[Federal Register Volume 73, Number 1 (Wednesday, January 2, 2008)]
[Notices]
[Pages 172-173]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: E7-25451]


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DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE

Office of the Secretary


Intent to Prepare an Environmental Impact Statement for Power 
Upgrades Project Within the Fort Meade Complex, MD

AGENCY: Department of Defense; National Security Agency/Central 
Security Service.

ACTION: Notice of intent; notice of public meeting; request for 
comments.

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SUMMARY: The National Security Agency (NSA) announces that it intends 
to prepare an Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) as part of the 
environmental planning process for power and utility upgrades at Fort 
George G. Meade, Maryland (hereafter referred to as Fort Meade). The 
project was initiated to address aging infrastructure reliability 
issues as well as meet mission growth requirements. The Proposed Action 
includes the construction of generator facilities, two electrical 
substations, a boiler plant and chiller plant, as well as ancillary 
facilities and parking. The proposed utility upgrades would allow for 
100 percent self-contained redundancy, should off site power sources 
fail.
    Publication of this notice begins a scoping process that identifies 
and determines the scope of environmental issues to be addressed in the 
EIS. This notice requests public participation in the scoping process 
and provides information on how to participate.

DATES: There will be an open house at 4 p.m. followed by a scoping 
meeting from 5 p.m. to 7 p.m. on February 20, 2007, at the Ramada 
Laurel, 3400 Fort Meade Road, Laurel, Maryland 20724, which is near 
Fort Meade. Comments or questions regarding this EIS should be 
submitted by 30 days from the date of publication in the Federal 
Register to ensure sufficient time to consider public input in the 
preparation of the Draft EIS.

ADDRESSES: The open house and scoping meeting will be held at the 
Ramada Laurel, 3400 Fort Meade Road, Laurel, Maryland 20724. Oral and 
written comments will be accepted at the scoping meeting. Written 
comments can also be mailed to Mr. Jeffrey Williams, Environmental and 
Safety Services, National Security Agency, 9800 Savage Road Suite 6404, 
Fort Meade, MD 20755-6248 or submitted by e-mail to Mr. Williams at 
[email protected].

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Mr. Jeffrey Williams at (301) 688-
2970, or e-mail [email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Background: The National Security Agency 
(NSA) is a tenant DOD agency on Fort Meade. NSA is a high-technology 
organization that is on the frontiers of communications and data 
processing. In order to meet mission growth requirements as well as 
address aging infrastructure reliability information, power upgrades 
are needed at the NSA campus on Fort Meade.
    Proposed Action and Alternatives: The Power Upgrades Project, an 
NSA investment and major systems acquisition, was initiated to meet the 
growth requirements of NSA as well as address aging infrastructure 
reliability issues. The Proposed Action would consist of construction 
of the following:

--50 mega volt amp (MVA) North Electrical Substation with 15 kilo volt 
(kV) switchgears, a 50 mega watt (MW) generator plant with pollution 
control system and oil storage facilities.
--South Generator facility consisting of 36 MW generator plant.
--Replacement of four 85-90 million British Thermal Units per hour 
(MMBTU/hr) boilers, the boiler building, and two 200,000 aboveground 
oil storage tanks.
--Addition of a central chiller plant of 20,000 tons of chilled water 
capacity with a dedicated substation and emergency generator capacity.
--Replacement surface parking and parking garages.
--Associated ancillary equipment and utility connections.

    Alternatives identified include up to five locations for the 
proposed construction of the North and East substation facilities on 
the NSA campus, two options for power generation, and various pollution 
control systems. These alternatives will be developed during 
preparation of the Draft EIS as a result of public and agency input and 
environmental analyses of the activities. The No Action Alternative 
(not undertaking the Power Upgrade Project) will also be analyzed in 
detail.
    This notice of intent is required by 40 CFR 1508.22, and briefly 
describes the proposed action and possible alternatives and our 
proposed scoping process. The EIS will comply with the National 
Environmental Policy Act of 1969 (NEPA), the Council on Environmental 
Quality regulations in 40 CFR parts 1500-1508, and NSA Draft NEPA 
implementation procedures.
    Significant Issues: Environmental issues to be analyzed in the EIS 
will include potential impacts on air quality, natural resources, water 
use, solid waste, cultural resources, and cumulative impacts from 
increased burdens to the installation and neighboring community based 
on projected growth.
    Scoping Process: Public scoping is an early and open process for 
identifying and determining the scope of issues to be addressed in the 
EIS. Scoping begins with this notice, continues through the public 
comment period (see DATES), and ends when the DOD has completed the 
following actions:


[[Page 173]]


--Invites the participation of Federal, State, and local agencies, any 
affected Indian tribe and other interested persons.
--Determines the actions, alternatives, and impacts described in 40 CFR 
1508.25.
--Identifies and eliminates from detailed study those issues that are 
not significant or that have been covered elsewhere.
--Indicates any related environmental assessments or environmental 
impact statements that are not part of the EIS.
--Other relevant environmental review and consultation requirements.
--Indicates the relationship between timing of the environmental review 
and other aspects of the proposed program.
--At its discretion, exercises the options provided in 40 CFR 
1501.7(b).

    Once the scoping process is complete, the DoD will prepare a Draft 
EIS, and will publish a Federal Register notice announcing its public 
availability. If you want that notice to be sent to you, please contact 
the DoD Project Office point of contact identified in FOR FURTHER 
INFORMATION CONTACT. You will have an opportunity to review and comment 
on the Draft EIS. Additionally, the DoD anticipates holding a public 
meeting after publication of the DEIS in the vicinity of Fort Meade, 
Maryland to present the Draft EIS and receive public comments regarding 
the document. The DoD will consider all comments received and then 
prepare the Final EIS. As with the Draft EIS, the DoD will announce the 
availability of the Final EIS and once again give you an opportunity 
for review and comment.

    December 21, 2007.
L.M. Bynum,
Alternate OSD Federal Register Liaison Officer, DoD.
[FR Doc. E7-25451 Filed 12-31-07; 8:45 am]
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