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Notices of Availability
-Demolition of 011A
-Proposed Renovation- Bldgs. 002, 005 and 308
NOTICE OF AVAILABILITY
Final Environmental Assessment and Finding of No Significant Impact
U.S. Department of Agriculture
Agriculture Research Services
Environmental Assessment for the Proposed Relocation of Two Poultry Quarantine Houses and the Wildlife Staff Office
Henry A. Wallace Beltsville Agricultural Research Center
The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA), Agricultural Research Service (ARS) has prepared an Environmental Assessment (EA) to analyze the potential impacts associated with the proposed relocation of two poultry quarantine houses and the Wildlife Staff Office to alternate locations at the Henry A. Wallace Beltsville Agricultural Research Center (BARC) located in Beltsville, Prince George’s County, Maryland. The EA was prepared in accordance with the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) of 1969, 40 CFR Parts 1500-1508, and evaluates the potential impacts of the Proposed Action and No Action alternatives. Under the Proposed Action alternative, BARC Building 434 would be renovated to accommodate the functions of the two existing poultry quarantine houses, and a modular building would be sited along Beaver Dam Road near BARC Building 513 to accommodate the Wildlife Staff Office. All comments received during the public comment period were addressed, and a comment-response matrix is provided in Appendix F of the Final EA.
LINKS:
Final Environmental Assessment
LEGAL NOTICE OF AVAILABILITY
BARC Building 11A Demolition EA
U.S. Department of Agriculture
Agriculture Research Services
Henry A. Wallace Beltsville Agricultural Research Center
The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA), Agricultural Research Service (ARS) has prepared an Environmental Assessment (EA) to analyze the potential impacts associated with the demolition of Building 11A at the Henry A. Wallace Beltsville Agricultural Research Center (BARC) located in Beltsville, Prince George’s County, Maryland. This notice announces the availability of the EA and Draft Finding of No Significant Impact (FONSI) for public review and comment.
The EA was prepared in accordance with the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) of 1969, 40 CFR Parts 1500-1508, and describes the proposed action, alternative action, and the no action alternative. Under the proposed action alternative, the Secretary would approve the demolition and removal of Building 11A followed by the return of the site to pre-construction conditions, where feasible. Building 11A is considered a contributing resource to the National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) eligible BARC Historic District (PG:62-14). Demolition of Building 11A will result in an adverse effect under Section 106 of the National Historic Preservation Act (NHPA) and will require mitigation that will be included in the development of a Section 106 Programmatic Agreement for the BARC campus by the USDA-ARS. This will support the potential redevelopment of areas on the BARC campus making it more sustainable and supportive of new and ongoing research opportunities.
Because of technical issues, the public review period for the EA has been extended through May 14, 2021. A printed copy of the EA is available for review at the BARC, 10300 Baltimore Avenue, Building 003, Room 009, Beltsville, MD 20705; College Park Community Library, 9704 Rhode Island Avenue, College Park, MD 20740; and Beltsville Branch Library, 4319 Sellman Road, Beltsville, MD 20705; and on-line at: https://www.ars.usda.gov/northeast-area/docs/environmental-assessment/.
Anyone interested in commenting should submit their thoughts by May 14, 2021 to Bill Howl, BARC Point of Contact, Beltsville Agricultural Research Center, 10300 Baltimore Avenue, Bldg. 003, Beltsville, Maryland 20705 or by email at bill.howl@usda.gov.
LINKS:
APPENDIX A - BUILDING 11A PHOTOGRAPHS
APPENDIX B - AGENCY COORDINATION-SECTION 106
