[Federal Register Volume 61, Number 222 (Friday, November 15, 1996)]
[Notices]
[Pages 58541-58542]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 96-29328]
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DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE
Department of the Army
Notice of Intent To Prepare an Environmental Impact Statement
(EIS) for the Fort Bliss Mission and Master Plan, Fort Bliss, Texas
AGENCY: U.S. Army Air Defense Center and Fort Bliss, Fort Bliss, Texas,
Department of the Army.
ACTION: Notice of intent.
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SUMMARY: The Department of the Army is updating the Installation Master
Plan for Fort Bliss, Texas, and New Mexico. As a part of its efforts to
manage military training and to provide effective stewardship of
installation lands, the Army will prepare an Environmental Impact
Statement (EIS) on the overall missions and activities at Fort Bliss in
accordance with the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA), Public
Law 91-190 (42 U.S.C. 4341). It will evaluate potential impacts from
existing mission activities and reasonably foreseeable mission and
activity changes projected for Fort Bliss
[[Page 58542]]
as the installation adopts revisions to the installation's Master Plan,
the Integrated Natural Resources Management Plan, Cultural Resources
Management Plan, and the Range Modernization Plan.
Fort Bliss has approximately 1.1 million acres of land in Texas and
New Mexico comprising a complex of facilities and ranges to support
training and test activities of the U.S. Army and other organizations.
The main components of this complex include the main cantonment area
(which houses most support facilities), Biggs Army Airfield, and three
military training ranges: South Fort Bliss, Dona Ana Range, and
McGregor Range.
The installation is the home of the Army Air Defense Artillery
(ADA) Center and Fort Bliss, the Army Air Defense Artillery School, and
over 30 tenant units. It is among the largest Army posts in the
continental United States (CONUS) and is the only troop training
installation in CONUS capable of supporting long-range missile firings.
The following organizations are currently located or anticipated
for stationing on the installation:
The Test and Experimentation Command's Air Defense
Artillery Test Directorate provides the ADA Center with an independent
organization capable of conducting air defense weapons experimentation,
force development, and operational testing.
Joint Task Force Six provides assistance and support to
various law enforcement agencies with drug interdiction missions.
The U.S. Army Sergeants Major Academy trains enlisted
leaders.
The William Beaumont Army Medical Center, a part of the
Army Medical Command, provides full-service medical treatment for all
military services in Arizona, New Mexico, and West Texas.
Fort Bliss is the home station for the German Air Force
Command in the United States and Canada, and the German Air Defense
School.
Four ADA Brigades aligned under the U.S. Army Forces
Command are scheduled to be stationed at Fort Bliss.
Alternatives: The EIS will identify existing mission activities and
reasonably foreseeable mission and activity changes projected for Fort
Bliss through the installation's Master Plan, Integrated Natural
Resources Management Plan, Cultural Resources Management Plan, and
Range Modernization Plan. The EIS will describe the existing
environment, cultural and natural resources, social, economic, and
environmental justice conditions and impacts to those existing
conditions associated with the overall mission of Fort Bliss. The EIS
will consider reasonable alternatives including the status quo,
implementation of the Master Plan, and full mobilization of active Army
and reserve forces planned for Fort Bliss as described in the
installation's Mobilization Plan.
Significant issues that will be addressed are current and planned
Fort Bliss activities that could potentially impact over 1.1 million
acres of the installation. Within this area are at least 13,900 known
archaeological sites, 2,000 of which may be eligible for listing in the
National Register of Historic Places, and potentially five federally
listed endangered or threatened species. Implementation of the Master
Plan will also result in demolition and new construction of facilities
throughout the main cantonment area.
Additional significant issues that must be considered but will be
covered with their own environmental documentation are: Continued
withdrawal of land from public domain (McGregor Range) for military
training; and the U.S. Air Force's Holloman Air Force Base proposal to
locate a target area on McGregor Range.
Scoping: Scoping meetings in connection with this EIS will be held
in three communities: Las Cruces and Alamogordo, New Mexico, and El
Paso, Texas. Meeting times and locations will be published in local
newspapers. These meetings will provide the opportunity for the public
to become aware of the EIS and for the Army to gather public input
regarding the scope of the study. Those unable to attend the scheduled
scoping meetings may submit written comments regarding the scope of the
EIS throughout the scoping period. A mailing list has been prepared for
public scoping and review throughout the process of preparation of this
PEIS. This list includes local, state and Federal agencies with
jurisdictions or other interests in the project. In addition, the
mailing list includes all adjacent property owners, affected
municipalities and other interested parties such as conservation
organizations. Anyone wishing to be added to the mailing list should
contact the person identified below.
For Further Information: Please direct written questions or
comments concerning the scope of the Fort Bliss Mission and Master Plan
EIS to: Mr. Keith Landreth, Chief of the Cultural/Natural Resource
Division, Directorate of Environment, U.S. Army Air Defense Center and
Fort Bliss, ATTN: ATZC-DOE-C, Fort Bliss, Texas 79916; telephone (915)
568-3782.
Raymond J. Fatz,
Deputy Assistant Secretary of the Army, (Environment, Safety, and
Occupational Health) OASA (I, L&E).
[FR Doc. 96-29328 Filed 11-14-96; 8:45 am]
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