Notice2022-24065
National Environmental Policy Act; Mars Sample Return Campaign
Primary source
Metadata and text below are from the Federal Register, a public-domain U.S. government work. Always verify the official published version before relying on it for any legal matter.
Published
November 4, 2022
Issuing agencies
National Aeronautics and Space Administration
Abstract
Pursuant to the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969, as amended (NEPA), the Executive order regarding Environmental Effects Abroad of Major Federal Actions, the Council on Environmental Quality's NEPA implementing regulations, NASA's procedures for implementing NEPA, and Department of the Air Force (DAF) procedures for implementing NEPA, NASA announces the availability of the MSR Campaign Draft PEIS for public review and comment. The Draft PEIS provides information and analysis related to the potential environmental impacts associated with the proposed action to retrieve a scientifically selected set of samples from Mars and transport them to Earth for scientific analysis and research. Cooperating agencies for this effort include the DAF for Hill Air Force Base, Utah, and Cape Canaveral Space Force Station, Florida; the Department of the Army for Dugway Proving Ground; the U.S. Department of Agriculture; and the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services--Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
Full Text
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<title>Federal Register, Volume 87 Issue 213 (Friday, November 4, 2022)</title>
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[Federal Register Volume 87, Number 213 (Friday, November 4, 2022)]
[Notices]
[Pages 66751-66754]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [<a href="http://www.gpo.gov">www.gpo.gov</a>]
[FR Doc No: 2022-24065]
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NATIONAL AERONAUTICS AND SPACE ADMINISTRATION
[NOTICE: (22-083); Docket Number-NASA-2022-0002]
National Environmental Policy Act; Mars Sample Return Campaign
AGENCY: National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA).
ACTION: Notice of availability of the Mars Sample Return (MSR) Campaign
Draft Programmatic Environmental Impact Statement (PEIS); notice of
public meetings; and request for comments.
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SUMMARY: Pursuant to the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969, as
amended (NEPA), the Executive order regarding Environmental Effects
Abroad of Major Federal Actions, the Council on Environmental Quality's
NEPA implementing regulations, NASA's procedures for implementing NEPA,
and Department of the Air Force (DAF) procedures for implementing NEPA,
NASA announces the availability of the MSR Campaign Draft PEIS for
public review and comment. The Draft PEIS provides information and
analysis related to the potential environmental impacts associated with
the proposed action to retrieve a scientifically
[[Page 66752]]
selected set of samples from Mars and transport them to Earth for
scientific analysis and research. Cooperating agencies for this effort
include the DAF for Hill Air Force Base, Utah, and Cape Canaveral Space
Force Station, Florida; the Department of the Army for Dugway Proving
Ground; the U.S. Department of Agriculture; and the U.S. Department of
Health and Human Services--Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
DATES: The 45-day public comment period begins on November 4, 2022 and
ends on December 19, 2022. NASA encourages all interested parties to
provide comments concerning the content and analysis presented in the
Draft PEIS. To be considered in the Final PEIS, all comments must be
postmarked or received online by 11:59 p.m. Eastern Standard Time (EST)
(9:59 p.m. Mountain Standard Time [MST]) on December 19, 2022. NASA
will hold four public meetings to further inform the public on the
proposed action and solicit comments on the Draft PEIS. Two of those
meetings will be ``virtual'' public meetings that will be accessible
without geographic limitation via a WebEx online link and audio-only
call-in telephone number. NASA will also host two in-person meetings in
Utah. The public meeting schedule is as follows:
<bullet> November 30, 2022, virtual meetings: 1-2:30 p.m. MST (3-
4:30 p.m. EST) and 6-7:30 p.m. MST (8-9:30 p.m. EST), meeting number/
access code: 901-525-785, online at <a href="https://jpl.webex.com/meet/msr">https://jpl.webex.com/meet/msr</a> and
call-in for audio-only at +1-510-210-8882.
<bullet> December 6, 2022, in-person meeting: 6-8 p.m. MST (local
time) at Wendover Community Center, 112 E Moriah Avenue, Wendover, UT
84083.
<bullet> December 7, 2022, in-person meeting: 6-8 p.m. MST (local
time) at Clark Planetarium, 110 S 400 W, Salt Lake City, UT 84101.
To the maximum extent possible, in-person and virtual meetings will
follow similar formats. At every meeting, NASA will describe the NEPA
environmental review process, provide an overview of the proposed
action and the environmental analysis presented in the Draft PEIS, and
provide the public an opportunity to offer comments. At this time, NASA
does not intend to provide English-language translation services,
including American Sign Language interpretation, unless specifically
requested at least one week prior to the meetings.
Each virtual meeting will begin with a brief welcome message
followed by a 15-minute NASA presentation describing the purpose of the
public meetings, the MSR Campaign PEIS project schedule, opportunities
for public involvement, the proposed action and alternatives summary,
discussion of potential environmental impacts from the proposed action,
and an overview of the programmatic approach to NEPA compliance in
general and NASA's proposed action specifically. The presentation will
be followed by the official public comment submittal portion of the
meetings. The public comment portion of the meeting is scheduled to
last one hour, during which members of the public may provide up to a
three-minute comment.
In-person meetings will begin with the same presentation as the
virtual meetings, but with a 45-minute open house session before the
official public comment portion of the meeting. The open house session
will consist of subject matter experts available onsite to answer
questions from the public on a one-on-one basis and to discuss posters
and distribute other materials (e.g., fact sheets, comment forms)
related to the Draft PEIS and MSR Campaign.
The public meetings, both in-person and virtual, may end later than
the stated time depending on the number of persons who wish to submit a
comment. To allow everyone a chance to speak at the public meetings,
NASA may extend the meeting hours. When providing a verbal comment, you
must identify yourself, and any organization you represent, by name.
Your remarks will be recorded and/or transcribed for inclusion in the
public docket.
We encourage you to visit the informational website at <a href="https://www.nasa.gov/feature/nepa-mars-sample-return-campaign">https://www.nasa.gov/feature/nepa-mars-sample-return-campaign</a> and attend one of
the public meetings to learn about, and comment on, the content and
analysis of the Draft PEIS. An electronic copy of the Draft PEIS will
be made available at <a href="https://www.nasa.gov/feature/nepa-mars-sample-return-campaign">https://www.nasa.gov/feature/nepa-mars-sample-return-campaign</a> beginning on November 4, 2022. Fact sheets and other
information to be used during the public meetings will be made
available at this same website beginning on November 11, 2022.
ADDRESSES: Advance registration to attend or provide a comment at the
in-person or virtual public meetings is not required. Public meeting
attendees may submit comments during the public meeting or by other
means described below throughout the 45-day comment period. NASA will
accept comments on the Draft PEIS until the expiration of the comment
period on December 19, 2022. All comments received by NASA will be
considered and responded to in the Final PEIS. Comments must be
identified with Docket No. NASA-2022-0002, and may be sent to NASA as
follows:
<bullet> Federal e-Rulemaking Portal: <a href="https://www.regulations.gov">https://www.regulations.gov</a>.
Follow the online instructions for submitting comments. Please note
that NASA will post all comments on the internet without changes,
including any personal information provided.
<bullet> By mail to Steve Slaten, NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory,
4800 Oak Grove Drive, M/S: 180-801, Pasadena, CA 91109-8099.
We encourage you to submit comments electronically through the
Federal e-Rulemaking Portal at <a href="https://www.regulations.gov">https://www.regulations.gov</a>. If you
submit your comments electronically, it is not necessary to also submit
a hard copy. Regardless of the method used for submitting comments, all
submissions will be posted without change to the Federal Docket
Management System website (<a href="https://www.regulations.gov">https://www.regulations.gov</a>) and will
include any personal information you provide. Before including your
address, phone number, email address, or other personal identifying
information in your comment, be advised that your entire comment may be
publicly available at any time. While you can ask us in your comment to
withhold from public review your personal identifying information, we
cannot guarantee that we will be able to do so. Therefore, submitting
this information to the Docket makes it public. You may wish to read
the Privacy and Use Notice available on the Federal Docket Management
System website (<a href="https://www.regulations.gov/user-notice">https://www.regulations.gov/user-notice</a>). You may view
Docket submissions at the Federal Docket Management System or
electronically on the Federal Docket Management System website.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Mr. Steve Slaten, NASA Jet Propulsion
Laboratory, by electronic mail at <a href="/cdn-cgi/l/email-protection#3f725e4d4c124c5e524f535a124d5a4b4a4d5112515a4f5e7f53564c4b4c11515e4c5e11585049"><span class="__cf_email__" data-cfemail="d499b5a6a7f9a7b5b9a4b8b1f9a6b1a0a1a6baf9bab1a4b594b8bda7a0a7fabab5a7b5fab3bba2">[email protected]</span></a> or by telephone at 202-358-0016. For questions
regarding viewing the Docket, please call Docket Operations, telephone:
202-366-9317 or 202-366-9826.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: A Notice of Intent to prepare the MSR PEIS
was published in the Federal Register on April 15, 2022 (87 FR 22578).
Two virtual public scoping meetings were held on May 4 and May 5, 2022.
Under the proposed action, NASA, in coordination with the European
Space Agency, proposes to conduct a campaign to retrieve samples from
Mars and transport them to Earth. A
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scientifically selected set of samples (i.e., Martian rocks, regolith,
and atmosphere), acquired and cached on the surface of Mars by the
Perseverance rover, would be returned to Earth for scientific analysis
and research.
Overall, the proposed MSR Campaign spans five elements: three
flight elements and two ground elements. The flight elements include:
(1) the Perseverance rover (previously addressed in the Final
Supplemental Environmental Impact Statement for the Mars 2020 Mission);
(2) a Sample Retrieval Lander and its subcomponents (the ``Lander'');
and (3) an Earth Return Orbiter (the ``Orbiter''), with its
subcomponents (which include the Earth Entry System [EES] and recovery
of the EES). The two ground elements include: (1) EES transportation
after landing; and (2) a Sample Receiving Facility (SRF). Per the
mission goals stated in the Mars 2020 Final Supplemental Environmental
Impact Statement, NASA's Mars 2020 mission launched the Perseverance
rover in July 2020; the rover landed on Mars in February 2021 and has
begun collecting and storing samples for potential return to Earth for
study.
The Lander launch would occur from either Kennedy Space Center or
Cape Canaveral Space Force Station in Florida and would consist of a
routine payload, which has been addressed in previous NEPA analysis
(NASA's Routine Payload Environmental Assessment). Launch of the
Orbiter would be managed by the European Space Agency and occur from
French Guiana. The launch of the Orbiter is addressed in the Draft PEIS
pursuant to Executive Order 12114, Environmental Effects Abroad of
Major Federal Actions.
The proposed EES landing location is the DAF-managed Utah Test and
Training Range (UTTR), located approximately 80 miles west of Salt Lake
City. Additional proposed activities associated with recovery team and
support equipment staging would be conducted on the Dugway Proving
Ground. As noted earlier, additional Earth-based ground elements
associated with sample transportation and sample management/research
(otherwise referred to as ``curation'') involving the development and
operation of an SRF are also part of the overall MSR Campaign
architecture.
The proposed action and a no action alternative were evaluated in
the Draft PEIS. Under the no action alternative, the MSR Campaign would
not be undertaken and investigation of Mars as a planetary system would
be severely constrained due to the cost and complexity of sending into
space (and operating) science instruments capable of conducting the
appropriate level of sample analysis in space or on Mars where in situ
analyses could be performed. The environmental resource areas analyzed
in the Draft PEIS include health and safety, cultural resources,
hazardous materials and waste, soils and geology, biological resources,
water resources, air quality and climate, land use, socioeconomics,
environmental justice/protection of children, noise, and
infrastructure.
NASA provided press releases to local newspapers and distributed
letters to stakeholders, Native American tribes, and other interested
parties. In addition to availability on the website (<a href="https://www.nasa.gov/feature/nepa-mars-sample-return-campaign">https://www.nasa.gov/feature/nepa-mars-sample-return-campaign</a>), hard copies of
the Draft PEIS will be made available at the following public
libraries.
<bullet> Cocoa Beach Public Library, 550 N Brevard Avenue, Cocoa Beach,
FL 32931
<bullet> Central Brevard Library and Reference Center, 308 Forrest
Avenue, Cocoa, FL 32922
<bullet> Cape Canaveral Public Library, 201 Polk Avenue, Cape
Canaveral, FL 32920
<bullet> Titusville Public Library, 2121 S Hopkins Avenue, Titusville,
FL 32780
<bullet> Melbourne Library, 540 E Fee Avenue, Melbourne, FL 32901
<bullet> Merritt Island Public Library, 1195 N Courtenay Parkway,
Merritt Island, FL 32953
<bullet> NASA Headquarters Library, 300 E Street SW, #1120, Washington,
DC 20024
<bullet> Tooele City Public Library, 128 West Vine Street, Tooele, UT
84074
<bullet> Grantsville Library, 42 Bowery Street, Grantsville, UT 84029
<bullet> Brigham City Public Library, 26 E Forest Street, Brigham City,
UT 84302
<bullet> Tremonton Municipal Library, 210 N Tremont Street, Tremont, UT
84337
<bullet> West Wendover Branch Library, 590 Camper Drive, West Wendover,
NV 89883
<bullet> Garland Public Library, 86 W Factory Street, Garland, UT 84312
NASA is taking a programmatic approach to analyzing the potential
environmental consequences of the MSR Campaign because of the
campaign's large scope and uncertainty regarding future timing,
locations, and environmental impacts associated with the two ground
element actions (sample transportation and SRF). This programmatic
approach allows for near-term focus on issues that are ripe for
decision and establishes a foundation for follow-on tiering
(sequencing) to future actions, thus minimizing detailed topics
previously decided at the initial programmatic level. While certain
actions related to site-specific analysis of the ground elements are
considered programmatically in the Draft PEIS (i.e., likely methods of
sample transportation and representative examples of an SRF), NASA's
NEPA approach provides the public with information on the totality of
the MSR Campaign, thereby avoiding possible confusion about potential
future proposed actions, which may be analyzed further in a tiered NEPA
document. To the extent it is required, future tiered NEPA analysis
would address specific environmental impacts related to EES
transportation (e.g., over-the-road or via aircraft) from the UTTR
complex to an SRF. The type, location, construction (if any), and
operation of an SRF would also be analyzed in specific detail after
facility requirements are more robustly characterized.
Planetary Protection
``Planetary protection'' is the discipline/practice of protecting
solar system bodies (e.g., a planet, planetary moon, or asteroid) from
contamination by Earth life and, in the case of sample return missions,
protecting Earth from potential hazards posed by extraterrestrial
material.
NASA's planetary protection policies address missions involving
samples returned from various solar system bodies as detailed in NASA
Policy Directive 8700.1F, NASA Policy for Safety and Mission Success.
NASA's policies are guided by the planetary protection policies
published by the international Committee on Space Research, which are
informed by the United Nations Outer Space Treaty. NASA Procedural
Requirement 8715.24, Planetary Protection Provisions for Robotic
Extraterrestrial Missions, provides guidelines for categorizing
missions according to their destination and proposed activities. NASA
Procedural Requirement 8715.24 also provides specific procedural
requirements for certain mission categories. All missions returning
samples are designated as Category V. Under Category V, there are two
subcategories: (1) Unrestricted Earth Return--sample return missions
from solar system bodies deemed by scientific consensus to have no
extraterrestrial life (e.g., Earth's Moon and Venus), and (2)
Restricted Earth Return (RER)--sample return missions from solar system
bodies deemed by scientific opinion to have a possibility of harboring
indigenous life forms (e.g., Mars or Europa). RER missions have
requirements to break the chain of physical contact with the target
body as
[[Page 66754]]
well as isolate and robustly contain restricted samples during all
mission phases through safe receipt and transport to a containment
facility on Earth. Due to the potential for ancient life forms on Mars,
the sample return portion of the proposed MSR Campaign is expected to
be classified as a Category V RER activity, which requires preparation
of an Environmental Impact Statement.
Cheryl Parker,
Federal Register Liaison Officer.
[FR Doc. 2022-24065 Filed 11-3-22; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 7510-13-P
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