Environmental assessment section on physical resources, 2001

NYC 9/11 Public Portal Document

applicable federal, state, and local laws and regulations related to the prevention and mitigation of accidental spills of hazardous substances to the extent practicable (33 USC 1251 etseg.-, 42 USC 9601 etseq.-, 42 USC 6901 etseq). Additionally, construction activities disturbing 1 to 5 acres are now covered by the NPDES - Regulations for Revision of the Water Pollution Control Program Addressing Stormwater Discharges (Phase n Stormwater Regulations -Federal Register, Volume 64, No. 235, Wednesday, December J, 1999, pages 68722 - 68770). Deadlines were established for completion of both the NPDES permitting authority’s and the responsible party’s program responsibilities. These requirements are outlined in Exhibit 2, page 68738, of the December 8,1999 Federal Register. The permit application deadline for stormwater discharges associated with small project (1 to 5 acres) construction activities was established as 3 years and 90 days fi-om the final rule date, or March 7, 2003. Specific permit requirements and conditions will be followed by the responsible entity.

Before construction proposed under any of the action alternatives described, soil erosion management activities would be performed by the responsible party. The NPDES permit for construction would be obtained and the Stormwater PPP would specify soil erosion control requirements. In addition, development of an Erosion and Sedimentation (E&S) plan prior to construction, and implementation of Best Management Practices (BMPs) and E&S mandates during construction would reduce the potential for soil erosion during construction. The responsible party would be required to follow all federal, state, and local environmental laws and regulations pertaining to spill management, control, and reporting during construction. For these reasons, no significant impacts related to geology or soils are anticipated for any of the action alternatives proposed. Impacts to the project during construction may be caused by the presence of the man-made soils. . The potential impacts related to excavating in fill material of unknown composition and strength would be mitigated during project planning by identification of these areas of concern and prior sampling if required. The responsible party woulcfbe required to conform to all OSHA health and safety standards, and requirements diiring excavation and shoring and stabilization measures would be implemented, as needed based on contractor specifications. Health and safety monitoring may also need to occur to identify potentially hazardous safety conditions to avoid exposures or releases to the environment.

New York City (NYC) building codes were designed to control seismic risks in accordance with the Seismic Retrofit Executive Order 12699. National Fire Protection Association (NFPA) supports the adoption proposed by FEMA of seismic provisions contained in the American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE) standard, ASCE-7, Minimum Design Loadsfor Buildings and Other Structures. NFPA 5000, Building Code™ -will be the first ^".liumg code developed through an American National Standards Institute (ANSI)-accredited consensus process. NYC building codes will directly reference the seismic provisions contained in the latest edition of the ASCE standard. Since new construction would comply with NYC building codes, no impact related to earthquake hazards is expected for any of the proposed projects.

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