Green River, Utah -  The Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS), with the Utah Department of Agriculture and Food (UDAF) as the project sponsor, are proposing to address flood damage on the Green River/Tusher Diversion Dam in Green River, Utah. The proposed project is located approximately 6.6 miles north of the city of Green River on North Long Street. The dam is also the only major obstruction to navigability on the Green River, between Flaming Gorge Dam and the confluence with the Colorado River.

The Public is invited to comment on the project and attend a public Telebriefing which will describe the current status of the project. Public input on the proposed alternatives, will help determine if new passage for boats and fish will be included in the project's scope of work. American Whitewater has requested this second public comment period, and we encourage paddlers to take advantage of the opportunity.

2nd Scoping Period:
Open: Wednesday, May 29, 2013 (12:00 a.m. MDT)
Close: Friday, June 28, 2013 (5:00 p.m. MDT)

Telebriefing #1
When: Wednesday, June 12, 2013
Time: Formal Presentation: 2:00 p.m. – 2:45 p.m. (MDT)
Informal Q&A: 2:45 p.m. – 4:00 p.m. (MDT)
Call: (800) 346-7359 (entry code 840561)

Telebriefing #2
When: Wednesday, June 12, 2013
Time: Formal Presentation: 6:00 p.m. – 6:45 p.m. (MDT)
Informal Q&A: 8:45 p.m. – 8:00 p.m. (MDT)
Call: (800) 346-7359 (entry code 840561)

Please call 15 minutes prior to the start of the Telebriefing and an operator will connect you to the meeting. Additional Telebriefing information will be posted to the project website prior to June 12, 2013. More project specific information is available by contacting Greg Allington (McMillen, LLC) with the project team by phone at (208) 342-4214 or email at greenriver@mcmillen-llc.com.
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Environmental Impact Statement
The NRCS conducted the 1st public scoping period for the project from October 30, 2012 to November 30, 2012 and a public meeting was held on November 15, 2012 at Green River City Hall in Green River, Utah. After the scoping period closed, NRCS consulted with the Utah State Historic Preservation Office under Section 106 of the National Historic Preservation Act regarding the project. It was determined that the diversion dam may be eligible for listing on the National Register of Historic Places and any modifications to the dam may be considered an “adverse effect” which may make it ineligible for listing after rehabilitation. Some of the impacts to the diversion dam from conceptual alternatives considered may be considered “significant” to cultural resources. As a result, NRCS has decided to prepare an Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) for the project instead of an Environment Assessment (EA).

Public Participation
The participation of the public is a vital component of the project so that those who are interested in or potentially affected by the proposed project have an opportunity to share their comments, ideas, and concerns regarding actions during the public scoping stage of the NEPA process. In order to provide the public with an opportunity to comment on the preparation of an EIS and a second opportunity to comment on the overall project, NRCS has open a second public scoping period. You are encouraged to attend the Telebriefing and express your comments, ideas, and concerns. You may also submit your comments via letter, email or fax anytime during the public comment period. For comments to be considered and to become part of the public record for the project, we need to receive them by close-of-business (5:00 p.m. MDT) on Friday, June 28, 2013.

Please mail your written comments to:
Green River Diversion Rehabilitation Project
c/o McMillen, LLC – Greg Allington
1401 Shoreline Drive
Boise, ID 83702

You may also submit comments by email, phone or fax to McMillen:
Email: greenriver@mcmillen-llc.com
Phone: (208) 342-4214 Fax: (208) 342-4216

After receiving comments by close-of-business (5:00 p.m. MDT) on Friday, June 28, 2013, the NRCS will begin reviewing the comments and continuing to prepare conceptual alternatives for analysis in the EIS.
You may also visit the project website at http://www.ut.nrcs.usda.gov/programs/EWP/index.html to check on the status of the project and download project related documents during the course of the NEPA analysis.