Biological Assessment Olefins Unit Expansion Project Nueces County, Texas Prepared for Equistar Chemicals, LP Prepared by Whitenton Group, Inc. October 2013 Revised February 2014 3413 Hunter Road • San Marcos, Texas 78666 • office 512-353-3344 • fax 512-392-3450 www.whitentongroup.com Biological Assessment Olefins Unit Expansion Project Nueces County, Texas Prepared for Equistar Chemicals, LP 1501 McKinzie Road P.O. Box 10940 Corpus Christi, Texas 78460 Prepared by Whitenton Group, Inc. 3413 Hunter Road San Marcos, Texas 78666 WGI Project No. 1279 October 2013 Revised February 2014 TABLE OF CONTENTS TABLE OF CONTENTS ............................................................................................................................ ii ACRONYMS AND ABBREVIATIONS .................................................................................................. iv 1.0 EXECUTIVE SUMMARY .................................................................................................................... 1 2.0 INTRODUCTION ................................................................................................................................ 3 3.0 ACTION AREA .................................................................................................................................... 5 4.0 AGENCY REGULATIONS ................................................................................................................. 6 4.1 ENDANGERED SPECIES ACT ..................................................................................................... 6 4.2 CLEAN AIR ACT REGULATIONS AND STANDARDS .......................................................... 8 5.0 PROJECT DESCRIPTION ................................................................................................................... 9 5.1 PROJECT PURPOSE AND LOCATION ...................................................................................... 9 5.2 CONSTRUCTION INFORMATION ........................................................................................... 10 5.2.1 CONSTRUCTION DESCRIPTION ...................................................................................... 10 5.2.2 CONSTRUCTION ACTIVITIES AND SCHEDULE .......................................................... 11 5.2.3 CONSTRUCTION EQUIPMENT REQUIRED ................................................................... 12 5.2.4 STORM WATER ..................................................................................................................... 12 5.2.5 CONSTRUCTION NOISE LEVELS ..................................................................................... 13 5.3 OPERATION AND MAINTENANCE INFORMATION ........................................................ 13 5.3.1 OPERATION DESCRIPTION ............................................................................................... 13 5.3.2 WATER USE............................................................................................................................ 13 5.3.3 WASTEWATER AND STORM WATER ............................................................................. 14 5.3.4 OPERATION NOISE LEVELS .............................................................................................. 16 6.0 BACKGROUND INFORMATION .................................................................................................. 17 6.1 GENERAL ENVIRONMENTAL INFORMATION .................................................................. 17 6.1.1 GENERAL REGION INFORMATION ................................................................................ 17 6.1.2 LAND USE .............................................................................................................................. 17 6.1.3 CLIMATE ................................................................................................................................ 18 6.1.4 TOPOGRAPHY ...................................................................................................................... 18 6.1.5 GEOLOGY ............................................................................................................................... 18 6.1.6 SOILS ........................................................................................................................................ 19 6.1.7 WATER RESOURCES ............................................................................................................ 19 6.1.8 VEGETATION ........................................................................................................................ 20 6.2 FEDERALLY-LISTED SPECIES ................................................................................................... 20 6.2.1 THREATENED AND ENDANGERED SPECIES LIST ..................................................... 20 6.2.2 THREATENED AND ENDANGERED SPECIES DESCRIPTIONS ................................ 22 6.2.3 CANDIDATE SPECIES DESCRIPTIONS ........................................................................... 37 6.2.4 TEXAS NATURAL DIVERSITY DATABASE RESULTS .................................................. 39 7.0 LISTED SPECIES HABITAT EVALUATION................................................................................. 39 7.1 PLANT COMMUNITIES OBSERVED ........................................................................................ 40 7.2 LISTED SPECIES HABITAT ANALYSIS ................................................................................... 41 8.0 AIR QUALITY ANALYSIS ............................................................................................................... 42 Olefins Unit Expansion Project – Biological Assessment ii 8.1 AIR DISPERSION MODELING RESULTS ................................................................................ 42 8.1.1 CRITERIA POLLUTANT DISPERSION MODELING RESULTS AND EVALUATION ............................................................................................................................................................ 42 9.0 EFFECTS OF THE PROPOSED ACTION ....................................................................................... 45 9.1 AIR EMISSIONS EFFECTS BACKGROUND RESEARCH ...................................................... 45 9.2 AIR QUALITY EFFECTS .............................................................................................................. 48 9.2.1 EMISSIONS ............................................................................................................................. 48 9.2.2 FUGITIVE DUST .................................................................................................................... 49 9.2.3 IMPACTS OF AIR POLLUTION SOURCES ON FLORA AND FAUNA ...................... 49 9.3 WATER QUALITY EFFECTS ....................................................................................................... 50 9.3.1 WASTEWATER ...................................................................................................................... 50 9.3.2 STORM WATER ..................................................................................................................... 51 9.4 NOISE EFFECTS ............................................................................................................................ 51 9.5 INFRASTRUCTURE-RELATED EFFECTS ................................................................................ 51 9.6 HUMAN ACTIVITY EFFECTS .................................................................................................... 52 9.7 FEDERALLY-LISTED SPECIES EFFECTS ................................................................................. 52 9.7.1 THREATENED OR ENDANGERED SPECIES .................................................................. 52 9.7.2 CANDIDATE SPECIES ......................................................................................................... 75 10.0 CONCLUSIONS ............................................................................................................................... 78 10.1 DETERMINATION OF EFFECT ............................................................................................... 78 10.2 INTERDEPENDENT AND INTERRELATED ACTIONS ..................................................... 79 10.3 CUMULATIVE EFFECTS ........................................................................................................... 79 10.4 CONSERVATION MEASURES ................................................................................................. 80 11.0 REFERENCES ................................................................................................................................... 81 12.0 LIST OF PREPARERS ...................................................................................................................... 85 APPENDIX A FIGURES APPENDIX B FIGURE 1-6 (RPS) APPENDIX C FLOW DIAGRAMS APPENDIX D SOILS TABLE APPENDIX E PHOTOGRAPHIC LOG APPENDIX F FIELD SURVEY DATA SUMMARY APPENDIX G EMISSIONS TABLES Olefins Unit Expansion Project – Biological Assessment iii ACRONYMS AND ABBREVIATIONS °F Degree Fahrenheit AOI Area of Impact BA Biological Assessment BACT Best Available Control Technology BD Butadiene CO Carbon Monoxide CWS Contaminated Water Sewer EA Extended Aeration EPA Environmental Protection Agency Equistar Equistar Chemicals, LP ESA Endangered Species Act ESL Effects Screening Levels GHG Greenhouse Gas GLC Ground Level Concentration GLCmax Maximum Ground