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Final EIS Available for Public Review
The Department of Army, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers is pleased to announce that the Point Thomson Project Final Environmental Impact Statement (Final EIS) is now available for public viewing.
 Copies of the Final EIS are electronically available for viewing, copying, or printing.
The Corps of Engineers has reviewed and responded to the comments received during the Draft EIS comment period and made revisions to the EIS as appropriate. The Corps of Engineers appreciates the time and effort taken by the public and agencies in reviewing and commenting on the Draft EIS. All comments were reviewed and considered.
Paper copies of the Final EIS are available at the following public locations: Tuzzy Consortium Library in Barrow, Fairbanks Noel Wien Library in Fairbanks, and in Anchorage at the Z.J. Loussac Public Library, UAA/APU Consortium Library, and Alaska Resources Library and Information Services. To obtain a paper copy of the Executive Summary, please contact the Corps of Engineers’ Project Manager, Harry A. Baij Jr. at harry.a.baij@usace.army.mil. Copies of the Executive Summary with CDs of the Final EIS have been distributed to Federal, State, regional, and local agencies; Tribes; elected officials; organizations; and individuals who may be interested or affected.
The 30-day review period for the Final EIS begins on July 27, 2012 and ends on August 27, 2012. The Corps of Engineers is not soliciting public comments on the Final EIS. However, concurrent with the Final EIS 30-day review period, the Corps is issuing a second Public Notice of Application for Permit on the applicant’s revised and clarified Department of the Army permit application. Public comments will be accepted for the 30-day period. The public is encouraged to provide comment on the Public Notice, which will be available at the Corps’ Web site www.poa.usace.army.mil/reg under the Public Notices button and under file number POA-2001-1082-M1, Beaufort Sea.
Concurrent with the National Environmental Policy Act process followed to complete the Final EIS, the Corps of Engineers is evaluating the proposed project for compliance with the Clean Water Act Section 404(b)(1) Guidelines. They are also evaluating the applicant’s proposal to determine whether it is within the public’s interest and in compliance with other applicable laws and regulations. A Record of Decision on the proposed action will be issued after August 27, 2012.
Project Description
ExxonMobil (Applicant) is proceeding with a proposal to develop the Thomson Sand Reservoir on the North Slope of Alaska. The objective is to produce 10,000 barrels per day (bpd) of condensate and test and delineate other hydrocarbon resources including oil and natural gas, of the Point Thomson area.
For the Point Thomson Project, the Alaska District, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (Corps) has been designated the lead Federal agency in the Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) process and the Environmental Protection Agency, US Fish and Wildlife Service, and State of Alaska Department of Natural Resources are Cooperating Agencies. The EIS will be used as a basis for the Corps' permit decision and to ensure compliance with the National Environmental Policy Act and other Federal and State permitting and authorization requirements.
The proposed project features include three pads for drilling and production of wells, with a central pad supporting production facilities, infield roads, pipelines, an airstrip, and a gravel mine site. A common carrier sales pipeline will be constructed for transporting hydrocarbon liquids 22 miles west to connect with the Trans Alaska Pipeline System.
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