[Federal Register Volume 75, Number 52 (Thursday, March 18, 2010)]
[Notices]
[Pages 13131-13132]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2010-5833]


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GENERAL SERVICES ADMINISTRATION


Notice of Intent To Prepare an Environmental Impact Statement 
(EIS) for the Sale of Plum Island, NY

AGENCY: Office of Real Property Utilization & Disposal; General 
Services Administration.

ACTION: Notice.

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SUMMARY: Pursuant to the requirements of the National Environmental 
Policy Act (NEPA) of 1969, and the President's Council on Environmental 
Quality Regulations (40 CFR 1500-1508), as implemented by the U.S. 
General Services Administration (GSA) Order PBS P 1095.4C, GSA, as the 
operational Joint Lead Agency, announces its Notice of Intent (NOI) to 
prepare an EIS for the anticipated sale of Plum Island, New York and an 
ancillary support facility at Orient Point, New York. The US Department 
of Homeland Security (DHS) will act as a Joint Lead Agency in ongoing 
consultation with GSA for the NEPA and associated regulatory compliance 
activities.

ADDRESSES: Written comments may be sent to: Mr. Phil Youngberg, 
Environmental Manager c/o Mr. John Dugan, General Services 
Administration (GSA), 10 Causeway Street, Room 925, Boston, MA 02222. 
All comments received by GSA in response to the Plum Island NEPA 
process, including commenter's name and state of

[[Page 13132]]

residence, will be public information and may be released by GSA.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Mr. Phil Youngberg via FAX at 617-565-
5720 or e-mail: [email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
    Background: Plum Island is an 840-acre island located approximately 
1.5 miles off the northeast tip of Orient Point, Long Island, New York. 
DHS, in cooperation with the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA), 
operates the Plum Island Animal Disease Center (PIADC) on the island. 
Plum Island is formerly the home of the U.S. Army's Fort Terry and was 
transferred to the USDA in 1954 to establish a research facility for 
foot-and-mouth disease. In 2003, Plum Island was transferred to DHS. 
PIADC is comprised of buildings, industrial facilities and equipment, 
roadways, utilities, specialized facilities, easements, and rights of 
way. Additional assets on Plum Island include natural undeveloped land, 
the Plum Island Lighthouse constructed in 1869, and buildings and 
structures associated with the former Fort Terry. DHS also owns and 
operates transportation assets and a 9.5-acre facility to support PIADC 
at Orient Point, New York which includes buildings, utilities, and 
ferry docking facilities.
    Statutory Authority: The purpose of this EIS is to examine the 
effects associated with the anticipated sale of Plum Island, New York 
and its support facility at Orient Point, New York including all real 
and related personal property and transportation assets (the 
``Property''). The need for this proposed action is mandated in Section 
540 of the Consolidated Security, Disaster Assistance, and Continuing 
Appropriations Act of 2009; United States Public Law 110-329 (the 
``Act''), which directs the Secretary of the DHS to liquidate the Plum 
Island asset by directing the Administrator of the General Services to 
sell through public sale all real and related personal property and 
transportation assets which support Plum Island operations, subject to 
such terms and conditions as necessary to protect government interests 
and meet program requirements. The Act mandates the sale as a result of 
the determination by DHS to construct and operate a new National Bio 
and Agro-Defense Facility (NBAF) in Manhattan, Kansas and move its 
operations from the PIADC to the NBAF (Record of Decision dated 01/16/
2009)
    Scoping and Request for Comments: The EIS will address the 
potential impacts to the environment of two alternatives: sale of the 
Property (the ``Action Alternative''), and continued Federal ownership 
(the ``No-Action Alternative''). The Action Alternative will be further 
refined into a series of reasonably foreseeable land use options. 
Because the federal government has no authority to regulate future land 
uses, a precise statement of the specific land use-related 
environmental and socioeconomic effects that could result from reuse 
would be largely speculative. In response to the lack of certainty 
concerning future reuse of the Property, the EIS will identify 
reasonable land use options that could result upon the sale of the 
Property. When the Property leaves federal ownership, proposed uses 
would be subject to local and state environmental and land use 
regulation.
    The primary purpose of the scoping process is for the public to 
assist the GSA and DHS in developing the EIS by identifying important 
issues and alternatives related to the sale of the Property. Scoping 
meetings in Southold, New York and Old Saybrook, Connecticut will 
allocate time for presentations by the GSA and DHS, followed by an 
opportunity for the public to comment. Land use and development 
scenarios will be developed with input from the local community through 
the scoping process. It is anticipated that these public scoping 
meetings will be held in the spring of 2010. GSA will provide public 
notice of these and all subsequent public meetings in local newspapers 
approximately two weeks prior to the event.
    After the scoping is completed, a Draft EIS will be published that 
identifies and evaluates potential land use options developed to assess 
impacts of the Action Alternative. The Draft EIS will identify 
potentially significant direct, indirect, and cumulative impacts on 
historical and biological resources, land use, air quality, water 
quality, water resources, and socioeconomics, as well as other 
environmental issues that could occur as a result of the Action 
Alternative. For potentially significant impacts, the EIS may identify 
avoidance, minimization, or mitigation measures to reduce these 
impacts, where feasible. After the Draft EIS is issued, there will be a 
45-day comment period. GSA will hold public meetings in Southold, New 
York and Old Saybrook, Connecticut during the comment period to solicit 
input from the public. GSA anticipates this comment period will occur 
in summer 2010. After the Draft EIS, GSA will issue a Final EIS.
    Reasonable Accommodations: Persons needing reasonable 
accommodations in order to attend and participate in public meetings 
should contact John Dugan, General Services Administration Property 
Utilization & Disposal Division, 10 Causeway Street, Room 925, Boston, 
MA 02222 or e-mail [email protected]. In order to allow sufficient 
time to process requests, please call no later than one week before the 
public meeting. Information regarding this proposed action is available 
in alternative formats upon request.

    Dated: March 9, 2010.
John L. Dugan,
Realty Specialist, 1PZ, U.S. General Services Administration.
[FR Doc. 2010-5833 Filed 3-17-10; 8:45 am]
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