[Federal Register Volume 78, Number 176 (Wednesday, September 11, 2013)]
[Notices]
[Pages 55763-55765]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2013-22118]
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NATIONAL AERONAUTICS AND SPACE ADMINISTRATION
[Notice 13-112]
National Environmental Policy Act; Santa Susana Field Laboratory
AGENCY: National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA).
ACTION: Notice of Extension of the Comment Period for the Draft
Environmental Impact Statement (DEIS) for Demolition and Environmental
Cleanup Activities for the NASA-administered portion of the Santa
Susana Field Laboratory (SSFL), Ventura County, California.
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SUMMARY: A Notice of Availability (NOA) for the DEIS for Demolition and
Cleanup Activities for the NASA-administered portion of the Santa
Susana Field Laboratory was published in the Federal Register by the
U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) on August 2, 2013, Vol. 78,
No. 149, page 46940.
NASA also published an NOA of the DEIS in the Federal Register on
the same day (August 2, 2013, Vol. 78, No. 149, pages 47007-47009). The
comment period for the DEIS was to end on September 16, 2013. This
notice extends the comment period an additional fifteen days to October
1, 2013, to allow the public further time to comment on the DEIS.
DATES: Interested parties are invited to submit comments on
environmental issues and concerns, preferably in writing by October 1,
2013.
ADDRESSES: Comments submitted by mail should be addressed to Allen
Elliott, SSFL Project Director, NASA MSFC AS01, Building 4494,
Huntsville, AL 35812. Comments may be submitted via email to [email protected].
The DEIS may be reviewed at the following locations:
1. Simi Valley Library, 2969 Tapo Canyon Road, Simi Valley, CA 93063,
Web site: http://simivalleylibrary.org/home/, Phone: (805) 526-1735
2. Platt Library, 23600 Victory Blvd., Woodland Hills, CA 91367, Web
site: http://www.lapl.org/branches/platt, Phone: (818) 340-9386
3. California State University, Northridge Oviatt Library, 18111
Nordhoff Street, 2nd Floor, Room 265, Northridge, CA 91330, Web site:
http://library.csun.edu, Phone: (818) 677-2285
4. Department of Toxic Substances Control, 9211 Oakdale Avenue,
Chatsworth, CA 91311, Web site: http://www.dtsc.ca.gov, Phone: (818)
717-6521
The DEIS is available on the internet in Adobe[supreg] portable
document format at http://www.nasa.gov/agency/nepa/news/SSFL.html.
The Federal Register Notice of Intent to prepare the DEIS, issued
in the Federal Register on July 6, 2011, is also available on the
Internet at http://ssfl.msfc.nasa.gov/public-involvement/.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Allen Elliott, SSFL Project Director,
by phone at (256) 544-0662 or by email at [email protected].
Additional information about NASA's SSFL site, the proposed demolition
and cleanup activities, and the associated EIS planning process and
documentation (as available) may be found on the Internet at http://ssfl.msfc.nasa.gov.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
Decision To Be Made
This DEIS informs NASA decision makers, regulating agencies, and
the public of the potential environmental consequences of the proposed
demolition of SSFL buildings and structures and the proposed
technologies for groundwater and soil remediation, as implemented
through the Proposed Action. This DEIS analyzes a range of remedial
technologies that might be implemented to achieve the proposed
groundwater and soil remediation goals. NASA will use the DEIS analysis
to consider the potential environmental, economic, and social impacts
from the Proposed Action. On the basis of the DEIS findings, NASA will
issue a Record of Decision (ROD) documenting the findings. The ROD will
further identify which buildings will be demolished to support
disposition of the property, and which remedial technology(ies) would
will be applied to meet the soil cleanup and groundwater quality goals.
The purpose of this notice is to apprise interested agencies,
organizations, tribal governments, and individuals of the availability
of the DEIS and to invite comments on the document. NASA will hold
public meetings as part of the DEIS review process.
Site Description
The SSFL site is 2,850 acres located in Ventura County, California,
approximately seven miles northwest of Canoga Park and approximately 30
miles northwest of downtown Los Angeles. SSFL is composed of four areas
known as Areas I, II, III, and IV and two unnumbered areas known as the
``undeveloped land.'' NASA administers 41.7 acres within Area I and all
409.5 acres of Area II. The Boeing Company manages the remaining
2,398.8 acres within Areas I, III, and IV, and the two undeveloped
areas.
Since the mid-1950s, when the two federally owned areas were owned
by the U.S. Air Force, this site has been used for developing and
testing rocket engines. Four test stand complexes were constructed in
Area II between 1954 and 1957 named Alfa, Bravo, Coca, and Delta. Area
II and the LOX Plant portion of Area I were acquired by NASA from the
U.S. Air Force in the 1970s. These test stands and related ancillary
structures have been found to have historical significance based on the
historic importance of the engine testing and the engineering and
design of the structures.
The NASA-administered areas of SSFL also contain cultural resources
not related to rocket development. SSFL is located near the crest of
the Simi Hills that are part of the Santa Monica Mountains running
east-west across Southern California. The diverse terrain consists of
ridges, canyons, and sandstone rock outcrops. The region was occupied
by Native Americans from the earliest Chumash, Tongva, and Tataviam
cultures. NASA has conducted several previous surveys to locate
archaeological and architectural resources within its portion of the
SSFL. As a result, NASA has identified one historic property, the Burro
Flats Painted Cave, that is listed on the National Register of Historic
Places (NRHP), as well as multiple buildings and structures that are
either
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individually eligible for listing on the NRHP or are elements of NRHP-
eligible historic districts containing multiple architectural
resources.
Previous environmental sampling on the NASA-administered property
indicates that metals, dioxins, polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs),
volatile organics, and semivolatile organics are present in the soils
and upper groundwater (known as the Surficial Media Operable Unit).
Volatile organics, metals, and semivolatile organics are also present
in the deeper groundwater (known as the Chatsworth Formation Operable
Unit).
Environmental Commitments and Associated Environmental Review
Rocket engine testing has been discontinued at these sites and the
property has been excessed to the General Services Administration
(GSA). GSA has conditionally accepted the Report of Excess pending (i)
NASA's certification that all action necessary to protect human health
and the environment with respect to hazardous substances on the
property has been taken or receipt of EPA's written concurrence that an
approved and installed remedial design is operating properly and
successfully; OR (ii) the Governor's concurrence in the suitability of
the property for transfer per CERCLA Section 120(h)(3)(C).
In 2007, a Consent Order among NASA, Boeing, the Department of
Energy (DOE), and Department of Toxic Substances Control (DTSC) for the
State of California was signed addressing the demolition of certain
infrastructure and environmental cleanup of SSFL. NASA entered into an
Administrative Order on Consent (AOC) for Remedial Action with DTSC on
December 6, 2010, ``to further define and make more specific NASA's
obligations with respect to the cleanup of soils at the Site.'' Based
on the 2010 AOC, NASA is required to complete a federal environmental
review pursuant to NEPA. ``An EIS is being prepared by NASA to include
demolition of site infrastructure and soil cleanup (pursuant to the
AOC), and groundwater remediation within Area II and a portion of Area
I (Liquid Oxygen [LOX] Plant) of SSFL (pursuant to the 2007 Consent
Order).'' As part of the environmental review process, certain studies
have been or are being completed, to characterize the existing
conditions and to inform the analysis and consultation. These include
surveys for wildlife, critical habitat, rare plants, wetlands, and
archaeological and cultural resources. The findings of these studies
are being incorporated into the DEIS.
Alternatives
To prepare SSFL for disposition, NASA describes the demolition of
SSFL structures and cleanup of the site necessary to meet only the
strictest cleanup alternative, as dictated by the 2007 Consent Order
and the 2010 AOC requirements, and the ``No Action'' alternative
required by NEPA. During the Scoping Process, per the standard
consistent with the alternatives evaluated under previous Superfund or
Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA) cleanup processes, NASA
originally proposed to evaluate a range of cleanup standard levels,
including the ``Cleanup to Background'' alternative required by the
AOC, the ``No Action'' alternative required by NEPA, and other
alternatives that are, consistent with the potential future use of the
land. The latter alternatives include soil cleanup requirements to
suburban residential, to industrial, and to recreational cleanup
standards. Based on comments from some members of the public, DTSC,
Senator Boxer, and guidance from the White House's Council on
Environmental Quality, the DEIS now considers only the strictest
``Cleanup to Background'' and the least effective ``No Action''
alternatives. All other cleanup alternatives, consistent with both the
Scoping Process and the potential future use of the land, were
specifically removed from the DEIS.
The DEIS will consider a range of alternative technologies that
meet NASA's objectives to clean up soil and groundwater contamination
at the portion of the SSFL site administered by NASA. Implementation of
this Proposed Action would occur by implementing one Demolition
Alternative and one or more Cleanup Technologies, from the following:
(1) Soil Cleanup Technologies: Excavation and Offsite Disposal, Soil
Washing, Soil Vapor Extraction, Ex Situ Treatment Using Land Farming,
Ex Situ Treatment Using oxidation, In Situ Chemical Oxidation, In Situ
Anaerobic or Aerobic Biological Treatment; (2) Groundwater Treatment
Technologies: Pump and Treat, Vacuum Extraction, Heat Driven
Extraction, In situ Chemical Oxidation, In situ Enhanced
Bioremediation, and Monitored Natural Attenuation.
NEPA requires analysis of the ``No Action'' alternative which in
this case means no environmental cleanup at the site and/or no
demolition of test stands and ancillary structures on the NASA-
administered property.
GSA will conduct a separate environmental review under NEPA for the
action of transferring the land out of NASA stewardship. The options
could include reuse or redevelopment of the property under local,
state, or private ownership.
DTSC is preparing a separate Environmental Impact Report (EIR)
under the California Environmental Quality Act, which requires that
State agencies give major consideration, when regulating public and
private activities, to preventing environmental degradation and to
identifying environmentally superior mitigations and alternatives, when
possible. This State-led environmental review must identify the
potentially significant environmental effects of a project and
environmentally preferable alternatives to implementing the project.
The EIR also indicates the manner in which significant effects could be
mitigated or avoided. DTSC will analyze the potential environmental
effects of environmental cleanup activities occurring SSFL-wide by
NASA, Boeing, and DOE. NASA and DTSC have coordinated during these
processes to maintain consistency pertaining to the analysis of the
NASA-administered demolition and remedial activities. Cumulative
effects of the proposed Boeing, DOE, and NASA demolition and remedial
activities at SSFL will be considered. The DTSC EIR is likely to be
prepared following publication of NASA's EIS, and could incorporate
some of NASA's EIS analysis. A programmatic EIR will be developed that
evaluates the remedial activities that will be conducted at SSFL by
NASA, Boeing, and DOE, as well as project-specific EIRs that evaluate
the localized remedial activities.
Public Meetings
NASA plans to hold two public meetings to receive comments on the
DEIS regarding alternatives and environmental issues to be considered
in the DEIS. The public meetings are scheduled as follows:
1. Corporate Pointe, West Hills, CA, Tuesday, August 27, 2013 from
2:00-4:00 p.m. at the Auditorium, 8413 Fallbrook Avenue, West Hills, CA
91304
2. Corporate Pointe, West Hills, CA, Wednesday, August 28, 2013 from
6:00-8:00 p.m. at the Auditorium, 8413 Fallbrook Avenue, West Hills, CA
91304
NASA will consider all comments received in developing its Final
EIS; comments received and responses to comments will be included in
the Final document. In conclusion, written public input on
environmental issues and
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concerns associated with NASA's cleanup of SSFL are hereby requested.
Calvin Williams,
Director, Integrated Asset Management Division, Office of Strategic
Infrastructure.
[FR Doc. 2013-22118 Filed 9-10-13; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 7510-13-P