[Federal Register Volume 79, Number 163 (Friday, August 22, 2014)]
[Notices]
[Pages 49769-49770]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2014-20079]


-----------------------------------------------------------------------

DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE

Department of the Navy


Notice of Public Meetings for the Draft Supplemental 
Environmental Impact Statement/Overseas Environmental Impact Statement 
for Gulf of Alaska Navy Training Activities

AGENCY: Department of the Navy, DoD.

ACTION: Notice.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------

SUMMARY: Pursuant to section 102(2)(c) of the National Environmental 
Policy Act of 1969, regulations implemented by the Council on 
Environmental Quality (40 Code of Federal Regulations Parts 1500-1508), 
and Presidential Executive Order 12114, the Department of the Navy 
(DoN) has prepared and filed with the U.S. Environmental Protection 
Agency a Draft Supplemental Environmental Impact Statement/Overseas 
Environmental Impact Statement (EIS/OEIS). The DoN prepared this 
analysis to update the Gulf of Alaska Navy Training Activities Final 
EIS/OEIS, which was completed with community input in May 2011 
(hereafter referred to as the 2011 GOA Final EIS/OEIS), and to renew 
federal regulatory permits and authorizations. In the Draft 
Supplemental EIS/OEIS, the DoN uses a new acoustic modeling method and 
evaluates new, relevant information, such as new marine mammal density 
data and new scientific information, and updates environmental 
analyses, as appropriate. The DoN analyzes data using the Navy Acoustic 
Effects Model, not previously available for the 2011 GOA Final EIS/
OEIS, to evaluate potential effects on marine species from training 
activities. The National Marine Fisheries Service is a cooperating 
agency for this Supplemental EIS/OEIS.
    With the filing of the Draft Supplemental EIS/OEIS, the DoN is 
initiating a 60-day public comment period and has scheduled five public 
meetings to inform the public and receive comments on the Draft 
Supplemental EIS/OEIS. This notice announces the dates and locations of 
the public meetings and provides supplementary information about the 
environmental planning effort.
    Dates And Addresses: The 60-day Draft Supplemental EIS/OEIS public 
review period will begin August 22, 2014, and end October 20, 2014. The 
DoN will hold five public meetings to inform the public about the 
Proposed Action and to provide an opportunity to comment on the 
adequacy and accuracy of the supplemental environmental analysis. Each 
of the public meetings will include an open house information session, 
followed by a short presentation by the DoN. DoN representatives will 
be available during the open house information sessions to provide 
information related to the Draft Supplemental EIS/OEIS. Federal, state, 
and local agencies and officials, as well as interested organizations 
and individuals are encouraged to provide comments in writing during 
the public review period or in person at one of the scheduled public 
meetings.
    The public meetings will be held from 5:00 p.m.-8:00 p.m., with a 
DoN presentation at 6:30 p.m., on the following dates and at the 
following locations:

1. Monday, September 8, 2014, at the Elks Lodge, 102 W. Marine Way, 
Kodiak, AK 99615
2. Tuesday, September 9, 2014, at the Z.J. Loussac Library Public 
Conference Room, 3600 Denali St., Anchorage, AK 99503
3. Wednesday, September 10, 2014, at the Best Western Bidarka Inn Sea 
Breeze Room, 575 Sterling Highway, Homer, AK 99603
4. Thursday, September 11, 2014, at the Juneau Arts & Humanities 
Council Main Hall, 350 Whittier St., Juneau, AK 99801
5. Friday, September 12, 2014, at the Mt. Eccles Elementary School 
Simpler Gymnasium, 201 Adams St., Cordova, AK 99574

    Attendees will be able to submit oral and written comments during 
the public meetings. A court reporter will record oral comments from 
the public. In the interest of available time, and to ensure all who 
wish to provide an oral statement to the court reporter have the 
opportunity to do so, each speaker's comments will be limited to three 
(3) minutes, which may be extended if meeting attendance permits. Equal 
weight will be given to oral and written statements. Written comments 
may also be submitted via mail to Naval Facilities Engineering Command 
Northwest, Attention: Ms. Amy Burt--GOA Supplemental EIS/OEIS Project 
Manager, 1101 Tautog Circle, Suite 203, Silverdale, WA 98315-1101, or 
electronically via the project Web site (www.GOAEIS.com). All comments, 
oral or written, submitted during the public review period will become 
part of the public record. All comments will be reviewed or responded 
to in the Final Supplemental EIS/OEIS. Comments must be postmarked or 
received online by October 20, 2014, for consideration in the Final 
Supplemental EIS/OEIS.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Naval Facilities Engineering Command 
Northwest, Attention: Ms. Amy Burt--GOA Supplemental EIS/OEIS Project 
Manager, 1101 Tautog Circle, Suite 203, Silverdale, WA 98315-1101.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: A Notice of Intent to prepare this 
Supplemental EIS/OEIS was published in the Federal Register on January 
16, 2013 (78 FR 3408).
    This Supplemental EIS/OEIS is an update to the 2011 GOA Final EIS/
OEIS and Record of Decision (ROD). It will support U.S. Pacific 
Command, Northern Command, and Joint Task Force Commander training 
requirements to achieve and maintain Fleet readiness as required by 
Title 10 of the U.S. Code. The DoN's Proposed Action is the same as the 
Proposed Action presented in the 2011 GOA Final EIS/OEIS and ROD, which 
is to continue conducting periodic military training activities in a 
specific area of the Gulf of Alaska called the Temporary Maritime 
Activities Area. The Temporary Maritime Activities Area and Proposed 
Action, including the location, number, and frequency of major training 
exercises, remain unchanged from the 2011 analysis. The DoN evaluated 
each resource area discussed in the 2011 GOA Final EIS/OEIS to 
determine if additional analysis is necessary in the Draft Supplemental 
EIS/OEIS due to new information or new analysis methods.
    In this Draft Supplemental EIS/OEIS, the DoN re-evaluates potential 
impacts from ongoing military training activities conducted in the 
Temporary Maritime Activities Area. All resource areas were examined to 
determine the need for re-analysis in this Draft Supplemental EIS/OEIS. 
The marine mammal resource analysis for each alternative in the 2011 
GOA Final EIS/OEIS was updated. For other resource areas, the 2011 
analysis remains valid.
    The Supplemental EIS/OEIS supports authorization of incidental 
takes of

[[Page 49770]]

marine mammals under the Marine Mammal Protection Act and incidental 
takes of threatened and endangered marine mammal species under the 
Endangered Species Act, which is required every five years. Current 
federal regulatory permits and authorizations expire in May 2016.
    The cumulative impacts of past, present, and other reasonably 
foreseeable future actions are expected to result in impacts on marine 
mammals in the Temporary Maritime Activities Area, but the contribution 
would be small compared to other actions. The Draft Supplemental EIS/
OEIS indicates that the incremental contribution of the No Action 
Alternative, Alternative 1, or Alternative 2 to all other resource 
areas analyzed would be negligible.
    The Draft Supplemental EIS/OEIS was distributed to federal, state, 
and local agencies, elected officials, and other interested 
organizations and individuals.
    Copies of the Draft Supplemental EIS/OEIS are available for public 
review at the following public libraries:

1. Alaska State Library, 333 Willoughby Ave., 8th Floor, Juneau, AK 
99811
2. Copper Valley Community Library, Mile 186 Glenn Highway, Glennallen, 
AK 99588
3. Cordova Public Library, 622 First St., Cordova, AK 99574
4. Homer Public Library, 500 Hazel Ave., Homer, AK 99603
5. Kodiak Public Library, 612 Egan Way, Kodiak, AK 99615
6. Seward Community Library, 239 Sixth Ave., Seward, AK 99664
7. University of Alaska Fairbanks/Elmer E. Rasmuson Library, 310 Tanana 
Drive, Fairbanks, AK 99775
8. Z.J. Loussac Library, 3600 Denali St., Anchorage, AK 99503

    The Draft Supplemental EIS/OEIS is also available for electronic 
viewing at www.GOAEIS.com. A compact disc of the Draft Supplemental 
EIS/OEIS will be made available upon written request by contacting: 
Naval Facilities Engineering Command Northwest, Attention: Ms. Amy 
Burt--GOA Supplemental EIS/OEIS Project Manager, 1101 Tautog Circle, 
Suite 203, Silverdale, WA 98315-1101.

    Dated: August 14, 2014.
N.A. Hagerty-Ford,
Commander, Office of the Judge Advocate General, U.S. Navy, Federal 
Register Liaison Officer.
[FR Doc. 2014-20079 Filed 8-21-14; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3810-FF-P