Action
Adoption and Recirculation of Final Environmental Impact Statement and Final Supplemental Environmental Impact Statement; Participation as a Concurring Party to a Section 106 Programmatic Agreement; and Notice of Availability of a Draft Section 4(f)/303 Statement.
Summary
FRA is issuing this notice to advise the public and interested agencies that FRA has decided to adopt the Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) and Supplemental Environmental Impact Statement (SEIS) issued by the Surface Transportation Board (STB) for construction and operation of a new rail line and related improvements by the Dakota, Minnesota and Eastern Railroad Corporation (DM&E). Under applicable regulations, FRA is allowed to adopt and recirculate the STB's Final EIS and Final SEIS as its own, since FRA's proposed action is substantially the same as the action covered by the STB's EISs. The FRA further announces the availability of a draft Section 4(f)/303 Statement prepared for the Project by the FRA pursuant to Section 4(f) of the Department of Transportation Act (49 U.S.C. Sec. 303(c)). The draft Section 4(f)/303 Statement and STB's EISs are available and comments may be submitted as indicated below. This project, known as the Powder River Basin Expansion Project (Project), would involve construction of approximately 280 miles of new rail line to reach the coal mines of Wyoming's Powder River Basin and reconstruction of another approximately 600 miles of DM&E's existing rail line that would allow operation of unit coal trains along the reconstructed route to and from the new line. The Project takes place in the States of Minnesota, South Dakota and Wyoming. The DM&E has applied to the FRA for a $2.3 billion loan under the Railroad Rehabilitation and Improvement Financing (RRIF) program to finance the Project.