appendix a: correspondence and public involvement - Montgomery

108 Pages·2008·7.4 MB·English

APPENDIX A: CORRESPONDENCE AND PUBLIC INVOLVEMENT

APPENDIX A
PART I
Draft EIS CORRESPONDENCE, COMMENTS, AND RESPONSES

Draft EIS Public Review National Naval Medical Center

Draft EIS Public Review
Introduction

The United States Environmental Protection Agency (USEPA) published a
Notice of Availability (NOA) and the Navy published an NOA and Notice
of Public Hearing (NOA/NOPH) for the Draft EIS (DEIS) in the Federal
Register on December 14, 2007 (Attachment 1). The publication of the
NOA/NOPH initiated the 45-day public review period, which ended on
January 28, 2008. The Navy also placed a public notice in the local
newspapers: the Bethesda Gazette on Wednesday, 19 December 2007, and
The Washington Post and The Washington Times on Sunday, 16 December
2007 (Attachment 1).

The distribution list of government entities and community
associations that were provided the DEIS and/or the NOA/NOPH is
included as in this appendix (Attachment 2). Copies of the DEIS and
the appendices, paper or electronic version on a compact disk, were
mailed to key federal, state, and local agencies/representatives.
Copies of the DEIS were also provided to a group of home owner
associations that were identified as groups with homes adjacent to
NNMC. Copies of the DEIS were distributed to five local libraries as
well as three public and private organizations. An electronic copy of
the DEIS was made available at the following website:
http://www.bethesda.med.navy.mil/Professional/Public_Affairs/BRAC/inde
x.aspx. The DEIS was also made accessible through the Montgomery
County BRAC website at:
http://www.montgomerycountymd.gov/brctmpl.asp?url=/Content/EXEC/BRAC/i
ndex.asp.

Two public hearings were held at the Bethesda Marriott in Bethesda,
Maryland on Wednesday, 9 January 2008 and Thursday, 10 January 2008,
from 6 PM to 8 PM both nights. The public hearings included a briefing
by a Navy representative on the actions and impacts presented in the
DEIS, poster displays covering the same material, and an opportunity
for attendees to provide written and oral comments, documented by a
court reporter.

Pre-addressed comment sheets were made available for the attendees to
fill in at the meeting or to mail back at their convenience. Navy
representatives were on hand to answer questions as well as to receive
comments from the attendees. All attendees were invited to provide
their information on the Sign-in and Address Card with the option to
indicate if the interested party would like to be notified of the
availability of the Final EIS by mail or email. The attendees who
wished to provide an oral comment were encouraged to sign the oral
comment roster.

A total of 86 persons attended the two public hearing, with 56 and 30
attendees on January 9 and 10, respectively (Attachment 3). The
attendees included representatives of federal, state, and local
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Draft EIS Public Review National Naval Medical Center
agencies and the general public. A total of 20 members of the general
public provided oral statements during the two public hearings.
Likewise, 13 members of the general public provided written comments.

During the 45-day comment period, the Navy received comments on the
Draft EIS from the federal, state, and local agencies and public
officials (Attachment 4). Additionally, the Navy received comments
from 176 members of the general public.

The comments from public agencies and officials as well as the general
public are summarized in the comment response matrix in this appendix
(Attachment 5), and the Navy responses to these comments. The comment-
response matrix is numbered and organized by the submitting entity
categories in the following order:

1.0 Congress/Federal Agencies
2.0 State of Maryland
3.0 Montgomery County
4.0 National Institutes of Health
5.0 BRAC Implementation Committee
6.0 Public

Attachments

The following attachments provide supporting documentation for the
DEIS Public Review Period:

Attachment 1: Federal Register NOA/NOPH and Newspaper Notices.
Attachment 2: Draft EIS Correspondence and Distribution/Public Hearing
Notification
• Formal correspondence – public agencies.
• List of government entities and community associations that were
sent the Draft EIS and/or the NOA/NOPH.
• Examples of DEIS transmittal letter and public notice.
Attachment 3: Public Hearing Attendance
• List of public hearings attendees.
Attachment 4: Comments on the Draft EIS
• List of commenters providing comments during the Draft EIS Public
Review Period.
• Federal, state, and local agencies and elected officials letters
for comments on Draft EIS.
Attachment 5: Matrix Summary of Comments with Navy Responses
1.0 Congress/Federal Agencies
2.0 State of Maryland
3.0 Montgomery County
4.0 National Institutes of Health
5.0 BRAC Implementation Committee
6.0 Public
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Attachment 1: Federal Register NOA/NOPH and Newspaper
Notices

Navy Federal Register Notice of Availability/ Notice of Public
Hearings