[Federal Register: January 13, 2009 (Volume 74, Number 8)]
[Notices]               
[Page 1752-1753]
From the Federal Register Online via GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov]
[DOCID:fr13ja09-111]                         

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DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION

Federal Aviation Administration

 
Notice of Availability of the Final Environmental Assessment 
(Final EA) and Section 4(f) Evaluation; Notice of Alaska National 
Interests Lands Conservation Act (ANILCA) Section 810 Evaluation; and 
Notice of Public Comment Period and Schedule of the Public 
Informational Meeting, Final EA Public Hearing, and ANILCA Section 810 
Hearing for the Proposed Airport Improvement Project for the Barter 
Island Airport, Kaktovik, AK

AGENCY: Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), Department of 
Transportation (DOT).

ACTION: Notice of availability of Final EA, notice of public 
informational meeting and Final EA hearing, notice of ANILCA Section 
810 hearing, and notice of public comment period.

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    Location of the Preferred Alternative: The Preferred Alternative 
would relocate the airport approximately 1 mile southwest of the 
community of Kaktovik, on Barter Island. Barter Island is part of the 
North Slope Borough and is located along the Beaufort Sea Coast of 
Alaska north of the mainland of the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge. 
The City of Kaktovik (Kaktovik), an Inupiat village of approximately 
300 people, is the only inhabited community on Barter Island.
SUMMARY: In accordance with the National Environmental Policy Act of 
1969 (42 U.S.C. 4321 et seq.), Council on Environmental Quality 
regulations (40 CFR Part 1500-1508), and FAA Orders 1050.1E and 
5050.4B, the FAA is issuing this notice to advise the public that the 
Final EA and Section 4(f) Evaluation for the Barter Island Airport 
Improvements has been prepared and is available for public review and 
comment. An ANILCA Section 810 evaluation is included in the Final EA. 
The purpose and need for the proposed project is also disclosed in the 
Final EA. Reasonable, prudent, and feasible alternatives are being 
considered, including the no-action alternative.
    Written requests for copies of the Final EA can be submitted to the 
individual listed in the section titled FOR FURTHER INFORMATION 
CONTACT. Written comments on the Final EA should be submitted to the 
address listed in the section titled ``Written Comments Should be Sent 
to''. A public hearing will be held on February 17, 2009. The public 
comment period will commence on January 20, 2009 and will close at 5 
p.m. (ADT) on February 24, 2009.
    Public Comment and Public Hearing: The public comment period on the 
Final EA will start on January 20, 2009 and will end at 5 p.m. (ADT) on 
February 24, 2009. One combined public information meeting, Final EA 
public hearing, and ANILCA Section 810 hearing will be held on February 
17, 2009 at the Kaktovik City Hall, 2051 Barter Island Avenue, 
Kaktovik, AK 99747. The meeting and hearing will be from 6:00 to 8:00 
pm (ADT) with a 30-minute informational presentation beginning at 6:15 
pm and the public and ANILCA Section 810 hearing beginning at 7 p.m. A 
court reporter will be present during the hearing to formally record 
public comment.

Final EA Availability and Review

    Copies of the Final EA, with its Section 4(f) and ANILCA Section 
810 Evaluations, may be viewed during regular business hours at the 
following locations:
    1. North Slope Borough Capital Improvement Project Office, 3000 C 
St., Suite 104, Anchorage, AK, 99503. Laura Strand, Project 
Administrator, (907) 646-8274.
    2. City of Kaktovik, Mayor's Office, P.O. Box 27, 2051 Barter 
Avenue, Kaktovik, Alaska 99747. Elizabeth Rexford, 907-640-6313. Open: 
8:30 a.m.--5 p.m. M-F.
    3. North Slope Borough Village Liaison, P.O. Box 102, 4070 Hula 
Hula Avenue, Kaktovik, Alaska 99747. Nora Jane Burns, 907-640-6128.
    4. North Slope Borough Public Works, 1689 Okpik Street, Barrow, 
Alaska 99723. Sophia Amling, 907-852-0271. Open: 8:30 a.m.--5 p.m. M-F.
    The Final EA, Section 4(f) Evaluation, and ANILCA Section 810 
Evaluation may also be viewed at the following Web site: http://
www.hdlalaska.com/currentprojects.htm. The North Slope Borough has a 
limited number of hard-copy Final EA documents for distribution upon 
request. If you desire a hard-copy of the Final EA, please contact the 
North Slope Borough at (907) 646-8274.
    Comments on the Final EA or ANILCA Section 810 Evaluation may also 
be presented verbally at the public hearing. Written comments may be 
submitted to during the public meeting and hearing and through Tuesday, 
February 24, 2009 at the address listed in the section titled ``Written 
Comments Should be Sent to''.
    The FAA encourages all interested parties to provide comments 
concerning the content of the Final EA, including the Section 4(f) and 
ANILCA Section 810 Evaluations. Comments should be as specific as 
possible and address the

[[Page 1753]]

analysis of potential environmental impacts and the adequacy of the 
proposed action or merits of alternatives and the mitigation being 
considered. Reviewers should organize their participation so that it is 
meaningful and makes the agency aware of the viewer's interests and 
concerns by using quotations and other specific references to the text 
of the Final EA and related documents. Comments that could have been 
raised with specificity during the comment period on the Draft EA may 
not be considered if they are not raised until after release of the 
Final EA. This is to ensure that substantive comments and concerns are 
made available to the FAA in a timely manner so that the FAA has an 
opportunity to address them.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The FAA as lead agency has prepared the 
Final EA for the Proposed Action and alternatives to address recurrent 
flooding and subsequent storm damage to the Barter Island Airport, 
Kaktovik, Alaska.
    North Slope Borough published the Draft EA on behalf of the FAA on 
March 7, 2008. The Draft EA was prepared in accordance with the 
National Environmental Policy Act of 1969, Council on Environmental 
Quality regulations (40 CFR Part 1500-1508), and FAA Orders 1050.1E and 
5050.4B. The Draft EA disclosed the environmental consequences of four 
separate alternatives associated with the proposed improvements at the 
Barter Island Airport. These alternatives included:
     Reconstructing the existing airport;
     Constructing a new airport on Barter Island and relocating 
the existing landfill and sewage lagoon;
     Constructing a new airport on the Alaska mainland south of 
Barter Island; and
     Continuing to maintain and operate the current airport as 
is (No Action Alternative).
    In preparing the Final EA, the FAA considered all comments received 
on the Draft EA. The FAA addressed substantive comments with 
supplemental analysis documented in the Final EA. This supplemental 
analysis includes detailed disclosure on potential project impacts to 
subsistence resources and uses, air quality, noise, socioeconomics, 
environmental justice, and Department of Transportation Section 4(f) 
resources.
    The proposed airport improvements under the FAA's Preferred 
Alternative would be completed during the 2010-2012 time period and 
would result in non-significant impacts to wetlands, wildlife habitat, 
vegetation, subsistence resources, air, and noise.
    Section 810 of ANILCA requires an evaluation of the effects of 
actions and their alternatives presented in the Final EA on subsistence 
resources and activities occurring on public lands in the project area. 
The evaluation contained in the Subsistence Appendix of the Final EA 
indicates that no alternatives in the EA, including the FAA's Preferred 
Alternative, would significantly impair subsistence resources or 
restrict subsistence activities. As noted above, the FAA will hold a 
public hearing to receive comments on potential project effects on 
subsistence in conjunction with the public hearing conducted for the 
Final EA. At the end of the public comment period on the Final EA, the 
FAA will address any substantive comments and issue a decision.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Leslie Grey AAL-614, Project Manager, 
Federal Aviation Administration, Alaskan Region, Airports Division, 222 
W. 7th Avenue 14, Anchorage, AK, 99513-7504. Ms. Grey may be 
contacted during business hours at (907) 271-5453 (phone) and (907) 
271-2851 (facsimile).
    Written Comments Should be Sent to: Hattenburg Dilley and Linnell, 
ATTN: Barter Island EA, 3335 Arctic Boulevard, Suite 100, Anchorage, AK 
99503, or submitted by e-mail to tmitchell@hdlalaska.com.
    All comments must be received no later than 5 pm (ADT) on February 
24, 2009.

    Issued in Anchorage, Alaska on January 7, 2009.
James W. Lomen,
Deputy Division Manager, Airports Division, Alaskan Region.
[FR Doc. E9-479 Filed 1-12-09; 8:45 am]

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