TENNESSEE-TOMBIGBEE WATERWAY WILDLIFE MITIGATION PROJECT, ALABAMA AND MISSISSIPPI.

SEC. 301. TENNESSEE-TOMBIGBEE WATERWAY WILDLIFE MITIGATION PROJECT, ALABAMA AND MISSISSIPPI. (a) In General.—The Tennessee-Tombigbee Waterway Wildlife Mitigation Project, Alabama and Mississippi, authorized by section 601(a) of Public Law 99–662 (100 Stat. 4138) is modified to authorize the Secretary to— (1) remove the wildlife mitigation purpose designation from up to 3,000 acres of land as necessary over the life of the project from lands originally acquired for water resource development projects included in the Mitigation Project in accordance with the Report of the Chief of Engineers dated August 31, 1985; (2) sell or exchange such lands in accordance with subsection (c)(1) and under such conditions as the Secretary determines to be necessary to protect the interests of the United States, utilize such lands as the Secretary determines to be appropriate in connection with development, operation, maintenance, or modification of the water resource development projects, or grant such other interests as the Secretary may determine to be reasonable in the public interest; and (3) acquire, in accordance with subsections (c) and (d), lands from willing sellers to offset the removal of any lands from the Mitigation Project for the purposes listed in subsection (a)(2) of this section. (b) Removal Process.—Beginning on the date of enactment of this Act, the locations of these lands to be removed will be determined at appropriate time intervals at the discretion of the Secretary, in consultation with appropriate Federal and State fish and wildlife agencies, to facilitate the operation of the water resource development projects and to respond to regional needs related to the project. Removals under this subsection shall be restricted to Project Lands designated for mitigation and shall not include lands purchased exclusively for mitigation purposes (known as Separable Mitigation Lands). Parcel identification, 114 STAT. 2600removal, and sale may occur assuming acreage acquisitions pursuant to subsection (d) are at least equal to the total acreage of the lands removed. (c) Lands To Be Sold.—(1) Lands to be sold or exchanged pursuant to subsection (a)(2) shall be made available for related uses consistent with other uses of the water resource development project lands (including port, industry, transportation, recreation, and other regional needs for the project). (2) Any valuation of land sold or exchanged pursuant to this section shall be at fair market value as determined by the Secretary. (3) The Secretary is authorized to accept monetary consideration and to use such funds without further appropriation to carry out subsection (a)(3). All monetary considerations made available to the Secretary under subsection (a)(2) from the sale of lands shall be used for and in support of acquisitions pursuant to subsection (d). The Secretary is further authorized for purposes of this section to purchase up to 1,000 acres from funds otherwise available. (d) Criteria for Land To Be Acquired.—The Secretary shall consult with the appropriate Federal and State fish and wildlife agencies in selecting the lands to be acquired pursuant to subsection (a)(3). In selecting the lands to be acquired, bottomland hardwood and associated habitats will receive primary consideration. The lands shall be adjacent to lands already in the Mitigation Project unless otherwise agreed to by the Secretary and the fish and wildlife agencies. (e) Dredged Material Disposal Sites.—The Secretary shall utilize dredged material disposal areas in such a manner as to maximize their reuse by disposal and removal of dredged materials, in order to conserve undisturbed disposal areas for wildlife habitat to the maximum extent practicable. Where the habitat value loss due to reuse of disposal areas cannot be offset by the reduced need for other unused disposal sites, the Secretary shall determine, in consultation with Federal and State fish and wildlife agencies, and ensure full mitigation for any habitat value lost as a result of such reuse. (f) Other Mitigation Lands.—The Secretary is also authorized to transfer by lease, easement, license, or permit lands acquired for the Wildlife Mitigation Project pursuant to section 601(a) of Public Law 99–662, in consultation with Federal and State fish and wildlife agencies, when such transfers are necessary to address transportation, utility, and related activities. The Secretary shall ensure full mitigation for any wildlife habitat value lost as a result of such sale or transfer. Habitat value replacement requirements shall be determined by the Secretary in consultation with the appropriate fish and wildlife agencies. (g) Repeal.—Section 102 of the Water Resources Development Act of 1992 (106 Stat. 4804) is amended by striking subsection (a).