[Federal Register Volume 71, Number 250 (Friday, December 29, 2006)]
[Notices]
[Pages 78410-78411]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 06-9837]


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DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE

Department of the Army


Notice of Availability (NOA) of the Final Environmental Impact 
Statement (FEIS) in Support of New Facilities for the U.S. Army Medical 
Research Institute of Infectious Diseases (USAMRIID), Fort Detrick, MD

AGENCY: U.S. Army Medical Research and Material Command, Department of 
the Army, DoD.

ACTION: Notice of availability.

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SUMMARY: The U.S. Army announces the availability of an FEIS which 
evaluates the potential environmental impacts of the construction and 
operation of new USAMRIID facilities and the decommissioning and 
demolition and/or re-use of existing USAMRIID facilities at Fort 
Detrick.

DATES: The waiting period for the FEIS will end 30 days after 
publication of the NOA in the Federal Register by the U.S. 
Environmental Protection Agency.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Caree Vander Linden, USAMRIID Public 
Affairs, 1425 Porter Street, Fort Detrick, MD 21702-5011; telephone 
(301) 619-2285; fax: (301) 619-4625, or through the public USAMRIID EIS 
Web site at http://www.usamriid.army.mil/eis.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The Proposed Action and subject of the EIS 
is the construction and operation of new USAMRIID facilities and the 
decommissioning and demolition and/or re-use of existing USAMRIID 
facilities at Fort Detrick.
    The proposed new USAMRIID facilities would provide biocontainment 
laboratory space, animal facilities, and administrative offices, as 
well as operational and administrative support facilities. These new 
facilities would be located adjacent to the existing

[[Page 78411]]

USAMRIID facilities within the National Interagency Biodefense Campus 
on Area A of Fort Detrick and near the biomedical research facilities 
of mission partners, including the Agricultural Research Service 
Foreign Disease-Weed Research Unit of the U.S. Department of 
Agriculture, the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases' 
Integrated Research Facility, and the Department of Homeland Security's 
National Biodefense Analysis and Countermeasures Center. The existing 
USAMRIID facilities on Area A would be decommissioned and either 
demolished and/or re-used following occupancy of the new USAMRIID 
facilities.
    The construction would occur in two stages. Stage 1 would provide 
approximately 700,000 gross square feet (gsf) of new building space for 
the replacement of outdated and compressed existing USAMRIID facilities 
in order to sustain the current mission and to expand medical test and 
evaluation (T&E) capacity in support of immediate Department of Defense 
(DoD) and national demand. Stage 2 would encompass approximately 
400,000 gsf of new building space for the balance of USAMRIID's 
expanded mission and for additional capacity to meet intensified 
national requirements for medical test and evaluation in support of 
biodefense research as well as to accommodate increased collaborative 
efforts among USAMRIID's mission partners. In addition, approximately 
200,000 gsf of the existing USAMRIID facilities may be renovated and 
re-used for laboratory or non-laboratory use, to be determined by 
evolving biodefense requirements.
    The significant issues analyzed in the FEIS included: Safety of 
laboratory operations and demolition of the existing biocontainment 
laboratories; public health and safety; handling, collection, 
treatment, and disposal of research wastes; water supply and other 
utility requirements; traffic; pollution prevention; and analysis of 
other risks to include discussion of the risk of terrorist attack. In 
addition, possible adverse health and safety impacts on laboratory 
workers in the proposed new USAMRIID facilities and on nearby residents 
during the operational phase of the project were identified and 
evaluated. The risks were deemed to be negligible and mitigable through 
adherence to ``Biosafety in Microbiological and Biomedical 
Laboratories'' (BMBL) and other standards for safe operational 
practices.
    Three alternatives were considered: Construction and Operation of 
New USAMRIID Facilities and Decommissioning and Demolition of the 
Existing USAMRIID Facilities on Area A of Fort Detrick, Maryland 
(Alternate I), Construction and Operation of New USAMRIID Facilities 
and Decommissioning and Partial Demolition of the Existing USAMRIID 
Facilities and Re-Use of the Remaining Facilities on Area A of Fort 
Detrick, Maryland (Alternate II), and the No Action Alternative, under 
which the proposed new USAMRIID facilities would not be built and 
operated and the existing USAMRIID facilities would not be 
decommissioned and demolished and/or re-used.
    Following the end of the 30-day waiting period, a decision will be 
made by the U.S. Army as to which of the alternatives will be 
implemented. This decision will be based on consideration of a number 
of factors. These factors include, but are not limited to, 
environmental considerations, laws and regulations, mission needs (at 
Fort Detrick as well as from a national perspective), budget 
considerations, schedule, and public concerns. A Record of Decision 
will then be executed.

    Dated: December 18, 2006.
Addison D. Davis, IV,
Deputy Assistant Secretary of the Army, (Environment, Safety and 
Occupational Health).
[FR Doc. 06-9837 Filed 12-28-06; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3710-08-M