Location
Apra Harbor Naval Complex, Guam
Client
Naval Facilities Engineering Command, Pacific
HHF Planners (HHF) prepared a NEPA EIS for the expansion of the existing ammunition wharf (Kilo Wharf) at Apra Harbor Naval Complex, Guam. The original wharf was inadequate to accommodate modern multi-purpose ships that replaced earlier ammunition ships that are permanently forward-deployed to Guam as well as transient ships that use the wharf. Due to its key location in the Western Pacific Region, the Navy’s ordnance storage and transfer capabilities on Guam are critical to supporting operating forces of the Fifth and Seventh Fleets. Expansion of Kilo Wharf allows Naval Base Guam to continue its support mission.
HHF led a multidisciplinary team that evaluated the potential impacts associated with the expansion or replacement of the wharf. Dredging and its impacts to corals were critical issues in the EIS. Technical studies conducted to support the EIS analysis include marine and terrestrial biological resources assessments, ocean current monitoring, numerical modeling of sediment transport, and water quality analysis. HHF prepared a preliminary ecological review of marine resources in the project area, and also prepared a Community Relations Plan for the EIS. The project included pre-scoping consultation with Federal and local agencies, and conducting a public scoping meeting and a public hearing on Guam. The project involved Section 7 (ESA) and Section 106 (NHPA) consultations, as well as coordination with USACE, NOAA Fisheries, and GOVGUAM agencies. The Record of Decision was signed in 2007.