[Federal Register Volume 79, Number 21 (Friday, January 31, 2014)]
[Notices]
[Page 5392]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2014-01947]


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DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE

Department of the Navy


Record of Decision for the Proposed Modernization and Expansion 
of Townsend Bombing Range, Georgia

AGENCY: Department of the Navy, DoD.

ACTION: Notice of Record of Decision.

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SUMMARY: Pursuant to Section (102)(2)(c) of the National Environmental 
Policy Act (NEPA) of 1969 (42 United States Code [U.S.C.] 4321-4370h); 
the Council on Environmental Quality regulations for implementing the 
procedural provisions of NEPA (40 CFR parts 1500-1508); Department of 
the Navy (DoN) Procedures for Implementing NEPA (32 CFR part 775); and 
United States Marine Corps (USMC) NEPA directives (Marine Corps Order 
P5090.2A), the DoN announces its decision to modernize and expand 
Townsend Bombing Range (TBR) in Long and McIntosh Counties, Georgia. 
The DoN has decided to implement Alternative 4, the Preferred 
Alternative, to include acquisition of Acquisition Areas 1B and 3.
    To support this decision, DoN will implement the following four 
actions: (1) Acquire Acquisition Areas 1B and 3 (28,630 acres); (2) 
terminate a 3,007-acre timber easement held by McIntosh County on DoN-
owned land within the current TBR boundary; (3) modify Restricted Area 
R-3007 airspace by extending the current 100-foot floor to ground level 
over the land to be acquired (Acquisition Areas 1B and 3) to match the 
existing restricted airspace over the current range; and (4) construct 
infrastructure to support precision-guided munitions (PGM) training, 
including Target Areas 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, and 8. This modernization and 
expansion of TBR to accommodate inert PGM training will significantly 
enhance USMC east coast aviation unit training efficiency. Presently, 
TBR can accommodate only 47% of the required F/A-18 Hornet individual 
fixed-wing air crew air-to-ground training syllabus. The Proposed 
Action will allow air crews to meet up to 85% of their air-to-ground 
proficiency requirements at TBR. All practical means to avoid or 
minimize environmental impacts resulting from implementation of the 
Preferred Alternative that were identified in the EIS have been 
adopted.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The complete text of the Record of Decision 
is available for public viewing on the project Web site at http://www.townsendbombingrangeeis.com along with the EIS. For further 
information, contact Marine Corps Air Station Beaufort Public Affairs 
Officer, Captain Jordan Cochran, 596 Geiger Blvd. MCAS Beaufort, SC 
29904 at 843-228-6123.

    Dated: January 27, 2014.
N. A. Hagerty-Ford,
Commander, Office of the Judge Advocate General, U.S. Navy, Federal 
Register Liaison Officer.
[FR Doc. 2014-01947 Filed 1-30-14; 8:45 am]
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