[Federal Register Volume 79, Number 245 (Monday, December 22, 2014)]
[Notices]
[Pages 76309-76310]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2014-29859]


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DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE

Department of the Navy


Notice of Public Meetings for the Supplement to the Draft 
Environmental Impact Statement/Overseas Environmental Impact Statement 
for Military Readiness Activities in the Northwest Training and Testing 
Study Area

AGENCY: Department of the Navy; DoD.

ACTION: Notice.

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SUMMARY: The Department of the Navy (DoN) has prepared and filed with 
the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency a Supplement to the Draft 
Environmental Impact Statement/Overseas Environmental Impact Statement 
(EIS/OEIS) for the Northwest Training and Testing (NWTT) Study Area. 
This Supplement to the Draft EIS/OEIS focuses on substantial changes in 
the Proposed Action and new information relevant to environmental 
concerns per 40 Code of Federal Regulations (CFR) 1502.9. The 
Supplement to the Draft EIS/OEIS also provides additional updated 
information to further the purposes of the National Environmental 
Policy Act (NEPA). Unless specifically included in the Supplement to 
the Draft EIS/OEIS, the activities and analyses of impacts on resources 
described in the Draft EIS/OEIS remain valid, and are included by 
reference in the Supplement to the Draft EIS/OEIS.
    With the filing of the Supplement to the Draft EIS/OEIS, the DoN is 
initiating a 45-day public comment period and has scheduled four public 
meetings to provide information and receive comments on the Supplement 
to the Draft EIS/OEIS. This notice announces the dates and locations of 
the public meetings and provides supplementary information about the 
environmental planning effort.

Dates and Addresses: The 45-day public review and comment period for 
the Supplement to the Draft EIS/OEIS is December 19, 2014, through 
February 2, 2015. The DoN will hold four public meetings to inform the 
public about the Supplement to the Draft EIS/OEIS and potential 
environmental impacts, and to provide an additional opportunity for the 
public to comment on the Supplement to the Draft EIS/OEIS. The public 
meetings will include an open house information session, during which 
time NWTT EIS/OEIS team representatives will be available to provide 
information, answer questions, and accept comments on the Supplement to 
the Draft EIS/OEIS. The public can arrive any time during the 
advertised hours; the open house will not include a formal presentation 
or verbal comment session. Federal, state, local agencies and 
officials, and interested organizations and individuals are encouraged 
to provide comments in writing during the public review period or in 
person at one of the scheduled public meetings.
    The public meetings will be held from 5 to 8 p.m. on the following 
dates and at the following locations:
    1. Monday, January 12, 2015, at the Poulsbo Fire Station Conference 
Room, 911 NE Liberty Road, Poulsbo, WA 98370.
    2. Tuesday, January 13, 2015, at the Grays Harbor College HUB, 1620 
Edward P. Smith Drive, Aberdeen, WA 98520.
    3. Wednesday, January 14, 2015, at the Isaac Newton Magnet School 
Commons, 825 NE Seventh St., Newport, OR 97365.
    4. Friday, January 16, 2015, at Eureka Public Marina, Wharfinger 
Building, Great Room, 1 Marina Way, Eureka, CA 95501.
    Attendees will be able to submit comments during the public 
meetings. A court reporter will be available for any attendees wishing 
to provide verbal comments, one-on-one. Equal weight will be given to 
verbal and written statements. Comments may also be submitted via mail 
to Naval Facilities Engineering Command Northwest, Attention: Ms. 
Kimberly Kler--NWTT EIS/OEIS Project Manager, 1101 Tautog Circle, Suite 
203, Silverdale, WA 98315-1101, or electronically via the project Web 
site (www.NWTTEIS.com). All comments, verbal or written, submitted 
during the review period will become part of the public record. All 
comments will be considered and acknowledged or responded to in the 
Final EIS/OEIS. The DoN may address the comments directly, or the DoN 
may respond to public comments by modifying the analysis as 
appropriate. Comments must be postmarked or received online by February 
2, 2015, for consideration in the Final EIS/OEIS.
    All public comments received during the Draft EIS/OEIS comment 
period (January 24, 2014, through April 15, 2014) are still valid and 
are being considered in the Final EIS/OEIS for this action. Previously 
submitted comments need not be resubmitted. No decision will be made to 
implement any alternative in the NWTT Study Area until the NEPA process 
is complete and a Record of Decision is signed by the DoN.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Naval Facilities Engineering Command

[[Page 76310]]

Northwest, Attention: Ms. Kimberly Kler--NWTT EIS/OEIS Project Manager, 
1101 Tautog Circle, Suite 203, Silverdale, WA 98315-1101.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Pursuant to section 102(2)(c) of NEPA, 
regulations implemented by the Council on Environmental Quality (40 CFR 
parts 1500-1508), and Presidential Executive Order 12114, the DoN 
announced its intent to prepare an EIS/OEIS for the NWTT Study Area in 
the Federal Register (FR) on February 27, 2012 (77 FR 11497), and 
invited the public to comment on the scope of the EIS/OEIS. A Draft 
EIS/OEIS was subsequently released on January 24, 2014 (79 FR 4158), in 
which the potential environmental effects associated with military 
readiness training and research, development, test, and evaluation 
activities (training and testing) conducted within the NWTT Study Area 
were evaluated.
    Since the release of the NWTT Draft EIS/OEIS on January 24, 2014, 
the DoN determined that updated training requirements or new 
information would result in changes to the Proposed Action or analysis, 
and warranted the preparation of a Supplement to the Draft EIS/OEIS for 
two reasons. First, the type and number of sonobuoys used during one 
activity, known as Tracking Exercise--Maritime Patrol (Extended Echo 
Ranging Sonobuoys), would substantially change. This change in the 
Proposed Action warranted preparation of a Supplement to the Draft EIS/
OEIS under 40 CFR 1502.9(c)(1)(i). Second, new information available on 
air emissions from inland water vessel movements associated with the 
ongoing activity of Maritime Security Operations warranted further 
consideration and preparation of a Supplement to the Draft EIS/OEIS 
under 40 CFR 1502.9(c)(1)(ii). A Notice of Intent announcing the DoN's 
intent to prepare a Supplement to the NWTT Draft EIS/OEIS was released 
on October 24, 2014 (79 FR 63610). The National Marine Fisheries 
Service and the U.S. Coast Guard are cooperating agencies on the EIS/
OEIS.
    The Supplement to the Draft EIS/OEIS was distributed to federal, 
state, and local agencies, elected officials, and other interested 
organizations and individuals. Copies of the Supplement to the Draft 
EIS/OEIS are available for public review at the following locations:

1. Everett Main Library, 2702 Hoyt Ave., Everett, WA 98201
2. Gig Harbor Library, 4424 Point Fosdick Drive NW., Gig Harbor, WA 
98335
3. Jefferson County Library (Port Hadlock), 620 Cedar Ave., Port 
Hadlock, WA 98339
4. Kitsap Regional Library (Poulsbo), 700 NE Lincoln Road, Poulsbo, 
WA 98370
5. Kitsap Regional Library--Sylvan Way (Bremerton), 1301 Sylvan Way, 
Bremerton, WA 98310
6. Oak Harbor Public Library, 1000 SE Regatta Drive, Oak Harbor, WA 
98277
7. Port Angeles Main Library, 2210 S. Peabody St., Port Angeles, WA 
98362
8. Port Townsend Public Library, 1220 Lawrence St., Port Townsend, 
WA 98368
9. Timberland Regional Library--Aberdeen, 121 E. Market St., 
Aberdeen, WA 98520
10. Timberland Regional Library--Hoquiam, 420 Seventh St., Hoquiam, 
WA 98550
11. Astoria Public Library, 450 10th St., Astoria, OR 97103
12. Driftwood Public Library, 801 SW Highway 101 #201, Lincoln City, 
OR 97367
13. Newport Public Library, 35 NW Nye St., Newport, OR 97365
14. Guin Library, Hatfield Marine Science Center, 2030 SE Marine 
Science Drive, Newport, OR 97365
15. Tillamook Main Library, 1716 Third St., Tillamook, OR 97141
16. Fort Bragg Branch Library, 499 Laurel St., Fort Bragg, CA 95437
17. Redwood Coast Senior Center, 490 N. Harold St., Fort Bragg, CA 
95437
18. Humboldt County Public Library--Arcata Branch Library, 500 
Seventh St., Arcata, CA 95521
19. Humboldt County Public Library--Eureka Main Library, 1313 Third 
St., Eureka, CA 95501
20. Juneau Public Library--Downtown Branch, 292 Marine Way, Juneau, 
AK, 99801
21. Ketchikan Public Library, 1110 Copper Ridge Lane, Ketchikan, AK 
99901

    The Supplement to the Draft EIS/OEIS is also available for 
electronic viewing at www.NWTTEIS.com. A compact disc of the Supplement 
to the Draft EIS/OEIS will be made available upon written request by 
contacting: Naval Facilities Engineering Command Northwest, Attention: 
Ms. Kimberly Kler--NWTT EIS/OEIS Project Manager, 1101 Tautog Circle, 
Suite 203, Silverdale, WA 98315-1101.

    Authority: 35 U.S.C. 207, 37 CFR part 404.

    Dated: December 16, 2014.
P.A. Richelmi,
Lieutenant, Federal Alternate Register Liaison Officer, Office of the 
Judge Advocate General, U.S. Navy.
[FR Doc. 2014-29859 Filed 12-19-14; 8:45 am]
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