[Federal Register Volume 76, Number 24 (Friday, February 4, 2011)]
[Notices]
[Pages 6455-6456]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2011-2449]


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DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE

Department of the Army


Final Programmatic Environmental Impact Statement (PEIS) for the 
Growth, Realignment, and Stationing of Army Aviation Assets

AGENCY: Department of the Army, DoD.

ACTION: Notice of availability.

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SUMMARY: The Department of the Army announces the availability of the 
Final PEIS for the proposed growth, realignment, and stationing of new 
and existing Army aviation assets. The proposed action includes the 
consolidation and reorganization of existing aviation units, and the 
potential establishment of one or more Combat Aviation Brigades (CABs). 
The proposed action will increase the availability of helicopter assets 
to meet current and future national security requirements, and will 
allow the Army better to organize existing aviation assets to promote 
more effective training and force management. The Final PEIS evaluates 
the environmental impacts associated with the proposed action, which 
includes the stationing of aviation units, the construction and 
renovation of garrison facilities, and additional training activities 
needed to support the readiness of aviation units. In addition, the 
Final PEIS addresses comments received on the Draft PEIS. Land 
acquisition is not being considered as part of this action.
    The Final PEIS considers the following alternatives: Alternative 
1--Realign and Station Existing Aviation Elements of Up to a Full CAB 
or Activate and Station a New CAB at Fort Carson Colorado (CO). Under 
this alternative, the Army will consolidate existing aviation units not 
currently assigned to a CAB into a standard CAB structure at Fort 
Carson or activate a new CAB at Fort Carson. As part of this 
alternative, aviation units will conduct training on existing land at 
Pinon Canyon Maneuver Site (PCMS), CO, in order to maintain training 
proficiency and support integrated training with ground units. Land 
acquisition is not being considered as part of this action. Alternative 
2--Realign and Station Existing Aviation Elements of Up to a Full CAB 
or Grow, Station, and Activate

[[Page 6456]]

a CAB at Joint Base Lewis-McChord (JBLM) Washington (WA). Under this 
alternative, the Army either will consolidate existing aviation units 
not currently assigned to a CAB into a standard CAB structure at JBLM 
or activate a new CAB at JBLM. As part of this alternative, aviation 
units will conduct training on existing training land at Yakima 
Training Center (YTC), WA, in order to maintain training proficiency 
and support integrated training with ground units. Land acquisition is 
not being considered as part of this action. Alternative 3 
(Preferred)--Implement Alternatives 1 and 2. Under this alternative, 
the consolidated units forming a CAB would be stationed at one 
installation, and the new CAB would be activated and stationed at the 
other installation. Fort Carson and JBLM would each gain up to one CAB. 
As part of this alternative, aviation units would conduct training on 
existing training land at the installations' training maneuver areas 
(PCMS for Fort Carson and YTC for JBLM) in order to maintain training 
proficiency and support integrated training with ground units. Land 
acquisition is not being considered as part of this action. Alternative 
4--No Action Alternative. Under this alternative, the Army would retain 
its aviation force structure at its current levels, configurations, and 
locations.
    Aviation units continue to be one of the Army's most stressed 
forces currently on 12-month deployments after every one year at home. 
The Army's goal is to give active-duty Soldiers two years at home for 
every year they're deployed. The completion of these stationing actions 
will provide sufficient aviation assets to allow Soldiers more time at 
home between deployments. Fort Carson and JBLM are the only stationing 
alternatives that meet all of the Army's stationing requirements for 
new CAB stationing. These locations have existing runways and 
airfields, provide adequate maneuver and airspace for CAB operations, 
and are equipped with existing training ranges that can support CAB 
training. Most importantly, Fort Carson and JBLM are the only major 
installations that have three or more Brigade Combat Teams but no CAB 
dedicated to provide aviation support for training. The proposed action 
would allow the Army to maximize integrated air-ground training. Land 
acquisition is not being considered as part of this action.

DATES: The waiting period for the Final PEIS will end 30 days after 
publication of a Notice of Availability in the Federal Register by the 
U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.

ADDRESSES: To obtain a copy of the Final PEIS contact: Public Affairs 
Office, U.S. Army Environmental Command, Attn: IMPA-AE, 1835 Army 
Boulevard (BSMT), Fort Sam Houston, TX 78234-2686.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Public Affairs Office at (210) 221-
0882; fax (410) 436-1693; or e-mail at [email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: A CAB consists of approximately 120 
helicopters, 600 wheeled vehicles, and 2,700 Soldiers. The CAB is 
organized into five battalions and a headquarters unit. CAB units 
include combat, reconnaissance, and logistics support aircraft.
    The Final PEIS assesses, considers, and compares the direct, 
indirect, and cumulative environmental effects of proposed CAB growth 
and realignment for each alternative. The primary environmental issues 
evaluated include impacts to air quality, soil, airspace, cultural 
resources, natural resources, and noise. In addition, the Army 
addresses comments received from the public and other organizations in 
response to the November 5, 2010 publication of the Draft PEIS.
    As part of the Army's preferred alternative, the Army is 
considering the realignment and consolidation of aviation elements from 
active component forces not currently in a modular configuration into a 
CAB at JBLM, WA. In addition, the Army would establish a new CAB under 
this alternative at Fort Carson, CO. As part of this alternative, Fort 
Carson would gain one new CAB consisting of up to 2,700 new Soldiers 
and 120 helicopters. JBLM would receive most of the realigned units 
required to complete a CAB to complement aviation units already 
stationed there. The Army is considering a reduction in the number of 
Soldiers to be stationed at JBLM from a full CAB equivalent of Soldiers 
and equipment to approximately 1,400 new Soldiers and 44 helicopters. 
Units comprised of these Soldiers and equipment would provide a CAB 
training capability and complement Active Army aviation units already 
stationed at JBLM. A final decision on stationing will be included in 
the Record of Decision (ROD) for this proposal.
    Environmental impacts associated with the implementation of the 
proposed action include significant impacts to: Transportation on the 
Interstate 5 corridor near JBLM, fish and water quality in Puget Sound, 
and noise impacts to sensitive receptors. There are potentially 
significant impacts to biological resources at YTC from increased 
potential for wildfire and habitat degradation associated with aviation 
training. Impacts will also include significant but mitigable impacts 
to soils at Fort Carson, PCMS, and YTC as well as significant but 
mitigable impacts to water resources at YTC. At PCMS, cumulative 
impacts to soils are predicted to be manageable with current dust 
control mitigation techniques. Impacts to cultural resources, air 
quality, noise impacts, public land use, and socioeconomic impacts were 
all determined to be less than significant.
    An electronic version of the Final PEIS is available for download 
at the following Web site: http://aec.army.mil/usaec/nepa/topics00.html.

    Dated: January 26, 2011.
Hershell E. Wolfe,
Acting Deputy Assistant Secretary of the Army (Environment, Safety, and 
Occupational Health).
[FR Doc. 2011-2449 Filed 2-3-11; 8:45 am]
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