[Federal Register Volume 75, Number 62 (Thursday, April 1, 2010)]
[Notices]
[Pages 16551-16552]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2010-7129]
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DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION
Federal Aviation Administration
Office of Commercial Space Transportation; Notice of Availability
and Request for Comment on the Draft Supplemental Environmental
Assessment (Draft SEA) to the September 2008 Environmental Assessment
for Space Florida Launch Site Operator License, Brevard County, FL
AGENCY: The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), lead Federal agency
and United States Air Force, cooperating agency
ACTION: Notice of availability, notice of public comment period, and
request for comment.
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SUMMARY: In accordance with National Environmental Policy Act
regulations of 1969, as amended (NEPA) (42 U.S.C. 4321 et seq.),
Council on Environmental Quality NEPA implementing regulations (40 CFR
parts 1500-1508), and FAA Order 1050.1E, Change 1, the FAA is
announcing the availability of and requesting comments on the Draft
Supplemental Environmental Assessment (SEA) to the September 2008
Environmental Assessment for Space Florida Launch Site Operator
License. The Draft SEA was prepared in response to an application for a
Launch Site Operator License from Space Florida. Under the Proposed
Action, the FAA would issue a Launch Site Operator License to Space
Florida to operate a commercial space launch site at Launch Complex 36
(LC-36) and LC-46 at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station (CCAFS) in
Brevard County, Florida. The license would allow Space Florida to
support vertical launches of both solid and liquid propellant launch
vehicles from LC-36 and LC-46. LC-46 is the easternmost launch complex
at CCAFS, located at the tip of Cape Canaveral, and LC-36 is located in
the east-central portion of CCAFS. The Draft SEA addresses the
potential environmental impacts of issuing a Launch Site Operator
License for the Proposed Action and the No Action Alternative.
The FAA has posted the Draft SEA on the FAA Office of Commercial
Space Transportation Web site at http://www.faa.gov/about/office_org/headquarters_offices/ast/. In addition, copies of the Draft SEA were
sent to persons and agencies on the distribution list (found in Chapter
8 of the Draft SEA). A paper copy and a CD version of the Draft SEA may
be reviewed for comment during regular business hours at the following
locations:
Titusville Public Library, 2121 S. Hopkins Ave., Titusville, FL 32780.
Cocoa Beach Public Library, 550 North Brevard Ave, Cocoa Beach, FL
32931.
Cape Canaveral Public Library, 201 Polk Avenue, Cape Canaveral, FL
32920.
Merritt Island Public Library, 1195 North Courtenay Parkway, Merritt
Island, FL 32953.
DATES: The public comment period for the Draft SEA begins with the
issuance of this Notice of Availability. The FAA encourages all
interested parties to provide comments concerning the scope and content
of the Draft SEA. To ensure that all comments can be addressed in the
Final SEA, comments on the draft must be received by the FAA no later
than April 27, 2010. Comments should be as specific as possible and
address the analysis of potential environmental impacts and the
adequacy of the proposed action or merits of alternatives and the
mitigation being considered. Reviewers should organize their comments
to be meaningful and inform the FAA of their interests and concerns by
quoting or providing specific references to the text of the Draft SEA.
Matters that could have been raised with specificity during the comment
period on the Draft SEA may not be considered if they are raised for
the first time later in the decision process. This commenting procedure
is intended to ensure that substantive comments and
[[Page 16552]]
concerns are made available to the FAA in a timely manner so that the
FAA has an opportunity to address them.
ADDRESSES: Please submit comments in writing to: FAA Space Florida
Supplemental EA, c/o ICF International, 9300 Lee Highway, Fairfax, VA
22031. Comments may also be submitted via e-mail to
[email protected]. For questions or additional information on the
Draft SEA, please contact Mr. Daniel Czelusniak, FAA Environmental
Specialist, at (202) 267-5924 or [email protected].
Additional Information
Under the Proposed Action, the FAA would issue a Launch Site
Operator License to Space Florida to operate LC-36 and LC-46 as a
commercial space launch site for vertical launches of both solid and
liquid propellant launch vehicles. The proposed activities at LC-46
remain consistent with those analyzed in the 2008 EA which analyzed the
potential environmental impacts of the FAA issuing a Launch Site
Operator License to Space Florida to operate a commercial space launch
site at LC-46. The 2008 EA analyzed the operation of several types of
vertical launch vehicles from LC-46, including Athena-1 and Athena-2,
Minotaur, Taurus, Falcon 1, Alliant Techsystems small launch vehicles,
and other Castor[supreg] 120-based or Minuteman-derivative booster
vehicles. The Proposed Action also includes construction and operation
activities to redevelop LC-36 into commercial space launch site. The
Draft SEA expands on the analysis provided in the 2008 EA to include an
analysis of the potential environmental impacts of the construction and
operation activities associated with the redevelopment of LC-36 into a
commercial space launch site. Redeveloping LC-36 into a multi-use
commercial space launch site involves construction of facilities to
launch a Generic Launch Vehicle (GLV), which is a conceptual (or
``surrogate'') liquid propellant medium class launch vehicle with a
solid propellant second stage, and a bipropellant third stage, used for
the purposes of the environmental review. Redevelopment activities at
LC-36 would include building access roads; erecting a security fence;
reconstituting several existing facilities; constructing an elevated
launch deck, associated flame ducts, water storage tank, and water
deluge containment pool; and installing electrical, communication, and
air systems. Redevelopment would occur in phases dictated by costs and
schedule, and facility construction or modifications would take place
only on previously disturbed ground. The only alternative to the
Proposed Action is the No Action Alternative. Under this alternative
the FAA would not issue a Launch Site Operator License to Space Florida
for commercial launches from LC-36 and LC-46 at CCAFS.
Resource areas were considered to provide a context for
understanding and assessing the potential environmental effects of the
Proposed Action, with attention focused on key issues. The resource
areas considered in the Draft SEA included air quality; biological
resources (terrestrial vegetation and wildlife, marine species, and
protected species); compatible land use (land use, light emissions,
visual resources, and coastal resources); cultural resources and
Section 4(f) properties; hazardous materials, solid waste, and
pollution prevention; noise; socioeconomic resources; and water
resources (surface water, groundwater, floodplains, and wetlands).
Potential cumulative impacts of the Proposed Action are also addressed
in the Draft SEA.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Mr. Daniel Czelusniak, Environmental
Specialist, Federal Aviation Administration, 800 Independence Avenue,
SW., Suite 331, Washington, DC 20591, by e-mail at
[email protected], or by phone at (202) 267-5924.
Issued in Washington, DC on: March 24, 2010.
Michael McElligott,
Manager, Space Systems Development Division.
[FR Doc. 2010-7129 Filed 3-31-10; 8:45 am]
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