Federal Emergency Management Agency
PUBLIC NOTICE
Notice of Availability of the Draft Environmental Assessment for
Gladwin County Communication Tower 

A Public Notice regarding an Environmental Assessment (EA) prepared for a proposed Gladwin County Communication Tower.
Interested persons are hereby notified that the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA)/Department of Homeland Security (DHS) are proposing to assist in the funding of the construction of a new communication tower on property owned by the Beaverton School District at N 43º 52' 19.4" and W 84º 22' 28.6". The proposed scope of work includes the construction of telecommunication infrastructure including a 170-foot tower with antennas, cabling, concrete pad, and associated electronic equipment, to provide improved radio coverage to its existing public safety radio communications system. Proposed tower will be connected to existing electric utility through a 220 foot cable trenched and attached to an existing power pole on Van Dyke Road. Proposed ground disturbance is 250 feet by 150 feet with an approximate depth of 30 feet.  An existing maintenance trail to the west of the site will be upgraded and expanded to support construction equipment and for future maintenance of the tower.    
In accordance with the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) of 1969 and the implementing regulations of FEMA, an EA is being prepared to assess the potential impacts of proposed alternatives on the human and natural environment. This also provides public notice to invite public comments on the proposed project in accordance with Executive Order 11988, Floodplain Management, and Executive Order 11990, Protection of Wetlands. In addition, this notice and the draft EA provide information to the public on potential impacts to historic and cultural resources from the proposed undertaking, as outlined in the National Historic Preservation Act (NHPA) of 1966.
The draft EA is available for review between March 23, 2011 and April 23, 2011 at the Sheriff’s Office located at 501 W. Cedar Street, Gladwin Michigan, 48624 between 8:00AM and 4:30PM Monday through Friday. The draft EA is also available for review online at the FEMA website:
 http://www.fema.gov/plan/ehp/envdocuments/ea-region5.shtm.
Written comments regarding this environmental action should be received no later than 5 p.m. on February 11, 2011 by Amanda C. Ratliff, Regional Environmental Officer, FEMA, 536 South Clark Street, 6th Floor, Chicago, IL 60605-1521, or at Amanda.Ratliff@dhs.gov.
If no substantive comments are received by the above deadline, the draft EA and associated Finding of No Significant Impact (FONSI) will become final and be published by FEMA. Substantive comments will be addressed as appropriate in the final documents.
The public may request a copy of the final environmental documents from Amanda C. Ratliff at the address listed above.