[Federal Register Volume 85, Number 185 (Wednesday, September 23, 2020)]
[Notices]
[Pages 59753-59754]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2020-20966]


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DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE

Department of the Army


Environmental Impact Statement for Army Training Land Retention 
at P[omacr]hakuloa Training Area in Hawai[revaps]i; Correction

AGENCY: Department of the Army; Defense (DOD).

ACTION: Notice of intent; correction.

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SUMMARY: The Department of the Army (Army) published a document in the 
Federal Register of September 4, 2020, concerning its continuing intent 
to prepare an Environmental Impact Statement to address the Army's 
proposed retention of up to approximately 23,000 acres of land 
currently leased to the Army by the state of Hawai[revaps]i (``State-
owned land'') at P[omacr]hakuloa Training Area (PTA) on the island of 
Hawai[revaps]i. The document referenced two in-person comment stations 
previously associated with the Virtual Scoping Open House to be held 
Wednesday, September 23, 2020. Now, however, because of the national 
and local orders and proclamations in response to the coronavirus 
(COVID-19) pandemic in the United States, including: The County of 
Hawai[revaps]i Mayor's COVID-19 Emergency Rule No. 11 dated August 25, 
2020, and the Office of the Governor, State of Hawaii Office Twelfth 
Proclamation Related to the COVID-19 Emergency dated August 20, 2020, 
the Army is canceling the in-person comment stations. Only the in-
person comment stations will be cancelled; the EIS Scoping Virtual Open 
House will be held as planned.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Mr. Michael Donnelly, PTA Public 
Affairs Officer, at [email protected] or (808) 969-2411.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Correction

    In the Federal Register of September 4, 2020, in FR Doc. 2020-
19620, on page 55263, in the third column, correct the SUPPLEMENTARY 
INFORMATION caption to read:

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: PTA has been used for training as early as 
1938, but was not used routinely until 1943. PTA was formally 
established in 1956 through a maneuver agreement granted by the 
Territory of Hawai[revaps]i. In 1964, the State granted a 65-year lease 
of approximately 23,000 acres of land to the Army for military 
purposes. The lease expires on August 16, 2029. The 23,000 acres of 
State-owned land contain utilities, critical infrastructure, maneuver 
land, and key training facilities, some of which are not available 
elsewhere in Hawai[revaps]i. The land also provides access to 
approximately 110,000 acres of adjacent U.S. Government-owned land at 
PTA. PTA encompasses approximately 132,000 acres of land used for 
training military personnel for combat. It is the only U.S. training 
area in the Pacific region where training units can complete all 
mission essential tasks, and the only U.S. training facility in the 
Pacific region that can accommodate larger than company-sized units for 
livefire and maneuver exercises. The U.S. Army Hawaii (USARHAW) and 
other U.S. military units that train at PTA include the 25th Infantry 
Division, U.S. Marine Corps, U.S. Navy, U.S. Air Force, Hawaii National 
Guard, and U.S. Army Reserve. The Army's retention of State-owned land 
within PTA is needed to enable USARHAW to continue to conduct military 
training to meet its current and future training requirements. 
Retention of State-owned land is needed to allow access between major 
parcels of U.S. Government-owned land at PTA, retain substantial Army 
infrastructure investments, allow for future facility and 
infrastructure modernization, preserve limited maneuver area, provide 
austere environment training, and maximize use of the impact area in 
support of USARHAW-coordinated training. To understand the 
environmental consequences of the decision to be made, the EIS will 
evaluate the potential direct, indirect, and cumulative impacts of a 
range of reasonable alternatives that meet the purpose of, and need 
for, the Proposed Action. Alternatives to be considered, including the 
no action alternative, are (1) Full Retention, (2) Modified Retention, 
and (3) Minimum Retention and Access. Other reasonable alternatives 
raised during the scoping process and capable of meeting the project 
purpose and need will be considered for evaluation in the EIS. Native 
Hawaiian organizations; Federal, state, and local agencies; and the 
public are invited to be involved in the scoping process for the 
preparation of this EIS by participating in a scoping meeting and/or 
submitting written comments.

[[Page 59754]]

The scoping process will help identify potential environmental impacts 
and key issues of concern to be analyzed in the EIS. Written comments 
must be sent within 40 days of publication of the Notice of Intent in 
the Federal Register. In response to the coronavirus (COVID-19) 
pandemic in the United States and the Center for Disease Control's 
recommendations for social distancing and avoiding large public 
gatherings, the Army will not hold public scoping meetings for this 
action. In lieu of the public scoping meetings, the Army will use other 
alternative means to enable public participation such as virtual 
meetings using online meeting/collaboration tools, teleconference, 
social media, or email, as appropriate. An EIS Scoping Virtual Open 
House will be held on Wednesday, September 23, 2020 from 4-9 p.m. 
During the EIS Scoping Virtual Open House, video presentations can be 
viewed online at https://home.army.mil/hawaii/index.php/PTAEIS and oral 
and written comments will be accepted. Oral comments will be accepted 
via phone by calling (808) 300-0220. Notification of the EIS Scoping 
Virtual Open House date and time will also be published and announced 
in local news media outlets and on the EIS website. For those who do 
not have ready access to a computer or the internet, the scoping 
materials posted to the EIS website will be made available upon request 
by mail. Inquiries and requests for scoping materials may be made to 
Michael Donnelly, PTA Public Affairs Officer at (808) 969-2411 or by 
email at [email protected].

Brenda S. Bowen,
Army Federal Register Liaison Officer.
[FR Doc. 2020-20966 Filed 9-22-20; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 5061-AP-P