FINDING OF NO SIGNIFICANT IMPACT
Los Angeles County Department of Public Works
Big Tujunga Dam Seismic Rehabilitation
FEMA-1008-DR-CA, HMGP #1008-3182

The Los Angeles County Department of Public Works (LADPW) has applied to the Federal 
Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), through the State of California Governor's Office of 
Emergency Services, for funding to improve the Big Tujunga Dam and related facilities. FEMA 
is proposing to fund the project under the Hazard Mitigation Grant Program as part of the 
recovery from the Northridge earthquake of 1994, which was a presidentially-declared disaster 
(FEMA-1008-DR-CA). LADPW has identified the need to seismically strengthen Big Tujunga 
Dam to remove the threat of failure during a significant seismic event. To address this hazard, 
LADPW proposes to reinforce the dam; modify the spillway, dam crest, and appurtenant 
structures; and put in place a new dam control system. 

The U.S. Forest Service (USFS) manages the public land on which Big Tujunga Dam is located 
and is a Federal cooperating agency for the project. FEMA and USFS have entered into a 
Memorandum of Understanding (MOU), to establish principles of organization and coordination 
in the environmental review process. The MOU has been amended twice.

In accordance with the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969 (NEPA), FEMA has prepared 
a Final Environmental Assessment (EA) for the Big Tujunga Dam Seismic Rehabilitation (April 
2006) to evaluate the impacts of the proposed action on the human environment. The Final EA 
has been prepared according to the requirements of NEPA, the Council on Environmental 
Quality's regulations implementing NEPA (40 Code of Federal Regulations [CFR] Parts 1500-
1508), and FEMA's implementing regulations (44 CFR Part 10). The Final EA was prepared after 
a Draft EA was submitted for public review and comments. FEMA received no comments on the 
Draft EA. The Final EA is available online at 
http://www.fema.gov/plan/ehp/Env_assessments/EA_RegIX .

An initial public notice has been circulated pursuant to Executive Order 11998 (Floodplain 
Management). This Finding of No Significant Impact serves as the final notice for compliance 
with Executive Order 11998. Information required by 44 CFR Part 9.12(e) (Floodplain 
Management and Protection of Wetlands, Final Public Notice) is provided in the Final EA. Based 
upon the conditions and the information contained in the Final EA, and in accordance with 
FEMA's regulations in 44 CFR Part 10 (Environmental Considerations) and Executive Orders 
11988, 11990 (Protection of Wetlands), and 12898 (Environmental Justice), the following is 
concluded:

A Finding of No Significant Impact. Therefore, an Environmental Impact Statement will not be 
prepared based on the fact that there will be no short- or long-term adverse impacts to the natural 
environment resulting from this project. For more information, contact the undersigned at (510) 
627-7027. No action will be allowed to occur until 15 days after publication of this Finding of No 
Significant Impact.


[Original Signed]		11 April 2006
__________________________________________
Alessandro Amaglio	Date
Region IX Environmental Officer