Department of the Navy September 30, 2010 – Federal Register Recent Federal Regulation Documents

The Department of the Navy (DoN) and the Department of the Army (Army), after carefully weighing the environmental consequences of the proposed action, as well as considering operational and training requirements, strategic requirements, obligations under treaties and other international agreements, and cost, announce their decision to proceed with Guam and Commonwealth of Northern Mariana Islands (CNMI) Military Relocation. As a result of redefining the United States (U.S.) defense posture in the Pacific region and the U.S. alliance with Japan, a portion of U.S. Marine Corps (USMC) forces currently located in Okinawa, Japan will be relocated to Guam. This relocation of USMC forces will meet international agreement and treaty requirements and fulfill U.S. national security policy requirements to provide mutual defense, deter aggression, and dissuade coercion in the Western Pacific Region in response to the evolving security environment in the Pacific region, as identified through the Integrated Global Presence and Basing Strategy and the Quadrennial Defense Review (QDR). The redefining of the U.S. defense posture in the Pacific also calls for greater availability of aircraft carrier strike groups in the Pacific to support engagement, presence, and deterrence. Finally, in support of the proposed military relocation, the stationing of an Air and Missile Defense Task Force (AMDTF) is also being considered. A significant number of countries have ballistic missile capabilities which can deliver conventional, nuclear, biological, and chemical weapons. Other countries are working to establish these capabilities and missile systems. The effective strike range of defensive ballistic missile systems dictates that they must be located in the proximity of the protected assets. The need for the proposed AMDTF is to protect the territory of Guam, its citizens, U.S. and allied forces on Guam from the threat of harm from ballistic missile attacks from other countries and enemies of the U.S. Implementing the military relocation analyzed in the Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) will be a multi-agency, multi-year effort undertaken by the DoN, Army, Department of Transportation's Federal Highway Administration (FHWA), Guam utilities, Guam agencies, and various private entities. Implementation includes several components: (1) Marine Corps: (a) Development and construction of facilities and infrastructure to support approximately 8,600 Marines and their 9,000 dependents being relocated from Okinawa to Guam. (b) Development and construction of facilities and infrastructure to support training and operations on Guam and Tinian (located in the CNMI). DoN has elected to defer selection of a specific site for the construction and operation of a live fire training range complex in the Route 15 area in Guam pending completion of the Section 106 consultation process under the National Historic Preservation Act (NHPA). Likewise, a selection regarding implementation of a roadway improvement project calling for a realignment of Route 15 is hereby deferred pending selection of a specific site for the construction. (2) Navy: Construction of a new deep-draft wharf with shoreside infrastructure improvements creating the capability in Apra Harbor, Guam to support a transient nuclear powered aircraft carrier. DoN has elected to defer selection of a specific site for the construction and operation of a transient aircraft carrier berth within Apra Harbor for the near term. However, the analysis presented in the EIS, including the marine resources impacts analysis, provides sufficient information to allow the DoN to fully consider the direct, indirect and cumulative environmental impacts of locating a transient aircraft carrier berth and make a programmatic decision to locate a transient aircraft carrier berth generally within Apra Harbor, which is the only deep draft harbor on the island of Guam that could support such a berth. (3) Army: Development of facilities and infrastructure on Guam to support relocating approximately 600 military personnel and their 900 dependents to establish and operate an Air and Missile Defense Task Force (AMDTF). As of the date of this Record of Decision (ROD), the Department of Defense (DoD) has not decided to construct and operate an AMDTF on Guam. The decision on whether to assign this mission to the Army will be made pending the results of the ongoing regional and global Ballistic Missile Defense architectural and capability studies. It will also be based in part on the EIS for this proposed action with Guam as one site that is under consideration for an AMDTF mission. The EIS was prepared noting that if the mission were assigned to Army, the alternatives presented in the EIS represent how Army could implement the action on Guam. Army has selected the preferred alternatives described in Volume 5 of the EIS as the appropriate manner to implement the proposed action if and when the mission is assigned. (4) Utilities: Renovation and development of additional capacity for power, water, and wastewater systems, both on base and off base, to support the increased demand from the new Marine Corps Base and associated growth in DoD and civilian population caused by the Relocation. (5) Off-base Roadways: Improvements to off base roads, bridges, and intersections to support increased traffic and offset significant impacts caused by the Relocation. Each of the major actions noted above encompasses several construction projects to provide required facilities and infrastructure. Most of the major actions and their supporting projects have alternative sites located throughout the island of Guam. This ROD will document and demonstrate why DoD has chosen to implement the preferred alternatives for each of the actions described in the EIS, except as noted above. Because DoN and Army are preparing this ROD as a joint effort, both concur and support the decisions expressed within it. The ROD includes descriptions and discussions of the proposed actions and their impacts. It also includes descriptions and discussions of all related actions and their impacts. Combined, these two elementsproposed and related actions, with associated impactsprovide the context for consideration of the collective and cumulative impacts associated with all actions addressed in the EIS. While this ROD represents the decisions of DoN and Army regarding the proposed actions, Federal agencies have greatly contributed to formulating and refining the approach to implementing actions and associated mitigation measures. Led by Council on Environmental Quality (CEQ) facilitated discussions, DoD reached major agreements with various Federal regulatory agencies regarding key issues, refined action alternatives for Guam's potable water and wastewater systems, committed to the use of force flow reduction and Adaptive Program Management (APM) as mitigation measures, and established a Civil- Military Coordination Council (CMCC) to implement APM. All of these actions are discussed with greater detail within the ROD. DoN would like to recognize the efforts of CEQ, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), the Department of Interior (DOI), the National Oceanographic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), and the Government of Guam Agencies and thank them for their participation and assistance in seeking resolution to the many challenges confronting DoD in the completion of the NEPA process for this proposed action. It is also recognized that as the military construction projects necessary to implement the actions move forward, each of these agencies will have a continuing role through either a regulatory, permitting, or advisory capacity and will continue to partner in the implementation of the actions. This ROD was prepared in accordance with CEQ Regulations for Implementing the Procedural Provisions of NEPA 40 CFR parts 1500 to 1508 and specifically, 40 CFR 1505.2Record of decision in cases requiring environmental impact statements.