The U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service and San Bernard National Wildlife Refuge (NWR) invites public comment on a draft Compatibility Determination (CD) for granting an expanded right-of-way to Texas Department of Transportation (TxDOT) for widening of State Highway 36 that traverses the Brothers River Tract of the refuge.

The proposal would improve public safety by creating a four-lane road to accommodate increased traffic volume and to improve public evacuation capacity of workers and residents in Brazoria County in the event of tropical storms or hurricanes.

This CD evaluates the proposed ROW expansion as pertains specifically to refuge lands (not the entire HW 36 road project) impacted by highway construction. This is not an evaluation of the entire project which stretches from Freeport to Richmond, Texas. The proposed project includes two additional bridges within the refuge that will serve as “wildlife crossings” and TxDOT will ensure the refuge realizes no net-loss of overall refuge acreage.

The compatibility determination describes the circumstances under which a refuge use or activity would be allowed. When a compatibility determination is accepted, it means a proposed use has been found appropriate for the site and is consistent with the missions of the refuge, the National Wildlife Refuge System, and the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service.

The CD will be available for public review and comment from June 23 to July 7, 2023 at the Texas Mid-coast NWR Complex headquarters located at 2547 County Road 316 in Brazoria, TX 77422 and online at https://www.fws.gov/media/san-bernard-nwr-compatibility-determination-txdot-row.  

Comments can be sent electronically: R2_plancomments@FWS.gov  or by mailing or hand-delivering to the Refuge Complex headquarters. For additional questions about the refuge or the CD, please contact the Refuge Complex headquarters at 979-964-4011.

Original source can be found here