[Federal Register Volume 88, Number 42 (Friday, March 3, 2023)]
[Notices]
[Pages 13440-13441]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2023-04401]


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DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE

Department of the Army


Programmatic Environmental Assessment for Armored Multi-Purpose 
Vehicle Fielding

AGENCY: Department of the Army, DoD.

ACTION: Notice of availability.

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SUMMARY: The Department of the Army (Army) has completed a Programmatic 
Environmental Assessment (PEA) analyzing the impacts of fielding the 
Armored Multi-Purpose Vehicle (AMPV) at various Army installations in 
accordance with Department of Defense (DoD) and Army guidance. The Army 
is making the PEA and a draft Finding of No Significant Impact (FONSI) 
available for public comment. The PEA identifies no significant 
environmental impacts from implementing the proposed action. The draft 
FONSI concludes that preparing an environmental impact statement is not 
required and, therefore, one will not be prepared.

DATES: Comments must be received by April 3, 2023 to be considered in 
the preparation of the PEA.

ADDRESSES: Written comments should be sent by mail to U.S. Army 
Environmental Command, ATTN: AMPV Public Comments, 2455 Reynolds Rd., 
Mail Stop 112, JBSA-Fort Sam Houston, TX 78234-7588. Comments can also 
be sent via email to: [email protected] with AMPV 
Public Comments as the subject.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Ms. Cathy Kropp with the U.S. Army 
Environmental Command Public Affairs Office at (210) 466-1590 or at 
(210) 466-1655 or send email to: [email protected] for assistance.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The Army has prepared this PEA in accordance 
with the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969 (NEPA) (Title 42 of 
the United States Code Section 4321); Council on Environmental Quality 
(CEQ) NEPA regulations (Title 40 of the Code of Federal Regulations CFR 
parts 1500-1508); and the Army's NEPA implementing regulation, 
Environmental Analysis of Army Actions (32 CFR part 651).
    The proposed action is to field the AMPV to replace five mission 
roles currently provided by M113s, to include associated operations, 
soldier-training, and maintenance activities. The purpose of the 
proposed action is to establish fielding locations for the AMPV, in 
order to train the Army's Active Component and Reserve Component, 
including the Army National Guard, Armored Brigade Combat Teams 
(ABCTs), and other units at Army installations in the United States, 
consistent with the Army Modernization Strategy. The AMPV is the 
replacement for the M113 armored personnel carrier, which dates back to 
the 1960s. It is a major effort of the Army's Next Generation Combat 
Vehicle Cross Functional Team. The proposed action is needed to improve 
the safety and survivability of soldiers and provide for improved 
integrated network capability and interoperability across the spectrum 
of combat vehicle mission roles.
    The PEA includes some installation-specific analysis in addition to 
general analyses that would be applicable to most locations. This PEA 
serves as an overview of the AMPV system and may or may not require 
additional NEPA analysis at individual installations. The programmatic 
approach avoids unnecessary duplicate NEPA analyses, better informs 
decision makers, and encourages active public involvement.
    The installations considered for fielding of the AMPV in the PEA 
and draft FONSI are: Fort Benning, GA; Fort Bliss, TX; Fort Bragg, NC; 
Fort Campbell, KY; Fort Carson, CO; Fort Gordon, GA; Fort Hood, TX; 
Fort Irwin, CA; Fort Jackson, SC; Fort Lee, VA; Fort Riley, KS; Fort 
Sill, OK; Fort Stewart, GA; Joint Base Lewis McChord-Yakima Training 
Center, WA; Joint Base San Antonio-Fort Sam Houston and Joint Base San 
Antonio-Camp Bullis, TX (Army Support Activity); Camp Dawson-Kingwood, 
WV; Camp McCain, MS; Orchard Combat Training Center, ID; Camp Perry, 
OH; James A. Garfield Joint Military Training Center, OH; Camp Ravenna, 
OK; Camp Ripley, MN; Camp Shelby, MS; Fort Indiantown Gap, PA; Fort 
Pickett, VA; Gowen Field, ID; McCrady Training Site, SC; MTA Limestone 
Hills, MT, and the Volunteer Training Site, TN.
    The PEA analyzes the potential environmental and socioeconomic 
impacts associated with the Proposed Action, including direct, 
indirect, and

[[Page 13441]]

cumulative effects. The analysis includes minimization measures, 
standard operating procedures, and best management practices routinely 
employed by the installations to reduce potential adverse effects of 
the proposed action.
    The Army identified one reasonable alternative that would meet the 
purpose of and need for the Proposed Action: Field AMPV units to 
installations in order to replace, on a one-to-one ratio, the 
equivalent mission roles currently fulfilled by M113 variants. The AMPV 
would serve five mission roles currently provided by the M113, and 
would also include associated operational activities, soldier training, 
and AMPV maintenance activities. Though minor adjustments in the 
variant mix may occur, ABCT structures and manpower would remain 
largely unchanged as a result of AMPV fielding. Approximately 130 
vehicles of the M113 family are part of each ABCT, and each would be 
replaced by an AMPV.
    The Army also carried forward a No Action Alternative for detailed 
analysis in the PEA. While the No Action Alternative would not satisfy 
the purpose of or need for the proposed action, this alternative was 
retained to provide a comparative baseline against which to analyze the 
effects of the action alternative.
    Resources analyzed in the PEA include air quality, biological 
resources, cultural resources, geological and soil resources, land use 
and compatibility, traffic and transportation, and water resources. 
Based on the analysis presented in the PEA, effects of the proposed 
action on these resources are expected to be negligible, minor, less 
than significant, or significant but mitigatable.
    When considering implementing an individual proposed action, 
installations would complete the environmental checklist for AMPV 
fielding included in the PEA's appendices to determine whether tiering 
from the PEA and FONSI would be appropriate and what type of additional 
site-specific NEPA documentation, if any, would be required. If an 
installation determines that it requires additional NEPA analysis 
tiered from the PEA, the installation would be required to complete the 
appropriate NEPA documentation before making any irreversible and 
irretrievable commitments of resources related to that action. Tiering 
from the PEA, when appropriate, would avoid or reduce the costs of 
repetitive, similar analyses and enable installations to focus 
resources on only those site-specific environmental issues that require 
more in-depth analyses.
    Government agencies, Native American Tribes, and the public are 
invited to submit written comments on the PEA and/or draft FONSI. The 
public comment period begins with the publication of this Notice of 
Availability in the Federal Register and will last for 30 days. The PEA 
and draft FONSI are available to the public on the U.S. Army 
Environmental Command's NEPA Documents web page at https://aec.army.mil/index.php?cID=352. If you cannot access the PEA online, 
please submit a request to the U.S. Army Environmental Command at 
[email protected] or via mail at U.S. Army Environmental 
Command, ATTN: Public Affairs, 2455 Reynolds Rd., Mail Stop 112, JBSA-
Fort Sam Houston, TX 78234-7588.
    Following the public comment period, the Army will consider all 
public comments and prepare a Final FONSI or Notice of Intent to 
prepare an Environmental Impact Statement prior to making a decision 
regarding the Proposed Action. Comments must be received or postmarked 
April 3, 2023 to be considered during the decision-making process.

James W. Satterwhite Jr.,
Army Federal Register Liaison Officer.
[FR Doc. 2023-04401 Filed 3-2-23; 8:45 am]
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