KANSAS CITY, Mo.— The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Kansas City District has studied flood risk management and reliability improvements for the seven levee units in the Kansas City metropolitan area and is seeking review and public comment on the information presented within the Draft Final Feasibility Report (DFFR).
The study was conducted at the request and with cooperation of the sponsors of the seven levee units under the authority of Section 216 of the 1970 Flood Control Act. Any comments received will be considered by the Corps of Engineers to determine whether to modify the recommendations within the report.
The purpose of the overall study of the seven levee units was to determine whether one or more plans for improvements to the existing levee system to reduce flood risk and improve levee reliability is technically viable, economically feasible, and environmentally acceptable, or if no action is warranted. Failure of any part of the existing flood risk management system during a major flood would have significant adverse impacts on the human environment including property damage and potential loss of human life.
The recommendations for the reliability improvements in the Armourdale and Central Industrial District (CID) units are addressed and available for review in the DFFR, which presents the completed feasibility analysis of alternatives for the Armourdale and CID levee units.
Proposed alternatives identified to improve flood risk management system reliability include, but are not limited to earthen levee raise, pump station modifications, floodwall replacement, stoplog and sandbag closures, pressure relief wells, floodwall modification using buttresses, and the no action alternative. DFFR analysis concluded that the nominal 500-year+3ft projected water surface elevation levee raise and underseepage improvements is the preferred alternative for both the Armourdale and CID units. The DFFR identifies a combination of measures as the Corps’ overall recommended plan for these two levee units and presents an analysis of the costs and impacts associated with the alternatives listed above.
NATIONAL ENVIRONMENTAL POLICY ACT (NEPA) OF 1969, as amended: Considering potential significant impacts on the human environment, and in accordance with the National Environmental Policy Act, the Corps prepared and released the Interim Feasibility Report (IFR) and Draft Environmental Impact Statement (DEIS) in June 2006 for a 45-day public review (Public Notice 200601672). The IFR and DEIS presented the feasibility analysis, no action, action alternatives, preferred alternatives and associated environmental impacts for the Argentine, East Bottoms, Fairfax-Jersey Creek, Birmingham, and North Kansas.
City levee units. Preliminary feasibility analysis, the no action alternative, action alternatives, tentatively preferred alternatives and associated environmental impacts for the Armourdale and CID units were also addressed in the IFR and DEIS. The tentatively preferred alternatives for Armourdale and CID were documented within the IFR and DEIS as the nominal 500-year+3 levee raise and underseepage improvements. A Section 404 of the Clean Water Act (33 USC 1344) compliance evaluation was included as Appendix H of the DEIS and Appendix J of the Final Environmental Impact Statement (FEIS) completed in August 2006.
PUBLIC INTEREST REVIEW: The Corps of Engineers is soliciting comments on the DFFR from the public, federal, state, and local agencies and officials, Indian Tribes and other interested parties in order to consider and evaluate the impacts of this proposed activity. Any comments received will be considered by the Corps of Engineers to determine whether to modify the recommendations within the report.
COMMENTS: Any interested party is invited to submit written comments relative to the DFFR on or before the public notice expiration date. Comments both favorable and unfavorable will be accepted, included within the project record and will receive full consideration in determining whether to modify report recommendations. Comments should be mailed to:
Kansas City District, Corps of Engineers
Kansas City Levees Project Manager
Room 529, PM-PF
601 E. 12th Street
Kansas City, MO 64106-2896
ADDITIONAL INFORMATION: The DFFR, previous IFR and FEIS may be viewed at the following website: www.nwk.usace.army.mil/Missions/CivilWorks/CivilWorksProgramsandProjects/KansasCitys,FloodRiskManagement, or may be obtained by writing to the address above, or by contacting the project manager at KC.LeveesComments@usace.army.mil.
A copy of this public notice may also be viewed at the following website: www.nwk.usace.army.mil/Missions/RegulatoryBranch.aspx. For more information, please contact the Public Affairs Office at (816) 389-3486.
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