[Federal Register Volume 64, Number 41 (Wednesday, March 3, 1999)]
[Notices]
[Pages 10336-10337]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 99-5272]


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DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION

Federal Highway Administration
[FHWA Docket No. FHWA-99-5012]


Notice of Availability of a Draft Programmatic Environmental 
Assessment for the Nationwide Differential Global Positioning System 
Service

AGENCY: Federal Highway Administration (FHWA), DOT.

ACTION: Notice; request for comments.

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SUMMARY: The Secretary of Transportation (Secretary) has been 
authorized by Congress, pursuant to section 346 of the U. S. Department 
of Transportation (DOT) and Related Agencies Appropriations Act, 1998, 
Pub. L. 105-66 (October 27, 1997), to establish, operate, and manage a 
nationwide system to be known as the Nationwide Differential Global 
Positioning System (NDGPS) as soon as practicable, to integrate the 
NDGPS stations into the Continuously Operating Reference Station (CORS) 
system of the National Geodetic Survey of the Department of Commerce, 
and to investigate the use of the NDGPS reference stations for the 
Global Positioning System Integrated Precipitable Water Vapor System of 
the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) of the 
Department of Commerce. A draft Programmatic Environmental Assessment 
(PEA) for the NDGPS program is available for public review and comment. 
The FHWA seeks public comment on this draft from all interested 
parties.

DATES: Comments must be received on or before April 2, 1999.

ADDRESSES: Your signed, written comments must refer to the docket 
number appearing at the top of this document and you must submit the 
comments to the Docket Clerk, U.S. DOT Dockets, Room PL-401, 400 
Seventh Street, SW., Washington, DC 20590-0001. All comments received 
will be available for examination at the above address between 9 a.m. 
and 5 p.m., e.t., Monday and Friday, except Federal holidays. Those 
desiring notification of receipt of comments must include a self-
addressed stamped envelope or postcard.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: For the FHWA program office: Written 
requests for a copy of the draft PEA should be submitted to: Mr. James 
A. Arnold, (703) 285-2974, Federal Highway Administration, Turner-
Fairbank Highway Research Center,

[[Page 10337]]

HSR-12, 6300 Georgetown Pike, McLean, VA 22101-2296. For legal issues: 
Mr. Brett Gainer, Office of the Chief Counsel, HCC-31, (202) 366-6197, 
Federal Highway Administration, 400 Seventh Street, SW., Washington, DC 
20590. Office hours are from 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., e.t., Monday through 
Friday, except Federal holidays.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Electronic Access

    Internet users can access all comments received by the U.S. DOT 
Dockets, Room PL-401, by using the universal resource locator (URL): 
http://dms.dot.gov. It is available 24 hours a day, 365 days each year. 
Please follow the instructions online for more information and help.
    An electronic copy of this document may be downloaded using a modem 
and suitable communications software from the Government Printing 
Office's Electronic Bulletin Board Service at (202) 512-1661. Internet 
users may reach the Federal Register's home page at: http://
www.nara.gov/fedreg and the Government Printing Office's database at: 
http://www.access.gpo.gov/nara.
    An electronic copy of the draft Programmatic Environmental 
Assessment (PEA) for the NDGPS program is available at http://
www.navcen.uscg.mil/.

Background

    The Secretary has delegated his authority under section 346 of the 
DOT Appropriations Act for FY 1998, to the Commandant of the United 
States Coast Guard (USCG), the Federal Railroad Administration (FRA), 
and the FHWA. The FHWA is the lead agency and the USCG and FRA are 
cooperating agencies for the implementation of the National 
Environmental Policy Act of 1969 (NEPA), 42 U.S.C. 4332(2)(C) and 23 
CFR 771. In accordance with NEPA, the FHWA is preparing a PEA for the 
NDGPS program. A draft PEA for NDGPS is available for public review and 
comment. After receipt of public comments, a final PEA will be prepared 
which will provide a basis for the FHWA and the cooperating agencies to 
determine whether a Programmatic Environmental Impact Statement (PEIS) 
is required, or if a Finding of No Significant Impact (FONSI) is 
appropriate. Copies of the draft PEA will be provided to Federal, 
State, local agencies, and the public. All interested parties may 
comment on the NDGPS draft PEA.
    The NDGPS service would augment existing satellite-based Global 
Positioning System range information with a differential correction 
broadcast from ground-based reference stations transmitting from known 
positions, thereby providing users with more precise radio navigation 
and positioning information for public safety, transportation, 
scientific, and environmental applications. Federal agencies 
implementing the proposed NDGPS service are the DOT's Office of the 
Secretary of Transportation (OST), the FHWA, the FRA, the NOAA, the 
U.S. Air Force (USAF), the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE), and 
the USCG.
    The NDGPS involves the expansion of an existing network of USCG 
local area Differential Global Positioning System (DGPS) reference 
stations currently covering United States coastal areas and major 
inland waterways. To expand this existing DGPS service nationwide, the 
installation of additional reference stations with low-frequency 
transmit antennas is required on suitable 11-acre land parcels located 
principally in the interior portions of the continental Unites States 
and Alaska. Sites will typically be on level ground and away from tall 
structures. Three deployment alternatives for the additional NDGPS 
reference stations were considered in the draft PEA.
    Alternative A consists of conversion of 32 decommissioned USAF 
Ground Wave Emergency Network (GWEN) sites for use as NDGPS reference 
stations and the transfer of GWEN equipment from remaining GWEN sites 
to 28 new NDGPS site locations. Seven additional sites would receive 
similar new equipment, for a total of 67 NDGPS reference stations. The 
GWEN transmit antennas to be used are typically 299 feet tall guyed 
towers and will be operated at an effective radiated power (ERP) of no 
more than 500 Watts.
    Alternative B consists of the installation of new equipment at 32 
existing GWEN relay node sites, as well as at 35 new sites. The 
resulting NDGPS reference stations would be physically similar to the 
reference stations of Alternative A.
    Alternative C is to identify 80 to 100 new sites and install 
equipment similar to USCG local area DGPS stations. These reference 
stations would utilize either 90 feet or 120 feet tall towers and 
operate at an ERP of no more than 170 Watts. The NDGPS is expected to 
be fully operational in the United States by the year 2002.
    During the selection of sites for the NDGPS reference stations, the 
FHWA and cooperating agencies will consult with key regulatory agencies 
and apply environmental site-selection criteria to avoid potentially 
significant impacts. If a potentially significant environmental impact 
is unavoidable during the selection of sites for the NDGPS reference 
stations, specific mitigation measures will be implemented to decrease 
the impact to a less than significant level. Provided that 
environmental site-selection criteria and specific mitigation measures 
identified in the draft PEA are implemented for the NDGPS, no 
significant environmental impacts are anticipated to occur under any of 
the proposed action alternatives. If planned mitigation measures for 
potentially significant impacts cannot be implemented at a specific 
site, or a site-specific impact is encountered that was not anticipated 
and addressed in the PEA, then additional appropriate NEPA analysis and 
documentation will be prepared by the FHWA for that specific reference 
station.

(Authority: 23 U.S.C. 315; sec 346, Pub. L. 105-66, 111 Stat. 1425, 
1449 (1997); 49 CFR 1.48.)

    Issued on: February 23, 1999.
Kenneth R. Wykle,
Federal Highway Administrator.
[FR Doc. 99-5272 Filed 3-2-99; 8:45 am]
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