usace.army. ml. Ths publc not ce s ssued by the Chef. Regulatory D vson. 9

10 PORT OF LONG BEACH CHAPTER 1 NTRODUCTON A ND PROJECT DESCRPTON Pasadena E Monte "\---7 nglewood To rra nce Car&On compt on Norwalk Fullerton > )' _ Anahem GlrdenGrove \... " Rancho Pllos Verdes Project Ste Seal Beach - - Pacfc Ocean Huntngton Belch Newporl 8elch UapArea NTS P ER S MARNE TERMNAL & BACK CHANNEL MPROVEMENTS Fgure 1-1 Project Locaton 4'rn SCREENCHECK DRAFT ESER - JULY 2011

11 PORT OF LONG BEACH EXECUTVE SUMllARY / / / / / Per B / / / / / Per A Per C > PeTT NO to Scale Project Ste Boundary P----_. -. >. Source Cahlorma GcospaMllnformallon Lbrary.. nd Soulhe'fl ea fomla Assoc>aHOn of Gocmmerlls. NTS PER S NE TERMNAL & BACK CKl\NNEL M'ROVENTS &5 Fgure ES-1 Proect Locaton 411< SCREENCHECK DRAFT ESlER JllY 2011

12 PORT OF LONG BEACH CHAPTER 1 NTRODUCTON AND PROJECT OESCRPTON (... NTS PER S MARNE TE RMNAL & BACK CHANNEL MPROVEMENTS 1-23 Fgure 1-4 Dredge Footpnnt 4' " SCREENC HECK DRAFT ESER - JULY 2011

13 PORT OF LONG BEACH CHAPTER 1 NTRODUCTON AND PROJECT DESCRPTON Table 1-1. Per S Project Alternatves Operatons Summary Three-Berth Alternatve Two-Berth Alternatve Mult-Use Storage Alternatve No Project Alternatve Gross Ste Acreage 160 acres 150 acres 150 acres 150 acres Wharf Length 3200 feet 2800 feel NA NA Dredged Maleral from Cerrtos cy { cy for cy ( cy for Channel and Back Channel Cerrtos Channel and Cerrtos Channel and for the Back for he Back Channel) Channel) Dredge Depth feel MLLW -54 to -62 feet MLLW NA NA Dredge Footprnt 51.0 acres 44.3 acres NA NA mported Rock for Constructon ncludng Back Channel tons tons NA NA Wharf Excavalon (Upland) cy cy NA NA New Waler Surface Area 10.3 acres 9.4 acres NA NA Contaner Cranes on Wharf 12 8 none none Buldng Constructon 13 buldngs 13 buldngs 5 buldngs none Truck Gales 1 prmary 1 secondary 1 prmary 1 secondary 1 prmary none Ral Yard 10 tracks 1480 feel each 10 tracks 1480 feet each NA NA Ral Yard Acreage 17 (16.8) acres 17 (1 6.8) acres NA NA Constructon Perod NA Full Capacty (year) NA Throughput (2013) 1.05 mllon TEU 1.05 mllon TEU 0.56 mllon TEU NA Throughput (full capacty year) 1.8 mllon TEU 1.33 mllon TEU 1.27 mllon TEU NA Daly Truck Trps (2013) NA Daly Truck Trps (2020) NA Daly On-Dock Tran Trps (2020) * none NA Daly Off-Dock Tral Trps (2020) NA NA NA PER S MARNE TERMNAL & BACK CHANNEL MPROVEMENTS " SCREENCHECK DRAFT ESJER - JULY 20 11

14 PORT OF LONG BEACH CHAPTER 1 NTRODUCTON AND PROJECT DESCRPTON Table 1-1. Per 5 Project Alternatves Operatons Summary Three-Berth Alternatve Two-Berth Alternatve Mult-Use Storage Alternatve No Project Alternatve Annual Vessel Calls NfA NfA Source: Port of Long Beach July 2006 updated March 2011 'The hgher daly on-dock tra n trps for the Two-Berth Alternatve ndcate the dfference n footprnt between the two alternatves. As Three-Berth Alternatve occupes a larger development footprnt. t accommodates few daly tran trps compared to the Two-Be rth Alternatve. PER S MARNE TERMNAL & BACK CHANNEL MPROVEMENTS l1< SCREENCHECK DRAFT ESER - JULY 2011

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