Notice2022-26834
Notice of Intent To Prepare a Supplemental Environmental Impact Statement (SEIS) for the International Falls Land Port of Entry Modernization and Expansion Project in International Falls, Minnesota
Primary source
Metadata and text below are from the Federal Register, a public-domain U.S. government work. Always verify the official published version before relying on it for any legal matter.
Published
December 9, 2022
Issuing agencies
General Services Administration
Abstract
The GSA intends to prepare a Supplemental Environmental Impact Statement (SEIS) and conduct the Section 106 Process of the National Historic Preservation Act (NHPA) to address proposed improvements at the International Falls Land Port of Entry (LPOE), including site expansion (up to 20.5 acres), demolition, and new construction. This NOI also announces the public scoping process for the SEIS.
Full Text
<html>
<head>
<title>Federal Register, Volume 87 Issue 236 (Friday, December 9, 2022)</title>
</head>
<body><pre>
[Federal Register Volume 87, Number 236 (Friday, December 9, 2022)]
[Notices]
[Pages 75630-75632]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [<a href="http://www.gpo.gov">www.gpo.gov</a>]
[FR Doc No: 2022-26834]
=======================================================================
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
GENERAL SERVICES ADMINISTRATION
[Notice-PBS-2022-07; Docket No. 2022-0002; Sequence No. 28]
Notice of Intent To Prepare a Supplemental Environmental Impact
Statement (SEIS) for the International Falls Land Port of Entry
Modernization and Expansion Project in International Falls, Minnesota
AGENCY: Public Buildings Service (PBS), General Services Administration
(GSA).
ACTION: Notice of Intent (NOI); Announcement of meeting.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
SUMMARY: The GSA intends to prepare a Supplemental Environmental Impact
Statement (SEIS) and conduct the Section 106 Process of the National
Historic Preservation Act (NHPA) to address proposed improvements at
the International Falls Land Port of Entry (LPOE), including site
expansion (up to 20.5 acres), demolition, and new construction. This
NOI also announces the public scoping process for the SEIS.
DATES: Public Scoping Period--Interested parties are invited to provide
comments regarding the scope of the SEIS. The public scoping period
begins with the publication of this NOI in the Federal Register and
continues until Friday, January 13, 2023. Written comments must be
received by the last day of the scoping period (see ADDRESSES section
of this NOI on how to submit comments).
Meeting Date--GSA will host a hybrid virtual and in-person public
and stakeholder meeting on Tuesday, December 13, 2022, from 6 p.m. to 8
p.m., Central Standard Time (CST). The purpose of the meeting is to
provide information on the project and to encourage public feedback on
the scope of the SEIS. The meeting will be primarily virtual in nature,
although members of the public may attend at the Koochiching County
Court Administration Building to view an online broadcast of the
meeting in person (see ADDRESSES section for location address). Refer
to the VIRTUAL PUBLIC MEETING INFORMATION section of this NOI on how to
access the online public meeting.
ADDRESSES: Meeting Location--The public may attend the virtual meeting
at the Koochiching County Court Administration building at 715 4th
Street, 3rd floor, International Falls, MN, 56649, to view the online
presentation in-person. A GSA staff member will be available (in-person
and virtually) to assist the public in providing public comments via
the virtual platform.
Public Scoping Comments
In addition to oral comments and written comments provided at the
public meeting, members of the public may also submit comments by one
of the following methods. All oral and written comments will be
considered equally and will be part of the public record.
<bullet> Email: <a href="/cdn-cgi/l/email-protection#acc1c5cfc4cdc9c082cbc3c2cfd6cddeeccbdfcd82cbc3da"><span class="__cf_email__" data-cfemail="0964606a61686c65276e66676a73687b496e7a68276e667f">[email protected]</span></a>. Please include
`International Falls LPOE SEIS' in the subject line of the message.
<bullet> Mail: ATTN: Michael Gonczar, International Falls LPOE
SEIS; U.S. General Services Administration, Region 5; 230 S. Dearborn
Street, Suite 3600, Chicago, IL 60604.
Virtual Public Meeting Information
The hybrid virtual public meeting will begin with presentations on
the NEPA and NHPA processes and the proposed project. A copy of the
presentation slideshow will be made available prior to the meeting at:
<a href="https://www.gsa.gov/real-estate/gsa-properties/land-ports-of-entry-and-the-bil/bipartisan-infrastructure-law-construction-project/minnesota">https://www.gsa.gov/real-estate/gsa-properties/land-ports-of-entry-and-the-bil/bipartisan-infrastructure-law-construction-project/minnesota</a>.
Following the presentation, there will be a moderated session during
which members of the public can provide oral comments on the SEIS.
Members participating virtually or attending in-person will be able to
comment. Commenters will be allowed 3 minutes to provide comments.
Comments will be recorded. Attendees can also provide written comments
at the public meeting should they not wish to speak.
Members of the public may join the SEIS virtual public meeting by
entering
[[Page 75631]]
the Meeting ID: 817 8441 8631, using any of the below methods, or by
using the following link <a href="https://us06web.zoom.us/j/81784418631">https://us06web.zoom.us/j/81784418631</a>. Note
that the meeting is best viewed through the Zoom app. Attendees are
encouraged to download the Zoom app at the Zoom website (<a href="https://zoom.us">https://zoom.us</a>) on their personal computer or on their mobile device and test
their connection prior to the meeting to ensure best results.
<bullet> By personal computer (via the Zoom app)--Install the Zoom
app at the Zoom website (<a href="https://zoom.us">https://zoom.us</a>) and launch the Zoom app.
Click `Join a Meeting' and enter the above Meeting ID. Follow the
prompts to enter your name and email address to access the meeting; or
<bullet> By personal computer (via the Zoom website)--Using your
computer's browser, go to the Zoom website at <a href="http://zoom.us/join">http://zoom.us/join</a> and
enter the above Meeting ID. Click `Join from your browser' and follow
the prompts to enter your name; or
<bullet> By mobile device (via the Zoom mobile app)--Install and
launch the Zoom app. Enter the above Meeting ID.
Whether joining through the Zoom app or web browser, attendees
should follow the prompts to connect their computer audio. Attendees
are encouraged to connect through the `Computer Audio' tab and click
`Join Audio by Computer' under the `Join Audio' button on the bottom of
their screen. Users who do not have a computer microphone and wish to
provide a comment during the meeting may connect by following the
prompts under the `Phone Call' tab under the `Join Audio' button.
For members of the public who do not have access to a personal
computer, they may join the meeting audio by dialing the following
number: 646 931 3860. When prompted, enter the following information:
Meeting ID-817 8441 8631, followed by the pound (#) key; then press
pound (#) again when prompted for a participant ID. Note, dialing in to
the meeting is only necessary if you are not accessing the meeting
through a personal computer or mobile app, or if you would like to
provide oral comments during the meeting but do not have a computer
microphone.
The public meeting will be recorded, and all comments provided will
become part of the formal record.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Michael Gonczar, NEPA Program Manager,
GSA, 312-810-2326, <a href="/cdn-cgi/l/email-protection#94f9fdf7fcf5f1f8baf3fbfaf7eef5e6d4f3e7f5baf3fbe2"><span class="__cf_email__" data-cfemail="711c18121910141d5f161e1f120b1003311602105f161e07">[email protected]</span></a>.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
Scoping Process
The purpose of the public scoping process is to identify relevant
issues that will influence the scope of analysis of the human and
natural environment including cultural resources. The scoping process
will be accomplished through a hybrid virtual and in-person public
scoping meeting, direct mail correspondence to appropriate federal,
state, and local agencies, and to private organizations and citizens
who have previously expressed, or are known to have, an interest in the
project. The SEIS will include public input on alternatives and
impacts.
The public scoping meeting will also initiate GSA's public
consultation required by NHPA. GSA seeks input at this meeting that
will assist the agency in planning for the Section 106 consultation
process. This includes identifying consulting parties, determining the
area of the undertaking's potential effects on cultural resources (Area
of Potential Effects), and seeking agreement regarding ways to avoid,
minimize, or mitigate adverse effects. Federal, state, and local
agencies, along with members of the public, are invited to participate
in the NEPA scoping and Section 106 consultation process.
The NHPA and NEPA are two separate laws which require federal
agencies to consider the impacts to historic properties and the human
environment before making decisions. NHPA and NEPA are independent
statutes, yet may be executed concurrently to optimize efficiencies,
transparency, and accountability to better understand the effects to
the human, natural, and cultural environment. The SEIS will be prepared
pursuant to the requirements of the NEPA of 1969, the Council on
Environmental Quality NEPA regulations, and the GSA Public Buildings
Service NEPA Desk Guide. GSA will also consult with appropriate parties
in accordance with Section 106 of the NHPA of 1966.
Opportunities for members of the public to become a consulting
party during the NHPA Section 106 process will be presented during the
public scoping meeting. You may submit a comment to express your
interest in being a consulting party if you cannot attend the meeting.
Background
The existing 1.6-acre LPOE is located on the south bank of the
Rainy River and serves as the port of entry to people and vehicles
crossing the International Bridge that connects International Falls,
Minnesota to the town of Fort Frances, Ontario, Canada. The
International Falls Land Port of Entry Improvements Study Final EIS,
released in 2011, assessed the potential environmental impacts
associated with the proposed action of replacing the undersized
International Falls LPOE with a new LPOE facility ``to improve safety,
security, and functionality.'' A total of ten build alternatives were
considered, and a preferred action alternative was identified. This
alternative would consist of demolishing the existing building,
constructing new facilities at the existing LPOE, and expanding the
LPOE to meet the required space standards and increased security
requirements of the Federal Inspection Services. This alternative would
move the majority of the LPOE improvements and operations to an
approximately 20-acre site southeast of the existing site between 4th
Street and Rainy River. GSA signed and released a Record of Decision in
January 2012 that identified a preferred alternative as it best
satisfied the purpose and needs of the project with the least overall
adverse impacts to the environment. The ROD stated that the preferred
alternative would have less-than-significant impacts on the natural and
social environment of the study area and International Falls, including
minor changes or impacts to surface water, surface water runoff,
traffic, increased lighting, and hazardous substances.
Since 2011, GSA has identified the following changes to the
project, which differ from the preferred alternative described in the
2011 EIS:
<bullet> There have been proposed changes in tenants and use of the
space. U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) no longer requires space
at the LPOE; however, the U.S. Department of Agriculture/Animal Plant
Health Inspection Services/-Plant Protection and Quarantine (USDA/
APHIS-PPQ), and U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) will need space
and facilities at the LPOE.
<bullet> The Packaging Corporation of America (PCA) has acquired
Boise, Inc. and has a different timber unloading operation occurring
adjacent to the proposed acquisition parcel, which will require
modifications to the original site plan.
<bullet> PCA's proposed trailer parking lot was shifted further
east (beyond First Creek) and includes a paved 90-trailer parking lot
for PCA, which will modify traffic patterns for the LPOE.
<bullet> A section of First Creek between Route 11 and the Rainy
River that was previously contained in a culvert was identified
following the 2011 EIS. The
[[Page 75632]]
culvert has been removed and is now daylighted, requiring impacts
analysis.
<bullet> There has been an increase in the proposed usable square
feet (USF) for overall building space needed from 42,282 to 80,611,
based on the addition of a maintenance building and expansion in the
sizes of all other buildings per updated agency requirements.
<bullet> Stormwater management would be redesigned in the 300-foot
section of First Creek due to two new areas of pavement crossing the
creek.
<bullet> The Resolute Paper Mill in Fort Frances, Ontario has since
closed and has decreased rail traffic.
GSA is preparing an SEIS to assess the potential impacts of these
updates, which were not assessed in the 2011 EIS.
Alternatives Under Consideration
GSA has preliminarily identified one action alternative that may be
assessed in the SEIS:
<bullet> Alternative 1: Full Build--Construct the facilities as
described in the Preferred Action Alternative assessed in the 2011 EIS
and modified by the 2018 project updates.
The No Action Alternative will also be considered to satisfy
federal requirements for analyzing ``no action'' under NEPA. Analysis
of this alternative will provide a baseline for comparison with impacts
from Alternative 1.
The SEIS will address the potential environmental impacts of the
proposed alternatives on environmental resources including geology and
soils, water resources, biological resources, air quality and climate
change, noise, traffic and transportation, land use and visual
resources, cultural resources, utilities, and human health and safety.
The EIS will also address the socioeconomic effects of the project, as
well as impacts on environmental justice populations. Impacts may occur
from air emissions, noise, and traffic delays associated with
construction; as well as soil disturbance from earth moving activities
and resultant sedimentation of nearby waterways. Long term benefits to
traffic and transportation, air quality, and the local economy are
expected from operations of the expanded and modernized LPOE and
associated improved traffic flows.
William Renner,
Director, Facilities Management and Services Programs Division, Great
Lakes Region 5, U.S. General Services Administration.
[FR Doc. 2022-26834 Filed 12-8-22; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6820-CF-P
</pre><script data-cfasync="false" src="/cdn-cgi/scripts/5c5dd728/cloudflare-static/email-decode.min.js"></script></body>
</html>Indexed from Federal Register on December 9, 2022.
This is legal information, not legal advice. Laws vary by jurisdiction and change frequently. Always verify current law with official sources and consult a licensed attorney in your jurisdiction for advice on your specific situation.