[Federal Register Volume 72, Number 248 (Friday, December 28, 2007)]
[Notices]
[Pages 73784-73785]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: E7-25234]


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DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE

Department of the Air Force


Notice of Intent To Prepare an Environmental Impact Statement 
(EIS) for Proposed Range Enhancements at the Barry M. Goldwater Range, 
Arizona

AGENCY: Department of the Air Force.

ACTION: Notice of Intent (NOI).

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SUMMARY: This NOI is being issued pursuant to the National 
Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) of 1969, as amended (42 United States 
Code 4321, et seq.), the Council on Environmental Quality Regulations 
for implementing procedural provisions of NEPA (40 Code of Federal 
Regulation (CFR) Parts 1500-1508), and Air Force policy and procedures 
(32 CFR Part 989) to advise the public of the Air Force's intent to 
prepare an EIS that will evaluate the environmental effects associated 
with range enhancements and alternatives within the eastern portion of 
the Barry M. Goldwater Range (BMGR), Arizona.
    The Air Force is also initiating a scoping process and public 
meetings to assist in determining the extent of issues to be addressed 
in the EIS. Three scoping meetings will be held, as scheduled below. 
Each meeting will include an open house where the public may review 
maps and other displays. Federal, state, and local agencies; Native 
American tribes; and interested individuals are encouraged to take this 
opportunity to identify environmental concerns that should be addressed 
in the preparation of the EIS.

DATES: Public scoping meetings will be held as follows:
    Tuesday, January 15, 2008, 6-8 p.m., Glendale High School, Media 
Center, 6216 W. Glendale Avenue, Glendale, AZ.
    Wednesday, January 16, 2008, 6-8 p.m., El Rio Center, 1390 W. 
Speedway Boulevard, Tucson, AZ.
    Thursday, January 17, 2008, 6-8 p.m., Gila Bend Union High School, 
308 N. Martin Avenue, Gila Bend, AZ.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The eastern portion of the BMGR (BMGR-East) 
is assigned to the Secretary of the Air Force and is operated by Luke 
Air Force Base to train combat aircrews and support personnel.
    Periodically, operational and infrastructure upgrades to the range 
are

[[Page 73785]]

needed to keep training both realistic and relevant to current and 
emerging war fighting technology and tactics. Consequently, the Air 
Force now proposes upgrades to BMGR-East that include:
    *Developing a training area to train in the use of precision-guided 
munitions in an urban setting (no actual air-to-ground ordnance would 
be released)
    * Reconfiguring targets in tactical and manned ranges, which may 
include relocating targets within pre-2001 annual explosive ordnance 
disposal clearance areas within the tactical ranges
    * Introducing a remotely operated moving target to provide aircrews 
with realistic training to engage moving vehicle targets
    * Reconfiguring Manned Range 3 to include a helicopter gunnery 
range with fixed, moving, and pop-up targets
    * Modifying the Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) among the 
Department of the Interior and the Secretaries of the Navy and the Air 
Force to change the floor for routine flight training operations over 
portions of the Cabeza Prieta National Wildlife Refuge from 1,500 feet 
to 500 feet above ground level to support realistic low-level 
approaches to targets; BMGR-East restricted airspace (R-2301E) is 
currently authorized for use from the surface to 80,000 feet above mean 
sea level, but training flight operations, with the exception of 
certain low-level flights along designated corridors, are limited by 
the 1994 MOU to 1,500 feet over the National Wildlife Refuge
    * Developing an additional target for air-to-ground missiles in the 
East Tactical Range to allow training in air-to-ground missile delivery 
from multiple directions; the proximity of the current missile target 
to the range boundary severely constrains training
    * Supporting training by small squads of troops or individual 
soldiers on foot
    * Paving the road from Manned Range 1 to the water well to minimize 
vehicle wear, maintenance costs, and dust on this heavily used road
    * Excavating, transporting, and stockpiling sand and gravel 
resources to provide an on-range source of these materials for road 
maintenance as well as target reconfiguration and maintenance
    * Constructing a taxiway and air traffic control tower at the Gila 
Bend Air Force Auxiliary Field to improve airfield safety and expand 
operational capacity
    Anticipated issues to be addressed in the EIS include, but are not 
limited to, airspace and range operations; water, biological resources 
(including endangered species), cultural resources; air quality; noise; 
and public access, health, and safety.
    Written comments may be submitted at the meetings. Agencies and the 
public are also invited to provide written comment via mail on issues 
that are important to them. These written comments should be mailed to 
the address listed below, and must be received no later than January 
28, 2008 to ensure fullest consideration in the EIS.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Direct any written comments or 
requests for information to Ms. Lisa McCarrick, 56 FW/RMO, 7224 N. 
139th Drive, Luke AFB, AZ 85309-1420 (Phone 623/856-9475).

Bao-Anh Trinh,
Air Force Federal Register Liaison Officer.
[FR Doc. E7-25234 Filed 12-27-07; 8:45 am]
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