[Federal Register Volume 62, Number 105 (Monday, June 2, 1997)]
[Notices]
[Pages 29726-29727]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 97-14249]


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ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY

[ER-FRL-5481-2]


Public Scoping Meeting for EPA's Environmental Impact Statement 
for the Final Rule for Environmental Impact Assessment of 
Nongovernmental Activities in Antarctica

AGENCY: U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).

ACTION: Notice of public scoping meeting for EPA's Environmental Impact 
Statement (EIS) for the Final Rule for Environmental Impact Assessment 
(EIA) of nongovernmental activities in Antarctica.

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PURPOSE: The U.S. EPA, in accordance with Section 102(2)(c) of the 
National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA), will prepare a Draft EIS for 
the proposed final regulations what will provide for: (1) Environmental 
impact assessment of nongovernmental activities, including

[[Page 29727]]

tourism, in Antarctica for which the United States is required to give 
advance notice under paragraph 5 of Article VII of the Antarctic Treaty 
of 1959, and (2) coordination of the review of information regarding 
environmental impact assessments received by the United States from 
other Parties to the Protocol on Environmental Protection to the 
Antarctic Treaty. These final regulations will be prepared pursuant to 
the Antarctic Science, Tourism, and Conservation Act of 1996. EPA 
invites comments and suggestions on the scope of the rulemaking and 
analysis including the environmental and regulatory issues to be 
addressed in the EIS.

DATES: The EPA will hold a public meeting on Tuesday, July 8, 1997, 
from 10:00 AM until 6:00 PM, at the Arlington Hilton Hotel, 950 North 
Stafford Street, Arlington, Virginia, Meeting Title: EPA Public Scoping 
Meeting, to receive public input, either verbal or written, on relevant 
environmental and regulatory issues which EPA should address in the 
Draft EIS. Written comments from the public may also be sent directly 
to EPA to the contacts listed below and will be accepted by EPA through 
July 15, 1997.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION AND TO BE PLACED ON THE PROJECT MAILING LIST 
CONTACT: Mr. Joseph Montgomery or Ms. Katherine Biggs, Office of 
Federal Activities (2252A), U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, 401 M 
Street, SW., Washington, DC 20460; telephone: (202)564-7157 or 
(202)564-7144, respectively.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

I. Scoping Meeting Agenda and Public Comments

10:00-12:00 AM--Overview and Discussion of Interim Final Rule for 
Environmental Impact Assessment of Nongovernmental Activities in 
Antarctica
12:00-1:30 PM--Break
1:30-6:00 PM
    a. Presentation of comments by the public on relevant environmental 
and regulatory issues which EPA should address in the Draft EIS
    b. Open discussion of comments and issues presented by the public 
and as proposed in EPA's Notice of Intent published May 9, 1997 
(Federal Register/Vol. 62, No. 90/Friday, May 9, 1997/25611-25613)

    An integral part of the NEPA process is public participation in the 
Scoping process, the key purpose of which is early identification of 
the environmental and regulatory issues and alternatives to be 
addressed in the Draft EIS. The public will also have an opportunity to 
comment on the Draft EIS and the proposed Final Rule which are 
anticipated to be made available in January 1998.

II. Background

    The Antarctic Science, Tourism, and Conservation Act of 1996 (Act) 
implements the Protocol on Environmental Protection (Protocol) to the 
Antarctic Treaty (Treaty). Pursuant to the Act, the EPA is required to 
promulgate regulations by October 2, 1998, that provide for assessment 
of the environmental impacts of nongovernmental activities, including 
tourism, in Antarctica and for coordination of the review of 
information regarding environmental impact assessments received from 
other Parties to the Protocol. The EPA promulgated an Interim Final 
Rule on April 30, 1997, (Federal Register/Vol. 62, No. 83/Wednesday, 
April 30, 1997/23538-23549) so that the United States would have the 
ability to implement its obligations under the Protocol as soon as the 
Protocol enters into force. The EPA also prepared an ``Environmental 
Assessment of Proposed Interim Rules for Non-Governmental Activity in 
Antarctica'' (EA) to evaluate the environmental and cultural impacts of 
the interim rule, and issued a Notice of Availability for the EA 
(Federal Register/Vol. 62, No. 87/Tuesday, May 6, 1997/Notices/24652).
    During the time the Interim Final Rule is in place and before the 
October 1998 deadline set by the Act, EPA will promulgate a Final Rule 
that will provide for assessment of the environmental impacts of 
nongovernmental activities, including tourism, in Antarctica and for 
coordination of the review of information regarding environmental 
impact assessments received from other Parties to the Protocol. In 
support of this regulatory action, EPA is preparing an EIS to consider 
the environmental and regulatory issues to be addressed in the Final 
Rule and the alternatives for addressing these issues within the rule-
making process. The EPA issued a Notice of Intent to prepare an EIS for 
this regulatory action that included a listing of issues that, along 
with any other relevant alternatives or issues raised by the public, 
will be considered in the Draft EIS (Federal Register/Vol. 62, No. 90/
Friday, May 9, 1997/Notices/25611-25613).

III. Availability of Documents

    Copies of the Notice of Availability of the Environmental 
Assessment, the Environmental Assessment, Finding of No Significant 
Impact, the Interim Final Rule, and Notice of Intent to Prepare an EIS 
for the Final Rule are available in the Federal Register as cited above 
or may be requested from Mr. Montgomery or Ms. Biggs as listed in the 
For Further Information section. These documents are also available on 
the World Wide Web at: http//es.inel.gov/oeca/ofa/.
Richard E. Sanderson,
Director, Office of Federal Activities.
[FR Doc. 97-14249 Filed 5-30-97; 8:45 am]
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