FEIS Summary - Knik Arm Bridge and Toll Authority

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Knik Arm Crossing Final EIS Summary Exhibit S-24. Mitigation Measures and Commitments for the Recommended Alternative (continued) EIS section 4.8.8.2. Environmental Conseq uences section title Fish and Essential Fish Habitat Anadromous Fish Marine Fish Freshwater Fish 4.8.8.3 Birds Freshwater birds Terrestrial birds Marine Birds Shore birds Bald eagles Other marine bird species Mitigation Measures and Commitments Based on extensive agency consultation, FHWA and KABATA will employ the following conservation and mitigation measures to avoid, minimize, or mitigate adverse impacts to essential fish habitat (EFH): • To reduce the risk of directly covering fish during the months of April through August and to minimize the amount of fill lost to tidal erosion, initial fill for intertidal roadway and bridge approach construction activities will be placed when the construction area is dewatered. Intertidal construction techniques that help minimize fish entrapment and loss of fill to tidal erosion will be employed. • Any in-water filling in the subtidal areas during the months of April through August will be accomplished during the 3 hours on either side of low tide—when volumes and currents would be lowest—to reduce the risk of directly covering fish and to minimize the amount of loss of fill due to erosion. To the extent practicable, filling in the subtidal areas will be accomplished during the months of September through March, when juvenile and adult salmon will be less likely to be present. • Pile driving would be conducted, to the greatest extent practicable, during the December to mid-August time period. • Between August 15 and November 15, pile driving in subtidal waters will not be conducted 1.5 hours before or after low tide. • A “soft start” technique will be used at the beginning of each pile-driving installation to allow anadromous fish in the area to leave before impact pile driving reaches full energy. • BMPs, developed in accordance with ADOT&PF’s Alaska Storm Water Pollution Prevention Plan Guide (ADOT&PF 2004 in the EIS) and USEPA’s Stormwater Management for Construction Activities: Developing Pollution and Prevention Plans and Best Management Practices (USEPA 1992 in the EIS) will be employed to minimize the introduction of suspended sediment and silt to Knik Arm. • To minimize and prevent spills or leaks of hazardous materials during construction, standard spill-prevention measures will be implemented in accordance with the contractor’s approved “Spill Prevention, Control and Countermeasures Plan.” • All construction fueling and servicing operations will be kept a minimum of 100 feet from wetlands, freshwater bodies, and Knik Arm. • Contaminant-free embankment and surface materials will be used in construction. • The use of BMPs that minimize dust, erosion, and sediment runoff will mitigate any temporary, adverse, water-quality construction-related impacts to freshwater EFH. The contractor shall be responsible for developing a SWPPP to meet ADEC and USEPA requirements under the Clean Water Act. • While the Anchorage Debit/Credit Methodology does not apply to tidal flats within Knik Arm, this general approach would be used to determine the appropriate level of compensation needed to offset intertidal EFH loss. KABATA would work with USACE to determine the area of tidal flats adversely affected, the appropriate relative ecological value (REV), and the compensation to be provided to Great Land Trust or other appropriate organizations. • To avoid and minimize area-wide indirect and cumulative impacts to anadromous streams, FHWA and KABATA have agreed to help fund a new staff position in the Mat-Su Borough for up to $100,000 per year for 2 years. This position will help develop a consolidated permitting process (“one-stop shopping”) and facilitate appropriate land use, development, and environmental planning efforts in the Borough associated with projected economics and population growth. In addition, FHWA and KABATA will help fund up to $70,000 to be used by the Mat-Su Borough for other priority work identified by the Mat Su Borough and other agencies to facilitate orderly land use planning and economic development. • KABATA is committed to following the evolution of sound attenuation technologies and will evaluate the suitability of future technologies for applicability during the construction stage of the project. Sixmile Creek To avoid impacts to anadromous fish in the tidal portion of Sixmile Creek, filling of the intertidal portion of Sixmile Creek will be restricted to lower tidal stages when fish would be less likely to be present. To avoid entrapping fish, temporary diversions will be designed so that the flow of the water body will not be impeded. Ship Creek Construction runoff would be intercepted to prevent direct discharge to Ship Creek, and the drainage system of the completed Anchorage approach would be designed to prevent direct discharge of stormwater runoff to the creek. Eagles To minimize the impact on bald eagles nesting near Cairn Point, detailed mitigation measures will be developed during the design and permitting phase of the project to ensure compliance with the Bald and Golden Eagle Protection Act. Mitigation measures for construction of the project will be incorporated into the construction contract specifications and any mitigation measures for operation of the project, if applicable, will be implemented as required. The following conservation measures, some of which are based on the National Bald Eagle Management Guidelines (USFWS 2007) are currently proposed to avoid, minimize, and mitigate impacts to bald eagles. These are general measures that will be modified to specifically address details of the Recommended Alternative through further coordination with USFWS during design and permitting: • Prior to construction, a survey will be conducted to reassess the activity of the nests in the Study Area and to determine whether other nests have been constructed in the Study Area. • Construction activities adjacent to the single known nest near Cairn Point will occur, to the greatest extent practicable, only during October through February, when eagles would not be nesting. • If determined necessary, FHWA, KABATA and USFWS will assess the risk for tree blow-down with the single known nest tree and adjacent trees. • FHWA and KABATA will work with USFWS to develop a detailed nest monitoring plan to detect disturbance from construction and pile-driving activities. • Nest monitors will be formally educated in the biological sciences and experienced in recognizing bald eagle behavioral patterns and any changes to those patterns; these monitors will have the ability to record such data in a scientific manner. • If obvious disturbance is observed, construction will cease until a further evaluation can be conducted to determine appropriate and necessary measures. Migratory birds Clearing of vegetation on lands for project-related development will occur before or after the nesting season (from May 1 to July 15 in Southcentral Alaska) to meet the requirements of the Migratory Bird Treaty Act (MBTA). Exhibit S-24 Mitigation Measures and Committments (continued on next page) S-58
Knik Arm Crossing Final EIS Summary Exhibit S-24. Mitigation Measures and Commitments for the Recommended Alternative (continued) EIS section Environmental Conseq uences section title Mitigation Measures and Commitments 4.8.8.4 Marine Mammals (belugas) Construction of this project will comply with the Marine Mammal Protection Act (MMPA), adhere to applicable laws and regulations, and follow specific permitting stipulations prescribed by NOAA Fisheries. Coordination with NOAA Fisheries has been ongoing during KAC project development. The following conservation measures will be incorporated to avoid, minimize, and mitigate impacts to marine mammals. These are general measures that will be modified to specifically address details of the Recommended Alternative through further coordination with resource agencies during the permitting and design stages of the project: • Impact pile driving will be conducted, to the greatest extent practicable, during the December through mid-August time period, when beluga whale numbers in Knik Arm are generally low. • During the fall, when beluga whales are present in the Arm in greater numbers (August 15 to November 15), impact pile driving in subtidal waters will not be conducted 1.5 hours before or after low tide, when whales are most likely to be in or near the construction area. • A “soft start” technique will be used at the beginning of each piling installation to allow any marine mammal that may be in the area to leave before impact piling reaches full energy. • Initially the marine mammal safety zones will be defined based on measurements made by the Project Team at the nearby Port MacKenzie dock reconstruction—with allowance for differences in pile size and pile-driver energy. • Sound generated by the pile driver will be measured and used to refine the radii of the safety zones for the marine mammals. • The safety zone around the pile-driving activity will be monitored for the presence of marine mammals before, during, and after pile-driving activity. The safety zone will be monitored for 30 minutes prior to initiating the soft start for pile driving. • If the safety radius is obscured by fog or poor lighting conditions, pile driving will not be initiated until the entire safety radius is visible. • No boat launch ramp facility will be constructed in association with the KAC Project. No direct access to tidelands will be provided. • If marine mammals are present in the safety zone (as confirmed by the monitors), the start of pile driving will be delayed until the animals leave the area. • If marine mammals enter the safety zone during pile driving, pile driving will cease until the animals leave the area (as confirmed by the monitors). • Two experienced marine mammal observers will be positioned at sites appropriate for monitoring whales and seals within and approaching the safety zone and the larger area where marine mammals might be disturbed by pile-driving operations. • Two trained boat-based marine mammal observers will survey Knik Arm and adjacent areas by boat once per week during pile driving to inform construction and shore-based observation personnel of whale group locations and the whale group’s exposure to the risk of approaching and/or entering the safety zone. • KABATA will develop and implement a Bridge Construction Monitoring and Reporting Plan. • KABATA is committed to following the evolution of sound attenuation technologies and will evaluate the suitability of future technologies for applicability during the construction stage of the project. 4.8.8.5 Terrestrial Wildlife/Mammals 4.8.9 Impacts on Threatened or Endangered Species 4.9 Cumulative Effects KABATA and FHWA may enter Conference or Consultation, as appropriate, with NOAA Fisheries depending on status of the Cook Inlet beluga whale. KABATA will coordinate all activities with local authorities (Anchorage and the Borough), communities (Anchorage and residents in the Point MacKenzie area), and subsistence users. A Plan of Cooperation will be developed between KABATA and the subsistence users in the region. This will ensure that construction and operational activities will not interfere with the hunting of beluga whales and harbor seals and will ensure that all activities are conducted safely. KABATA has committed $50,000 for additional study of moose in the Mat-Su project area (Point MacKenzie study area). Results from the moose study will be considered to determine what mitigation measures would be needed to avoid and minimize moose moose-vehicle accidents on Point MacKenzie Road. Measures might include: • identification of locations where appropriate warning signs could be erected • identification of areas where more extensive roadside clearing would improve lines-of-sight • the installation of lights to illuminate moose migration corridors In accordance with the Endangered Species Act (ESA) and concurrence from both USFWS and NOAA Fisheries, there are no species listed as threatened or endangered in the Project Area. On April 20, 2007, NOAA Fisheries listed the Cook Inlet beluga whale as a proposed endangered species under the ESA. Depending on the status of the Cook Inlet beluga whale, KABATA and FHWA may enter Conference or Consultation, as appropriate, with NOAA Fisheries. To mitigate indirect and cumulative impacts, FHWA and KABATA have agreed to help fund a new staff position in the Mat-Su Borough for up to $100,000 per year for 2 years. This position will help develop a consolidated permitting process (“one-stop shopping”) and facilitate appropriate land use, development, and environmental planning efforts in the Borough associated with projected economics and population growth. In addition, FHWA and KABATA will help fund up to $70,000 to be used by the Mat-Su Borough for other priority work identified by the Mat Su Borough and other agencies to facilitate orderly land use planning and economic development Exhibit S-24 Mitigation Measures and Committments S-59
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Knik Arm Crossing Final Environment
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Exhibit S‐1. Final EIS Document O
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Knik Arm Crossing Final EIS Summary
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FEIS Summary - Knik Arm Bridge and Toll Authority

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