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Intent To Prepare a Draft Environmental Impact Statement (DEIS) for a Dredge and Fill Permit Application for the IMC Phosphate Company's (IMC) Proposed Ona Mine Project in Hardee County, Florida

Note: EPA no longer updates this information, but it may be useful as a reference or resource.

 [Federal Register: August 14, 2000 (Volume 65, Number 157)]
[Notices]
[Page 49554-49555]
From the Federal Register Online via GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov]
[DOCID:fr14au00-64]

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DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE

Department of the Army, Corps of Engineers


Intent To Prepare a Draft Environmental Impact Statement (DEIS)
for a Dredge and Fill Permit Application for the IMC Phosphate
Company's (IMC) Proposed Ona Mine Project in Hardee County, Florida

AGENCY: U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Department of Defense.

ACTION: Notice of intent.

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SUMMARY: Pursuant to section 404 of the Clean Water Act, the U.S. Army
Corps of Engineers has regulatory authority to permit the discharge of
dredge and fill material into wetlands and other waters of the United
States. In compliance with its responsibilities under the National
Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) of 1969, the Jacksonville District,
U.S. Army Corps of Engineers intends to prepare a DEIS as a result of
the dredge and fill permit application for the IMC Ona Mine Project.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Ronald H. Silver, (904) 232-2502, West
Permits Branch, Regulatory Division, P.O. Box 4970, Jacksonville,
Florida 32232-0019.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: IMC proposes to construct and operate a
surface mine for the recovery of phosphate rock from its 20,595-acre
property in western Hardee County near the rural community of Ona,
Florida. Phosphate rock is the source of the element phosphorous, which
is essential to life and for which there is no substitute. Phosphate
rock recovered from the Ona Mine will be shipped to manufacturers who
convert it to concentrated fertilizers used in high-yield agriculture.
    The project proposed by IMC envisions that initially, only mining
and reclamation will occur on the Ona property, with beneficiation and
shipment of the phosphate rock occurring at the existing IMC's
beneficiation plant at the Fort Green Mine in Polk and Hardee Counties.
At a later date, which is as yet undetermined, a beneficiation plant
consisting of a washer, a flotation plant, product inventory, a
shipping facility, and miscellaneous support facilities will be
constructed at the proposed plant site, and the portion of the Ona
Mine's phosphate reserve which has not been mined at that time will be
processed at the new plant. There will be no chemical plant, gypsum
stack or rock dryer at the Ona Mine site.
    Over many decades, significant portions of the Ona Mine property
have been converted to agricultural use, chiefly as improved pasture.
The natural ecosystems on most of these agricultural lands have been
degraded or improved for agricultural activities. IMC proposes to mine
these areas and to reclaim them to an appropriate blend of agricultural
and habitat values. However, there are also some areas of less
disturbance, which have the significant ecological value. Of these, IMC
proposes not to mine about 4,900 acres of ecologically significant
area, or approximately 24 percent of the gross acreage of the Ona Mine
property.
    IMC intends to use the ``opencast'' variant of surface mining as
its standard technique for development of the Southeast Tract, wherein
large electrically-powered excavators (``draglines'') first remove and
set aside the soils overlying the ore (``overburden''), and then
excavate the phosphate ore (``matrix'').
    The matrix is placed by the dragline into a shallow depression at
the ground surface, where the matrix is disaggregated and converted to
a slurry by mixing it with water. The matrix slurry is transported by
electrically powered pumps through pipelines to the beneficiation
facility, where the phosphate rock is separated from the sand and clay
with which it is found in the ore. The sand and clay are returned to
the mine for use in reclamation, again by pipelines as slurries.
    Three distinct methods of reclamation will be used in creation of
the post-reclamation landscape. These are known as: (1) The sand fill
with overburden cap method, (2) the shaped overburden method, and (3)
the crustal development methods for reclamation of clay settling areas.
    Alternatives: Alternatives considered include no action, mining a
portion of the area only-based on identification of critical concerns,
important natural resources, and sensitive ecological areas; in
addition, alternatives will take into consideration: mining method,
matrix transport, matrix processing, waste sand and clay disposal,
process water sources, water management plan, reclamation, and wetland
preservation. Various alternatives are available to satisfy the
objectives of each of these components. Other alternatives that might
be identified under the scoping process will also be addressed.
    Issues: The EIS will consider impacts on protected species, health,
conservation, economics, aesthetics, general environmental concerns,
wetlands (and other aquatic resources), historic properties, fish and
wildlife

[[Page 49555]]

values, flood hazards, floodplain values, land use, navigation,
recreation, water supply and conservation, water quality, energy needs,
safety, food and fiber production, mineral needs, considerations of
property ownership, and, in general, the needs and welfare of the
people, and other issues identified through scoping, public involvement
and interagency coordination.
    Scoping: Public meetings have been conducted since early 1998 as
part of the Ecosystem Management Permitting System as provided in
Chapter 403.075, Florida Statutes. The process was facilitated by the
Conflict Resolution Consortium of Florida State University and
implemented by the Ecosystem Management Team made up of representatives
of permitting entities, and by the Public Work Group composed of
representatives of non-permitting government agencies, conservation and
public interest groups, and unaffiliated interested parties. The issues
raised by public participants at these meetings will be incorporated
into the scoping process. At this time, there are no plans for a public
scoping meeting. However, all parties are invited to participate in the
scoping process by identifying concerns, issues, studies needed,
alternatives, procedures, and other matters related to the scoping
process and forwarding them to the information contact provided in this
notice.
    Public Involvement: We invite the participation of affected
federal, state and local agencies, affected Indian tribes, and other
interested private organizations and parties by submitting written
comments to the information contact provided in this notice.
    Coordination: The proposed action is being coordinated with the
U.S. Fish and Wildlife (FWS) and the National Marine Fisheries Services
under Section 7 of the Endangered Species Act, with the FWS under the
Fish and Wildlife Coordination Act, and with the following State of
Florida agencies: State Historic Preservation Officer, Fish & Wildlife
Conservation Commission, Department of Environmental Protection, Bureau
of Mine Reclamation.
    Other Environmental Review and Consultation: The proposed action
would involve application (to the State of Florida) for Water Quality
Certification pursuant to Section 401 of the Clean Water Act, and
certification of State lands, easements, and rights of way.
    DEIS Preparation: It is estimated that the DEIS will be available
to the public on or about January 31, 2001.

    Dated: August 1, 2000.
John R. Hall,
Chief, Regulatory Division.
[FR Doc. 00-20571 Filed 8-11-00; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3710-AJ-M

 
 

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