[Federal Register Volume 63, Number 23 (Wednesday, February 4, 1998)]
[Notices]
[Pages 5789-5790]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 98-2668]
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DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE
Department of the Army
All-Terrain Lifter, Army System (ATLAS)
AGENCY: U.S. Army Tank-automotive and Armaments Command, DoD.
ACTION: Notice of intent.
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SUMMARY: The Product Manager, Construction Equipment/Material Handling
Equipment (PM CE/MHE) has prepared a Life-Cycle Environmental
Assessment (LCEA) which examines the potential impacts to the natural
and human environment from the life cycle activities of the All-Terrain
Lifter, Army System (ATLAS). Based on the LCEA, PM CE/MHE has
determined that the proposed action is not a major Federal action
significantly affecting the quality of the human environment, within
the meaning of the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) of 1969.
Therefore, the preparation of an environmental impact statement is not
required and the Army is issuing this Finding of No Significant Impact
(FONSI).
ADDRESSES: Written comments should be sent to, U.S. Army Tank-
automotive and Armaments Command (TACOM), ATTN: AMSTA-DSA-TA-CE
(ATLAS), Warren, MI 48397-5000.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:
For further information, or to obtain a copy of the ATLAS Life-Cycle
Environmental Assessment contact Mr. John Syers, Assistant Product
Manager (810) 574-8869.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
a. Proposed Action
This LCEA examines the potential impacts to the natural and human
environment from the procurement of the ATLAS to satisfy the Army's
need for an improved all-terrain forklift for Combat Service (CS) and
Combat Service Support (CSS) units, based on the issue 13.9 (Lack of
MHE Capability) of the Total Distribution Action Plan and identified in
task B-11 of the Army Strategic Mobility Program. A major change was
made to the ATLAS Operational Requirements Document (ORD) in November
1993 reducing the forklift's maximum speed of 45 mph, reducing its
cross-country mobility, and eliminating the ATLAS requirement to handle
Multiple Launch Rocket System (MLRS) pods. The ORD changes also deleted
the requirement for replacement of the 4,000 lb Rough Terrain Fork Lift
(RTFL) and 6,000 lb Variable Reach Rough Terrain Fork Lift (VRRTFL)
with the ATLAS. In January 1995, an additional ORD change deleted the
requirement for the ATLAS to be NBC contamination survivable IAW AR 70-
71. The revised requirement resulted in the adoption of an NDI
acquisition approach to satisfy the revised ATLAS requirements. A
market investigation supported the June 1994 special IPR approving the
ATLAS program as a Non-Developmental Item (NDI) Component Integration
acquisition.
b. Environmental Impacts
The ATLAS life-cycle includes the transport of vehicles to test
sites, testing, vehicle production, deployment and operation of
production vehicles and their eventual demilitarization. Potential
environmental impacts of these life-cycle stages may include Air
Quality, Noise, Water, Soil and Groundwater, Hazardous Materials and
Hazardous Wastes, and Flora, Fauna and Threatened or Endangered Species
at each of these life-cycle phases.
c. Additional Findings
Impacts from the proposed action would be minimal and not
significant for the following reasons:
(1) The ATLAS will be used in its intended environment. This
intended environment includes vehicle production and some testing at
the Contractor's facility, and the remainder of life-cycle activities
at Army installations and facilities.
(2) The ATLAS is very similar to vehicles produced commercially and
vehicles already in the Army inventory. It is being produced in low to
moderate quantities and will not significantly increase the vehicle
population at Army installations and facilities.
(3) The overall environmental risk associated with the ATLAS is
low. It does not introduce any new technologies or processes. Vehicle
life cycle activities do not introduce any potential environmental
impacts that are not already currently mitigated by Army policy and
procedures.
(4) The ATLAS Product Manager has ensured that the Contractor
producing the vehicle is environmentally compliant, has no permit
violations, and has commercial practices for Hazardous Material
Management and Pollution Prevention in production of the ATLAS.
(5) The ATLAS Product Manager recognizes that Army installations
and facilities have environmental plans and measures in place to
address vehicle life cycle activities very similar to that of the ATLAS
to prevent, mitigate and remediate environmental damage caused by
vehicle operation. Vehicle operations at these Army installations and
facilities are in conjunction with normal activities that are already
addressed in their site specific environmental impact statements.
d. Determination
It is therefore concluded that this program:
(1) Is not a major federal action significantly affecting the
quality of human environment.
(2) Will not have a significant impact on the environment.
[[Page 5790]]
(3) Is not likely to be environmentally controversial.
(4) Will not likely result in litigation based on environmental
quality issues.
(5) Does not require an Environmental Impact Statement (EIS).
Harry W. McClellan, Jr.,
LTC, EN, Product Manager, Construction Equipment/Materials Handling
Equipment.
[FR Doc. 98-2668 Filed 2-3-98; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3710-08-M