Notice of Intent To Prepare an Environmental Impact Statement for the Disposal of Naval Weapons Industrial Reserve Plant (NWIRP) Bethpage, NY

DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE

Department of the Navy

Notice of Intent To Prepare an Environmental Impact Statement for

the Disposal of Naval Weapons Industrial Reserve Plant (NWIRP)

Bethpage, NY

AGENCY: Department of the Navy, DOD.

ACTION: Notice.

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SUMMARY: Pursuant to Section 102(2)(c) of the National Environmental

Policy Act of 1969, as implemented by the Council on Environmental

Quality regulations (40 CFR Parts 1500-1508), the Department of the

Navy, in association with the County of Nassau, New York, announces its

intent to prepare an Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) to evaluate

the environmental effects of disposal and subsequent reuse of the Naval

Weapons Industrial Reserve Plant (NWIRP) Bethpage, New York.

The Navy will be the lead agency for the NEPA documentation. The

County of Nassau intends to serve as the lead agency for the purposes

of compliance with the New York State Environmental Quality Review Act

(SEQRA). The EIS is being prepared to satisfy NEPA and also to be

sufficient to permit the County and other involved agencies to rely

upon the EIS for purposes of complying with SEQRA. No separate EIS is

being prepared under SEQRA.

The NWIRP Bethpage property consists of two non-contiguous land

parcels encompassing 109.5 acres and several individual buildings

within the former 605-acre Northrop Grumman Corporation campus in the

hamlet of Bethpage, Town of Oyster Bay, Nassau County, New York.

Currently, the Plant is developed with manufacturing, light industrial,

and administrative land uses.

The EIS will address the potential disposal of NWIRP Bethpage to

Nassau County and the potential impacts of subsequent reuse. All

available property will be disposed of in accordance with the

provisions of applicable laws, including Public Law 105-85, Section

2852, which enables the Navy to dispose of the property, without

consideration, to the County of Nassau.

In addition to disposal options, the EIS will evaluate three reuse

alternatives developed by Nassau County. The reuse alternatives vary in

the types and amount of construction as well as the proposed land uses.

Light industrial, commercial, and administrative uses are included in

the potential reuse scenarios. Issues to be addressed in the EIS

include, but are not limited to, land use and zoning, socioeconomics,

community facilities and services, transportation, air quality, noise,

infrastructure, cultural resources, natural resources, and petroleum

and hazardous materials.

A public scoping meeting to receive oral and written comments will

be held on March 23, 1999 at Bethpage High School located at the corner

of Cherry and Stewart Avenues, Bethpage, New York. The meeting will

begin at 7 p.m. A brief presentation will precede the request for

public comment. Navy and Nassau County representatives will be

available at this meeting to receive comments from the public regarding

issues of concern. It is important that federal, state, and local

agencies, and interested individuals take this opportunity to identify

environmental concerns that should be addressed during the preparation

of the EIS. In the interest of available time, each speaker will be

asked to limit oral comments to five minutes.

Agencies and the public are also invited and encouraged to provide

written comments in addition to, or in lieu of, oral comments at the

public meeting. To be most helpful, comments should clearly describe

specific issues or topics, which the commentor believes the EIS, should

address.

ADDRESSES: Written statements and/or questions regarding the scoping

process should be mailed no later than April 21, 1999, to: Commanding

Officer, Northern Division Naval Facilities Engineering Command,

Attention Mr. Bob Ostermueller (Code 202), 10 Industrial Highway Mail

Stop 82, Lester, PA 19113-2090. Copies of comments may also be sent to

Benet E. Bridgeman, Esq., County Attorney's Office, One West Street,

Mineola, NY 11501-4810.

Dated: March 3, 1999.

Pamela A. Holden,

Lieutenant Commander, Judge Advocate General's Corps, U.S. Navy,

Federal Register Liaison Officer.

[FR Doc. 99-5641 Filed 3-5-99; 8:45 am]

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