[Federal Register Volume 88, Number 201 (Thursday, October 19, 2023)]
[Notices]
[Pages 72050-72051]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2023-23047]


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DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE

Department of the Air Force


Notice of Intent To Prepare an Environmental Impact Statement for 
Master Plan and Installation Development at Nellis Air Force Base, 
Nevada

AGENCY: Department of the Air Force.

ACTION: Notice of intent.

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SUMMARY: The Department of the Air Force (Air Force) is issuing this 
Notice of Intent (NOI) to prepare an Environmental Impact Statement 
(EIS) to assess the potential social, economic, and environmental 
impacts associated with the proposed master plan and installation 
development at Nellis Air Force Base (AFB), Nevada.

DATES: A public scoping period of 30 days will take place starting from 
the date of the publication of this NOI in the Federal Register. 
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 scoping comments during preparation of the Draft 
EIS, please submit comments within the 30-day scoping period. The Draft 
EIS is anticipated in late 2024. The Final EIS and a decision on which 
alternative to implement is expected in late 2025.
    During the scoping period, the Air Force will hold two in-person 
public scoping meetings: November 14 and 15, 2023, from 5:00 p.m. to 
7:00 p.m., at the Cora Coleman Senior Center located at 2100 Bonnie 
Lane, Las Vegas, NV 89156. Both meetings are at the same location but 
offered on two different days to provide options to interested 
individuals.

ADDRESSES: All public meeting materials may be viewed on the EIS 
website (https://www.nellisafbeis.com). For those without access to a 
computer or the internet, copies of the scoping materials may be 
obtained by submitting a request to Nellis AFB Public Affairs at (702) 
652-2750. Scoping comments may be submitted by one of the following 
methods: (1) submit a written comment in person at one of the two 
public scoping meetings, (2) mail a written comment to Attn: Master 
Plan and Installation Development at Nellis AFB, 2222 S 4th Avenue, 
P.O. Box 6257, Yuma, AZ 85366, and/or (3) submit a comment via the 
project website at https://www.nellisafbeis.com. For questions 
regarding the Proposed Action or EIS development, or to request sign 
language assistance at the in-person scoping meetings, contact Daniel 
Fisher at [email protected] or (210) 925-2738.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Nellis AFB is proposing to develop the east 
side of the Installation. The purpose of the Proposed Action is to 
optimize Nellis AFB's current operational capabilities and capacity for 
future warfighting training and testing. The Proposed Action is needed 
because the current Nellis and United States Air Force Warfare Center 
mission sets are outpacing the ability to expand resources and 
capacity. In addition, the Air Force anticipates that facility 
requirements are likely to increase over time through normal attrition 
and the arrival of new missions and that the number of active duty and 
civilian personnel would also increase. The existing infrastructure 
does not meet current and future mission needs; mission capability at 
Nellis AFB is nearing physical capacity, and additional flightline 
support facilities and infrastructure are needed to meet anticipated 
future growth. The Proposed Action is also needed to relieve stress on 
facility and infrastructure constraints on the west side of the 
Installation. Flying units are currently sharing hangar space, which is 
not conducive to future mission growth. Presently, the Installation's 
infrastructure and utilities are a limitation to operational expansion 
and growth; utilities and the west-side ramp are reaching full 
operational capacity and must be expanded to accommodate future 
operations. Without expansion, the existing facilities and 
infrastructure at Nellis AFB would be insufficient to meet Air Force 
and Department of Defense current and future mission requirements.
    The Proposed Action is development of the east side of Nellis AFB 
to address current mission constraints and future mission growth 
because the majority of the land available to construct facilities and 
infrastructure is located in the undeveloped area on the east side of 
the Installation. Constructed facilities and infrastructure will be 
grouped by functional land use category, and facilities with similar 
uses and mission functions will be located in the same general area. 
For planning purposes, the Air Force grouped similar mission activities 
into eight categories based on facility and infrastructure function and 
conservatively estimated the anticipated amount of impervious surface 
coverage typical of each functional category. The eight functional 
categories are Airfield Operations/Industrial/Light Industrial; 
Administrative/Small-scale Administrative; Medical/Community

[[Page 72051]]

Services/Community Commercial/Small-scale Retail and Service; Lodging/
Residential (Accompanied and Unaccompanied); Outdoor Recreation/Open 
Space/Training Space; Transportation; Utilities/Infrastructure; and 
Existing Pavements.
    In order to address facility requirements needed to support current 
and future mission structure changes and the associated increase in 
mission personnel, the Air Force is proposing two alternatives to gain 
functional capacity and support future mission growth at Nellis AFB: 
Alternative 1, complete build-out covering approximately 2,000 acres, 
and Alternative 2, partial build-out covering approximately 1,486 
acres. The Air Force will also evaluate a No Action Alternative in the 
EIS. The Air Force is early in the planning process and has not yet 
identified a Preferred Alternative.
    The EIS will provide analysis to inform decision-makers, as well as 
the public and tribal partners, of the potential environmental 
consequences and any associated mitigation, and will provide interested 
persons or agencies opportunities to provide their input. The 
environmental impacts analysis is expected to focus on potential 
impacts related to air emissions from construction, potential 
threatened and endangered species impacts from construction and habitat 
reduction, soil and water quality impacts from soil compaction and 
erosion, stormwater impacts from the increase in impervious surfaces, 
and potential impacts to cultural resources. Impacts to transportation 
may include increased traffic on and off the Installation. Permitting 
actions for construction, air emissions, and stormwater pollution 
prevention may be required. The Air Force will also consult with 
appropriate resource agencies and Native American tribes to determine 
the potential for significant impacts. Consultation will be 
incorporated into the preparation of the EIS and will include, but not 
be limited to, consultation under Section 7 of the Endangered Species 
Act and consultation under Section 106 of the National Historic 
Preservation Act. Additional analysis will be provided in the Draft 
EIS.
    Scoping and Agency Coordination: To effectively define the full 
range of issues to be evaluated in the EIS, the Air Force is soliciting 
comments from interested local, state, and federal officials and 
agencies; Native American tribes; and interested members of the public 
and other stakeholders. Comments are requested on potential 
alternatives and impacts, and identification of any relevant 
information, studies, or analyses of any kind concerning impacts 
affecting the quality of the natural and/or human environment. 
Concurrent with the publication of this Notice of Intent, public 
scoping notices will be announced locally.

Mia Day,
Acting Air Force Federal Register Liaison Officer.
[FR Doc. 2023-23047 Filed 10-18-23; 8:45 am]
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