Office of the Secretary

For Immediate Release: Friday, January 12, 2001

Contact: Interior Department: Noel Gerson 202.208.6444
Army Public Affairs: Karen Baker 703.697.7592

SECRETARY OF THE INTERIOR AND SECRETARY OF THARMY SEND REPORT
TO CONGRESS AS FIRST STEP TOWARDS FORT IRWIN EXPANSION

The Department of the Interior and the Department of the Army today sent to Congress a report on the key elements of a proposed plan to expand Fort Irwin for military training in a manner that protects endangered and threatened species and their critical habitats in the West Mojave Desert.

Titled, Report of Key Elements of the Proposed Expansion Plan for Fort Irwin and the National Training Center, the plan articulates a balanced approach to meet readiness and national security requirements, while ensuring full compliance with environmental laws and regulations that protect natural resources. The Report describes a proposal and process that, when implemented, are expected to allow the Army to expand its maneuver training lands at the National Training Center by approximately 132,000 acres.

The National Training Center at Fort Irwin is the only instrumented training area in the world suited for live maneuver training of heavy brigade-sized task forces and provides essential training opportunities necessary to maintain and improve military readiness and promote national security. The site adjoins extensive Bureau of Land Management lands that provide important habitat for the threatened desert tortoise and the endangered Lane Mountain milk vetch.

"The beauty of this proposal is that it has been developed in conjunction with the overall West Mojave Desert Coordination Management Plan which establishes a regional conservation strategy for the entire West Mojave. It ensures that the Department of Defense can meet its mission while at the same time complying with the National Environmental Policy Act and the Endangered Species Act to conserve the desert tortoise and other endangered species. This is a shining of example of how national security and environmental protection can go hand in hand," said Secretary of the Interior Bruce Babbitt.

Legislation signed by the President on December 21, 2000, directs the Department of the Interior and the Department of the Army to work jointly to develop an expansion plan that will secure the needed additional maneuver lands while fully complying with environmental laws. The joint plan contemplates expansion of the Fort to the east and west.

Secretary of the Army Louis Caldera hailed the legislation as a sensible mandate that facilitates a resolution of long-standing issues: "This expansion is absolutely necessary, and it can be done in an environmentally conscientious way. Advances in technology, doctrine and future warfare scenarios have reached the boundaries of the training area presently available at Fort Irwin. If America's Army is to remain dominant at every point on the spectrum of military operations, then we must expand the Army's premier facility for realistic training. The bottom line is that realistic training reduces the cost in soldiers' lives to fight and win the Nation's wars."

This report marks the first step in implementing this legislation, which calls for the filing of this "key elements report" to provide more detail regarding the proposed plan. The legislation sets out a deliberate, public process to move toward implementation of a final plan that fully complies with all environmental laws, including the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) and the Endangered Species Act (ESA).

The Army has been seeking for several years to expand Fort Irwin to enhance its training capabilities. Previous proposals included an expansion toward the southwest sufficient to create a new training corridor around Paradise Mountain. The proposed expansion plan avoids that area, which contains important habitat for the threatened desert tortoise. The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and the Army have worked closely together to address the conservation needs of the desert tortoise and other threatened and endangered species.

Following submission of the key elements report, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service will prepare a preliminary assessment of the plan as it then exists by March 21. This will be followed by full NEPA and ESA compliance that will extend over the course of 30 months. The final decision on the proposed Fort Irwin expansion will occur following preparation of an environmental impact statement and interagency consultation under Section 7 of the ESA.

The legislation anticipates that the Secretaries of Interior and Defense will submit legislation this spring (within 120 days of enactment) authorizing the withdrawal of lands associated with the proposed expansion, but which would condition the use of withdrawn lands on completion of the process needed to fully comply with NEPA and the ESA.

The legislation states that the Army will fund substantial conservation activities as necessary to provide for ESA compliance. The legislation identifies up to $75 million for such measures, which may include:

• The establishment of one or more research natural areas, which may include lands both within and outside the Fort Irwin National Training Center.

• Acquisition of private and state lands within the wildlife management areas in the West Mojave Desert.

• Construction of barriers, fences, and other structures that would promote the conservation of listed species and their critical habitats.

• Funding of research studies and other appropriate conservation measures.

This legislative proposal is consistent with Fort Irwin's commitment to environmental stewardship and is an important step forward in resolving an issue that the agencies have pursued for 15 years.

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