News Release Archive

Draft EIR/EIS Released and Public Hearing Scheduled for the North Sonoma County Agricultural Reuse Project

Media Contact: Jeffrey S. McCracken, 916.978-5100, jmccracken@mp.usbr.gov

For Release: March 28, 2007

The Bureau of Reclamation and the Sonoma County Water Agency (SCWA) have made available for public review and comment a Draft Environmental Impact Report/Environmental Impact Statement (EIR/EIS) for the North Sonoma County Agricultural Reuse Project (NSCARP). The Draft EIR/EIS evaluates the proposal by SCWA to construct and operate a recycled water project in Sonoma County, California, to reduce reliance on natural regional water supplies. NSCARP involves the design and construction of 19 recycled water storage reservoirs totaling about 11,200 acre-feet of storage, about 112 miles of transmission pipeline, and numerous pumping stations. About 21,500 acres of presently developed agricultural lands would be served by recycled water.

A public hearing will be held to receive verbal and written comments on the Draft EIR/EIS. The public hearing will be held in:

Santa Rosa

May 15, 2007, 10 a.m.

Sonoma County Board of Supervisors Meeting Room

575 Administration Drive

The document is available online at http://www.usbr.gov/mp/nepa/nepa_project_details.php?Project_ID=2152 and at http://www.sonomacountywater.org/projects/. If you encounter problems accessing documents online, please contact Ms. Lynnette Wirth at 916-978-5102 or lwirth@mp.usbr.gov.

The Draft EIR/EIS may also be viewed at Reclamation's Regional Library, 2800 Cottage Way, Sacramento; Sonoma County Water Agency, 404 Aviation Boulevard, Santa Rosa; and at regional libraries in Sonoma County.

Comments on the Draft EIR/EIS should be submitted on or before Friday, May 18, 2007, to Mr. David Cuneo, Senior Environmental Specialist, Sonoma County Water Agency, P.O. Box 11628, Santa Rosa, CA 95406-1628 or david@scwa.ca.gov. For additional information or to request a compact disk or a bound copy of the Draft EIR/EIS, contact Mr. Cuneo at the address or e-mail above, or by telephone at 707-547-1935.

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