[Federal Register Volume 73, Number 249 (Monday, December 29, 2008)]
[Notices]
[Pages 79539-79541]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: E8-30845]


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DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION

Federal Aviation Administration


Office of Commercial Space Transportation; Notice of Approval on 
a Record of Decision (ROD) for the Spaceport America Commercial Launch 
Site, Sierra County, NM

AGENCY: The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), Department of 
Transportation.

ACTION: Notice of Approval of Record of Decision.

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SUMMARY: In accordance with National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) 
regulations and FAA Order 1050.1E, Change 1, the FAA is announcing the 
availability of the ROD for the Spaceport America Commercial Launch 
Site, Sierra County, New Mexico. The ROD provides the FAA's final 
environmental determination and approval to support

[[Page 79540]]

the issuance of a Launch Site Operator License to the New Mexico 
Spaceport Authority (NMSA) to operate Spaceport America, as proposed in 
the Final Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) published in November 
2008.
    The ROD provides a description of the applicant's Proposed Action 
and reasonable alternatives, and identifies the FAA's preferred and the 
environmentally preferred alternative. It includes a discussion of 
environmental impacts associated with the Proposed Action in each 
resource area, as analyzed in the Final EIS. The ROD summarizes the 
mitigation and enforcement actions that would be made the subject of 
the terms and conditions of the Launch Site Operator License issued to 
NMSA, as well as other conservation and enhancement measures described 
in the Final EIS and presented for consideration.
    The Final EIS, prepared by the FAA for the Spaceport America 
Commercial Launch Site, serves as the primary reference and basis for 
preparation of the ROD. The Final EIS documents the analysis of 
environmental consequences associated with the construction and 
operation of Spaceport America and reasonable alternatives to the 
Proposed Action. The FAA is the lead Federal agency responsible for the 
preparation of the EIS and ROD for the proposed Spaceport America. 
Cooperating agencies include the Bureau of Land Management, the 
National Park Service, the U.S. Army's White Sands Missile Range 
(WSMR), and the National Aeronautics and Space Administration. The EIS 
and ROD were prepared pursuant to the requirements of the National 
Environmental Policy Act of 1969 as amended (42 U.S.C. 4321, et seq.), 
the Council on Environmental Quality (CEQ) Regulations for Implementing 
the Procedural Provisions of NEPA (40 CFR 1500-1508), and FAA Order 
1050.1E, Change 1, Environmental Impacts: Policies and Procedures.
    The FAA has posted the ROD on the FAA Web site at http://ast.faa.gov. In addition, paper copies of the ROD will be sent out with 
the signed Programmatic Agreement to persons and agencies on the 
distribution list (found in Chapter 8 of the Final EIS). The 
Programmatic Agreement addresses significant impacts to Historical, 
Architectural, Archaeological, and Cultural Resources from the Proposed 
Action.
    Additional Information: Under the Proposed Action, and the 
alternative selected by the FAA for implementation, the FAA would issue 
a Launch Site Operator License to NMSA that would allow the State to 
operate the proposed Spaceport America Commercial Launch Site. The EIS 
analyzed launching both horizontal and vertical launch vehicle (LV) 
launches. Horizontal LVs would launch and land at the proposed 
Spaceport America airfield. Vertical LVs would launch from Spaceport 
America and either land at Spaceport America or at WSMR. Rocket-powered 
vertical landing vehicles would land on either the Spaceport America 
airfield or a vertical launch/landing pad.
    In addition, the Proposed Action includes construction of 
facilities needed to support the licensed launch activities at the 
proposed launch site. Development of Spaceport America infrastructure 
would occur in two phases. The total area of land disturbed by 
construction would be approximately 970 acres; the total area of the 
final facilities footprint would be approximately 145 acres. The 
proposed Spaceport America boundary would encompass approximately 26 
square miles. This area currently contains both State and private land.
    Operational activities in support of the Proposed Action would 
begin as soon as the phased construction activities related to the 
Proposed Action were completed. The operational activities that may 
have environmental consequences and would support, either directly or 
indirectly, licensed launches include:

     Transport of Launch Vehicles to the Assembly or Staging 
Areas
     Transport and Storage of Rocket Propellants and Other 
Fuels
     Launch, Landing and Recovery Activities for Horizontal 
Vehicles
     Launch, Landing and Recovery Activities for Vertical 
Vehicles
     Other Activities
    --Ground-Based Tests and Static Firings
    --Training
    --X Prize Cup Events

    The FAA identified two alternatives and the No Action Alternative 
to the Proposed Action, which are considered in the Final EIS. Under 
Alternative 1, FAA would consider issuing a Launch Site Operator 
License only for the operation of a launch site to support horizontal 
launches. This is considered a feasible alternative because a 
significant number of launches of horizontal LVs are projected, and 
most X Prize Cup activities would be located at the airfield.
    Under Alternative 2, FAA would consider issuing a Launch Site 
Operator License only for the operation of a launch site to support 
vertical launches. This is considered a feasible alternative because a 
significant number of launches are projected to be of vertical LVs.
    Under the No Action Alternative, the FAA would not issue a Launch 
Site Operator License to the NMSA. Subsequently, the need to support 
commercial launches and host the X Prize Cup would not be met by the 
State of New Mexico.
    Resource areas were considered to provide a context for 
understanding and assessing the potential environmental effects of the 
Proposed Action, with attention focused on key issues. The resource 
areas considered included compatible land use; Section 4(f) lands and 
farmlands; noise; visual resources and light emissions; historical, 
architectural, archaeological, and cultural resources; air quality; 
water quality, wetlands, wild and scenic rivers, coastal resources, and 
floodplains; fish, wildlife, and plants; hazardous materials, pollution 
prevention, and solid waste; socioeconomics, environmental justice, and 
children's environmental health and safety risks; and energy supply and 
natural resources. Construction impacts and secondary (induced) impacts 
are also considered. Additional analyses considered in the appendices 
include geology and soils; mineral resources; air space; health and 
safety; and transportation.
    As stated in the ROD and supported by the Final EIS, Alternatives 1 
and 2 and the No Action Alternative would result in restrictive 
licensing that would impede the FAA's ability to assist the commercial 
space transportation industry in meeting projected demand for services 
and expansion into new markets. The Preferred Alternative, the 
applicant's Proposed Action, would allow the greatest development and 
growth of the U.S. commercial space launch industry. In addition, 
although implementation of the Preferred Alternative would result in 
slightly greater environmental impacts than the overall impacts 
associated with the alternatives including the No Action Alternative, 
the impacts are still expected to be less than significant, in all but 
one resource area. Therefore, the FAA has selected the Preferred 
Alternative.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Stacey M. Zee (AST-100), Office of 
Commercial Space Transportation, 800 Independence Avenue SW., Room 331, 
Washington, DC 20591, telephone (202) 267-9305; E-mail 
[email protected].


[[Page 79541]]


    Issued in Washington, DC on December 18, 2008.
Michael McElligott,
Manager, Space Systems Development Division.
 [FR Doc. E8-30845 Filed 12-24-08; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4910-13-P