The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, St. Paul District, is extending the comment period for its draft Environmental Assessment for the Lower Pool 4 dredged material management plan.
According to the Corps, the new deadline is August 25.
The latest extension assures the Corps’ stakeholders and the public have sufficient time to provide written comments associated with the draft plan.
“ After receiving requests from local stakeholders to extend the deadline earlier this week, I decided an extension would provide the opportunity to ensure we have a common understanding of the way forward to complete the plan collaboratively ,” said Col. Sam Calkins, St Paul District commander .
USACE will begin the next step in the process once the comment period expires. This involves continued coordination with federal, state and local partners to ensure we explore all options and develop an affordable and acceptable plan.
The final plan will also establish the Federal Standard, which is the Corps’ regulation requiring the least costly, environmentally acceptable option. The Federal Standard will be used to compare alternate options as the Corps works with its partners to explore ways to reduce impacts to communities and implement locally preferred options.
The draft plan outlines the Corps’ requirement to remove and permanently place more than 10 million cubic yards of dredged material from the Mississippi River’s Lower Pool 4 during the next 40 years. The plan, once finalized, will serve as the framework for maintaining the 9-foot navigation channel.