[Federal Register Volume 68, Number 38 (Wednesday, February 26, 2003)]
[Notices]
[Pages 8926-8927]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 03-4543]


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DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE


Office of Community Oriented Policing Services; FY 2002 Community 
Policing Discretionary Grants

AGENCY: Office of Community Oriented Policing Services, Department of 
Justice.

ACTION: Notice of availability of the finding of no significant impact 
and the environmental assessment.

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SUMMARY: The Environmental Assessment, which is available to the 
public, concludes that the methamphetamine investigation and 
clandestine laboratory closure activities of the Methamphetamine/Drug 
Hot Spots Program will not have significant impact on the quality of 
the human environment.

ADDRESSES: For copies of the Environmental Assessment and the Finding 
of No Significant Impact, please contact: COPS Grants Administration 
Division, 1100 Vermont Avenue, NW., Washington, DC 20530; Phone: (202) 
616-3031 or 1-800-421-6770.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: The U.S. Department of Justice 
Response Center, 1-800-421-6770 and ask to speak with your Grant 
Program Specialist.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: In Fiscal Year 2000, the COPS Office 
collaborated with the Bureau of Justice Assistance and the Drug 
Enforcement Administration, Department of Justice, to prepare an 
Environmental Assessment for methamphetamine law enforcement programs, 
and with specific application for the Methamphetamine/Drug Hot Spots 
Program. This Environmental Assessment was prepared as required by

[[Page 8927]]

the Council on Environmental Quality's regulations (40 CFR Parts 1500 
through 1508), implementing the National Environmental Policy Act of 
1969 (42 U.S.C. 4321, et al.). The Methamphetamine/Drug Hot Spots 
Program addresses a broad array of law enforcement initiatives 
pertaining to the investigation of methamphetamine trafficking in many 
heavily impacted areas of the country. For the purposes of this 
program, law enforcement may include training of law enforcement 
officers in methamphetamine-related issues; collection and maintenance 
of intelligence and information relative to methamphetamine trafficking 
and traffickers; investigation, arrest and prosecution of producers, 
traffickers and users of methamphetamine; interdiction and removal of 
laboratories, finished products, and precursor chemicals and other 
elements necessary to produce methamphetamine; and preventive efforts 
to reduce the spread and use of methamphetamine. Individual projects 
will reflect a concentration on program areas consistent with 
Congressional appropriations.
    Among the many challenges faced by law enforcement agencies in the 
Methamphetamine/Drug Hot Spots Program will be discovery, interdiction, 
and dismantling of clandestine drug laboratories. These lab sites, as 
well as other methamphetamine crime venues must be comprehensively 
dealt with in compliance with a variety of health, safety and 
environmental laws and regulations. The COPS Office requires that 
recipients, when encountering illegal drug laboratories, use grant 
funds to effect the proper removal and disposal of hazardous materials 
located at those laboratories and directly associated sites in 
accordance with all applicable laws and regulations.

Overview

Environmental Assessment

    The COPS Office will award grants to State and local criminal 
justice agencies for the FY 2002 COPS Methamphetamine/Drug Hot Spots 
Program. The Environmental Assessment concludes that the funding of 
this program will not have a significant impact on the quality of the 
human environment. Therefore, an Environmental Impact Statement will 
not be prepared for the funding of this program.

    Dated: February 9, 2003.
Carl R. Peed,
Director, Office of Community Oriented Policing Services.
[FR Doc. 03-4543 Filed 2-25-03; 8:45 am]
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