Public Notices

JOINT FEDERAL, STATE, LOCAL

PUBLIC NOTICE

June 4, 2021

The Federal Emergency Management Agency and Florida Division of Emergency Management have received the following application for Federal grant funding.  Final notice is hereby given of the Federal Emergency Management Agency’s (FEMA) consideration to provide funding in the form of Hazard Mitigation Grant Program. Funds will be provided in accordance with Section 404 of the Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief and Emergency Assistance Act, Public Law 93-288, as amended.

Under the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA), federal actions must be reviewed and evaluated for feasible alternatives and for social, economic, historic, environmental, legal, and safety considerations. Under Executive Order (EO) 11988 and EO 11990 FEMA is required to consider alternatives to and to provide public notice of any proposed actions in or affecting floodplains or wetlands. EO 12898 also requires FEMA to provide the opportunity for public participation in the planning process and to consider potential impacts to minority or low-income populations.

Funding for the proposed project will be conditional upon compliance with all applicable federal, tribal, state, and local laws, regulations, floodplain standards, permit requirements and conditions.

Applicant: Calhoun County Board of County Commissioners

Project Title: HMGP-4399-267 – Generators for Critical Facilities in Calhoun County

Location of Proposed Work:

Scotts Ferry Volunteer Fire Department – 7226 SE Iola Road, Blountstown, Florida 32424

Proposed Work and Purpose:

The proposal is to purchase a generator for the Scotts Ferry Volunteer Fire Department.  The project will allow Calhoun County to maintain the identified critical facility operational and continue to serve the community during future power outages.

Project Alternatives:

The alternatives to the project that have been and will be considered are 1) the no action alternative and 2) to rent generators during an outage. These alternatives to the proposed project are not viable because under Alternative 1) the critical facility would be inoperative during an outage and Alternative 2) at the time of disasters, it is extremely difficult to find generators that are available, and in past storms, roads were not always passable for the first few days which would leave these critical facilities without power. If we were able to secure a rental generator, we would then need to ensure that the electrical components and other features were installed to adequately power the facilities. In addition, if the power is out for an extended period of time, or you have several outages within a year, it is not cost effective.

Comment Period:

Comments are solicited from the public; local, state, or federal agencies; and other interested parties in order to consider and evaluate the impacts of the proposed project.  The comments should be made in writing and addressed to the Florida Division of Emergency Management, Bureau of Recovery and Mitigation, 2555 Shumard Oak Blvd., Tallahassee, FL 32399-2100.  These are due within 15 days of this notice, June 4, 2020.  The State will forward comments to applicable regulatory agencies as needed.  Interested persons may submit comments, obtain more detailed information about the proposed action, or request a copy of the findings by contacting:

Corey Silcox, EM Director                                                          850-674-8075

Calhoun County Emergency Management                                   [email protected]                                                                                                                                   

Cary Helmuth, State Lead Environmental Specialist                     850-815-4514

Florida Division of Emergency Management                                 [email protected]