“Keeping everyone talking”: An approach for nepa documentation in the base disposal and reuse process

Abstract

AbstractUnder the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA), as applied under the 1990 Base Closure and Realignment Act, military departments are required to document the environmental consequences of a local community's proposed reuse of a military installation scheduled for closure and disposal. In turn, to facilitate rapid disposal of closed installations so they can be redeveloped for job creation to offset the economic effects of their closure, federal regulations requriure the completion of such documentation for base disposal and resuse actions is subject to several potential problems and delays, given the nature of these actions, the entities responsible for their implementation, and the multiplicity of agencies involved with disposal and reuse planning. This article presents an approach for conducting NEPA documentation for base disposal and reuse projects. It involves creating a free flow of information among the military department, the local community, and applicable regulatory agencies, as well as coordinating the various components of reuse planning, environmental cleanup, and NEPA documentation activities. A case study of the application of the approach is presented for the NEPA documentation being conducted for the disposal and reuse of Naval Air Station (NAS) Cecil Field in Jacksonville, Florida.