Western Federal Lands Highway Division

Project Overview

The Cattle Point Road project is located on San Juan Island, Washington about 8 miles south of the town of Friday Harbor in the San Juan Island National Historical Park (vicinity map)  (Acrobat, 1.49 MB). About 500 feet of Cattle Point Road is being threatened by coastal erosion which is wearing-away the base of the bluff that supports the road. If erosion continues unabated the roadway will eventually fail, cutting-off the only road access to federal, state, and private property at the east end of the Cattle Point peninsula.

The project team is a partnership of four agencies; Western Federal Lands Division of Federal Highway Administration (FHWA), National Park Service (NPS), San Juan County (county) and Washington State Department of Natural Resources (DNR). FHWA and NPS are the lead agencies for the project.

Public concerns about ongoing encroachment of the coastal bluff toward Cattle Point Road were first discussed in 2001 when the county held a public scoping meeting in Friday Harbor. The FHWA and NPS became involved in 2003 when federal funding for project planning became available. In February 2004 the FHWA and NPS filed a Notice of Intent to prepare an Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) in the Federal Register and held a second public meeting in Friday Harbor. A Draft Environmental Impact Statement (DEIS) for the Cattle Point Road Project was released for public comment in August 2010. A public open house was held in October 2010 to discuss and take comments on the DEIS. All comments to the DEIS have been addressed in the FEIS.

FEIS Review and Comment

The lead agencies are not required to accept public comments on a FEIS; however, in order to be fully informed of the interests of all parties, the FHWA is accepting feedback. If any substantive comments are received prior to signing of the Record of Decision (ROD), FHWA will include responses in their ROD. Feedback must be submitted by email to: cattlepointroad@dot.gov no later than November 9, 2012 for consideration in the ROD.

Print copies of the FEIS are available for view at the following locations in Friday Harbor, Washington: San Juan Island Library, National Park Service Park Headquarters, American Camp Visitors Center, and San Juan County Public Works. A print copy or CD of the FEIS may be requested at cattlepointroad@dot.gov (a limited number of copies are available).

Next Steps

The Record of Decision (ROD) is the final step in the NEPA process and may be issued no sooner than 30 days after the FEIS is published in the Federal Register (40 CFR 1506.10(b)). The ROD identifies the selected alternative, presents the basis for the decision, identifies all of the alternatives considered, and provides information on the adopted means to avoid, minimize, and compensate for environmental impacts.

The FHWA and NPS will issue separate RODs for this project. Each agency intends to issue a ROD in 30 days, or as soon after that date as practicable.

San Juan County is continuing to pursue funding for construction of the project.

Environmental Documents

• Final Environmental Impact Statement (FEIS) - September 2012
  • Cover/Signature Page/Summary/Table of Contents
  • Chapter 1 – Purpose and Need for Action
  • Chapter 2 – Alternatives
  • Chapter 3 – Affected Environment
  • Chapter 4 – Environmental Consequences
  • Chapter 5 – Section 4(f) De Minimis Impacts
  • Chapter 6 – Consultation and Coordination, DEIS Substantive Comments
  • Chapter 7 – List of Preparers, Acronyms, Glossary, Bibliography
  • Appendix A – Preliminary Revegetation Plan
  • Appendix B – DEIS Comments
• Complete FEIS  (Acrobat, 23.94 MB)
• Draft Environmental Impact Statement (DEIS) - August 2010  (Acrobat, 13.17 MB)