Sabine River and Tributaries, Louisiana and Texas
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26 October 1970 ENVIRONMENTAL STATEMENT FOR SABINE RIVER AND TRIBUTARIES LOUISIANA AND TEXAS PREPARED IN CONNECTION WITH A SURVEY REPORT OF THE FORT WORTH AND GALVESTON DISTRICTS SABINE RIVER BASIN, TEXAS AND LOUISIANA ENVIRONMENTAL STATEMENT 1. Project Description. The recommended improvements consist of three multiple-purpose dam and reservoir projects (Mineola, Lake Fork and Big Sandy); a local protection project at Greenville, Texas; and an extension of an authorized navigation channel in the tidal reach of the Sabine River. The projects are designed to meet needs for flood control, municipal and industrial water supply, recreation and commercial navigation. The Mineola dam site would be located at river mile 476 on the Sabine River and about 6 miles west of Mineola, Texas. The reservoir would be located in Woods, Raines and Van Zandt Counties. The Lake Fork dam site would be located on Lake Fork Creek about 28 miles above its confluence with the Sabine River and about 3^ miles west of Quitman, Texas. The reservoir . formed by the dam would lie in parts of Woods, Raines and Hopkins Counties. The Big Sandy dam site would be located on Big Sandy Creek about 15 miles above its confluence with the Sabine River and about 6 miles northwest of Big Sandy, Texas. The reservoir would lie in Wood and Upshur Counties. The local flood protection project at Greenville, Texas would consist of channel^improvements along Long Branch and a flood plain management program on Cowleech Fork. The navigation project in the lower basin would consist of a commercial navigation channel 5.25 miles long and 12 feet deep extend ing from Echo to Morgan Bluff, Texas. Development and management of 25,000 acres of project lands at the three reservoir sites plus acquisition, development and management of 15,000 acres of flood plain lands downstream of Mineola dam, would compensate for wildlife habitat losses resulting from construction of the three dam and reservoir projects. 2. Environmental Setting Without the Project. The Sabine River Basin is a crescent shaped area arising in the Blackland Prairie just northeast of Dallas, Texas where about half of the area is cultivated and the rest supports vegetative cover in the form of pastures, native grasses, and scattered elm and hackberry trees. As the basin bends to the east and south through eastern Texas and western Louisiana it passes from the Blackland Prairies through the hilly and undulating terrain of the Southern Coastal Plains and the Gulf Coast Prairies. The latter areas are dominated by pine-hardwood forests and pastureland, and dotted with farms and towns. The river finally comes to rest in the flat Gulf Marshes at the head of Sabine Lake. The mild climate and abundance of rainfall throughout the basin contribute to the growth of a wide variety of vegetative species. The hardwoods and southern pines, with an understory of shrubs, vines, herbs, and grasses along with the marshes, provide an excellent habitat for indigenous wildlife and a winter sanctuary for the migratory birds and waterfowl from the north. The streams wind and meander in their broad flood plains from an elevation of about 700 feet to sea level. They support an abundance of catfish, bass, bluegill, and a wide varity of minnows and commercial fish. The water is of fairly high quality. MINEOLA RESERVOIR. The Mineola Reservoir will rest in a broad, nearly level valley in the Post Oak belt of the East Texas timber country. The valley floor supports a mixed stand of cut-over hardwoods and small deciduous trees. There is a dense understory of shrubs, vines and herbs. This mixture of vegetative cover provides a habitat for deer squirrels, quail, dove, furbearing animals and songbirds. The stream in the reservoir area supports a warm water fishery with game fish such as bass, crappie, bluegill, and catfish, and non-game species such as gar, buffalo, carp and shad. The Mineola Reservoir area is rural in nature and is predominantly woodland pasture with some bottom crop lands in the valley. The scenery is generally pleasing with rolling hills, pastures, and forested areas. LAKE FORK RESERVOIR. The Lake Fork Reservoir will rest in the broad valley of the Lake Fork Creek and the arms of major tributaries, Little Fork, Garrett, Burket and Caney Creeks. The area is rural in nature with bottom croplands predominating in the valley. The forested areas are predominantly hardwood species of oak, elm, hackberry, willow, and gum, with a scattering of shortleaf pine. The pastureland, rangeland, and forested areas, with the understory of shrubs, vines and herbs, provide habitat for wildlife similar to those found in the Mineola Reservoir site. The scenery is rolling hills of farmland, pastures and woodland. BIG SANDY RESERVOIR. The Big Sandy Reservoir will occupy a relatively narrow valley of Big Sandy Creek. The area is a rural setting with woodland pastures predominating, broken by cropland and farmsteads. The vegetative and wildlife resources are comparable to those of the Lake Fork area, except that habitat is of better quality and more wildlife is found in the Big Sandy area; and the shortleaf pine is more prevalent, as the site is at the western edge of the Pine Belt. 3. Impact Statement. The following information is furnished in response to Section 102 (2) (c) of the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969. a. Identify "the environmental impact of the proposed action." The flood protection and prevention measures proposed for Greenville, Texas, will have a beneficial and complimentary environmental impact. It will help to provide for a cleaner, safer stream through the city. There will be less destruction, hardship, unpleasant odors and health problems. The proposed reservoir system would dedicate about 62,000 acres of water surface area in the conservation pools and about 72,000 acres of land above these pools to public ownership and access for the benefit of present and future generations. Access would be convenient to the public in close proximity, to people in nearby metropolitan areas, and to the traveling public passing through. The projects would provide opportunities for up to 3.3 million recreation user days annually and 0.8 million fisherman days annually. Increased water supply will enable the people in the cities to develop and maintain more pleasant surroundings, open areas and municipal parks, as well as provide for future water needs. The flood control features will help to eliminate unsafe, unsightly, and unhealthy conditions, particularly in the more densely inhabited areas. They will help to control movement of sediment and stream scour, and regulation of stream flow in the down stream areas will help to preserve the integrity of the streams and their natural attributes. Adverse effects are discussed in the following sub- paragraph. b . Identify "any adverse environmental effects which cannot be avoided should the proposal be implemented." The three reservoir projects would convert approximately 96 miles of free-flowing streams to slackwater impoundments and substitute a reservoir fishery for the existing stream fishery which has a present use estimated at 76,000 fisherman days annually. Maintenance of the conservation pools would result in inundation of about 62,000 acres of pastureland, woodland and cropland. The most adverse environmental effect of this inundation may well be the loss of game habitat. The projects would replace present uses of pastureland, cropland, and woodland with reservoir recreation and open space use. The sea level navigation channel from Echo to Morgan Bluff would extend along the river bottom and would have little or no effect on marsh drainage and estuarine resources. A further assessment of the environmental values relating to the navigation channel and disposal areas will be made during preconstruction planning when construction activities are finalized. c. Identify "alternatives to the proposed action." One alternative to the recommended reservoir projects would be to forego the improvements. This course of action would result in water associated constraints on local and regional economic development and a loss of project services estimated at $16 million annually when measured in terms of net benefits foregone. The lost flood control opportunity measured by the monetary value of preventable flood damages is $3.9 million annually. The lost opportunity to store surplus flows, which when measured in terms of municipal and industrial water supply, has a monetary value of $8.7 million annually. A loss of up to 4.1 million man days of recreation and fishing opportunities having a value of $2.8 million annually would result from a no-development alternative. From an environmental viewpoint, a no development alternative would eliminate the adverse impacts cited in subparagraph "b" at the expense of the gains cited in subparagraph "a". Any alternative system of projects which would provide the needed water supply, flood damage reduction and recreational opportunties would be more expensive than the recommended multiple-purpose reservoir system and the environmental effects of such alternatives would be essentially similar to that of the recommended projects. Flood damage reduction benefits comparable to that afforded by the recommended plan could be provided by alternative combinations of flood plain management options. Combinations including flood proofing and flood plain development limitations would be relatively ineffective in reducing flood damages to agricultural property. d . Discuss "the relationship between local short term uses of man's environment and the maintenance and enhancement of long term productivity." The Sabine Basin valley and tributary stream flood plains are presently being used for farming, manufacturing, and oil and timber production and the area supports a wide variety of wildlife and plant communities. However, the basin is characterized by periodic flooding and all the associated losses of life and property. Reduction of the incidence of flooding along the valleys below the sites and more efficient use of lands in agricultural production than now possible would enhance long-term productivity.