28 May 2009

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[Federal Register: May 28, 2009 (Volume 74, Number 101)]
[Notices]               
[Page 25572-25573]
From the Federal Register Online via GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov]
[DOCID:fr28my09-91]                         

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DEPARTMENT OF HOMELAND SECURITY

Coast Guard

[Docket No. USCG-2009-0097]

 
Notice of Availability of Draft Environmental Impact Statement 
and Announcement of Public Meetings for the Goethals Bridge Replacement 
Project

AGENCY: Coast Guard, DHS.

ACTION: Notice of availability and request for comments; notice of 
public meetings.

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SUMMARY: The Coast Guard announces the availability of a Draft 
Environmental Impact Statement (DEIS) and two public meetings, one in 
Staten Island, New York (NY) and one in Elizabeth, New Jersey (NJ), on 
the proposed replacement of the Port Authority of New York and New 
Jersey's (PANYNJ) Goethals Bridge across the Arthur Kill between Staten 
Island, NY, and Elizabeth, NJ. We request your comments on the Goethals 
Bridge Replacement DEIS.

DATES: Comments and related material must either be submitted to our 
online docket via http://www.regulations.gov on or before July 28, 2009 
or reach the Docket Management Facility by that date.
    Two public meetings will be held, one on Wednesday, July 8, 2009, 
from 4 p.m. to 8 p.m. and another on Thursday, July 9, from 4 p.m. to 8 
p.m. to provide an opportunity for oral comments. Any oral comments 
provided at the meeting will be transcribed and placed into the docket 
by the Coast Guard. Please note that the meetings may close early if 
all business is finished. Written comments and related material may 
also be submitted to Coast Guard personnel specified at that meeting 
for placement into the docket by the Coast Guard. The comment period 
for the DEIS closes on July 28, 2009. All comments and related material 
submitted after the meeting must either be submitted to our online 
docket via http://www.regulations.gov on or before July 28, 2009 or 
reach the Docket Management Facility by that date.

ADDRESSES: You may submit comments identified by docket number USCG-
2009-0097 using any one of the following methods:
    (1) Federal eRulemaking Portal: http://www.regulations.gov.
    (2) Fax: 202-493-2251.
    (3) Mail: Docket Management Facility (M-30), U.S. Department of 
Transportation, West Building Ground Floor, Room W12-140, 1200 New 
Jersey Avenue, SE., Washington, DC 20590-0001.
    (4) Hand delivery: Same as mail address above, between 9 a.m. and 5 
p.m., Monday through Friday, except Federal holidays. The telephone 
number is 202-366-9329.
    To avoid duplication, please use only one of these four methods. 
See the ``Public Participation and Request for Comments'' portion of 
the SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION section below for instructions on 
submitting comments.
    The Coast Guard First District Bridge Office at One South Street, 
Battery Park Building, New York, NY 10004-1466, will maintain a printed 
copy of the DEIS for public review. The document will be available for 
inspection or copying at this location between 9 a.m. and 3:30 p.m., 
Monday through Friday, except Federal holidays.
    The public meeting on Wednesday, July 8, 2009, will be held in the 
Council Chambers of Elizabeth City Hall, 50 Winfield Scott Plaza 
Elizabeth, NJ. The public meeting on Thursday, July 9, 2009, will be 
held in the Harbor Room, Staten Island Hotel, 1415 Richmond Avenue, 
Staten Island, NY. Please note that the meetings may close early if all 
business is finished.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: If you have questions regarding this 
notice or either of the public meetings, call or e-mail Gary Kassof, 
Bridge Program Manager, First Coast Guard District, U.S. Coast Guard; 
telephone 212-668-7165, e-mail gary.kassof@uscg.mil. If you have 
questions regarding viewing or submitting material to the docket, call 
Renee V. Wright, Program Manager, Docket Operations, telephone 202-366-
9826.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Public Participation and Request for Comments

    We encourage you to submit comments and related material on the 
Goethals Bridge Replacement DEIS. All comments received, including 
comments received at the public meetings, will be posted, without 
change, to http://www.regulations.gov and will include any personal 
information you have provided. Submitting comments: If you submit a 
comment, please include the docket number for this notice (USCG-2009-
0097) and provide a reason for each suggestion or recommendation. You 
may submit your comments and material online, by fax, mail, or hand 
delivery, but please use only one of these means. We recommend that you 
include your name and a mailing address, an e-mail address, or a 
telephone number in the body of your document so that we can contact 
you if we have questions regarding your submission.
    To submit your comment online, go to http://www.regulations.gov, 
select the Advanced Docket Search option on the right side of the 
screen, insert ``USCG-2009-0097'' in the Docket ID box, press Enter, 
and then click on the balloon shape in the Actions column. If you 
submit your comments by mail or hand delivery, submit them in an 
unbound format, no larger than 81/2 by 11 inches, suitable for copying 
and electronic filing. If you submit them by mail and would like to 
know that they reached the Facility, please enclose a stamped, self-
addressed postcard or envelope. We will consider all comments and 
material received during the comment period.
    Comments submitted to the docket are a matter of public record and 
need not be resubmitted at the meetings. Speakers are encouraged to 
provide written copies of their oral statements to the Coast Guard at 
the time and place of the meeting. Each written comment should also 
identify the proposed project including the docket number (USCG-2009-
0097), clearly state the reason for any objections, comments or 
proposed changes to the project and include the name and address of the 
person or organization submitting the comment. All comments received 
whether in writing or presented orally at the public meetings, will be 
fully considered before final agency action is taken on the proposed 
bridge permit action.
    Viewing the comments and the DEIS: To view the comments and the 
DEIS, go to http://www.regulations.gov, select the Advanced Docket 
Search option on the right side of the screen, insert USCG-2009-0097 in 
the Docket ID box, press Enter, and then click on the item in the 
Docket ID column. If you do not have access to the Internet, you may 
view the docket online by visiting the Docket Management Facility in 
Room W12-140 on the ground floor of the Department of Transportation 
West Building, 1200 New Jersey Avenue, SE., Washington, DC 20590, 
between 9 a.m. and 5 p.m., Monday through Friday, except Federal 
holidays. We have an agreement with the Department of Transportation to 
use

[[Page 25573]]

the Docket Management Facility. The DEIS is also available online at 
http://www.goethalseis.com/eis/ and is available for inspection at the 
First Coast Guard District address given under ADDRESSES.
    Copies of all written communications from the public meetings will 
be available for review by interested persons after the meetings on the 
Internet at http://www.goethalseis.com as well as on the Federal 
rulemaking docket at http://www.regulations.gov. Transcripts of the 
meetings will be available for public review approximately 30 days 
after the meetings. All comments will be made part of the rulemaking 
docket.
    Privacy Act: Anyone can search the electronic form of comments 
received into any of our dockets by the name of the individual 
submitting the comment (or signing the comment, if submitted on behalf 
of an association, business, labor union, etc.). You may review a 
Privacy Act, system of records notice regarding our public dockets in 
the January 17, 2008 issue of the Federal Register (73 FR 3316).

Background and Purpose

    The PANYNJ, a transportation and development agency in the Port of 
New York and New Jersey, has proposed replacement of the functionally 
and physically obsolete Goethals Bridge, which carries I-278 vehicular 
traffic between Staten Island, NY, and Elizabeth, NJ. Over the past two 
decades, PANYNJ studies have shown the need to: Address design 
deficiencies of the existing bridge; provide safer operating conditions 
and reduce accidents on the bridge; provide for safe and reliable truck 
access as part of the regional commercial network; reduce life-cycle 
costs; provide transportation system redundancy; and improve traffic 
service. The project consists of a new cable-stayed bridge to replace 
the existing bridge, which is proposed for demolition. The new bridge 
would consist of six 12-foot travel lanes, three on each roadway deck, 
inner and outer shoulders, a bikeway/sidewalk and a central area of 
sufficient width to accommodate the potential for a future transit 
system.
    As a structure over navigable waters of the United States, any 
replacement bridge requires a U.S. Coast Guard Bridge Permit pursuant 
to the General Bridge Act of 1946 (Title 33 U.S.C. 525-533). 
Additionally, the bridge permit would be the major Federal action in 
this undertaking since Federal funds will not be used, and therefore 
the Department of Homeland Security, through the United States Coast 
Guard is the Federal lead agency for review of potential effects on the 
human environment, including historic properties, pursuant to the 
National Environmental Policy Act of 1969 (NEPA), as amended (42 U.S.C. 
4321 et seq.) and the National Historic Preservation Act (NHPA), as 
amended (16 U.S.C. 470). The Coast Guard has prepared a DEIS. See 
``Viewing the comments and DEIS'' above. The DEIS identifies and 
examines the reasonable alternatives (including No Build) and assesses 
the potential for impact to the human environment, including historic 
properties, of the alternative proposals. The DEIS provides an in-depth 
analysis of four alternative build sites, two north and two south of 
the existing bridge.
    We are requesting your comments on environmental and historic 
preservation concerns that you may have related to the DEIS. This 
includes suggesting analyses and methodologies for use in the DEIS or 
possible sources of data or information not included in the DEIS. Your 
comments will be considered in preparing the final Environmental Impact 
Statement.

Information on Service for Individuals With Disabilities

    For information on facilities or services for individuals with 
disabilities or to request special assistance at the public meetings, 
contact Gary Kassof, Bridge Program Manager, First Coast Guard 
District, U.S. Coast Guard; at the telephone number or e-mail address 
indicated under the FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT section of this 
notice. Any requests for an oral or sign language interpreter must be 
received by June 24, 2009.

Public Meeting

    The Coast Guard will hold two public meetings regarding the DEIS:
    1. On Wednesday, July 8, 2009, from 4 p.m. to 8 p.m. in the Council 
Chambers of Elizabeth City Hall, 50 Winfield Scott Plaza, Elizabeth, 
NJ;
    2. On Thursday, July 9, 2009, from 4 p.m. to 8 p.m. in the Harbor 
Room of The Staten Island Hotel, 1415 Richmond Avenue, Staten Island, 
NY.
    The purpose of these meetings is to consider an application by the 
PANYNJ for Coast Guard approval of the location and plans of a proposed 
six lane fixed, vehicular bridge across Arthur Kill, mile 11.5 between 
Staten Island, NY, and Elizabeth, NJ, which would replace the existing 
Goethals Bridge. All interested parties may present data, views and 
comments, orally or in writing, concerning the impact of the proposed 
bridge project on navigation and the human environment. Of particular 
concern at this time is the impact the proposed action will have on the 
human environment and historic properties.
    The public meetings will be informal. A representative of the Coast 
Guard will preside, make a brief opening statement and announce the 
procedure to be followed at the meetings. Attendees who request an 
opportunity to present oral comments at a public meeting must sign up 
to speak at the meeting site at the designated time of the meeting. 
Speakers will be called in the order of receipt of the request. 
Attendees at the meeting, who wish to present testimony, and have not 
previously made a request to do so, will follow those having submitted 
a request, as time permits. All oral presentations will be limited to 
three minutes. Please note that the meetings may close early if all 
business is finished.
    This notice is issued under authority of the Administrative 
Procedure Act (5 U.S.C. 553 (c)); the General Bridge Act of 1946 (Title 
33 U.S.C. 525-533); and the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969 
(Section 102 (2)(c)), as implemented by the Council on Environmental 
Quality regulations (40 CFR parts 1500-1508), Department of Homeland 
Security Directive 023-01, and Coast Guard Commandant Instruction 
M16475.1D.

    Dated: May 21, 2009.
Hala Elgaaly,
Administrator, Bridge Program, United States Coast Guard.
[FR Doc. E9-12335 Filed 5-27-09; 8:45 am]

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