U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife (WDFW) officials are seeking public comments on the Puget Sound Nearshore Ecosystem Restoration Project (PSNERP) Draft Feasibility Report and Environmental Impact Statement.
Together, government and non-government agencies, organizations, tribes and scientists evaluated more than 500 potential restoration sites, identifying the best places and opportunities to improve the nearshore zone’s ability to provide locally- and nationally-valued resources.
Benefits from this preferred alternative will derive from removing nearly 75,162 linear feet of shoreline stressors, including tidal barriers, nearshore fill and shoreline armoring; thereby restoring processes that will provide an additional 5,354 acres of tidally influenced wetlands in river deltas and shallow embayments, as well as sustain beach ecosystems.
The proposal includes seven sites in major river deltas, one beach site, one open coastal inlet site and two barrier embayment sites. Eleven sites included in the Corps’ Tentatively Selected Plan will restore about 5,300 acres, with a $1.1billion estimated total project cost.
The 45-day public comment period runs October 10th to November 24th 2014.
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Press Release, October 9, 2014