[Federal Register Volume 60, Number 112 (Monday, June 12, 1995)]
[Notices]
[Pages 30901-30902]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 95-14362]



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NATIONAL AERONAUTICS AND SPACE ADMINISTRATION

[Notice 95-038]


National Environmental Policy Act; Sounding Rocket Program

AGENCY: National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA).

ACTION: Notice of availability of draft supplemental environmental 
impact statement.

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SUMMARY: Pursuant to the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969 
(NEPA), as amended (42 U.S.C. 4321 et seq.), the Council on 
Environmental Quality Regulations for Implementing the Procedural 
Provisions of NEPA (40 CFR parts 1500-1508), and NASA policy and 
procedures (14 CFR part 1216, subpart 1216.3), NASA has prepared and 
issued a draft supplemental environmental impact statement (DSEIS) for 
its Sounding Rocket Program (SRP). This DSEIS addresses the 
programmatic changes to the SRP that have occurred since the issuance 
of the 1973 final environmental impact statement (FEIS) for the NASA 
SRP and analyzes the site-specific environmetnal impacts at the three 
principal U.S. launch sites located at: Wallops Island, Virginia; 
Fairbanks, Alaska; and White Sands, New Mexico.

DATES: Comments on the DSEIS must be provided in writing to NASA on or 
before July 27, 1995 or 45 days from the date of publication in the 
Federal Register of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's notice 
of availability of the Sounding Rocket DSEIS, whichever is later.

ADDRESSES: Comments should be addressed to Mr. William Johnson, Goddard 
Space Flight Center, Wallops Flight Facility, Code 840, Wallops Island, 
Virginia 23337. The DSEIS may be reviewed at the following locations:
    (a) NASA Headquarters, Library, Room 1J20, 300 E Street SW., 
Washington, DC 20546.
    (b) NASA, Goddard Space Flight Center/Wallops Flight Facility, 
Public Affairs Office, Wallops Island, VA 23337.
    (c) Eastern Shore Public Library, Accomac, VA.
    (d) University of Alaska-Fairbanks Library, Fairbanks, AK.
    (e) Alamogordo Library, Alamogordo, NM.
    In addition, the DSEIS may be examined at the following NASA 
locations by contacting the pertinent Freedom of Information Act 
Office:
    (f) NASA, Ames Research Center, Moffett Field, CA 94035 (415-604-
4191).
    (g) NASA, Dryden Flight Research Center, Edwards, CA 93523 (805-
258-3047).
    (h) NASA, Goddard Space Flight Center, Greenbelt, MD 20771 (301-
286-0730).
    (i) Jet Propulsion Laboratory, NASA Resident Office, 4800 Oak Grove 
Drive, Pasadena, CA 91109 (818-354-5179).
    (j) NASA, Johnson Space Center, Houston, TX 77058 (713-483-8612).
    (k) NASA, Kennedy Space Center, FL 32899 (407-867-2622).
    (l) NASA, Langley Research Center, Hampton, VA 23665 (804-864-
6125).
    (m) NASA, Lewis Research Center, 21000 Brookpark Road, Cleveland, 
OH 44135 (216-433-2902).
    (n) NASA, Marshall Space Flight Center, AL 35812 (205-544-4523).
    (o) NASA, Stennis Space Center, MS 39529 (601-688-2164).
    Limited copies of the DSEIS are available by contacting Mr. William 
B. Johnson, at the address or telephone number indicated herein.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:
William B. Johnson, 804-824-1099.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: NASA's SRP is a suborbital spaceflight 
program used primarily in support of space and earth sciences research 
activities sponsored by NASA. This program also provides applicable 
support to other government agencies as well as international sounding 
rocket groups and scientists. The SRP is a relatively low-cost, quick 
response effort that [[Page 30902]] provides approximately 30 flight 
opportunities per year to space scientists involved in research 
relating to the upper atmosphere, plasma, physics, solar physics, 
planetary atmospheres, galactic astronomy, high energy astrophysics, 
and microgravity. The launch vehicles used are relatively small.
    The proposed action and NASA's preferred alternative is the 
continued operation of the NASA SRP as presently managed. The DSEIS 
focuses on programmatic changes in the NASA SRP that have taken place 
since the original FEIS was issued in 1973 by deleting launch vehicles 
that are no longer used, adding new launch vehicles and systems 
currently being used, and reflecting changes in Federal and state 
environmental laws and regulations. The DSEIS addresses both the 
overall programmatic environmental impacts of the SRP and the site-
specific environmental impacts at and in the area of the three 
principal domestic sounding rocket sites: Goddard space Flight Center/
Wallops Flight Facility, Wallops Island, Virginia; Poker Flat Research 
Range, Fairbanks, Alaska; and White Sands Missile Range, White Sands, 
New Mexico.
Benita A. Cooper,
Associate Administrator for Management Systems and Facilities.
[FR Doc. 95-14362 Filed 6-9-95; 8:45 am]
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