[Federal Register Volume 85, Number 122 (Wednesday, June 24, 2020)]
[Notices]
[Page 38010]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2020-13570]
[[Page 38010]]
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DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION
Federal Aviation Administration
Notice of Availability of the Finding of No Significant Impact/
Record of Decision and Adoption of the Wyoming Army National Guard
Environmental Assessment for the Establishment of Controlled Firing
Areas
AGENCY: Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), Department of
Transportation.
ACTION: Notice of Availability of the Finding of No Significant Impact
(FONSI)/Record of Decision (ROD).
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SUMMARY: The FAA announces its decision to adopt the Wyoming Army
National Guard (WYARNG) Environmental Assessment (EA), entitled
Training and Maneuver Activities at Camp Guernsey, Guernsey, Wyoming,
for the establishment of three Controlled Firing Areas (CFA) at Camp
Guernsey. Under the Proposed Action, the CFAs would be established for
up to two years. This notice announces that, based on its independent
review and evaluation of the EA and supporting documents, the FAA is
adopting portions of the EA associated with the CFAs and issuing a
FONSI/ROD for the establishment of the Camp Guernsey CFAs.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Shawn M. Kozica, Manager, Operations
Support Group, Western Service Center, Federal Aviation Administration,
2200 S 216th St., Des Moines, WA, 98198-6547; telephone: (206) 231-
2251.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
Background
The FAA Proposed Action is the establishment of three CFAs: CFA
North, CFA West, and CFA South. The CFAs would be established, up to
two years, and would be replaced by the permanent establishment of
three RAs: R-7002A, R-7002C, and R-7002B, respectively. While the EA
analyzed both CFAs and RAs, only the CFAs are ripe for an FAA decision
at this time and are the subject of the FAA's FONSI/ROD.
Given the temporary nature of CFAs, as well as the timeline for the
establishment of the permanent RAs, the WYARNG is first pursuing the
establishment of CFAs. The CFAs would permit usage of the proposed
airspace for hazardous activities for two years until the RA has been
established. During the two-year interim period following the
establishment of the CFAs, the WYARNG would prepare and submit an
Aeronautical Proposal to the FAA for the establishment of three RAs: R-
7002A, R-7002B, and R-7002C.
The WYARNG's Proposed Action consists of both land-based activities
(training and maneuver) and airspace activities that require Special
Use Airspace (SUA) in the form of a CFA or Restricted Area (RA). Some
of the proposed land-based activities use field artillery that requires
the establishment of surface distance zones (SDZ) for safety reasons.
These SDZs provide separation of the field artillery from aircraft
(civilian and military traversing the airspace). The proposed CFAs and
RAs would accommodate the SDZs.
Implementation
After evaluating the EA, the FAA has issued a FONSI/ROD to
establish three CFAs. CFA North would be established up to and
including 16,000 feet mean sea level (MSL), and would be used
approximately 20 days per year. CFA South would be established up to
and including 12,500 feet MSL and would be used approximately 20 days
per year. CFA West would be established up to and including 17,500 feet
MSL and would be used approximately 20 days per year.
In accordance with Section 102 of the National Environmental Policy
Act of 1969 (NEPA), the Council on Environmental Quality's (CEQ)
regulations for implementing NEPA (40 CFR parts 1500-1508), and other
applicable authorities (including FAA Order 1050.1F, Environmental
Impacts: Policies and Procedures, paragraph 8-2, and FAA Order JO
7400.2M, Procedures for Handling Airspace Matters, paragraph 32-2-3),
the FAA has conducted an independent review and evaluation of the
WYARNG's EA, dated March 2020. As a cooperating agency with
responsibility for approving SUA under 49 U.S.C. 40103(b)(3)(A), the
FAA provided subject matter expertise and coordinated with the WYARNG
during the environmental review process. The implementation of the
proposed CFAs would fulfill the FAA's requirements to ensure the safe
and efficient use of navigable airspace pursuant to 49 U.S.C.
47101(a)(1), which describes the FAA's authority and regulatory
responsibilities.
The WYARNG provided the Draft EA for public review from February
25-March 11, 2020, and one comment was received from the Bureau of
Reclamation indicating an incorrect date of the Free Use Permit. The
date has since been corrected in the EA.
The FONSI/ROD and EA are available upon request by contacting Shawn
M. Kozica, Manager, Operations Support Group, Western Service Center,
Federal Aviation Administration, 2200 S 216th St., Des Moines, WA,
98198-6547; telephone: (206) 231-2251.
Shawn M. Kozica,
Manager, Operations Support Group, Western Service Center.
[FR Doc. 2020-13570 Filed 6-23-20; 8:45 am]
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