Three new alternatives to be analyzed
The Bureau of Reclamation and the California Department of Water Resources have filed notice in the federal register of their intent to prepare a partially Recirculated Draft Environmental Impact Report/Supplemental Draft Environmental Impact Statement (RDEIR/SDEIS) on the Draft Bay Delta Conservation Plan and Natural Community Conservation Plan.
The RDEIR/SDEIS will describe and analyze refinement of the resource area analyses, alternatives, and actions, including additional alternatives that describe conveyance alternatives that do not contain all the elements of a Habitat Conservation Plan/Natural Communities Conservation Plan that are described in the previously circulated Draft Environmental Impact Report/Environmental Impact Statement (EIR/EIS).
Specifically, three new alternatives for conveyance facilities will be evaluated: Alternative 4A with three intakes, Alternative 2D with five intakes, and Alternative 5A with one intake. Should one of these new alternatives be chosen, they would be analyzed through the interagency consultation process as described under Section 7 of the Federal Endangered Species Act and the California Endangered Species Act through Section 2081(b) of the California Fish & Game Code.
Further, the recirculated documents will evaluate alternatives to support a determination of the Least Environmentally Damaging Practicable Alternative by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers.
You can read the full notice online here: Notice of Intent To Prepare a Recirculated Draft Environmental Impact Report/Supplemental Draft Environmental Impact Statement to the Draft Environmental Impact Statement on the Bay Delta Habitat Conservation Plan and Natural Community Conservation Plan for the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta, California
Or in the actual federal register here: 2015-14649 BDCP NOI printed 15Jun15
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