DOD's RRPI 2004 "Overview"

[Lenny Siegel <lsiegel@cpeo.org>]

Overview: 2004 Readiness and Range Preservation Initiative (RRPI)
Source: Department of Defense

The Department of Defense's (DoD's) primary mission is maintaining our
Nation's military readiness, today and into the future.  Our military
ranges and operating areas are national assets that provide the land,
air, and sea space to train our military forces and to test our
equipment to sustain a strong defense.  However, encroachment-induced
restrictions are limiting realistic preparations for combat.

In 2002, DoD submitted to Congress an eight provision legislative
package, the Readiness and Range Preservation Initiative (RRPI).
Congress enacted three of the provisions that year, including two that
allow DoD to cooperate more effectively with third parties on land
transfers for conservation purposes.  The third accommodates the
unintentional taking of migratory birds during military readiness
activities without resulting in a violation of the Migratory Bird Treaty
Act.  In 2003, Congress passed two more of the RRPI provisions.  One
authorizes the use of Integrated Natural Resource Management Plans
(INRMP) that benefit threatened and endangered species to substitute for
critical habitat designation under the Endangered Species Act, but only
if approved by the Secretary of the Interior.  The second amended the
definition of "harassment" under the Marine Mammal Protection Act and
provided for a national security exemption. 

The remaining three provisions that are being resubmitted this year
reaffirm the principle that military lands, marine areas, and airspace
exist to ensure military preparedness, while also ensuring DoD remains
fully committed to environmental stewardship of the lands under its
care.  Although DoD is seeking modest clarification in these laws, our
proposals would confirm -- not change -- the regulatory policy of the
last two Administrations and a majority of the States.  These provisions would:

* Extend the allowable time to incorporate new military readiness
activities into a Clean Air Act State Implementation Plan when new units
are moved to an installation.
* Clarify regulation of munitions under Comprehensive Environmental
Response, Compensation, and Liability Act (CERCLA) and Resource
Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA) if and only if munitions are used
on an operational range and those munitions and their associated
constituents remain there.  Regulation of closed, transferred, or
transferring ranges is not affected by these two provisions.

Flexibility in selected aspects of these environmental statutes offers
the services the only way to balance both military needs and
environmental protection.  DoD remains fully committed to high-quality
environmental stewardship and the protection of natural resources on its
lands.  DoD has entered into lengthy discussions with the States on
these three provisions and believes the changes to the legislative
language made during that process have provided a viable legislative solution.


--


Lenny Siegel
Director, Center for Public Environmental Oversight
c/o PSC, 278-A Hope St., Mountain View, CA 94041
Voice: 650/961-8918 or 650/969-1545
Fax: 650/961-8918
<lsiegel@cpeo.org>
http://www.cpeo.org


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