[Federal Register Volume 64, Number 75 (Tuesday, April 20, 1999)] [Notices] [Pages 19346-19347] From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov] [FR Doc No: 99-9891] ----------------------------------------------------------------------- DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE Department of the Navy Notice of Public Hearing and Availability of the Draft Environmental Impact Statement (DEIS) for Disposal and Reuse of Naval Air Station (NAS) Agana, Guam AGENCY: Department of the Navy, DOD. ACTION: Notice. ----------------------------------------------------------------------- SUMMARY: The Department of the Navy has prepared and filed with the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency a DEIS for disposal and reuse of NAS Agana, Guam. A public hearing will be held for the purpose of receiving oral and written comments on the DEIS. Federal, Government of Guam agencies, and interested individuals are invited to be present at the hearing. DATES: The meeting will be held on May 13, 1999, at 7:00 p.m. ADDRESSES: San Vicente/San Roke Catholic Church, 229 San Roke Street, Barrigada, Guam 96913. FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Mr. John Bigay (PLN231JB), Pacific Division, Naval Facilities Engineering Command, 258 Makalapa Drive, Suite 100, Pearl Harbor, HI 96860-3134, telephone (808) 471-9338, facsimile (808) 474-5909. SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Pursuant to Section 102(2)(c) of the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969, as implemented by the Council on Environmental Quality regulations (40 CFR Parts 1500-1508), the Department of the Navy (Navy) and its cooperating agency, the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), have prepared and filed with the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) the DEIS for Disposal and Reuse of NAS Agana, Guam. A public hearing will be held for the purpose of receiving oral and written comments on the DEIS. Federal and Government of Guam agencies, as well as interested individuals and organizations are invited to be present or represented at the hearing. A Notice of Intent (NOI) to prepare the DEIS was published in the Federal Register on January 22, 1996 (61 FR 14). A public scoping meeting announcement was published on January 9, 10, and 11, 1996 in the Pacific Daily News on Guam. Two public scoping meetings were held on January 24, 1996 at the Governor of Guam Cabinet Conference Room, Executive Building, Adelup, Guam. The proposed action is the disposal of surplus Navy property for subsequent reuse and redevelopment, in accordance with the 1990 Defense Base Closure and Realignment Act, and the 1993 Base Closure and Realignment Commission recommendations. 1,933 acres (782.9 hectares) have been declared surplus and are the focus of this DEIS. NAS Agana, now known as Tiyan, was operationally closed on March 31, 1995. Approximately 6.6 acres (2.7 hectares) of the total 2,031.6 acres (822.2 hectares) of land at NAS Agana are being transferred to other federal agencies. The former officer housing site consisting of 92 acres (37.3 hectares) was not included in the 1993 base closure for NAS Agana, however it was later included as part of a 1995 base closure action and is proposed for disposal under a separate disposal action. The DEIS evaluates four reuse alternatives, each emphasizing various types of development, e.g., commercial, industrial, open space/ recreation, etc. All four reuse alternatives incorporate a master plan for expansion of the A. B. Won Pat Guam International Airport, which occupies most of the station. The reuse alternatives also include roadway improvements, provision of a site for use by the homeless, and transfer of easements to the Guam International Airport Authority. A fifth alternative, no action, assumes no disposal of property and retention of the station by Navy in caretaker status. Under the No Action alternative, civilian airport operations would continue under a joint use agreement, but there would be no airport expansion and no onsite roadway improvements. Current leases of other property on the station to the Government of Guam would continue until their expiration. The base reuse plan recommended by the Komitea Para Tiyan, a committee appointed by the Local Redevelopment Authority, was approved by the Governor of Guam. It includes the preferred reuse alternative of the Government of Guam and Navy. This plan consists of the following major elements: airport expansion including runway and taxiway extensions with an additional full-length parallel taxiway, and development of cargo, maintenance, and other facilities; onsite roadways to provide access to new developments and improve regional circulation; and redevelopment of land not used for airport operations that emphasizes [[Page 19347]] commercial and industrial uses. No decision on the proposed action will be made until the NEPA process has been completed. Potential impacts evaluated in the DEIS include, but are not limited to: water quality; terrestrial biota and habitats; aircraft noise; land use compatibility; traffic, infrastructure; air quality; socioeconomics; public health and safety; cultural resources; and environmental contamination. With two exceptions, all potentially significant impacts under all of the reuse alternatives can be mitigated to nonsignificant levels. Potentially significant but mitigable impacts include: future aircraft noise impacts on certain residential areas; inadequate infrastructure to support redevelopment; possible future impacts due to aircraft emissions; increase in demand for police and fire protection; and effects on an archaeological site eligible for listing on the National Register of Historic Places. The two exceptions are aircraft noise impacts on proposed housing in reuse areas north of the airport under one alternative (not the preferred alternative) and traffic impacts at two key intersections. For the noise impacts, no mitigation is available except to revise the land use plan. Predicted traffic volumes at the two intersections would exceed capacity even with mitigation. The DEIS has been distributed to affected federal and Government of Guam agencies and other interested parties. In addition, copies of the DEIS are available for review at the Guam Public Library branches in the communities of Agana, Barrigada and Dededo. A public hearing will be held to inform the public of the DEIS findings and to solicit and receive oral and written comments. The hearing will be held at 7:00 p.m. on May 13, 1999, at San Vicente/San Roke Catholic Church Social Hall, 229 San Roke Street, Barrigada, Guam. Government agencies and interested parties are invited to be present at the hearing. Oral comments will be heard and transcribed by a court recorder; written comments are also requested to ensure accuracy of the record. All comments, both oral and written, will become part of the official record. In the interest of available time, each speaker will be asked to limit oral comments to three minutes. Longer comments should be summarized at the public hearing and submitted in writing either at the hearing or mailed to Mr. John Bigay at the address given above. Written comments are requested not later than May 24, 1999. Dated: April 19, 1999. Ralph W. Corey, Commander, Judge Advocate General's Corps, U.S. Navy, Alternate Federal Liaison Officer. [FR Doc. 99-9891 Filed 4-19-99; 8:45 am] BILLING CODE 3810-FF-M