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Federal Register / Vol. 86, No. 138 / Thursday, July 22, 2021 / Rules and Regulations
decline to concur on the request for concurrence on the suitability of dredged material for disposal in the ODMDS. If EPA concurs with conditions, the final permit or project authorization e.g., contract specifications must include those conditions. If EPA declines to concur non-concurs on an ocean dumping permit for dredged material, the USACE
cannot issue the permit or authorize ocean dumping for the Federal project.
5 Feasibility of Surveillance and Monitoring 40 CFR 228.6a5.
EPA expects monitoring and surveillance at the ODMDS to be feasible and readily performed from ocean or regional class research vessels.
Monitoring and surveillance are addressed in the SMMP. The area of the ODMDS has been surveyed and sampled in 2004, 2007 and 2014. EPA will monitor the site for physical, biological, and chemical attributes as well as for potential impacts. Bathymetric surveys will be conducted routinely, and benthic infauna and epibenthic organisms will be monitored, as described in the SMMP for the site.
6 Dispersal, Horizontal Transport and Vertical Mixing Characteristics of the Area, including Prevailing Current Direction and Velocity, if any 40 CFR
228.6a6.
Current velocities vary throughout the water column and are subject to wind and the Florida current-based circulations which are generally northerly with eddies occurring that drive currents south. Currents measured at nearby sites are predominantly to the north or south on the order of 14 knots 50200 centimeters per second.
7 Existence and Effects of Current and Previous Discharges and Dumping in the Area including Cumulative Effects 40 CFR 228.6a7.
Historic disposal of dredged material in the existing Port Everglades ODMDS
has resulted in temporary increases in suspended sediment concentrations during disposal operations, burial of benthic organisms within the site, and slight changes in the abundance and composition of benthic assemblages.
Short-term, long-term, and cumulative effects of dredged material disposal in the ODMDS would be similar to those for the previously designated site and are expected to be temporary and return to baseline over time.
8 Interference with Shipping, Fishing, Recreation, Mineral Extraction, Desalination, Fish and Shellfish Culture, Areas of Special Scientific Importance and Other Legitimate Uses of the Ocean 40 CFR 228.6a8.
The transport of dredged material to the ODMDS will cause minor, short-

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term interferences with commercial and recreational boat traffic. during normal disposal operations. EPA has not identified an area of special scientific importance at or near the site. There are no aquaculture areas near the site. There may be recreational fishing in the area.
The likelihood of direct interference with these activities, however, is low.
The U.S. Navy, Fort Lauderdale Branch, Naval Surface Warfare Center range is located south of the ODMDS and the expansion of the ODMDS will not impair U.S. Navy operations in the area.
The SMMP for the ODMDS contains provisions for corrective measures if potential adverse impacts to potential hardbottom habitat related to dredged material disposal are identified.
9 The Existing Water Quality and Ecology of the Sites as Determined by Available Data or Trend Assessment of Baseline Surveys 40 CFR 228.6a9.
Water quality at the site is typical of the Florida coast. Water and sediment quality analyses conducted in the vicinity of the ODMDS and experience with historic disposal at the existing Port Everglades ODMDS have not identified any adverse water quality impacts from ocean disposal of dredged material. The site supports benthic and epibenthic fauna characteristic of the region.
10 Potentiality for the Development or Recruitment of Nuisance Species in the Disposal Site 40 CFR 228.6a10.
Nuisance species, considered as any undesirable organism not previously existing at a location, have not been observed at, or in the vicinity of, the ODMDS. Disposal of dredged material, as well as monitoring, has been ongoing for the past 14 years. Nuisance species have not been found. The dredged material to be disposed at the ODMDS
is expected to be from similar locations to those dredged previously; therefore, it expected that any benthic organisms transported to the site would be relatively similar in nature to those already present.
11 Existence at or in Close Proximity to the Site of any Significant Natural or Cultural Feature of Historical Importance 40 CFR 228.6a11.
EPA conducted a survey of this site in 2013 to identify areas of potential hardbottom resources as well as any historical artifacts. The survey revealed the presence of only two anomalies that, when evaluated, were not indicative of potential historical or natural features.
Probable wreckage from one modern sailing vessel was identified in the northeast corner of the site. Scattered rubble covering potential hardbottom habitat was identified scattered within the expanded footprint.

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The SMMP for the ODMDS contains measures to monitor potential identified hardbottom resources.
III. Environmental Statutory Review a. National Environmental Policy Act EPAs primary voluntary NEPA
document for expanding the existing Port Everglades ODMDS is the EA, prepared by EPA in cooperation with the USACE and issued for public review and comment as draft in January 2020.
Anyone desiring a copy of the EA may access it through the docket for this action Docket ID No. EPAR04OW
20200056 or obtain a copy from the address given above. The draft EA
issued in March 2020 amends the draft EA that was previously published for public review and comment in August 2013. Comments received on the March draft EA are provided in the Response to Comments document appended to the docket. The EA provides the threshold environmental review for modification of the ODMDS.
The action discussed in the EA is the designation of an ODMDS offshore Port Everglades, Florida. The purpose of the action is to provide an environmentally acceptable option for the ocean disposal of dredged material. The reason for the ODMDS expansion is based primarily on demonstrated lack of capacity for ocean disposal of dredged material from the Port Everglades Harbor area including the upcoming Federal Navigation Project and any additional port projects into the future. The actual need for ocean disposal for particular, specific future projects, and the suitability of the material for ocean disposal, will be determined on a caseby-case basis as part of the USACE
process for reviewing ocean disposal actions and a public review process for its own actions to ocean dump dredged material from Federal Projects.
Subsequent proceedings to develop permits and terms of the authorization for Federal projects will include evaluation of disposal alternatives; the existence of a designated site merely provides an option for disposition of suitable material.
EPAs EA discusses the reasons for expanding the ODMDS and examines ocean disposal site alternatives. The reasons to expand the existing Port Everglades ODMDS are based on: Future capacity modeling; potential movement of fine sediments estimated dredging volumes for proposed projects; and limited capacity of upland disposal facilities in the area. EPA considered other configurations for the expanded site but the other options were discarded due to potential for adverse
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