[Federal Register Volume 76, Number 45 (Tuesday, March 8, 2011)]
[Notices]
[Pages 12787-12788]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2011-5242]
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DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION
Federal Aviation Administration
Office of Commercial Space Transportation; Notice of Availability
of the Final Environmental Assessment and Finding of No Significant
Impact for Pegasus Launches at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station,
Florida
AGENCY: Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), Department of
Transportation.
ACTION: Notice of Availability of Final Environmental Assessment and
Finding of No Significant Impact.
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SUMMARY: In accordance with the National Environmental Policy Act of
1969 (NEPA), 42 U.S.C. 4321-4347 (as amended), Council on Environmental
Quality NEPA implementing regulations (40 Code of Federal Regulations
[CFR] parts 1500 to 1508), and FAA Order 1050.1E, Change 1, the FAA is
announcing the availability of the Final Environmental Assessment
(Final EA) and Finding of No Significant Impact (FONSI) for Pegasus
Launches at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station. The Final EA was prepared
to address the potential environmental impacts of the FAA's Proposed
Action for issuing or renewing Launch Operator Licenses to operate
Pegasus launch vehicles at CCAFS. Activities addressed in the Final EA
include carrier aircraft takeoff and landing from a CCAFS runway and
launch of Pegasus vehicle at an altitude of 40,000 feet and
approximately 90 nautical miles offshore over the Atlantic Ocean. The
Final EA tiers from the Final Programmatic Environmental Impact
Statement (PEIS) for Licensing Launches (2001 PEIS) and focuses on
localized and site-specific effects of FAA issuing or renewing Launch
Operator Licenses to operate Pegasus expendable launch vehicles at
CCAFS. The 2001 PEIS, evaluated the launch impacts associated with four
vehicle categories (small, medium, intermediate, and heavy-payload
capacities); three propellant types (solid, liquid, and hybrid
propellant); and three launch scenarios (land, air, and sea). The
Pegasus launch vehicle falls within the parameters of the small-payload
capacity vehicle using solid propellant to launch from
[[Page 12788]]
the air. The 2001 PEIS evaluated the impacts of launching 72 small
capacity rockets, including the Pegasus launch vehicle family, over a
10-year period. The estimated annual number of launches ranged from
four to nine launches, with an average of seven annual launches. The
rate of Pegasus launches at CCAFS under the FAA's Proposed Action would
not be expected to exceed the rate of launches analyzed in the 2001
PEIS. The only alternative to the Proposed Action is the No Action
Alternative. Under this Alternative, the FAA would not issue or renew
Launch Operator Licenses to operate Pegasus launch vehicles 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 resources
areas considered in the Final EA included air quality; biological
resources (including fish, wildlife, and plants); compatible land use;
Department of Transportation Section 4(f) resources; hazardous
materials, pollution prevention, and solid waste; historical,
architectural, archaeological, and cultural resources; noise;
socioeconomic impacts; and water quality (including floodplains and
wetlands). Potential cumulative impacts of the Proposed Action were
also addressed in the Final EA.
After careful and thorough consideration of available data and
information on existing conditions and potential impacts, the FAA has
determined that there will be no significant short-term, long-term, or
cumulative impacts to the environment or surrounding populations from
the issuance or renewal of Launch Operator Licenses to operate Pegasus
launch vehicles at CCAFS. The proposed Federal action is consistent
with existing national environmental policies and objectives as set
forth in Section 101 of NEPA and other applicable environmental
requirements and will not significantly affect the quality of the human
environment within the meaning of NEPA. Therefore, an Environmental
Impact Statement for the Proposed Action is not required and the FAA
issued a FONSI.
The FAA has posted the Final EA and FONSI on the FAA Office of
Commercial Space Transportation Web site at http://www.faa.gov/about/office_org/headquarters_offices/ast/environmental/review/launch/.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Mr. Daniel Czelusniak, Environmental
Program Lead, Office of Commercial Space Transportation, Federal
Aviation Administration, 800 Independence Avenue, SW., Room 325,
Washington, DC 20591, telephone (202) 267-5924; E-mail
[email protected].
Issued in Washington, DC, on March 1, 2011.
Michael McElligott,
Manager, Space Systems Development Division.
[FR Doc. 2011-5242 Filed 3-7-11; 8:45 am]
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