[Federal Register Volume 67, Number 197 (Thursday, October 10, 2002)]
[Notices]
[Pages 63189-63191]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 02-25792]
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DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION
Coast Guard
[USCG 2002-13482]
Response Boat Replacement Project; Programmatic Environmental
Assessment
AGENCY: U.S. Coast Guard, DOT.
ACTION: Notice of intent and request for public comments.
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SUMMARY: The U.S. Coast Guard announces its intent to prepare a draft
Programmatic Environmental Assessment (PEA) for the replacement of
response boats. The PEA will assess the decision to acquire, homeport,
and operate approximately 880 new response boats (approximately 180
Response Boat--Medium (RB-M) and approximately 700 Response Boat--Small
(RB-S) to add to or replace existing Coast Guard boat capability at 43
Groups/Activities, 187 multi-mission stations, and 26 Marine Safety
Offices that operate Coast Guard boats. The Coast Guard seeks public
and agency input on the scope of the PEA. Specifically, the Coast Guard
requests input on any environmental concerns that the public may have
related to existing response boats, the proposal to replace these
assets, sources of relevant data or information, and any suggested
analysis methods for inclusion in the PEA.
DATES: Comments and related material must reach the Docket on or before
November 25, 2002.
ADDRESSES: Comments may be submitted in several ways. To make sure your
comments and related material are not entered more than once in the
docket, please submit them by only one of the following means:
(1) By mail to the Docket Management Facility (USCG-2002-13482),
U.S. Department of Transportation, Room PL-401, 400 Seventh Street,
SW., Washington, DC 20590-0001.
(2) By delivery to Room PL-401 on the Plaza Level of the Nassif
Building, 400 Seventh Street, SW., Washington DC between 9 a.m. and 5
p.m., Monday through Friday, except Federal holidays. The telephone
number is (202) 366-9329.
(3) By fax to the Docket Management Facility at (202) 493-2251.
(4) Electronically through the Web site for the Docket Management
System at http://dms.dot.gov.
In choosing from these means, please give due regard to the
continuing difficulties and delays associated with delivery of mail
through the U.S. Postal Service to federal facilities.
The Docket Management Facility maintains the public docket for this
notice. Comments will become part of this docket and will be available
for inspection or copying in Room PL-401, located on the Plaza Level of
the Nassif Building at the above address between 9 a.m. and 5 p.m.,
Monday through Friday, except for federal holidays. You may also view
this docket, including this notice and comments, on the Internet at
http://dms.dog.gov.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: If you have questions about the
project, you may contact CAPT James Maes, Commandant (G-OCS-2) at (202)
267-1085 or [email protected]. For questions on viewing, or
submitting materials to the docket, contact Dorothy Beard, Chief,
Dockets, DOT, at (202) 366-9329.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
Request for Comments
We encourage you to submit comments and related materials on this
notice. Persons submitting comments should include their names and
addresses, this notice reference number (USCG-2002-13482), and the
reasons for each comment. You may submit your comments and materials by
mail, hand delivery, fax, or electronic means to the Docket Management
Facility at the address given under ADDRESSES. If you choose to submit
them by mail or hand delivery, submit them in an unbound format, no
larger than 8\1/2\ by 11 inches, and suitable for copying and
electronic filing. If you submit them by mail and would like to know if
they reached the Facility, please enclose a stamped, self-addressed
postcard or envelope. We will consider all comments and materials
received during the comment period. (For additional information about
this notice or the PEA, contact Ms. Kebby Kelley at (202) 267-6034 or
[email protected].)
Background Information
Domestic port safety and security has long been a core Coast Guard
mission. However, in the wake of the terrorist attacks committed on
September 11, 2001, emerging threats to the U.S. homeland have prompted
an increased Coast Guard focus on protecting domestic ports and the
U.S. Maritime Transportation System from terrorist threats.
As part of the U.S. response to these threats, the Coast Guard is
undertaking a PEA for the decision to acquire, homeport and operate
approximately 880 new response boats (approximately 180 Response Boat--
Medium (RB-M)
[[Page 63190]]
and 700 Response Boat--Small (RB-S) to add to or replace existing USCG
boat capability at 43 Groups/Activities, 187 multi-mission stations,
and 26 Marine Safety Offices that operate Coast Guard boats. They will
be located in multiple locations along the east and west coasts, the
Gulf of Mexico, the Great Lakes, Puerto Rico, U.S. Virgin Islands,
Alaska, Hawaii and Guam. The PEA will discuss in general that
additional personnel as well as additional boat allowances may be
needed at currently unknown locations sometime in the future. However,
because the numbers of personnel and boats and the time frame for these
site-specific actions is currently unknown, they will not be discussed
in detail in this PEA. Any unforeseen new boat allowances and
additional personnel needed at specific locations will be addressed in
site-specific follow on National Environmental Protection Act (NEPA)
documentation as necessary. Furthermore, changes to infrastructure are
frequently a response to homeporting decisions. The PEA will discuss,
in general, the possibility of infrastructure changes resulting from
this acquisition. However, detailed analysis of any necessary site-
specific infrastructure changes will be discussed in follow on NEPA
documentation as necessary.
The Coast Guard's current fleet of 41-foot utility boats is aging
and technologically obsolete. In addition, the current fleet of small
utility boats is an assorted mix of various makes and models that have
been acquired with more attention to the immediate mission requirement
rather than the long-term supportability of the vessel or training
considerations. Few of the existing fleet of boats meet emerging
requirements for homeland security, such as higher intercept speeds and
endurance. As a result, the current fleet of Coast Guard boat assets
lacks the technology, full mission capability, and standardized
training and maintenance necessary for efficient and effective mission
performance.
Proposed Action
In accordance with the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) of
1969 (Section 102(2)(c), as implemented by the Council on Environmental
Quality (CEQ) regulations (40 CFR parts 1500-1508), Department of
Transportation (DOT) Order 5610.1C (Procedures for Considering
Environmental Impacts), and USCG Policy (NEPA: Implementing Procedures
and Policy for Considering Environmental Impacts, (COMDTINST
(Commandant's Instruction) M16475.1D), the Coast Guard intends to
prepare a PEA on the Response Boat Replacement Project. The purpose of
this PEA is to develop a high-level approach and direction for
implementing this program.
NEPA requires federal agencies to consider all significant aspects
of environmental impacts that may result from a proposed action, to
inform the public of potential impacts and alternatives, and to
facilitate public involvement in the assessment process. The core of
our impact assessment process is our Environmental Assessment, or EA.
The EA must include, among other topics, discussions of the purpose and
need for the proposed action, a description of alternatives, a
description of the affected environment, and an evaluation of the
environmental impacts of the proposed action and alternatives. Once an
EA is completed, and there are no significant impacts found, the lead
agency prepares either a finding of no significant impact (FONSI) or a
mitigated FONSI. A mitigated FONSI is one in which, although the
preferred alternative will have some significant impacts to the
environment, the FONSI and EA analysis include mitigation, into the
preferred alternative, to reduce such impacts to the point where they
are no longer significant.
When preparing a PEA, the agency may evaluate the program based on
common geographic locations, similarities of impacts, or states of
development. Because no site-specific homeporting decisions--allocated
assets to Coast Guard facilities--will be made during this stage of the
project, the PEA is expected to facilitate and expedite the preparation
of subsequent project-specific NEPA documents.
The PEA will address the general environmental impacts of the
Proposed Action and the No Action Alternative, while subsequent
analyses will address specific implementing actions, such as
homeporting of specific response boats at specific locations. Hence, as
the first tier EA, the PEA will cover general issues in a broader-
program analysis. Subsequent NEPA documentation will concentrate on the
issues specific to the action being considered.
The environment potentially affected by the Proposed Action may be
the entire marine and terrestrial coastal region of the continental
U.S., Alaska, Hawaii, the Caribbean, Guam, and the Great Lakes where
the Coast Guard has facilities, as well as the areas where the response
boats currently conduct operations.
Because personnel levels are expected to remain `status quo,' and
only minor infrastructure changes, if any, are expected, the PEA will
not evaluate socioeconomic or environmental justice or land use changes
in detail in this programmatic document. Since any major infrastructure
changes would be addressed in future site-specific NEPA documents, the
PEA will not evaluate land use, cultural resources, or geological
resources in detail. The PEA will focus its discussion on the general
aspects of the affected environment, such as air quality; water
quality, terrestrial and marine vegetation and wildlife, endangered
species and their habitat, wetlands, and public safety. The PEA will
compare the potential environmental impacts and benefits that would
result from the proposed action and the no action alternative. For the
purposes of this programmatic document, the location of these assets
throughout the country will be designated on a regional level.
As required by NEPA, the Coast Guard also will analyze the No
Action Alternative as a baseline for comparing the impacts of the
proposed project. For the purposes of this document, the No Action
Alternative is defined as the Coast Guard keeping the current fleet of
41-foot utility boats and small utility non-standard boats and
replacing them on a one-for-one basis as they deteriorate or become
obsolete. The 41-foot utility boats are aging and technologically
obsolete and as they age, will increasingly not be able to meet
homeland security requirements (high speed intercept and endurance).
Also, as these boats continue to age, they will require more `down-
time' for maintenance and repairs. The current fleet of small utility
non-standard boats is an assorted mix of makes and models that were
required for immediate mission requirements. Since they are `non-
standard' boats, maintenance, repairs, and personnel training vary from
one type of model to another. This situation results in higher
maintenance and repair costs, and additional training for personnel for
each make and model. As any boat becomes too outdated to fulfill its
mission, it would be replaced on a one-for-one basis. This would
further complicate maintenance and repair costs and personnel training
and result in continuing inefficiencies.The Coast Guard encourages
public participation in the PEA process. The scoping period will start
with publication of this notice in the Federal Register. Multiple
methods for providing comments will be available, including mail,
Internet and fax.
Public meetings will only be held if there is sufficient interest
shown. Because this is a programmatic
[[Page 63191]]
document, meetings, if held, will be at a district or national level.
If public hearings are held, the time and place of the hearings will be
announced in the Federal Register. You may request a public hearing by
writing to the address under ADDRESSES.
Following the scoping process, the Coast Guard will prepare a draft
PEA. A Notice of Availability will be published in the Federal Register
when the draft PEA is available. Public notices will be mailed or
emailed to those who have requested a copy of the Draft PEA. This
period will provide the public with an opportunity to review the
document and to offer appropriate comments.
Comments received during the draft PEA review period will be
available in the public docket and made available in the Final PEA. A
Notice of Availability of the Final PEA and FONSI will be published in
the Federal Register.
Dated: October 3, 2002.
C.D. Wurster,
Rear Admiral, U.S. Coast Guard, Assistant Commandant for Acquisition.
[FR Doc. 02-25792 Filed 10-9-02; 8:45 am]
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