[CPEO-MEF] Military releases missile defense impact report for Valdez, Kodiak

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Alaska
JUNEAU EMPIRE ONLINE
Military releases missile defense impact report for Valdez, Kodiak
Pentagon considers storing radar equipment in Valdez between missile
defense tests
THE ASSOCIATED PRESS

FAIRBANKS - The scenic impact of a 25-story radar dome and platform
stored in Valdez would be minimal because of the existing trans-Alaska
oil pipeline terminal, the military has concluded.

Valdez is under consideration for storing the radar equipment between
missile defense tests.

That assessment of the proposed "sea-based X-band radar" is contained in
a final environmental impact statement on a portion of the missile
defense testing system. The Pentagon's Missile Defense Agency released
the document last week.

The document reviews potential environmental effects of a wide range of
facilities the agency might build or upgrade as part of a new missile
defense "test bed" recommended by Pentagon planners.

In addition to upgrades in California and the South Pacific, the agency
proposes to add launch pads at Alaska's state-owned Kodiak Launch
Complex and build an X-band radar on top of an oil drilling platform
that could be moved around the ocean during tests.

The radar and platform could be housed at one of several West Coast
ports, including Valdez and Adak. The report does not recommend a
particular home port, according to Maj. Cathy Reardon, spokeswoman for
Missile Defense Agency in Arlington, Va.

The choice will be made by Gen. Ronald Kadish, head of the MDA, some
time after Aug. 11 when a 30-day comment period on the final document
ends, she said.

This article can be viewed at:
http://www.juneauempire.com/stories/071603/sta_defense.shtml

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