Environmental Impact Statement: Cowlitz County, Washington

Daniel Mathis
Federal Highway Administration
September 10, 2015

[Federal Register Volume 80, Number 175 (Thursday, September 10, 2015)]
[Notices]
[Page 54654]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2015-22874]


-----------------------------------------------------------------------

DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION

Federal Highway Administration


Environmental Impact Statement: Cowlitz County, Washington

AGENCY: Federal Highway Administration (FHWA), Department of 
Transportation (DOT).

ACTION: Notice of Intent to prepare an environmental impact statement.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------

SUMMARY: The FHWA is issuing this notice to advise the public that an 
environmental impact statement (EIS) will be prepared for a proposed 
highway project in Cowlitz County, Washington.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Liana Liu, Area Engineer, Federal 
Highway Administration, 711 South Capitol Way, Suite 501, Olympia, 
Washington 98501; telephone: (360) 753-9553; email: Liana.Liu@dot.gov. 
Washington State Department of Transportation (WSDOT) agency contact: 
Barb Aberle, Southwest Region Environmental Manager, Washington State 
Department of Transportation; telephone: (360) 905-2186; email: 
AberleB@wsdot.wa.gov. Cowlitz County agency contact: Claude Sakr, 
Project Manager, Cowlitz County Public Works, 1600 13th Avenue South, 
Kelso, WA 98626; email: IndustrialOregonWay@co.cowlitz.wa.us.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The FHWA, in cooperation with WSDOT and 
Cowlitz County, will prepare an EIS on the Industrial Way/Oregon Way 
Intersection Project to provide improvements at the intersection of 
State Route (SR) 432 and SR 433 to reduce congestion, increase freight 
mobility, and improve safety. Improvements to the intersection are 
considered necessary to meet forecasted long term vehicular traffic 
growth.
    Preliminary alternatives under consideration include: (1) Taking no 
action; (2) raising the intersection to completely separate highway 
traffic from train traffic; and (3) making at-grade highway 
improvements; (4) a combination of raising the highway intersection 
while retaining some roadway at-grade access.
    The FHWA along with WSDOT and Cowlitz County are holding a public 
scoping meeting on September 17, 2015, from 5:00 p.m. to 7:00 p.m. at 
the Cowlitz PUD Auditorium in Longview, Washington to solicit public 
comments regarding scope of issues to be addressed in the EIS. The 
public were notified of these meetings on September 4, 2015 in a flyer 
mailed to interested parties and residents in the vicinity of the 
project as well as published in a legal notice in The Columbian and The 
Daily News. The meeting will use an open-house format and will begin 
with a presentation to provide an overview of the project. Exhibits, 
maps, and other pertinent information about this project will be 
displayed. Staff will be present to answer questions as appropriate and 
as time permits.
    Agencies, Tribes, and the public are encouraged to submit comments 
on the purpose and need and preliminary range of alternatives during 
the scoping period. Comments must be received by October 12, 2015, to 
be included in the formal scoping record. To ensure that the full range 
of issues related to this proposed action is addressed, and all the 
significant issues identified, comments and suggestions are invited 
from interested parties during the scoping period. Comments concerning 
this proposal will be accepted at the public meeting or can be sent by 
mail to: Claude Sakr, Project Manager, Cowlitz County Public Works, 
1600 13th Avenue South, Kelso, WA 98626, or by email to: 
IndustrialOregonWay@co.cowlitz.wa.us.

(Catalog of Federal Domestic Assistance Program Number 20.205, 
Highway Planning and Construction. The regulations implementing 
Executive Order 12372 regarding intergovernmental consultation on 
Federal programs and activities apply to this program.)

Daniel Mathis,
Division Administrator, Washington Division, Federal Highway 
Administration.
[FR Doc. 2015-22874 Filed 9-9-15; 8:45 am]
 BILLING CODE 4910-22-P