FINDING OF NO SIGNIFICANT IMPACT SUPPLEMENT AL ENVIRONMENT AL ASSESSMENT

for

Old Papermill Pond Dam Removal East , New Milford, CT

Supplemental to the Final Amendment to the Basin Final Natural Resources Restoration Plan, Environmental Assessment, and Environmental Impact Evaluation for , June 2013

The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (Service), on behalf of the General Electric (GE) - Housatonic River Restoration Trustee SubCouncil forthe Geographic Area of Connecticut, and in partnership with the Connecticut Chapter of The Nature Conservancy and the Connecticut Department of Energy and Environmental Protection, is proposing to remove the Old Papcrmill Pond Dam located on the in New Milford, Connecticut. The purpose of this project is to restore fishpassage and natural river processes to the East Aspetuck River. Once completed, this project will restore over 7 .2 miles of the East Aspetuck River and its tributaries to aquatic organism passage.

The dam removal project was analyzed in the Supplemental Environmental Assessment that accompanies this Finding of No SignificantImpact (FONSI). The Supplemental Environmental Assessment expands upon the FinalAmendment to the Housatonic River Basin Final Natural Resources Restoration Plan, Environmental Assessment, and Environmental Impact Evaluation for Connecticut, which was published in June 2013, along with a FONS!. The Final Restoration Plan and Amendment were developed in order to identify specific natural resource restoration projects that would compensate the American public fornatural resource injuries caused by the release of hazardous substances, primarily polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs), from the GE facility in Pittsfield, .

The Final Restoration Plan and Amendment evaluated the environmental effects of several restoration alternatives in three categories of projects, including Aquatic Natural Resources, Riparian and Floodplain Natural Resources, and Recreational Uses of Natural Resources. Under the Amendment, additional fundswere allocated to Aquatic Natural Resources, including $100,000 to evaluate options forrestoring the East Aspetuck River and provide fish passage at the Old Papermill Pond Dam.

The Restoration Plan and Amendment were published in draft form and made available to the public for public review and comment in 2009 and 2013.

Since publication of the Final Restoration Plan and Amendment, additional details about the dam removal project have emerged. The Supplemental Environmental Assessment was developed to share and evaluate with the public these additional project details. The Supplemental Environmental Assessment does not alter the alternatives analysis presented in the Final Restoration Plan and Amendment.