[Federal Register Volume 85, Number 45 (Friday, March 6, 2020)]
[Notices]
[Pages 13148-13149]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2020-04593]


=======================================================================
-----------------------------------------------------------------------

DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE

Department of the Air Force


Notice of Intent To Prepare an Environmental Impact Statement for 
the B-21 Main Operating Base 1 (Mob 1) Beddown at Dyess Air Force Base, 
Texas or Ellsworth Air Force Base, South Dakota

AGENCY: Department of the Air Force, DoD.

ACTION: Notice of intent.

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

SUMMARY: The United States Air Force (Air Force) is issuing this notice 
to advise the public of its intent to prepare an Environmental Impact 
Statement (EIS) for the B-21 Main Operating Base 1 (MOB 1) Beddown at 
Dyess Air Force Base (AFB), Texas or Ellsworth AFB, South Dakota. The 
EIS will assess the potential environmental consequences of the 
proposal to beddown the Department of Defense's new bomber aircraft, 
the B-21 ``Raider,'' which will eventually replace existing B-1 and B-2 
bomber aircraft.

DATES: The Air Force plans to hold six public scoping meetings: 
Tuesday, March 31, 2020: Holiday Inn at Rushmore Plaza, 505 North 5th 
Street, Rapid City, SD 5770; Wednesday, April 1, 2020: Sturgis 
Community Center, 1401 Lazelle Street, Sturgis, SD 57785; Thursday, 
April 2, 2020: Douglas Middle School, 691 Tower Road, Box Elder, SD 
57719; Tuesday, April 7, 2020: Abilene Convention Center, 1100 North 
6th Street, Abilene, TX 79601; Wednesday, April 8, 2020: Wylie High

[[Page 13149]]

School Performing Arts Center, 4502 Antilley Road, Abilene, TX 79606; 
and Thursday, April 9, 2020: Tye Community Center, 103 Scott Street, 
Tye, TX 79563.

ADDRESSES: Additional information on the B-21 MOB 1 Beddown EIS 
environmental impact analysis process can be found on the project 
website at www.B21EIS.com. The project website can also be used to 
submit comments. Inquiries and comments-by-mail regarding the Air Force 
proposal should be directed to Dyess AFB Public Affairs, ATTN: B-21 
EIS, 7 Lancer Loop, Suite 136, Dyess AFB, TX 79607; (325) 696-4820; 
[email protected]; or Ellsworth AFB Public Affairs, ATTN: Steve Merrill, 
28th Bomb Wing Public Affairs, 1958 Scott Dr., Suite 4, Ellsworth AFB, 
SD 57706; (605) 385-5056; [email protected]. Comments will 
be accepted at any time during the environmental impact analysis 
process. However, to ensure the Air Force has sufficient time to 
consider public input in the preparation of the Draft EIS, scoping 
comments must be submitted to the website or mailed to one of the 
addresses listed above by April 24, 2020.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The beddown of the B-21 will take place 
through a series of three Main Operating Bases (MOB), referred to as 
MOB 1, MOB 2, and MOB 3. The Air Force proposes to beddown MOB 1, which 
includes two B-21 Operational Squadrons, a B-21 Formal Training Unit 
(FTU), and a Weapons Generation Facility (WGF) in this EIS. MOB 2 and 
MOB 3 beddown locations would be evaluated in future NEPA analyses, 
after the location for MOB 1 is chosen. The B-21 will operate under the 
direction of the Air Force Global Strike Command. The B-21 will have 
both conventional and nuclear roles and will be capable of penetrating 
and surviving in advanced air defense environments. It is projected to 
enter service in the 2020s, and the Air Force intends to have at least 
100 B-21 aircraft built.
    The purpose of the Proposed Action is to implement the goals of the 
National Defense Strategy by modernizing the U.S. bomber fleet 
capabilities. The B-21 Raider is being developed to carry conventional 
payloads and to support the nuclear triad by providing a visible and 
flexible nuclear deterrent capability that will assure allies and 
partners through the United States' commitment to international 
treaties. The B-21 will provide the only stealth bomber capability and 
capacity needed to deter, and if necessary, defeat our adversaries in 
an era of renewed great power competition. MOB 1 will support training 
of crewmembers and personnel in the operation and maintenance of the B-
21 aircraft in an appropriate geographic location that can provide 
sufficient airfield, facilities, infrastructure, and airspace to 
support the B-21 training and operations.
    The EIS will analyze Dyess AFB and Ellsworth AFB as basing 
alternatives for MOB 1 for the Proposed Action, as well as a No Action 
Alternative. The basing alternatives were developed to minimize mission 
impact, maximize facility reuse, minimize cost, and reduce overhead, as 
well as leverage the strengths of each base to optimize the B-21 
beddown strategy. The potential impacts of the alternatives and the No 
Action Alternative that the EIS may examine include impacts to land 
use, airspace, safety, noise, hazardous materials and solid waste, 
physical resources (including earth and water resources), air quality, 
transportation, cultural resources, biological resources, 
socioeconomics, and environmental justice. The Air Force is preparing 
this EIS in accordance with the National Environmental Policy Act 
(NEPA) of 1969; 40 Code of Federal Regulations (CFR), parts 1500-1508, 
the Council on Environmental Quality (CEQ) regulations implementing 
NEPA; and the Air Force's Environmental Impact Analysis Process (EIAP) 
as codified in 32 CFR part 989.
    Scoping and Agency Coordination: The scoping process will be used 
to involve the public early in the planning and development of the EIS, 
to help identify issues to be addressed in the environmental analysis. 
To effectively define the full range of issues and concerns to be 
evaluated in the EIS, the Air Force is soliciting scoping comments from 
interested local, state, and federal agencies and interested members of 
the public.
    The Air Force will hold six scoping meetings to inform the public 
and solicit comments and concerns about the proposal. Scoping meetings 
will be held in local communities surrounding Dyess and Ellsworth AFBs. 
Scheduled dates, locations, and addresses for each meeting will be 
published in the Rapid City Journal and Black Hills Pioneer newspapers 
in South Dakota, the Abilene Reporter News and The Wylie News 
newspapers in Texas, as well as the Native Sun News, Indian Country 
Today and the Original Briefs tribal newspapers, a minimum of fifteen 
(15) days prior to each meeting.

Adriane Paris,
Acting Air Force Federal Register Liaison Officer.
[FR Doc. 2020-04593 Filed 3-5-20; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 5001-10-P