The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, St. Paul District, is again extending the public comment period for its draft Environmental Assessment for its Lower Pool 4 dredged material management plan – the new deadline is now July 28.
The Corps notified city of Wabasha, Minnesota, July 13, of its decision to grant the extension.
This extension provides the entire community an additional opportunity to weigh in on the draft plan. Further, the 14-day extension provides more time for the public to understand the document and provide alternative suggestions, said USACE.
The draft plan outlines Corps’ requirement to remove and permanently place more than 10 million cubic yards of dredged material from the Mississippi River’s Lower Pool 4 during the next 40 years.
The plan, once finalized, will serve as the framework for maintaining the 9-foot navigation channel. The Corps will continue working with its federal, state and local partners to explore opportunities to reduce costs associated with maintaining the channel as well as minimizing impacts to the communities.
The draft plan was originally released May 11 with a public comment period thru June 9. The comment period was then extended thru June 23, and again thru July 14. With the new extension, the comment period will now remain open thru July 28.