Public Notice: Navy AFTT Study Area Activities

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Public Notice:
Navy AFTT Study Area Activities
Atlantic Ocean and Gulf of Mexico

This serves as notification from the State of Georgia Coastal Management Program (GCMP), in accordance with 16 U.S. C §1456 and 15 C.F.R. 930.42, of receipt of a Federal Consistency Determination from the United States Navy for proposed testing and training activities conducted within the Atlantic Fleet Testing and Training (AFTT) Study Area.  The Federal Consistency Determination may be viewed on the Georgia Department of Natural Resources’ website at www.CoastalGaDNR.org/msp/fed. The full Draft Environmental Impact Statement /Draft Overseas Environmental Impact Statement may be viewed on the U.S. Fleet Forces Command website at www.AFTTEIS.com. 

Comments specific to GCMP’s enforceable policies regarding this project should be submitted in writing to Kelie Moore, Federal Consistency Coordinator, Department of Natural Resources, One Conservation Way, Brunswick, Georgia 31520 and must be received by the close of business March 4, 2013. 

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This serves as notification from the State of Georgia Coastal Management Program (GCMP), in accordance with 16 U.S. C §1456 and 15 C.F.R. 930.42, of receipt of a Federal Consistency Determination from the United States Navy for proposed testing and training activities conducted within the Atlantic Fleet Testing and Training (AFTT) Study Area.  Click here to review the Federal Consistency Determination. The full Draft Environmental Impact Statement /Draft Overseas Environmental Impact Statement may be viewed on the U.S. Fleet Forces Command website at www.AFTTEIS.com. 

The proposed activities include Navy training and testing activities as well as associated range capabilities enhancements.  The geographic scope includes the airspace, seaspace, and undersea space of the Study Area from the mean high water mark extending into the Atlantic Ocean and Gulf of Mexico and includes at-sea range complexes and operating areas (OPAREAs), Navy pierside locations, port transit channels, and the lower Chesapeake Bay.
 
The Navy has determined that activities occurring in the Jacksonville (JAX) Range Complex, including the Undersea Warfare Training Range (USWTR), Kings Bay, and Charleston OPAREA have a reasonably foreseeable potential to affect Georgia’s coastal resources.  Specifically, the Navy has determined that specific activities, including the use of explosive ordnance, use of military expended material, sonar and sonabuoy use, and nearshore ship activity, have the potential to adversely impact protected marine wildlife and their habitat under Georgia’s Endangered Wildlife Act (GCMP enforceable policy O.C.G.A. 27-3-130).
 
The Navy states they will be able to reduce, though not eliminate, these potential impacts through adherence to standard operating procedures and the implementation of environmental mitigation measures, but that they are unable to be fully consistent with this enforceable policy because doing so would limit their ability to fulfill their mission to ensure the readiness of the nation’s naval forces as mandated by federal law (10 USC §5062).

Click here to review Chapter 5 of the GCMP Enforceable Policies.  
Comments specific to GCMP’s enforceable policies regarding this project should be submitted in writing to Kelie Moore, Federal Consistency Coordinator, Department of Natural Resources, One Conservation Way, Brunswick, Georgia 31520  or Kelie.Moore@GaDNR.org and must be received by the close of business March 4, 2013.