WSP01569

• File Number: 8449.900
• Description: Bear Creek
• State: CO
• Basin: South Platte
• Date: 2/4/1972
• Author: USACOE
• Title: Final Environmental Statement for Bear Creek Flood Control Project
• Water Supply Pro - Doc Type: EIS

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United States Department of the Interior

BUREAU OF OUTDOOR RECREATION
Mf[)-CONTINENT REGION
BUILJ)ING 41, nENVEI( FEDERAL CENTER
llJ;NVER. COLO/IADO B0225

IN AEPL T REFER TO

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Mr. R. G. Burnett" Chief
Engineering Division
Omaha District, Corps of Engineers
7410 U. S. Post Office and Court House
Omaha, Nebraska 68102

Dear Mr. Burnett:

This is in reply to your September B letter requesting our revie~ of the
revised Environmental Statement for the Bear Creek Project, Denver, Colorado.

The revised Statement is a considerable improvement over the previous effort;
it largely appears to be a reasoned statement of environmental impacts and
possible alternatives.

~e do offer the following specific comments which are in the general order
of the Environmental Statement.

1. Page 2 of the Statement indicates that one of the alternatives
considered was different dam alignments. However, the text of the
Statement contains no discussion of this alternative. This
inconsistency might be corrected.

2. We note that comments were not requested from two agencies which
would appear to have an interest in the project -- the Urban Drainage
and Flood Control District and the Denver Regional Council of
Governments. They might well be requested to comment on the
Statement:.

3. We note that the up-to-date environmental impact statement contains
a benefit-cost ratio based upon a long outdated interest rate. Dis-
cussion of the ratio should be either explained for the reader
uninitiated in the computing of benefit-cost, made more current, or
eliminated because it is unrelated to environmental impact.

4. We believe a good impact statement should allow the reader to
understand the local setting of the project without having to read
the project report. Section II of the Statement does not provide
the depth of material for such an understanding. In this regard,
several additional maps wv~ld be beneficial including a general land
use map, a map of project boundaries, and a map of the standard
project flood before and after reservoir operation.