What’s Inside this Newsletter? What is the Proposed Action and Why is it Needed? An Overview of the Purpose and Need of the Proposed Action Where we are in the EIS Timeline: The Draft EIS and 45-Day Public Comment Period Public and Agency Review of the Draft EIS Date and Locations of Upcoming Public Hearing Meetings and How to Provide Comments The Next Step Following the Public Comment Period in the NEPA Process: Preparation of the Final EIS The United States Air Force (USAF) has a requirement to provide refueling aircraft that will be equipped with substantial technological improvements designed to enhance operations and increase mission effectiveness. The National Guard Bureau (NGB) proposes to beddown one squadron of 12 KC-46A aircraft at one of five possible alternative Air National Guard (ANG) locations. In addition, the NGB would complete necessary construction projects to successfully implement the aircraft beddown at the selected installation. As a result of the Proposed Action, there would be a change to the aircraft based at the selected installation; a change to the type of aircraft using the associated airspace; changes to the number of airfield operations; changes to staffing and manpower at the selected location; as well as some proposed construction, building renovation, and facility demolition. There would be no new or modified airspace required to support training in the KC-46A. The proposed beddown for ANG would begin as early as 2014, with construction supporting the beddown estimated to begin in 2015. Five action alternatives and the No Action alternative are being evaluated in the Environmental Impact Statement (EIS). The five alternatives include the following locations (presented in alphabetical order): Alternative #1 - Forbes Air National Guard Station, KS Alternative #2 - Joint Base McGuire-Dix-Lakehurst, NJ Alternative #3 - Pease Air National Guard Station, NH Alternative #4 - Pittsburgh Air National Guard Station, PA Alternative #5 - Rickenbacker Air National Guard Station, OH Where we are in the EIS Timeline: The Draft EIS and 45-Day Public Comment Period Background NEPA requires all federal agencies to analyze potential environmental consequences of any proposal before making a decision as to its implementation. The analysis is presented in the Draft EIS, which encourages public and external government agency involvement. The Draft EIS Taking into consideration the public and agency comments received during the public scoping period, which occurred from May 17, 2013 through July 5, 2013, the NGB has prepared the Draft EIS. The Draft EIS is a comprehensive document that contains the following: In-depth description of the Proposed Action Technical descriptions of the Existing Conditions Quantitative and qualitative analyses Projected environmental impact from implementing any of the alternatives Public involvement is a fundamental element to the successful implementation of the NEPA process. The public has an important role in providing input during this process to help the Air Force make more informed decisions to implement this aircraft conversion. The NGB is at the second phase for public involvement in the EIS process. This phase consists of a 45-day Draft EIS review period. The formal public review period for the Draft EIS begins with publication of a Notice of Availability in the Federal Register on February 7, 2014 and will extend through March 24, 2014. Public and Agency Review of the Draft EIS Members of the public and government agencies play an important role in EIS development. The Draft EIS has been distributed to persons and agencies requesting a copy and hardcopies of the document have been placed at the libraries listed on the reverse side. A 45-day public comment period will take place from February 7, 2014 to March 24, 2014, during which time the public is invited to review the Draft EIS and provide their comments on the analysis in writing or at the public hearing meetings. These meetings are a forum for the NGB to identify and collect public comments and concerns regarding the potential environmental impacts of the proposal. All relevant comments received during the comment period will be incorporated in the Final EIS for Air Force consideration during its decision-making process. For more information, go to: www.angkc46aeis.com Comments are Welcome! The Draft EIS will be available on CD or can be downloaded from the website. Written comments or requests for a copy of the Draft EIS can be submitted via email to: [email protected] Please put “KC-46A Beddown EIS” in the subject line. OR by U.S. Mail to: KC-46A EIS Project Manager, NGB/A7AM, Shepperd Hall 3501 Fetchet Avenue Joint Base Andrews MD 20762-5157 Please note that by including your name and address on correspondence, it will be used to compile a mailing list for distributing future information regarding the EIS. Names will appear in the EIS. Phone numbers, email addresses, and physical addresses will not be published. By including your name and address, it will become part of the EIS administrative record. All comments submitted by email must include a name and physical address (no P.O. Boxes). Public Hearing Meetings You’re invited to attend a public hearing to learn more about the proposal, talk with agency representatives one-on-one, and submit verbal or written comments on the Draft EIS. All members of the public and press are invited to attend the public hearing meetings, which will be held at the following times and locations: February 25, 2014 5 to 8 pm Pittsburgh Airport Marriott, 777 Aten Rd., Coraopolis, PA February 27, 2014 5 to 8 pm Rickenbacker International Airport Terminal 2241 John Circle Dr., Columbus, OH March 4, 2014 5 to 8 pm Plumsted Fire District #1 Fire Station 59 Main St., New Egypt, NJ March 6, 2014 5 to 8 pm Portsmouth City Hall Mary C Dondero Chambers, 1 Junkins Ave. Portsmouth, NH March 12, 2014 5 to 8 pm Museum of the Kansas National Guard, 6700 S.W. Topeka Blvd., Topeka, KS The Next Step Following the Public Comment Period in the NEPA Process: Preparation of the Final EIS Public comments received from now until March 24, 2014 will be considered by the Air Force before determining final decisions. The resulting analysis will then be presented in the Final EIS. The Final EIS will be made available to the public for 30 days. After the 30-day period, the Record of Decision (ROD) will then be issued, which will identify which action has been selected by the Air Force decision maker and what management actions or other measures will be carried out to minimize, where possible, potential adverse impacts to the environment. KC-46A EIS Project Manager, NGB/A7AM Shepperd Hall 3501 Fetchet Avenue Joint Base Andrews MD 20762-5157 Repositories where the Draft EIS will be available: Topeka and Shawnee County Public Library 1515 SW 10th St Topeka, KS 66604 Carbondale City Library 234 Main St Carbondale, KS 66414 Burlington County Library 5 Pioneer Blvd Westampton, NJ 08060 Pemberton Community Library 16 Broadway Browns Mills, NJ 08015 Langdon Public Library 328 Nimble Hill Rd Newington, NH 03801 Portsmouth Public Library 175 Parrott Ave Portsmouth, NH 03801 Moon Township Public Library 1700 Beaver Grade Rd Moon Township, PA 15108 Robert Morris University Library 6001 University Blvd Moon Township, PA 15108 Metropolitan Library South High Branch 3540 S. High Street Columbus, OH 43207 Metropolitan Library Southeast Branch 3980 S Hamilton Rd Groveport, OH 43125