[Federal Register Volume 89, Number 92 (Friday, May 10, 2024)]
[Notices]
[Pages 40525-40526]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2024-10232]


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DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION

Federal Aviation Administration


Notice of Availability, Notice of Public Comment Period, Notice 
of Public Meeting, and Request for Comment on the Draft Programmatic 
Environmental Assessment for Drone Package Delivery in North Carolina

AGENCY: Federal Aviation Administration, DOT.

ACTION: Notice of availability; notice of public meeting; request for 
comments.

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SUMMARY: The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) announces the 
availability of the Draft Programmatic Environmental Assessment (PEA) 
for Drone Package Delivery in North Carolina for public review and 
comment.

DATES: Send comments on or before May 30, 2024. The FAA will hold a 
virtual public meeting on Tuesday, May 21, 2024, from 6:00-8:00 p.m. 
Eastern Time.

ADDRESSES: Email comments to [email protected] or by 
mail to Federal Aviation Administration, Suite 802W, C/O AVS 
Environmental, 800 Independence Ave. SW, Washington, DC 20591. Members 
of the public may view the virtual meeting via Zoom at https://us06web.zoom.us/j/84319168260.
    Before including your address, phone number, email address, or 
other personal identifying information in your comment, be advised that 
your entire comment--including your personal identifying information--
may be made publicly available at any time. While you can ask us in 
your comment to withhold from public review your personal identifying 
information, we cannot guarantee that we will be able to do so.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: For questions concerning this action, 
contact Nicholas Baker, Environmental Protection Specialist, Unmanned 
Aircraft Systems Integration Office, Safety & Integration Division, 
Strategic Programs Branch, AUS-430; telephone 1-202-267-4714; email [email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The Draft PEA evaluates the potential 
environmental impacts of Unmanned Aircraft Systems (UAS) package 
delivery operations in the state of North Carolina. The proposed action 
analyzed in the PEA is UAS operators conducting commercial drone 
package deliveries under 14 Code of Federal Regulations (CFR) part 135 
in North Carolina. The North Carolina Department of Transportation is 
the project proponent.
    The Draft PEA is submitted for review pursuant to the National 
Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) (42 United States Code [U.S.C.] 4321 et 
seq.), the Council on Environmental Quality NEPA Implementing 
Regulations (40 CFR parts 1500-1508), FAA Order 1050.1F, Environmental 
Impacts: Policies and Procedures, section 4(f) of the Department of 
Transportation Act (49 U.S.C. 303), and section 106 of the National 
Historic Preservation Act (16 U.S.C. 470). The draft PEA is available 
to view and download electronically at https://www.faa.gov/uas/advanced_operations/nepa_and_drones/. The Draft PEA is available from 
any internet access, including from computers freely available at 
public libraries.
    Based on the analysis in the Draft PEA, including any mitigation 
measures that may be used to prevent significant noise impacts, the FAA 
has preliminarily determined there will not be significant impacts to 
the human environment. As a result, an Environmental Impact Statement 
has not been initiated. The FAA intends for this PEA to create 
efficiencies by establishing a framework that can be used for 
``tiering,'' when appropriate, to

[[Page 40526]]

project-specific actions that require additional analysis. As decisions 
on specific applications are made, to the extent additional NEPA 
analysis is required, environmental review will be conducted to 
supplement the analysis set forth in this PEA.

Public Meeting

    The FAA will provide an overview of the project and potential 
environmental impacts at a virtual public meeting on May 21, 2024. 
There will be a question-and-answer session where the public will have 
the opportunity to ask questions about the project after the 
presentation. Following the question-and-answer session, the public 
will have the opportunity to provide oral comments on the Draft PEA. 
The opportunity to provide oral comment will be given in the order that 
the requests are received. Comments should be limited to three minutes 
and must be reserved to the topic of the Draft PEA. Commenters who may 
need longer than three minutes are strongly encouraged to submit a 
written comment. The FAA will accept written comments until May 30, 
2024. The FAA will not respond to oral comments during the virtual 
public meeting, but will review and respond to oral comments in the 
same fashion as written comments in preparing the Final PEA.
    The U.S. Department of Transportation is committed to providing 
equal access to this meeting for all participants. If you need 
alternative formats or services because of a disability, such as sign 
language, interpretation, or other ancillary aids, please contact the 
person listed in the FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT section.

Comments Invited

    The FAA invites interested stakeholders to submit comments on the 
Draft PEA, as specified in the ADDRESSES section of this Notice. The 
most helpful comments reference a specific recommendation, explain the 
reason for any recommended change, and include supporting information. 
The FAA will consider all comments received or post-marked on or before 
the closing date. The FAA will also consider late filed comments if it 
is possible to do so without incurring expense or delay.

    Issued in Washington, DC, on May 7, 2024.
Derek W. Hufty,
Manager, General Aviation and Commercial Branch, Emerging Technologies 
Division, Office of Safety Standards, Flight Standards Service.
[FR Doc. 2024-10232 Filed 5-9-24; 8:45 am]
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