PUBLIC NOTICE ANNOUNCING PUBLIC REVIEW PERIOD FOR ADOPTION OF THE ODESSA SUBAREA SPECIAL STUDY FINAL ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT STATEMENT AND RECORD OF DECISION

PUBLIC NOTICE ANNOUNCING

PUBLIC REVIEW

PERIOD FOR ADOPTION

OF THE ODESSA SUBAREA

SPECIAL STUDY FINAL

ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT

STATEMENT AND RECORD

OF DECISION

The U.S. Department of Agriculture

Natural Resources

Conservation Service (NRCS)

is adopting the 2012 Odessa

Subarea Special Study Final

Environmental Impact Statement

(FEIS) produced by the

Bureau of Reclamation in cooperation

with the State of

Washington, represented by the

Washington State Department

of Ecology.

The FEIS examined the potential

to replace groundwater with

Columbia Basin Project water

for currently irrigated lands within

the Odessa Subarea Special

Study Area. The FEIS and

Record of Decision identified

Alternative 4A: Modified Partial-

Replacement-Banks with Limited

Spring Diversion Scenario

as the selected alternative.

Alternative 4A aims to replace

acre-for-acre groundwater irrigation

on 70,000 acres in the

Odessa Subarea with 164,000

acre-feet of new Columbia

River diversions. Since Reclamation

published the FEIS in

2012, the Odessa Groundwater

Replacement Program—a

consortium of local, state, and

federal partners—has worked

towards phased implementation

of Alternative 4A. NRCS is

adopting the FEIS to support

implementation of Alternative

4A. Implementing Alternative

4A will support agriculture and

address groundwater depletion

impacting agricultural, municipal,

industrial, and commercial

users in the Odessa Subarea.

NRCS intends to select Alternative

4A as its preferred alternative.

NRCS invites agencies and

individuals who have special

expertise, legal jurisdiction, or

interest in the NRCS adoption of

the FEIS for the Odessa Subarea

Special Study to participate

and comment. Changed circumstances

or new information will

be evaluated to determine if a

new or supplemental EIS should

be prepared.

Public comments may be submitted

until 30 days after the Notice

of Availability is published in

the Federal Register, which is

estimated to be on December

8, 2023. Comments may be

emailed to comments@ogwrpprograms.

org, submitted online

at https://www.ogwrp-programs.

org/watershed-plan, submitted

via phone at (541) 716-6085, or

mailed to Farmers Conservation

Alliance, 102 State Street, Hood

River, OR 97031.

Additional information is available

online at https://www.

ogwrp-programs.org/watershed-

plan or the NRCS Washington

https://www.nrcs.usda.

gov/conservation-basics/conservation-

by-state/washington/

nrcs-washington-public-notices.

Encontrará más información

en la página web https://www.

ogwrp-programs.org/watershed-

plan o en la página web

de avisos públicos del NRCS

de Washington en https://www.

nrcs.usda.gov/conservationbasics/

conservation-by-state/

washington/nrcs-washingtonpublic-

notices.

USDA is an equal opportunity

provider, employer, and lender.

Published November 1, 8 and

15, 2023