Final Environmental Assessment for the Establishment of an Air-to-Surface Helicopter Gunnery Training Target Set at White Sands Missile Range, New Mexico

Abstract : White Sands Missile Range (WSMR) is managed by the U.S. Army and is operated to support Department of Defense (DOD) readiness programs that include a multi-service test facility supporting research, development, testing, and evaluation of missile and other defense systems. The installation is one of the largest military installations in the United States and encompasses 2.14 million contiguous acres in south-central New Mexico. An Environmental Assessment (EA) has been prepared to address the potential impacts on environmental and socioeconomic resources associated with the proposed establishment of an air-to-surface helicopter gunnery training target . set on WSMR. The EA evaluates the Proposed Action of constructing and operating this training facility at the Fairview area of WSMR, an alternative site to the west, and the No Action Alternative. WSMR is a U.S. Army installation, and the Proposed Action would occur on U.S. Army land. However, the proposed air-to-surface target set would be an asset of the U.S. Air Force (USAF) to support proficiency training requirements for USAF helicopter crews. Consequently, the U.S. Army and the USAF are cooperating agencies in the preparation of this EA. The 58th Special Operations Wing at Kirtland Air Force Base (AFB), New Mexico is a unit of the USAF Air Education and Training Command (AETC) and is the proponent of this action. Kirtland AFB is located southeast of Albuquerque, New Mexico. The EA will support the decision-making process for the proposed air-to-surface target set and has been prepared pursuant to the requirements of the National Environmental Policy Act (NEP A), as promulgated in 40 Code of Federal Regulations (CFR) Parts 1500-1508; U.S. Army Regulation (AR) 200-2, Environmental Analysis of Army Actions, March 2002 (now 32 CFR Part 651); and the USAF's Environmental Impact Analysis Process (EIAP) under 32 CFR Part 989 (formerly known as Air Force Instruction [AFI] 32-7061).