Notice of Categorical Exclusion Determination:
CATEGORICAL EXCLUSION DETERMINATION For the TOWN OF LUSK, WYOMING FOR PHASE II STREET AND UTILITY REPLACEMENT PROJECT located in Niobrara County, Wyoming.
The Department of Environmental Quality/Water Quality Division (DEQ) has conducted a review of the proposed Town of Lusk Phase II Street and Utility Replacement Project in accordance with EPA and State of Wyoming procedures for implementing the State Environmental Review Process. DEQ has determined that this project is eligible for a categorical exclusion. Accordingly, DEQ is exempting the project from further substantive environmental review requirements under the State Environmental Review Process. Neither an Environmental Assessment/Finding of No Significant Impact nor an Environmental Impact Statement/Record of Decision will be required for the proposed action. The following is a brief description of the situation and the proposed action and a brief statement of how the action meets the criteria for a categorical exclusion.
The Town of Lusk is proceeding with Phase II Funding applications for plans to replace all water mains, water services, Fire hydrants, water valves, Sewer mains, Manholes, and services throughout the town. The systems are old and in need of replacement. Water mains are undersized and do not provide adequate fire protection. Once the new Utilities are installed, then the entire street will be reconstructed consisting of new curb and gutter, Street surfacing, sidewalks, and ADA ramps. Provisions to install fiber conduit for ease of a Carrier provided service and community connectivity will be installed. Minor storm sewer improvements consisting of inlet replacement and manholes replacement is included. The town proposes to complete this work over a multi-phased, 8-10 year project approach. Phase II, estimated at $12 million, is scheduled to being in Spring of 2022. The project funding will be a combination of SRF funding, RUS funding, 6th penny sales tax (pending), and system user fees.
The Town of Lusk is aware of and accepts the fact that they will be responsible for any required mitigative actions associated with and including storm water runoff, erosion control, archeological/historic artifacts, and air quality concerns. These will be part of the standard State Revolving Funds Program contract conditions. Short term environmental impact should be limited to noise and dust.
DEQ is granting an exclusion because all work will be occurring with the Town of Lusk on existing street and alleyways. This project will be completely constructed in previously disturbed ground, specifically ground disturbed by installation of previously installed water and sewer mains, roads, and alleys. DEQ has determined that exempting the proposed project from further review under the State Environmental Review Process will not result in adverse impacts to the population or the area of Town of Lusk, Niobrara County, Wyoming.
The documentation to support this decision will be on file in the DEQ Cheyenne Office and is available for public scrutiny upon request. Comments concerning this decision may be addressed to Stan Miller, SRF Project Engineer, Department of Environmental Quality, 200 W. 17th St. Suite 200, Cheyenne, WY 82002, Tel. (307) 777-6371, FAX (307) 635-1784, email: stanley.miller@wyo.gov.
Para español, visite deq.wyoming.gov
Public Notice No. 5591. Published in The Lusk Herald on March 17, 2021.
