Science and Technology Directorate; Notice of Availability of the Final Environmental Impact Statement for the Proposed National Bio and Agro-Defense Facility, 75665-75667 [E8-29142]
Download as PDF
<![CDATA[
75665
Notices
Federal Register
Vol. 73, No. 240
Friday, December 12, 2008
This section of the FEDERAL REGISTER
contains documents other than rules or
proposed rules that are applicable to the
public. Notices of hearings and investigations,
committee meetings, agency decisions and
rulings, delegations of authority, filing of
petitions and applications and agency
statements of organization and functions are
examples of documents appearing in this
section.
DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE
Submission for OMB Review;
Comment Request
jlentini on PROD1PC65 with NOTICES
December 9, 2008.
The Department of Agriculture has
submitted the following information
collection requirement(s) to OMB for
review and clearance under the
Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995,
Public Law 104–13. Comments
regarding (a) whether the collection of
information is necessary for the proper
performance of the functions of the
agency, including whether the
information will have practical utility;
(b) the accuracy of the agency’s estimate
of burden including the validity of the
methodology and assumptions used; (c)
ways to enhance the quality, utility and
clarity of the information to be
collected; (d) ways to minimize the
burden of the collection of information
on those who are to respond, including
through the use of appropriate
automated, electronic, mechanical, or
other technological collection
techniques or other forms of information
technology should be addressed to: Desk
Officer for Agriculture, Office of
Information and Regulatory Affairs,
Office of Management and Budget
(OMB),
OIRA_Submission@OMB.EOP.GOV or
fax (202) 395–5806 and to Departmental
Clearance Office, USDA, OCIO, Mail
Stop 7602, Washington, DC 20250–
7602. Comments regarding these
information collections are best assured
of having their full effect if received
within 30 days of this notification.
Copies of the submission(s) may be
obtained by calling (202) 720–8958.
An agency may not conduct or
sponsor a collection of information
unless the collection of information
displays a currently valid OMB control
number and the agency informs
potential persons who are to respond to
the collection of information that such
persons are not required to respond to
VerDate Aug<31>2005
17:56 Dec 11, 2008
Jkt 217001
the collection of information unless it
displays a currently valid OMB control
number.
Animal and Plant Health Inspection
Service
Title: Health Certificate for the Export
of Live Crustaceans, Finfish, Mollusks,
and Related Products.
OMB Control Number: 0579–0278.
Summary of Collection: The export of
agricultural commodities, including
animals and animal products, is a major
business in the United States and
contributes to a favorable balance of
trade. The Animal and Plant Health
Inspection Service (APHIS) maintains
information regarding the import health
requirements of other countries for
animals and animal products exported
from the United States. The regulations
governing the export of animals and
products from the United States are
contained in 9 CFR parts 91, subchapter
D. ‘‘Exportation and Importation of
Animals (including Poultry) and Animal
Products,’’ and apply to farm-raised
aquatic animals and products, as well as
other livestock and products. These
regulations are authorized by the
Animal Health Protection Act (7 U.S.C.
8301–8317). The National Marine
Fisheries Service (NMFS), National
Oceanic and Atmospheric
Administration (NOAA), U.S.
Department of Commerce, and the Fish
and Wildlife Service (FWS), U.S.
Department of Interior, as well as
APHIS, have legal authorities and
responsibilities related to aquatic
animal health in the United States. All
three agencies have therefore entered
into a Memorandum of Understanding
delineating their respective
responsibilities in the issuance of the
health certificate for the export of live
aquatic animals and animal products.
Need and Use of the Information: The
health certificate will require the names
of the species being exported from the
U.S., their age and weights, and whether
they are cultured stock or wild stock;
their place of origin, their country of
destination and the date and method of
transport. The certificate will be
completed by an accredited inspector
with assistance from the producer and
must be signed by both the accredited
inspector as well as the appropriate
Federal official from APHIS, NOAA, or
FWS who certifies the health status of
the shipment being exported. The use of
the certificate will lend consistency to a
PO 00000
Frm 00001
Fmt 4703
Sfmt 4703
public service delivered by three
separate agencies, and should make the
aquatic export certification process less
confusing for those who require this
important service. Failing to use this
form could result in less efficient
service to the exporting public.
Description of Respondents: Farms;
Individuals or households.
Number of Respondents: 40.
Frequency of Responses: Reporting:
On occasion.
Total Burden Hours: 100.
Ruth Brown,
Departmental Information Collection
Clearance Officer.
[FR Doc. E8–29457 Filed 12–11–08; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3410–34–P
DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE
DEPARTMENT OF HOMELAND
SECURITY
Science and Technology Directorate;
Notice of Availability of the Final
Environmental Impact Statement for
the Proposed National Bio and AgroDefense Facility
AGENCY: Science and Technology
Directorate (Office of National
Laboratories within the Office of
Research), DHS; Department of
Agriculture (USDA).
ACTION: Notice of availability.
SUMMARY: The U.S. Department of
Homeland Security (DHS) announces
the availability of its National Bio and
Agro-Defense Facility Final
Environmental Impact Statement
(NBAF Final EIS). This announcement
is pursuant to the National
Environmental Policy Act of 1969
(NEPA), as amended, and its
implementing regulations at 40 CFR
parts 1500–1508. The Proposed Action
to site, construct, and operate the
National Bio and Agro-Defense Facility
(NBAF) would allow researchers to
develop tests to detect foreign animal
diseases and zoonotic diseases
(transmitted from animals to humans)
and develop vaccines (or other
countermeasures such as antiviral
therapies) to protect agriculture and
food systems in the United States. The
NBAF would enhance U.S. biodefense
capabilities with modern and integrated
high-security (biosafety levels 3 and 4)
facilities that would ensure U.S.
E:\FR\FM\12DEN1.SGM
12DEN1
jlentini on PROD1PC65 with NOTICES
75666
Federal Register / Vol. 73, No. 240 / Friday, December 12, 2008 / Notices
vulnerabilities and risks from agroterrorism are safely addressed. DHS
anticipates that the proposed NBAF
would focus biosafety level 3
agricultural (BSL–3Ag) research on
African swine fever, classical swine
fever, contagious bovine
pleuropneumonia, foot and mouth
disease, Japanese encephalitis, and Rift
Valley fever; BSL–4 research would
address Hendra and Nipah viruses.
DATES: DHS will consider comments on
the NBAF Final EIS, received by January
12, 2009, to determine whether they
identify new information relevant to
environmental concerns bearing upon
the Preferred Alternative.
ADDRESSES: The NBAF Final EIS, which
includes the Executive Summary and
the Comment Response Document, is
available online at https://www.dhs.gov/
nbaf and in designated reading rooms
(see SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION).
Compact disks and paper copies are
available upon written request via email or U.S. mail. Submit written
comments on the NBAF Final EIS to
nbafprogrammanager@dhs.gov or via
mail: NBAF Program Manager; P.O. Box
2188; Germantown, MD 20875–2188.
Individual names and addresses
(including e-mail addresses) received as
part of comment documents on the
NBAF Final EIS will be part of the
public record and subject to disclosure.
Any person wishing to have his/her
name, address, or other identifying
information withheld from public
release must state this request in the
comment document. DHS will consider
all comments received before the Record
of Decision is signed.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:
Questions regarding the NBAF Final EIS
should be directed to James V. Johnson
DHS; Science and Technology
Directorate; Mail Stop #2100; 245
Murray Lane, SW.; Building 410;
Washington, DC 20528–0300 or e-mail
to nbafprogrammanager@dhs.gov.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: DHS is
responsible for detecting, preventing,
protecting against, and responding to
terrorist attacks within the United
States. These responsibilities, as applied
to the defense of animal agriculture, are
shared with the U.S. Department of
Agriculture (USDA). In developing a
coordinated strategy to adequately
protect the nation against biological
threats to animal agriculture, DHS and
USDA identified a gap that must be
filled by an integrated research,
development, test, and evaluation
infrastructure for combating threats to
U.S. agriculture. To bridge this gap and
comply with Homeland Security
Presidential Directive 9, Defense of
VerDate Aug<31>2005
17:56 Dec 11, 2008
Jkt 217001
United States Agriculture and Food,
DHS proposed to build the integrated
research, development, test, and
evaluation facility called the National
Bio and Agro-Defense Facility (NBAF).
In June 2008, DHS published the
NBAF Draft EIS, which analyzed the
environmental impacts of the Proposed
Action on six site alternatives, as well
as the No Action Alternative. The site
alternatives include: (1) South Milledge
Avenue Site, Athens, Georgia; (2)
Manhattan Campus Site, Manhattan,
Kansas; (3) Flora Industrial Park Site,
Flora, Mississippi; (4) Plum Island Site,
Plum Island, New York; (5) Umstead
Research Farm Site, Butner, North
Carolina; and (6) Texas Research Park
Site, San Antonio, Texas. Under the No
Action Alternative, the NBAF would not
be constructed and DHS would continue
to use the Plum Island Animal Disease
Center with necessary investments in
facility upgrades, replacements, and
repairs so that it could continue to
operate at its current capability level.
The EPA published the Notice of
Availability of the NBAF Draft EIS on
June 27, 2008 (73 FR 36540). During the
60-day public comment period, which
concluded on August 25, 2008, DHS
held 13 public meetings in the vicinity
of the site alternatives and in
Washington, DC to facilitate information
exchange and to solicit comments on
the NBAF Draft EIS.
DHS gave equal consideration to the
approximately 5,400 identified
comments collected via e-mail, mail,
public meetings, and toll-free fax and
telephone numbers during the public
comment period. DHS’s responses to
comments are presented in Appendix H
of the Final EIS. The NBAF Final EIS
reflects changes based on the comments
received, availability of new data, and
correction of errors and omissions.
DHS anticipates distributing
approximately 2,600 copies of the NBAF
Final EIS and/or the Executive
Summary to congressional members and
committees; federal, state, and local
agency and governmental
representatives and elected officials;
Native American representatives;
special interest groups and nongovernmental organizations; and
individuals.
The DHS Preferred Alternative
identified in the NBAF Final EIS is to
build and operate the NBAF at the
Manhattan Campus Site in Kansas.
The NBAF Final EIS analyzes the
potential impacts of the Proposed
Action on the physical, biological, and
human environments at each of the six
site alternatives, as well as the potential
impacts of the No Action Alternative.
This Final EIS is not a decision
PO 00000
Frm 00002
Fmt 4703
Sfmt 4703
document. DHS and USDA, a consulting
agency on this EIS, will also consider
information from associated support
documentation including: Threat and
Risk Assessment, Site Cost Analysis,
Site Characterization Study, Plum
Island Facility Closure and Transition
Cost Study, as well as prior analysis of
the site alternatives against DHS’s site
selection evaluation criteria.
DHS will announce its decision on
the Proposed Action in the Record of
Decision (ROD) that identifies the
alternatives considered, the decisions
made, the environmentally preferable
alternative, and the factors balanced by
the Department in making the decision.
The NBAF ROD will include: (1) The
decision whether or not to build the
NBAF; (2) if the decision is made to
build the NBAF, where it will be built;
(3) the site alternatives considered in
the EIS; (4) whether all practicable
means to avoid or minimize
environmental impacts from the
alternative selected have been adopted
and, if not, why; (5) any monitoring and
enforcement that would be necessary to
offset unavoidable environmental
impacts; and (6) relevant comments on
the NBAF Final EIS. DHS will issue a
ROD on the proposed action no sooner
than 30 days after the NOA of the NBAF
Final EIS is published in the Federal
Register.
The NBAF Final EIS is available for
review at the following reading rooms:
Georgia
University of Georgia Main Library, 320
South Jackson Street, Athens, GA
30602;
Oconee County Library, 1080
Experiment Station Road,
Watkinsville, GA 30677.
Kansas
Manhattan Public Library, 629 Poytnz
Avenue, Manhattan, KS 66502;
Hale Library, Kansas State University,
Manhattan, KS 66506.
Mississippi
City of Flora Library, 144 Clark Street,
Flora, MS 39071.
New York Site
Acton Public Library, 60 Old Boston
Post Road, Old Saybrook, CT 06475;
Southold Free Library, 53705 Main
Road, Southold, NY 11971.
North Carolina
Richard H. Thornton Library, 210 Main
Street, Oxford, NC 27565–0339;
South Branch Library, 1547 South
Campus Drive, Creedmoor, NC 27522.
E:\FR\FM\12DEN1.SGM
12DEN1
Federal Register / Vol. 73, No. 240 / Friday, December 12, 2008 / Notices
Texas
Central Library, 600 Soledad, San
Antonio, TX 78205.
Authority: 42 U.S.C. 4321–4347 (National
Environmental Policy Act).
Dated: December 3, 2008.
Bruce Knight,
Under Secretary, Marketing and Regulatory
Programs, USDA.
Jay M. Cohen,
Under Secretary, Science & Technology, DHS.
[FR Doc. E8–29142 Filed 12–11–08; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4410–10–P
DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE
Forest Service
Wallowa-Whitman National Forest,
Baker County, OR; Snow Basin
Vegetation Management Project
Forest Service, USDA.
Notice of intent to prepare an
environmental impact statement.
AGENCY:
jlentini on PROD1PC65 with NOTICES
ACTION:
SUMMARY: The USDA Forest Service will
prepare an environmental impact
statement (EIS) to disclose
environmental effects on a proposed
action to manage fuels and vegetation
and produce forest products in the Little
Eagle Creek, and Eagle Creek Paddy
subwatersheds. The Snow Basin
Vegetation Management Project is
located on the Wallowa-Whitman
National Forest, Whitman Ranger
District, Pine Office, Baker County,
Oregon. The legal location is T.7S,
R.44E, all sections, and T.8S, R44E,
most sections. The project area
encompasses two subwatersheds located
north and northwest of Halfway and
Richland, Oregon, consisting of
approximately 27,680 acres of National
Forest System (NFS) lands, 281 acres of
Baker County inholdings, and 2,107
acres of private deeded inholdings. The
proposed action would use commercial
harvest of timber, noncommercial
thinning, aspen restoration and
prescribed fire on approximately 17,200
acres. No new permanent road
construction would occur, but
temporary roads would be constructed,
existing permanent roads would be
reconstructed as warranted, and one
existing bridge would be reconstructed.
No Inventoried Roadless Areas (IRAs) or
potential wilderness areas are affected
by this project. Additional details of the
proposed action are noted below in the
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION Section.
DATES: Preliminary comments
concerning the Snow Basin Vegetation
Management Project would be most
useful if received by January 30, 2009.
VerDate Aug<31>2005
17:56 Dec 11, 2008
Jkt 217001
A Draft EIS (DEIS) would be completed
after reviewing the preliminary scoping
comments for significant issues and the
potential development of alternatives to
the proposed action. The DEIS is
expected to be filed with the
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA)
and be available to the public for review
by May 2009. The Final EIS is
scheduled to be completed by October
2009. If approved, the project would
begin to be implemented sometime in
2010.
ADDRESSES: Send written comments to:
Ken Anderson, Whitman District Ranger
P.O. Box 947, 3285 11th Street, Baker
City, OR 97814. Send electronic
comments to: commentspacificnorthwest-wallowa-whitmanwhitmanunit@fs.fed.us. Send FAX
comments to 541–742–6705. Please
reference the project name (Snow Basin
Vegetation Management Project) on your
submissions.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Joe
Sciarrino, Project Manager, Whitman
Ranger District, Pine Office, 38470 Pine
Town Lane, Halfway, Oregon 97834,
telephone 541–742–6714, TDD (541)
523–1405, e-mail jsciarrino@fs.fed.us.
An additional contact is Lynne Smith,
telephone 541–742–6715, e-mail
lksmith@fs.fed.us. Additional
information and large-scale color maps
will be posted on the Forest Web site at:
https://www.fs.fed.us/r6/w-w/projects/.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
Background Information
The project area is located north and
northwest of Richland, Oregon, in
Townships 6, 7 and 8 South, Ranges 43,
44, and 45 East. The project area
includes 26,730 acres of NFS (National
Forest System) lands and 2,107 acres of
private deeded in-holdings. A small
amount of Baker County owned lands
(281 acres) also occur within the project
area. Elevations within the project area
range from approximately 4,400 feet on
the southern boundary near Sparta Butte
and Forshey Meadow up to
approximately 6,500 feet at its northern
boundary near the Eagle Cap
Wilderness. The Eagle Creek Wild and
Scenic River Corridor averages 3,200
feet in elevation and roughly divides the
project area in half. Other major streams
within the project area include Little
Eagle, Twin Bridges, Conundrum,
Spring, Paddy, Gold, Packsaddle,
Holcomb, Empire Gulch, and Dempsey.
The project area is characterized by a
mixture of forest and natural openings
of various sizes. The forested stands
range from high elevation subalpine fir/
lodgepole pine to low elevation pure
ponderosa pine. Coniferous tree species
PO 00000
Frm 00003
Fmt 4703
Sfmt 4703
75667
are ponderosa pine, grand fir, Douglasfir, western larch, Englemann spruce,
subalpine fir, and lodgepole pine.
Deciduous tree species include quaking
aspen and black cottonwood. The
majority of the forested stands have a
dense multistory stand structure.
The project area has seen management
activity in the past, with the most recent
being connected to three large
vegetation management projects: Little
Eagle, EagleHolcomb and Eagle-Paddy
projects. These past actions included
timber harvest, noncommercial thinning
and fuels treatments including hand and
machine piling, aspen restoration and
prescribed fire, and were completed in
the late 1990s. While the focus of these
most recent projects were stand
prioritization based upon silvicultural
need, including tree species
composition, stand structure and stand
density, earlier projects were much
more focused on cutting larger, high
value trees. The Snow Basin Vegetation
Management Project would be focused
on a landscape view with the analysis
and treatments based on landscape
ecological needs.
Purpose and Need for Action
The purpose and need for this
proposal is to begin moving the project
area landscape toward the historic range
of variability for the various biophysical
environments in the project area, and to
substantially reduce the risk of
uncharacteristic wildfire, and the
wildfire threat to life and property;
particularly in the vicinity of the deeded
land in-holdings.
The NFS lands in the project area
have been managed with timber harvest
for many decades. The focus of historic
treatments was to harvest the large,
mature overstory trees, particularly
those of high value like ponderosa pine.
The focus of more recent projects was
silvicultural needs, but the treatments
were located in selected stands and
scattered throughout the landscape. The
assumption and expectation was that
stands would be treated every 10 years,
providing a management and
maintenance regime supporting
maximum tree growth. The 10-year
follow-up treatments, however, were not
initiated and stand conditions and
landscape conditions have changed. In
addition, the natural role of fire has
been generally excluded from this
landscape.
As a cumulative result, landscape
conditions are now characterized by
deviations from the historic range of
variability for the various biophysical
environments. More specifically, this
has resulted in a large scale reduction in
large diameter ponderosa pine trees, a
E:\FR\FM\12DEN1.SGM
12DEN1
]]>Agencies
[Federal Register Volume 73, Number 240 (Friday, December 12, 2008)]
[Notices]
[Pages 75665-75667]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Printing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: E8-29142]
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE
DEPARTMENT OF HOMELAND SECURITY
Science and Technology Directorate; Notice of Availability of the
Final Environmental Impact Statement for the Proposed National Bio and
Agro-Defense Facility
AGENCY: Science and Technology Directorate (Office of National
Laboratories within the Office of Research), DHS; Department of
Agriculture (USDA).
ACTION: Notice of availability.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
SUMMARY: The U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) announces the
availability of its National Bio and Agro-Defense Facility Final
Environmental Impact Statement (NBAF Final EIS). This announcement is
pursuant to the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969 (NEPA), as
amended, and its implementing regulations at 40 CFR parts 1500-1508.
The Proposed Action to site, construct, and operate the National Bio
and Agro-Defense Facility (NBAF) would allow researchers to develop
tests to detect foreign animal diseases and zoonotic diseases
(transmitted from animals to humans) and develop vaccines (or other
countermeasures such as antiviral therapies) to protect agriculture and
food systems in the United States. The NBAF would enhance U.S.
biodefense capabilities with modern and integrated high-security
(biosafety levels 3 and 4) facilities that would ensure U.S.
[[Page 75666]]
vulnerabilities and risks from agro-terrorism are safely addressed. DHS
anticipates that the proposed NBAF would focus biosafety level 3
agricultural (BSL-3Ag) research on African swine fever, classical swine
fever, contagious bovine pleuropneumonia, foot and mouth disease,
Japanese encephalitis, and Rift Valley fever; BSL-4 research would
address Hendra and Nipah viruses.
DATES: DHS will consider comments on the NBAF Final EIS, received by
January 12, 2009, to determine whether they identify new information
relevant to environmental concerns bearing upon the Preferred
Alternative.
ADDRESSES: The NBAF Final EIS, which includes the Executive Summary and
the Comment Response Document, is available online at https://
www.dhs.gov/nbaf and in designated reading rooms (see SUPPLEMENTARY
INFORMATION). Compact disks and paper copies are available upon written
request via e-mail or U.S. mail. Submit written comments on the NBAF
Final EIS to nbafprogrammanager@dhs.gov or via mail: NBAF Program
Manager; P.O. Box 2188; Germantown, MD 20875-2188. Individual names and
addresses (including e-mail addresses) received as part of comment
documents on the NBAF Final EIS will be part of the public record and
subject to disclosure. Any person wishing to have his/her name,
address, or other identifying information withheld from public release
must state this request in the comment document. DHS will consider all
comments received before the Record of Decision is signed.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Questions regarding the NBAF Final EIS
should be directed to James V. Johnson DHS; Science and Technology
Directorate; Mail Stop 2100; 245 Murray Lane, SW.; Building
410; Washington, DC 20528-0300 or e-mail to nbafprogrammanager@dhs.gov.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: DHS is responsible for detecting,
preventing, protecting against, and responding to terrorist attacks
within the United States. These responsibilities, as applied to the
defense of animal agriculture, are shared with the U.S. Department of
Agriculture (USDA). In developing a coordinated strategy to adequately
protect the nation against biological threats to animal agriculture,
DHS and USDA identified a gap that must be filled by an integrated
research, development, test, and evaluation infrastructure for
combating threats to U.S. agriculture. To bridge this gap and comply
with Homeland Security Presidential Directive 9, Defense of United
States Agriculture and Food, DHS proposed to build the integrated
research, development, test, and evaluation facility called the
National Bio and Agro-Defense Facility (NBAF).
In June 2008, DHS published the NBAF Draft EIS, which analyzed the
environmental impacts of the Proposed Action on six site alternatives,
as well as the No Action Alternative. The site alternatives include:
(1) South Milledge Avenue Site, Athens, Georgia; (2) Manhattan Campus
Site, Manhattan, Kansas; (3) Flora Industrial Park Site, Flora,
Mississippi; (4) Plum Island Site, Plum Island, New York; (5) Umstead
Research Farm Site, Butner, North Carolina; and (6) Texas Research Park
Site, San Antonio, Texas. Under the No Action Alternative, the NBAF
would not be constructed and DHS would continue to use the Plum Island
Animal Disease Center with necessary investments in facility upgrades,
replacements, and repairs so that it could continue to operate at its
current capability level.
The EPA published the Notice of Availability of the NBAF Draft EIS
on June 27, 2008 (73 FR 36540). During the 60-day public comment
period, which concluded on August 25, 2008, DHS held 13 public meetings
in the vicinity of the site alternatives and in Washington, DC to
facilitate information exchange and to solicit comments on the NBAF
Draft EIS.
DHS gave equal consideration to the approximately 5,400 identified
comments collected via e-mail, mail, public meetings, and toll-free fax
and telephone numbers during the public comment period. DHS's responses
to comments are presented in Appendix H of the Final EIS. The NBAF
Final EIS reflects changes based on the comments received, availability
of new data, and correction of errors and omissions.
DHS anticipates distributing approximately 2,600 copies of the NBAF
Final EIS and/or the Executive Summary to congressional members and
committees; federal, state, and local agency and governmental
representatives and elected officials; Native American representatives;
special interest groups and non-governmental organizations; and
individuals.
The DHS Preferred Alternative identified in the NBAF Final EIS is
to build and operate the NBAF at the Manhattan Campus Site in Kansas.
The NBAF Final EIS analyzes the potential impacts of the Proposed
Action on the physical, biological, and human environments at each of
the six site alternatives, as well as the potential impacts of the No
Action Alternative. This Final EIS is not a decision document. DHS and
USDA, a consulting agency on this EIS, will also consider information
from associated support documentation including: Threat and Risk
Assessment, Site Cost Analysis, Site Characterization Study, Plum
Island Facility Closure and Transition Cost Study, as well as prior
analysis of the site alternatives against DHS's site selection
evaluation criteria.
DHS will announce its decision on the Proposed Action in the Record
of Decision (ROD) that identifies the alternatives considered, the
decisions made, the environmentally preferable alternative, and the
factors balanced by the Department in making the decision. The NBAF ROD
will include: (1) The decision whether or not to build the NBAF; (2) if
the decision is made to build the NBAF, where it will be built; (3) the
site alternatives considered in the EIS; (4) whether all practicable
means to avoid or minimize environmental impacts from the alternative
selected have been adopted and, if not, why; (5) any monitoring and
enforcement that would be necessary to offset unavoidable environmental
impacts; and (6) relevant comments on the NBAF Final EIS. DHS will
issue a ROD on the proposed action no sooner than 30 days after the NOA
of the NBAF Final EIS is published in the Federal Register.
The NBAF Final EIS is available for review at the following reading
rooms:
Georgia
University of Georgia Main Library, 320 South Jackson Street, Athens,
GA 30602;
Oconee County Library, 1080 Experiment Station Road, Watkinsville, GA
30677.
Kansas
Manhattan Public Library, 629 Poytnz Avenue, Manhattan, KS 66502;
Hale Library, Kansas State University, Manhattan, KS 66506.
Mississippi
City of Flora Library, 144 Clark Street, Flora, MS 39071.
New York Site
Acton Public Library, 60 Old Boston Post Road, Old Saybrook, CT 06475;
Southold Free Library, 53705 Main Road, Southold, NY 11971.
North Carolina
Richard H. Thornton Library, 210 Main Street, Oxford, NC 27565-0339;
South Branch Library, 1547 South Campus Drive, Creedmoor, NC 27522.
[[Page 75667]]
Texas
Central Library, 600 Soledad, San Antonio, TX 78205.
Authority: 42 U.S.C. 4321-4347 (National Environmental Policy
Act).
Dated: December 3, 2008.
Bruce Knight,
Under Secretary, Marketing and Regulatory Programs, USDA.
Jay M. Cohen,
Under Secretary, Science & Technology, DHS.
[FR Doc. E8-29142 Filed 12-11-08; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4410-10-P
