MITT Final EIS/OEIS now available

ASAN, Guam—The U.S. Navy has completed the Final Environmental Impact Statement/Overseas Environmental Impact Statement to evaluate potential environmental effects associated with military readiness activities conducted within the Mariana Islands Training and Testing Study Area.

Availability of Final EIS and public involvement

The completion of the Final EIS/OEIS follows several years of research, analysis, and public involvement. The Navy held five public scoping meetings in September 2011 and four public meetings in November 2013 for the Draft EIS/OEIS. The Final EIS/OEIS includes public comments received during the Draft EIS/OEIS review period and Navy responses to those comments.

Regulations provide for a 30-day wait period after the Final EIS/OEIS is published before the Navy may take final action. The Final EIS/OEIS is available online at www.MITT-EIS.com and at the following public libraries:

GUAM: University of Guam, Robert F. Kennedy Memorial Library, Government Documents Room, (671) 735-2315; or Nieves M. Flores Memorial Library, (671) 475-4753

SAIPAN: Joeten-Kiyu Public Library, (670) 235-7322

TINIAN: Tinian Public Library, (670) 433-0504

ROTA: Rota Public Library, (670) 532-9451

For questions or additional information, contact the MITT EIS/OEIS project manager at:

Naval Facilities Engineering Command Pacific

Attention: MITT EIS/OEIS Project Manager

258 Makalapa Drive, Suite 100
Pearl Harbor, HI 96860-3134

Proposed Action

The Navy proposes to conduct training and testing activities, which may include the use of active sonar and explosives, primarily within established military areas of the MITT Study Area. The Proposed Action also includes pierside sonar maintenance and testing alongside Navy piers located in Inner Apra Harbor, and land-based training activities at existing ranges and other training locations in Guam and the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands.

The MITT EIS/OEIS is the reevaluation and reauthorization of training and testing activities reviewed in the Mariana Islands Range Complex EIS/OEIS, which the Navy completed with community input in 2010.

The Proposed Action would ensure the Navy and other military services accomplish their mission to maintain, train, and equip combat-ready military forces capable of winning wars, deterring aggression and maintaining freedom of the seas. (Joint Region Marianas)