Marine Corps Training Activities in Pamlico Sound 2015 Rule USMC EA

January 2009 Environmental Assessment MCAS Cherry Point Range Operations MCAS Cherry Point ,, NNorth CarCarolilina Action Proponent: MCAS Cherry Point THIS PAGE INTENTIONALLY LEFT BLANK ENVIRONMENTAL ASSESSMENT MCAS CHERRY POINT RANGE OPERATIONS CRAVEN, CARTERET, AND PAMLICO COUNTIES, NORTH CAROLINA Responsible Officer: Commanding Officer Marine Corps Air Station Cherry Point, NC 28533-0003 Point of Contact: Department of the Navy NAVFAC Atlantic Attn: Susan Admire NAVFAC Atlantic Environmental Planning 6506 Hampton Boulevard Norfolk, VA 23508-1278 (757) 322-8498 [email protected] MCAS Cherry Point: MCAS Cherry Point Attn: Carmen Lombardo Natural Resource Manager Marine Corps Air Station Bldg 4223, Access Road, PSC 8003 Cherry Point, NC 28533 (252) 466-5870 [email protected] January 2009 Acronyms and Abbreviations ac acre(s) MC munitions constituent ADNL A-weighted Day-Night Level MCAS Marine Corps Air Station AEC Area of Environmental Concern MCALF Marine Corps Auxiliary Landing Field AIWW Atlantic Intracoastal Waterway MCB Marine Corps Base AOIs Areas of interest MCOLF Marine Corps Outlying Landing Field BNOISE Blast Noise Prediction mi mile(s) BT- Bombing Target MMPA Marine Mammal Protection Act cal caliber n/a Not applicable CAMA Coastal Area Management Act NAVFAC Naval Facilities Engineering Command CDNL C-weighted Day-Night Level NCAC North Carolina Administrative Code CFR Code of Federal Regulations NEPA National Environmental Policy Act CURRS Consolidated Utilization Range Report nm nautical mile(s) System CZMA Coastal Zone Management Act NMFS National Marine Fisheries Service dB decibel(s) NOAA National Oceanic Atmospheric Administration dBA A-weighted decibel(s) NRHP National Register of Historic Places dBC C-weighted decibel(s) OEIS Overseas Environmental Impact Statement DNL Day-Night Level ppm parts per million DoD Department of Defense psu practical salinity units DoN Department of the Navy REVA Range Environmental Vulnerability Assessment EA Environmental Assessment SAFMC South Atlantic Fishery Management Council EFH Essential Fish Habitat sq km square kilometer(s) EIS Environmental Impact Statement sq mi square miles EPA Environmental Protection Agency sq nm square nautical mile(s) ESA Endangered Species Act sm statute mile(s) FAA Federal Aviation Administration TOW tube-launched, optically-tracked, wire-guided FONSI Finding of No Significant Impact TTS Temporary Threshold Shift ft feet UAS Unmanned Aerial Systems FY fiscal year g/m3 micrograms per cubic meter ha hectare(s) µPa micropascals kg kilogram(s) US United States km kilometer(s) USC US Code lbs pounds USDA US Department of Agriculture m meters USFWS US Fish and Wildlife Service mm millimeters USMC US Marine Corps MCAS Cherry Point Range Operations EXECUTIVE SUMMARY The United States Marine Corps requires the best military training in the world to sustain its critical role in national defense and forward deployment in worldwide combat situations. Training provides the physical skills, ability, and knowledge to perform and survive in combat through basic military, skill-specific, and weapons-specific training (both hardware and tactical), as well as formal education. It builds proficiency, cohesion, and teamwork and is fundamental to achieving unity of effort. Training is the primary means for maintaining, improving, and displaying United States Marine Corps forces readiness to fight and win in times of crisis or conflict. The Navy and Marine Corps extensively use each other’s training areas and conduct many highly integrated training activities in the three adjoining range complexes of Navy Cherry Point, Marine Corps Air Station (MCAS) Cherry Point, and Marine Corps Base (MCB) Camp Lejeune. Despite the interaction in this region, the functions, structure, management, and use of the three range complexes are sufficiently distinct. Therefore, the Navy and Marine Corps analyzed potential environmental effects of their combined training activities in separate environmental documents for the range complex(es) over which each has cognizance: Navy Cherry Point Range Complex Environmental Impact Statement (EIS)/Overseas Environmental Impact Statement (OEIS) considers training activities in the sea space and undersea space of the Cherry Point Operating Area; overlying special use airspace and coastal areas from the mean high tide line, up to and extending seaward to the western Cherry Point Operating Area boundary MCAS Cherry Point Range Operations Environmental Assessment (EA) considers training activities on the air station; its outlying and auxiliary landing fields; its two impact areas in Pamlico Sound; and overlying special use airspace MCB Camp Lejeune Range Operations EA considers training activities on the installation’s many ranges and impact areas and overlying special use airspace The Marine Corps EAs analyze the potential environmental impact of training activities in the same resource areas as the Navy Cherry Point Range Complex EIS/OEIS. Each document addresses Navy and Marine Corps training activities that occur on that particular range complex and both services will comply with the mitigation and protective measures therein. The Navy will incorporate, by reference, relevant analyses from both Marine Corps EAs into the EIS/OEIS discussion of direct, indirect, and cumulative impacts. The Navy and Marine Corps coordinated their public outreach efforts to provide the public with access to clear, accurate information regarding the three environmental planning efforts. This EA considers the environmental impact of training operations in the MCAS Cherry Point Range Complex. The MCAS Cherry Point Range Complex provides a unique training environment comprised of airspace, land, and water training areas. This particular range complex is of vital importance to the readiness of Marine Forces. Due to the pre-deployment training schedules associated with emerging missions, including Operation Enduring Freedom and Operation Iraqi Freedom, there is a need to increase the operational training tempo at the MCAS January 2009 ES-1 Executive Summary Environmental Assessment Cherry Point Range Complex. Moreover, increased training is needed to address foreseeable increases in the number of military personnel training at MCAS Cherry Point. Given these aspects, MCAS Cherry Point proposes to take action that would provide a training environment within the MCAS Cherry Point Range Complex with the capacity and capability to fully support required training tasks for operational units, military schools, and other users. The environmental impacts of the total influx of personnel that is expected at MCAS Cherry Point in the coming years in relation to achieving a balanced growth in capability throughout the Marine Corps are being analyzed in a separate document (United States Marine Corps Grow the Force at MCB Camp Lejeune, MCAS New River, and MCAS Cherry Point, North Carolina EIS). This EA has been prepared by the United States Marine Corps in accordance with the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) of 1969; 42 USC 4321–4370d, as implemented by the Council on Environmental Quality regulations, 40 Code of Federal Regulations Parts 1500– 1508; and the Marine Corps Order P5090.2A, Change 1, Chapter 12, dated 22 January 2008, Environmental Compliance and Protection Manual, which establishes procedures for implementing NEPA. ES.1 Description of the Proposed Action The proposed action is to support and conduct current and emerging training operations at the MCAS Cherry Point Range Complex. Under the proposed action, there would be increases in current training operations at existing ranges. These training operations would be conducted within existing special use airspace and on existing land and water ranges within the range complex. There are two alternatives for accomplishing the proposed action. Alternative 1 would provide the current level of training operations within the MCAS Cherry Point Range Complex that occur under the No Action Alternative plus additional training increases in sortie operations and munitions usage associated with rotary-wing aircraft (AH-1, CH-53, and UH-1) squadrons and a 10–20 percent increase in small arms range activities. Alternative 2, the preferred alternative, would provide the Alternative 1 level of training operations within the MCAS Cherry Point Range Complex plus establish a water restricted area at Bombing Target (BT-) 11 for intermittent use in support of a proposed change in small arms live-fire training. Under the preferred alternative, the types of training operations at the MCAS Cherry Point Range Complex would remain essentially the same. The level of training to be provided under the preferred alternative is reflected by the sortie operations and munitions usage shown in Table 2.3-1 and Table 2.3-2, respectively (see Proposed Action and Alternatives [Chapter 2] of this EA). The preferred alternative would fully support and enhance the MCAS Cherry Point mission, to provide training support to II Marine Expeditionary Force’s Aviation Combat Elements, which include aircrew, combat engineers, and aviation control group personnel. Training operations under the proposed action will be reviewed every five years to determine if supplementary NEPA analysis is necessary. January 2009 ES-2 Executive Summary MCAS Cherry Point Range Operations ES.2 Alternatives Considered Range complexes are necessary for the training and certification of Marine Corps and Navy operational forces in preparation for overseas deployment. The

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