[Federal Register Volume 80, Number 15 (Friday, January 23, 2015)]
[Notices]
[Pages 3570-3571]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2015-01121]
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DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE
Department of the Navy
Notice of Public Meeting for the Draft Environmental Impact
Statement for Military Readiness Activities at the Fallon Range
Training Complex (FRTC), Nevada
AGENCY: Department of the Navy, DoD.
ACTION: Notice.
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SUMMARY: Pursuant to Section 102(2)(c) of the National Environmental
Policy Act (NEPA) of 1969 and regulations implemented by the Council on
Environmental Quality (40 Code of Federal Regulations (CFR) parts 1500-
1508), the Department of the Navy (DoN) has prepared and filed with the
U.S. Environmental Protection Agency a Draft Environmental Impact
Statement (EIS) to assess the potential environmental impacts of
ongoing and proposed military training activities within the FRTC EIS
Study Area. The Bureau of Land Management is a cooperating agency for
this EIS.
With the filing of the Draft EIS, the DoN is initiating a 46-day
public comment period beginning on January 23, 2015 and ending on March
9, 2015 and has scheduled a public meeting to inform the public and
receive comments on the accuracy and adequacy of the Draft EIS. This
notice announces the date and location of the public meeting and
provides supplementary information about the environmental planning
effort.
Dates and Addresses: The DoN will hold a public meeting to inform
the public about the proposed action and alternatives under
consideration and to provide an opportunity for the public to comment
on the accuracy and adequacy of the environmental analysis presented in
the Draft EIS. Federal, state, and local agencies and officials, Native
American Indian Tribes and Nations, and interested organizations and
individuals are encouraged to provide comments in person at the public
meeting or in writing during the public review period.
A public meeting will be held between 5:00 p.m. and 7:00 p.m. on
Thursday, February 19, 2015, at the Churchill County Commission
Chambers, 155 North Taylor Street, Fallon, Nevada 89406. The public
meeting will be an open house session with informational poster
stations staffed by DoN representatives. A brief DoN presentation will
be given at 5:30 p.m.
Attendees will be able to submit oral and written comments during
the public meeting. Oral comments from the public will be recorded by a
certified court reporter. Equal weight will be given to oral and
written statements. Written comments may also be submitted to: Naval
Facilities Engineering Command Southwest, Attention: Ms. Amy Kelley,
Code EV21.AK; 1220 Pacific Highway, Building 1, 5th Floor; San Diego,
CA 92132. Written comments may also be submitted electronically via the
project Web site (www.FRTCEIS.com).
All comments submitted during the public review period, oral or
written, will become part of the public record. All comments will be
reviewed and responded to in the Final EIS. For consideration in the
Final EIS, comments must be postmarked or received online by March 9,
2015.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Naval Facilities Engineering Command
Southwest; Attention: Ms. Amy Kelley, Code EV21.AK; 1220 Pacific
Highway Building 1, 5th Floor; San Diego, CA 92132.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The FRTC is a set of well-defined geographic
training areas in the high desert of northern Nevada encompassing
airspace, land ranges, and associated electronic systems used primarily
for air and ground training activities. In total, the complex
encompasses approximately 230,000 acres of training land and 12,256
square nautical miles of airspace. A portion of the FRTC, Naval Air
Station (NAS) Fallon, is located six miles to the southeast of the city
of Fallon. The land and airspace of the FRTC comprises the Study Area
evaluated in the Draft EIS.
The DoN's Proposed Action is to continue and enhance ground and
aviation training activities within the existing FRTC study area. To
support training requirements for fleet readiness, the DoN proposes to
adjust training activities from current levels to the levels needed to
accommodate evolving mission requirements, including those resulting
from training, tactics development, testing, and introduction
[[Page 3571]]
of new aircraft and weapons systems into the fleet. A Notice of Intent
to prepare this Draft EIS was published in the Federal Register on May
28, 2013 (78 FR 31909).
The purpose of the Proposed Action is to provide sustainable and
modern airspace, range, maneuver areas, training facilities, and range
infrastructure and resources to fully support training activities
occurring within the FRTC in accordance with the assigned roles and
missions for the Naval Strike and Air Warfare Center (NSAWC) and to
provide ground training opportunities for other Services. The Proposed
Action is needed to achieve and maintain military readiness by using
the FRTC to support and conduct military readiness activities in
compliance with the DoN's roles and responsibilities under Title 10 of
the U.S. Code (U.S.C). To comply with its 10 U.S.C. 5062 mandates, the
DoN needs to: (1) Maintain current levels of military readiness by
enhancing training at the FRTC; (2) accommodate possible future
increases in training activities at the FRTC; (3) accommodate training
activities associated with force structure changes; and (4) maintain
the long-term viability of the FRTC as a military training and testing
range.
The Draft EIS evaluates the potential environmental effects of the
following three alternatives:
1. No Action Alternative: Includes training activities of the same
type, level of intensity, and frequency are currently conducted within
the FRTC Study Area. The No Action Alternative provides a baseline
against which the potential environmental impacts of the other action
alternatives can be compared.
2. Alternative 1: In addition to baseline training activities,
Alternative 1 includes an overall 6 percent increase in the types of
training activities and the number of training events conducted within
the FRTC Study Area, and includes force structure changes (e.g., new
aircraft, weapons, or tactics). The increased activities are Combat
Search and Rescue exercises, Gunnery Exercise (Air-to-Ground), High-
speed Anti-radiation Missile Exercises, and Missile Exercises (Air-to-
Ground). In addition, two activities formerly conducted at the FRTC,
Ground LASER Targeting and Dismounted Fire and Maneuver, are included
under Alternative 1 as new activities.
3. Alternative 2: Includes all elements of Alternative 1. In
addition, training activities of the types currently conducted would be
increased by 10 percent over levels identified in Alternative 1. This
alternative is identified as the Preferred Alternative in the Draft
EIS.
The Draft EIS provides an analysis of the potential environmental
effects of the proposed action on the following resources: Soils; air
quality; water quality; noise (airborne); biological resources; land
use and recreation; socioeconomics, environmental justice and
protection of children; transportation; cultural resources; and public
health and safety. The results of the analysis indicate that
implementation of the Preferred Alternative (Alternative 2) would
result in no potentially significant environmental impacts for any
resource area. Consultation with the Nevada State Historic Preservation
Officer (SHPO) and Native American Tribes under Section 106 of the
National Historic Preservation Act is pending.
The Draft EIS was distributed to federal, state, and local agencies
and elected officials, Native American Indian Tribes and Nations, and
other interested individuals and organizations. The Draft EIS is
available for public electronic viewing or download at the project Web
site at www.FRTCEIS.com. A paper copy of the Draft EIS may be reviewed
at each of the following public libraries:
1. Austin Branch Library, 88 Main Street, Austin, NV 89310.
2. Carson City Library, 900 North Roop Street, Carson City, NV
89701.
3. Churchill County Library Annex, 507 South Maine Street, Fallon,
NV 89406.
4. Crescent Valley Branch Library, 5045 Tenabo Avenue, Crescent
Valley Town Center, Suite 103, Crescent Valley, NV 89821.
5. Eureka Branch Library, 80 South Monroe Street, Eureka, NV 89316.
6. Gabbs Community Library, 602 3rd Street, Gabbs, NV 89409.
A single compact disc of the Draft EIS will be made available upon
written request.
(Authority: 35 U.S.C. 207, 37 CFR Part 404)
Dated: January 16, 2015.
N.A. Hagerty-Ford,
Commander, Judge Advocate General's Corps, U.S. Navy, Federal Register
Liaison Officer.
[FR Doc. 2015-01121 Filed 1-22-15; 8:45 am]
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