NEPA and the Base Realignment and Closure (BRAC) experience
- Dynamac Corp., Rockville, MD (United States)
In an effort to streamline the US military and make the structure of forces consistent with base structure, the Defense Secretary's Commission on Base Realignment and Closure was created in 1988, and was charged with the task of conducting an independent study of the domestic military base structure and to recommend installations for realignment and closure. The resulting round of base closure and realignment recommendations was termed BRAC 91. To facilitate the BRAC 91 process, Congress passed Public Law 101-510 which includes the Defense Base Closure and Realignment Act of 1990 (Title XXIX). The closing and realigning of a military installation is considered a major Federal action'' subject to the environmental review process established under the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA). The NEPA process proved to be more than the BRAC process was capable of handling in a reasonable and practicable manner. This paper examines the exact nature of the changes made to the NEPA process under BRAC 91, and what effect these changes have on the process itself. To illustrate the effects of the BRAC 91 changes on the NEPA process and subsequent documents prepared under BRAC, case examples will be used. The paper will identify for the NEPA practitioner what works, and what needs to be avoided when preparing NEPA documents under such circumstances.
- OSTI ID:
- 6107791
- Report Number(s):
- CONF-930523-; CODEN: EPROD9
- Journal Information:
- Environmental Professional; (United States), Vol. Supplement; Conference: 18. National Association of Environmental Professionals (NAEP) annual conference on current and future priorities for environmental management, Raleigh, NC (United States), 24-26 May 1993; ISSN 0191-5398
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
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