Notice2025-17300
Notice of Intent To Prepare a Supplemental Environmental Impact Statement for the Sabine Pass to Galveston Bay Coastal Storm Risk Management and Ecosystem Restoration Project, Orange County, TX
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Published
September 9, 2025
Issuing agencies
Defense DepartmentEngineers Corps
Abstract
The Galveston District, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) intends to prepare a Draft Supplemental Environmental Impact Statement (SEIS) for the Sabine Pass to Galveston Bay, Orange County Project consistent with the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969 (NEPA, Pub. L. 91-190) as amended. On October 2, 2018, the Record of Decision (ROD) was signed for the Sabine Pass to Galveston Bay, Texas Coastal Storm Risk Management and Ecosystem Restoration Final Integrated Feasibility Report and Environmental Impact Statement (FIFR-EIS). The FIFR-EIS evaluated three distinct separable elements (projects) using a region-wide systems approach in Orange County, Port Arthur and Vicinity, and Freeport and Vicinity. The Orange County Project is currently in the pre-construction engineering and design phase (PED). The USACE is currently evaluating alternative alignments for the Orange County Project based on new technical analyses and stakeholder engagement. The currently identified alignments differ in location and the magnitude of environmental impacts from those evaluated in the FIFR-EIS. In accordance with NEPA and the Department of Defense NEPA implementing procedures, the USACE will prepare a SEIS to document and disclose the impacts of substantial changes to the proposed action and new information that are relevant to environmental concerns. The USACE is seeking public input on the scope of the SEIS, effects, additional alternatives, public concerns, and relevant information, studies, or analyses for the proposed action.
Full Text
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<title>Federal Register, Volume 90 Issue 172 (Tuesday, September 9, 2025)</title>
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[Federal Register Volume 90, Number 172 (Tuesday, September 9, 2025)]
[Notices]
[Pages 43419-43420]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [<a href="http://www.gpo.gov">www.gpo.gov</a>]
[FR Doc No: 2025-17300]
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DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE
Department of the Army, Corps of Engineers
Notice of Intent To Prepare a Supplemental Environmental Impact
Statement for the Sabine Pass to Galveston Bay Coastal Storm Risk
Management and Ecosystem Restoration Project, Orange County, TX
AGENCY: Corps of Engineers, Department of the Army, DoD.
ACTION: Notice of intent to prepare a draft supplemental environmental
impact statement for the Sabine Pass to Galveston Bay Coastal Storm
Risk Management and Ecosystem Restoration Project, Orange County,
Texas.
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SUMMARY: The Galveston District, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE)
intends to prepare a Draft Supplemental Environmental Impact Statement
(SEIS) for the Sabine Pass to Galveston Bay, Orange County Project
consistent with the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969 (NEPA,
Pub. L. 91-190) as amended. On October 2, 2018, the Record of Decision
(ROD) was signed for the Sabine Pass to Galveston Bay, Texas Coastal
Storm Risk Management and Ecosystem Restoration Final Integrated
Feasibility Report and Environmental Impact Statement (FIFR-EIS). The
FIFR-EIS evaluated three distinct separable elements (projects) using a
region-wide systems approach in Orange County, Port Arthur and
Vicinity, and Freeport and Vicinity. The Orange County Project is
currently in the pre-construction engineering and design phase (PED).
The USACE is currently evaluating alternative alignments for the Orange
County Project based on new technical analyses and stakeholder
engagement. The currently identified alignments differ in location and
the magnitude of environmental impacts from those evaluated in the
FIFR-EIS. In accordance with NEPA and the Department of Defense NEPA
implementing procedures, the USACE will prepare a SEIS to document and
disclose the impacts of substantial changes to the proposed action and
new information that are relevant to environmental concerns. The USACE
is seeking public input on the scope of the SEIS, effects, additional
alternatives, public concerns, and relevant information, studies, or
analyses for the proposed action.
DATES: Public scoping comments should be submitted on or before October
9, 2025, electronically or mailed as written letters. One public
scoping meeting will be held on September 17, 2025, from 6:00 p.m. to
8:00 p.m. at the Orange County Convention and Expo Center, 11475 FM
1442, Orange, Texas 77630.
ADDRESSES: Submit all electronic public comments via email to Dr. Raven
Blakeway: <a href="/cdn-cgi/l/email-protection#4d1e7f0a023f2c232a280e22382339340d383e2c2e28632c3f203463202421"><span class="__cf_email__" data-cfemail="e8bbdaafa79a89868f8dab879d869c91a89d9b898b8dc6899a8591c6858184">[email protected]</span></a> or via online comment form at
the project website below. Written comments may be mailed to U.S. Army
Corps of Engineers, Galveston District, ATTN: Dr. Raven Blakeway
(RPEC), 2000 Fort Point Road, Galveston, TX 77550.
Pertinent information about the study and online comment form can
be found at: <a href="https://www.swg.usace.army.mil/S2G/OrangeCounty/">https://www.swg.usace.army.mil/S2G/OrangeCounty/</a>.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Questions or comments regarding the
proposed Draft SEIS can be addressed by contacting Dr. Raven Blakeway
by phone at 409-790-9058 or by emailing at
<a href="/cdn-cgi/l/email-protection#dc8fee9b93aebdb2bbb99fb3a9b2a8a59ca9afbdbfb9f2bdaeb1a5f2b1b5b0"><span class="__cf_email__" data-cfemail="5704651018253639303214382239232e1722243634327936253a2e793a3e3b">[email protected]</span></a>.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
1. Authority. The Sabine Pass to Galveston Bay, Texas Coastal Storm
Risk Management and Ecosystem Restoration (S2G) study described in the
Final Integrated Feasibility Report and Environmental Impact Statement
(FIFR-EIS) was conducted under the ``Coastal Texas Protection and
Restoration Study'' authority, Senate resolution dated June 23, 2004,
in accordance with Section 110 of the Rivers and Harbors Act of 1962.
The FIFR-EIS was completed in May 2017 and the Chief of Engineers
Report was signed December 7, 2017. The ROD was signed by the Assistant
Secretary of the Army, Civil Works on October 2, 2018. Construction was
authorized under section 1401(3)(3) of the Water Resources Development
Act of 2018 (Pub. L. 115-270) and the project received appropriations
to construct under the Bipartisan Budget Act of 2018 (Pub. L. 115-123).
The lead agency for this action is the USACE and the non-federal
sponsor is the Gulf Coast Protection District (GCPD).
2. Background. The purpose of the proposed action is to provide
coastal storm risk management by addressing storm surge threats through
protecting critical infrastructure and people, reducing structural
damage, lessening financial and social burdens following storm events,
and increasing the counties' ability to respond to natural hazards and
build resiliency to long-term impacts associated with sea level rise
and land subsidence. Orange County, TX (project area) has sustained
several major historical surge events in the past 120 years that have
resulted in significant impacts on infrastructure
[[Page 43420]]
and residents, coastal shorelines, marshes, and forested wetlands
prompting the need to reduce coastal storm risks.
The USACE prepared the S2G FIFR-EIS to document the feasibility of
reducing coastal storm risks and included identification of a
Recommended Plan that proposed a new approximately 26.7-mile-long levee
and floodwall system along the edge of the Sabine and Neches River
floodplains in Orange County, and to raise or reconstruct 11.6 miles
and 18.2 miles of existing levees and floodwalls for Port Arthur and
Freeport vicinities, respectively. The S2G Recommended Plan was divided
into three distinct project areas: Port Arthur, Freeport, and Orange
County as separable elements (projects) for the Preconstruction,
Engineering, and Design (PED) and construction phases. The projects are
in various stages of design and construction. The Orange County Project
has moved from the feasibility phase to PED, which involves completing
detailed engineering, design, and technical studies needed to begin
construction. In response to new information resulting from additional
technical studies, stakeholder engagement, and collection of site-
specific data, alternatives that would modify the Recommended Plan for
the Orange County Project are being considered.
Following the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969 (NEPA, Pub.
L. 91-190) as amended, and Department of Defense NEPA implementing
procedures, the USACE determined that a Draft Supplemental
Environmental Impact Statement (SEIS) would be prepared because the
agency (i) made substantial changes to the proposed action that are
relevant to environmental concerns and (ii) there are substantial new
circumstances or information about the significance of the adverse
effects that bear on the proposed action or its effects.
In the S2G FIFR-EIS, the Orange County Project was estimated to
result in the direct and indirect loss of 69.5 acres of forested
wetlands and 2,340.2 acres of estuarine marsh, of which would be offset
through restoration of 453 acres of estuarine marsh and preservation of
559.5 acres of forested wetlands. The impacts expected to be evaluated
in the SEIS include additional short- and long-term effects to existing
aquatic and terrestrial habitats, fish and wildlife including federally
protected species and their habitat, water quality, noise, protected
lands, recreation features, and viewshed. Compensatory mitigation is
expected to be required to address impacts to aquatic habitats and
federally protected species. Additional details related to these
effects and other relevant data collection will be described in the
Draft SEIS.
3. Alternatives. The Draft SEIS will compare the Recommended Plan,
as described in the Chief's Report and FIFR-EIS for the Orange County
Project and proposed alternative alignments and system changes
identified during PED. More specifically, analyses in PED have resulted
in recommendations to increase the height of levees and floodwalls,
modify the lengths of these features, increase the number of pump
stations, include interior drainage channels, and shift the alignment
to be closer to the Sabine River. The Draft SEIS will evaluate
reasonably foreseeable effects of the proposed design changes in the
Recommended Plan including potential adverse and beneficial impacts to
the human and natural environments that balance the interests of
coastal storm risk management and environmental impacts. The USACE
requests comments on alternatives or effects and relevant information,
studies, or analyses with respect to the proposed action (NEPA Sec.
107(c); 42 U.S.C. 4336a(c)).
4. Public Participation. Scoping completed prior to and after
publication of this NOI will be used to develop the Draft SEIS. The
scoping comment period begins with publication of this notice and ends
on October 9, 2025. All substantive comments received during the
scoping period may be used to identify or modify alternatives, or to
supplement or improve analyses, not previously considered that should
be evaluated in the Draft SEIS. Additional comments received outside of
the scoping period will be considered prior to the Draft SEIS public
review period, to the extent possible.
One public scoping meeting is scheduled for September 17, 2025. A
Public Notice was published for the scoping meeting on the Galveston
District website, the Legal Notices section of the Orange Leader and
Beaumont Enterprise, and the S2G Orange County Project website. Public
news releases included the scoping period timeframe, public meeting
date, time, location, and where to send comments. The news releases
were also distributed to the local stakeholders and known interested
parties.
5. Coordination. The USACE will serve as the lead federal agency in
the preparation of the Draft SEIS. Federal and state agencies have been
invited to participate throughout the study process as Cooperating or
Participating Agencies. The following agencies have accepted:
Environmental Protection Agency, National Marine Fisheries Service,
Texas Commission of Environmental Quality, Texas Parks and Wildlife
Department, Texas General Land Office, and Texas Water Development
Board. Further coordination with environmental agencies will be
conducted under the Fish and Wildlife Coordination Act, the Endangered
Species Act, the Clean Water Act, the Coastal Zone Management Act, the
National Historic Preservation Act, and the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery
Conservation and Management Act.
6. Schedule. The USACE currently estimates that the Draft SEIS will
be available for public review and comment in or around mid- to late-
2026. At that time, the USACE will provide a 45-day public review
period for individuals and agencies to review and comment. The USACE
will notify all interested agencies, organizations, and individuals of
the availability of the draft document at that time. A Final SEIS and
Record of Decision are expected in mid- to late-2027.
Seth W. Wacker,
Colonel, U.S. Army, Commanding.
[FR Doc. 2025-17300 Filed 9-8-25; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE: P
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