Granite Creek Upper Verde River Watershed Plan-EA

The Yavapai County Flood Control District (YCFCD) is the Sponsoring Local Organization receiving assistance from the USDA-NRCS to create a PL 83-566 Watershed Plan and Environmental Assessment Document (Plan-EA) for the Granite Creek Upper Verde River Watershed in Yavapai County, Arizona. YCFCD is supported in this effort by the City of Prescott and the Town of Chino Valley.

The watershed is part of the Granite Creek and Verde River system, which is a regionally important watercourse in Central Arizona and a headwaters to the Wild & Scenic Verde River. Certain areas and watercourses in the watershed suffer from periodic flooding, flood-related loss of public safety access/egress, erosion, sedimentation, and water quantity and quality issues resulting in damage to agricultural, rural, and urban infrastructure. The most recent of these events resulted in declarations of a state of emergency by the Yavapai County Board of Supervisors and the Governor of the State of Arizona.

YCFCD and other principal stakeholders are participating in the research, collaboration, and development of a Plan-EA to identify, prioritize, environmentally assess or study, fund, and implement structural and non-structural alternatives for improved flood damage reduction, watershed protection, fish and wildlife, municipal water supply, and water quality management. While the proposed PL 83-566 Watershed Plan-EA may not result in all of these objectives being accomplished, the planning process will benefit the public and the environment without any apparent insurmountable obstacles.

The primary purpose of the proposed Plan-EA as identified by the NRCS and Project Sponsors is Flood Prevention, with a significant secondary purpose of Watershed Protection. Measures expected to be identified for evaluation in the planning process will include:

  • Flood damage prevention and reduction
  • Flood hazard mitigation
  • Erosion and sedimentation reduction
  • Ecosystem restoration
  • Wildlife habitat creation, restoration, and improvement
  • Enhanced recreation resources
  • Improved surface water quality
  • Enhanced groundwater recharge

Granite Creek-EA Project Area Map(JPG, 463KB)

Public Scoping Notice(PDF, 951KB)

PUBLIC COMMENTS:

Comments will be accepted from November 20 – December 20, 2024. They can be submitted via online form, email, or mail.

MAIL:
Yavapai County Flood Control District
Attn:  Granite Creek Plan-EA
1120 Commerce Drive
Prescott, AZ  86305

EMAIL:

echambers@fransoncivil.com

ONLINE COMMENT FORM:

Granite Creek Upper Verde River

NEPA Analysis

NRCS, as the lead federal agency, is initiating National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) analysis in the form of a Watershed Plan and Environmental Assessment (Plan-EA) to analyze impacts to the natural and human environment from this project. The Plan-EA will comply with the Council on Environmental Quality’s regulations at 40 CFR Parts 1500-1508 and the Natural Resources Conservation Service Regulations (7 CFR Part 650), which require an evaluation of potential environmental impacts associated with federal projects and actions.

 

Current Status

The project is in the scoping phase of the environmental process to identify issues and resource concerns. Technical studies are scheduled to take place during the spring/summer of 2025, with a Draft Watershed Plan – Environmental Assessment to be circulated for review in summer 2026.

 

 

Public Scoping

The proposed Plan-EA will gather information regarding potential project locations and scope through discussions with Project Sponsors, stakeholders in the area, and the general public. Based on these discussions, a Prioritized Project Measure list will be developed by interdisciplinary teams of technical specialists.

The Plan-EA will support projects that are provided for under PL 83-566 and is expected to identify, assess, and prioritize alternatives with the potential to be funded by PL 83-566 and other sources.

The completed Plan-EA will identify problems to be addressed, potential project measures to implement, potential environmental benefits and adverse impacts of project measures, and methods of financing.

Public comment, input, collaboration, and concurrence will be solicited throughout the planning process. Public comments will be accepted via online form and mail. A public scoping meeting will be held to discuss Plan-EA details, answer questions, and garner feedback. More details can be found on the project website.

 

Contact Information

Layne Jensen, P.E. – Franson Civil Engineers, Project Technical Manager
1276 South 820 East Suite 100
American Fork, UT 84003
ljensen@fransoncivil.com
801-756-0309

 

Eleanore Chambers – Franson Civil Engineers, Public Outreach
1276 South 820 East Suite 100
American Fork, UT  84003
echambers@fransoncivil.com
801-756-0309

 

Xavier Alfaro-Lopez – NRCS, Water Resources Planning Specialist
3274 Bob Drive Suite C
Prescott Valley, AZ  86314
xavier.alfaro-lopez@usda.gov
928-910-4478

 

Public Meeting

Public Scoping Meeting: Wednesday December 4, 2024 at 6:00pm (MST)

Location: Chino Valley Council Chambers (202 N. State Route 89, Chino Valley, AZ 86323)

Virtual Attendance Option: Please email echambers@fransoncivil.com to request an invitation to attend virtually.

 

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