[Federal Register Volume 76, Number 24 (Friday, February 4, 2011)]
[Notices]
[Pages 6455-6456]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2011-2449]
=======================================================================
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE
Department of the Army
Final Programmatic Environmental Impact Statement (PEIS) for the
Growth, Realignment, and Stationing of Army Aviation Assets
AGENCY: Department of the Army, DoD.
ACTION: Notice of availability.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
SUMMARY: The Department of the Army announces the availability of the
Final PEIS for the proposed growth, realignment, and stationing of new
and existing Army aviation assets. The proposed action includes the
consolidation and reorganization of existing aviation units, and the
potential establishment of one or more Combat Aviation Brigades (CABs).
The proposed action will increase the availability of helicopter assets
to meet current and future national security requirements, and will
allow the Army better to organize existing aviation assets to promote
more effective training and force management. The Final PEIS evaluates
the environmental impacts associated with the proposed action, which
includes the stationing of aviation units, the construction and
renovation of garrison facilities, and additional training activities
needed to support the readiness of aviation units. In addition, the
Final PEIS addresses comments received on the Draft PEIS. Land
acquisition is not being considered as part of this action.
The Final PEIS considers the following alternatives: Alternative
1--Realign and Station Existing Aviation Elements of Up to a Full CAB
or Activate and Station a New CAB at Fort Carson Colorado (CO). Under
this alternative, the Army will consolidate existing aviation units not
currently assigned to a CAB into a standard CAB structure at Fort
Carson or activate a new CAB at Fort Carson. As part of this
alternative, aviation units will conduct training on existing land at
Pinon Canyon Maneuver Site (PCMS), CO, in order to maintain training
proficiency and support integrated training with ground units. Land
acquisition is not being considered as part of this action. Alternative
2--Realign and Station Existing Aviation Elements of Up to a Full CAB
or Grow, Station, and Activate
[[Page 6456]]
a CAB at Joint Base Lewis-McChord (JBLM) Washington (WA). Under this
alternative, the Army either will consolidate existing aviation units
not currently assigned to a CAB into a standard CAB structure at JBLM
or activate a new CAB at JBLM. As part of this alternative, aviation
units will conduct training on existing training land at Yakima
Training Center (YTC), WA, in order to maintain training proficiency
and support integrated training with ground units. Land acquisition is
not being considered as part of this action. Alternative 3
(Preferred)--Implement Alternatives 1 and 2. Under this alternative,
the consolidated units forming a CAB would be stationed at one
installation, and the new CAB would be activated and stationed at the
other installation. Fort Carson and JBLM would each gain up to one CAB.
As part of this alternative, aviation units would conduct training on
existing training land at the installations' training maneuver areas
(PCMS for Fort Carson and YTC for JBLM) in order to maintain training
proficiency and support integrated training with ground units. Land
acquisition is not being considered as part of this action. Alternative
4--No Action Alternative. Under this alternative, the Army would retain
its aviation force structure at its current levels, configurations, and
locations.
Aviation units continue to be one of the Army's most stressed
forces currently on 12-month deployments after every one year at home.
The Army's goal is to give active-duty Soldiers two years at home for
every year they're deployed. The completion of these stationing actions
will provide sufficient aviation assets to allow Soldiers more time at
home between deployments. Fort Carson and JBLM are the only stationing
alternatives that meet all of the Army's stationing requirements for
new CAB stationing. These locations have existing runways and
airfields, provide adequate maneuver and airspace for CAB operations,
and are equipped with existing training ranges that can support CAB
training. Most importantly, Fort Carson and JBLM are the only major
installations that have three or more Brigade Combat Teams but no CAB
dedicated to provide aviation support for training. The proposed action
would allow the Army to maximize integrated air-ground training. Land
acquisition is not being considered as part of this action.
DATES: The waiting period for the Final PEIS will end 30 days after
publication of a Notice of Availability in the Federal Register by the
U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.
ADDRESSES: To obtain a copy of the Final PEIS contact: Public Affairs
Office, U.S. Army Environmental Command, Attn: IMPA-AE, 1835 Army
Boulevard (BSMT), Fort Sam Houston, TX 78234-2686.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Public Affairs Office at (210) 221-
0882; fax (410) 436-1693; or e-mail at [email protected].
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: A CAB consists of approximately 120
helicopters, 600 wheeled vehicles, and 2,700 Soldiers. The CAB is
organized into five battalions and a headquarters unit. CAB units
include combat, reconnaissance, and logistics support aircraft.
The Final PEIS assesses, considers, and compares the direct,
indirect, and cumulative environmental effects of proposed CAB growth
and realignment for each alternative. The primary environmental issues
evaluated include impacts to air quality, soil, airspace, cultural
resources, natural resources, and noise. In addition, the Army
addresses comments received from the public and other organizations in
response to the November 5, 2010 publication of the Draft PEIS.
As part of the Army's preferred alternative, the Army is
considering the realignment and consolidation of aviation elements from
active component forces not currently in a modular configuration into a
CAB at JBLM, WA. In addition, the Army would establish a new CAB under
this alternative at Fort Carson, CO. As part of this alternative, Fort
Carson would gain one new CAB consisting of up to 2,700 new Soldiers
and 120 helicopters. JBLM would receive most of the realigned units
required to complete a CAB to complement aviation units already
stationed there. The Army is considering a reduction in the number of
Soldiers to be stationed at JBLM from a full CAB equivalent of Soldiers
and equipment to approximately 1,400 new Soldiers and 44 helicopters.
Units comprised of these Soldiers and equipment would provide a CAB
training capability and complement Active Army aviation units already
stationed at JBLM. A final decision on stationing will be included in
the Record of Decision (ROD) for this proposal.
Environmental impacts associated with the implementation of the
proposed action include significant impacts to: Transportation on the
Interstate 5 corridor near JBLM, fish and water quality in Puget Sound,
and noise impacts to sensitive receptors. There are potentially
significant impacts to biological resources at YTC from increased
potential for wildfire and habitat degradation associated with aviation
training. Impacts will also include significant but mitigable impacts
to soils at Fort Carson, PCMS, and YTC as well as significant but
mitigable impacts to water resources at YTC. At PCMS, cumulative
impacts to soils are predicted to be manageable with current dust
control mitigation techniques. Impacts to cultural resources, air
quality, noise impacts, public land use, and socioeconomic impacts were
all determined to be less than significant.
An electronic version of the Final PEIS is available for download
at the following Web site: http://aec.army.mil/usaec/nepa/topics00.html.
Dated: January 26, 2011.
Hershell E. Wolfe,
Acting Deputy Assistant Secretary of the Army (Environment, Safety, and
Occupational Health).
[FR Doc. 2011-2449 Filed 2-3-11; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3710-08-P