Department of Defense February 18, 2021 – Federal Register Recent Federal Regulation Documents

The Department of the Army (Army) announces the availability of the Final Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) for the proposed Heavy Off-Road Mounted Maneuver Training Area (HOMMTA) at Fort Benning, Georgia. In accordance with the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA), the Final EIS analyzes the potential environmental and socioeconomic impacts, and identifies related mitigation measures, associated with constructing, operating, and maintaining a HOMMTA of at least 2,400 contiguous acres at Fort Benning to support heavy off-road mounted maneuver (Proposed Action). The Proposed Action would support the Maneuver Center of Excellence (MCoE) in its mission to train the maneuver forces of the Army and would increase the total amount of heavy off-road maneuver training area on Fort Benning, enabling Fort Benning to conduct realistic training in accordance with current Army training requirements. The Proposed Action would provide a training area to meet existing training needs; it would not result in additional soldiers being stationed at Fort Benning, traffic, or any training off of the Installation. Training land development would occur over a 2- to 3-year period; development would primarily include vegetation removal and the construction of tank trails, culverted water crossings, and road upgrades, as well as burying existing overhead utilities. As feasible, buffers would be used to protect environmentally sensitive resources such as streams, wetlands, cemeteries, and archaeological sites. A Finding of No Practicable Alternative (FONPA) addressing potential impacts on wetlands and 100-year floodplains is also included in the Final EIS.