[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]


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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.

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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]
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