ST. PAUL, Minn. – The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, St. Paul District, is extending its draft Environmental Assessment, or EA, for the proposed dredged material management plan in Pool 6, near Winona, Minnesota. Comments will now be accepted through April 10. The previous deadline was March 9.
Corps officials are extending the deadline in recognition of the public’s interest in the draft plan and to allow the community more time to study the plan and provide comments.
The draft plan outlines the transportation and land requirements required to manage dredged material removed from the Mississippi River in Pool 6 for the next 20 years. No decisions will be made with respect to changing the plan until the public comment period has closed. Corps planners have worked in collaboration with city of Winona and other agency partners on this planning effort for more than seven years and are optimistic that the extension will yield additional comments regarding the plan.
Pool 6 is a 14.4-mile stretch of the river from Lock and Dam 5A, in Fountain City, Wisconsin, to Lock and Dam 6 in Trempealeau, Wisconsin. More than 8.5 million tons of commodities passed through Pool 6 in 2019 and nearly 11.3 million tons in 2018. These commodities include corn, soybeans, fertilizer, distillers grains and salt.
The draft EA describing the plan and the environmental impacts is available to the public and can be viewed on the St. Paul District website at: www.mvp.usace.army.mil/Home/PublicNotices.aspx.
Comments can be submitted in writing via email at Pool6DMMP@usace.army.mil or commenters can address a letter to St. Paul District, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, ATTN: Regional Planning and Environment Division North, 180 5th St. E., Suite 700, St. Paul, MN 55101.
Questions about the plan should be directed to Bob Edstrom, project manager, at 651-290-5026 or Pool6DMMP@usace.army.mil.
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Release no. 20-025