Ohio National Guard News

Ohio National Guard training center
among candidates for missile defense system site

By Stephanie Beougher, Ohio National Guard Public Affairs

During a recent public open house, Genise Luecke, project manager at Black & Veatch, discusses results of an environmental impact study of a missile defense system at Camp Ravenna Joint Military Training Center. Camp Ravenna is one of three sites in the northern U.S. under consideration by the Department of Defense’s Missile Defense Agency for a potential Continental United States Interceptor Site. (Staff Sgt. Michael Carden, ONG)

RAVENNA, Ohio (06/30/16) — The U.S. Missile Defense Agency, in cooperation with the Ohio National Guard, hosted a public open house on June 30 to review the draft Environmental Impact Statement for a potential Continental United States Interceptor Site at Camp Ravenna Joint Military Training Center, located in Portage County. During the three-hour open house at Ravenna High School, more than 150 residents viewed the Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) documents on poster board displays set up around the school gym and talked with experts.

According to the draft EIS, an estimated 400-600 construction jobs and up to 850 permanent jobs could be created if Camp Ravenna is selected for the missile defense project. Some of the land and geographic features on the slightly more than 940 acres at Camp Ravenna would need to be modified to accommodate multiple underground silos. Twenty acres of wetlands and 5 miles of unnamed streams would be relocated, and trees that would need cleared would be removed during colder months to avoid migratory animals' mating seasons.

“The Camp Ravenna Joint Military Training Center site is ideally positioned to serve as a missile defense site and we were pleased that so many residents came to the open house to learn more. We will continue to work with our partners at the local, state and national level to posture Camp Ravenna, should it be the final selection for the new site,” said Maj. Gen. Mark E. Bartman, Ohio adjutant general.

Prior to the public open house, a large group of local, state and federal government representatives gathered at the Ravenna library to hear from Missile Defense Agency (MDA) officials about the draft EIS.

There are currently interceptor sites in Alaska and California. Col. Angela Holmes, project manager at MDA, said they have been tasked by Congress to evaluate additional sites, “come up with all the environmental impacts and then give to decision makers” for any further action. The MDA is expected to make a decision on a preferred site by this fall. The Department of Defense has not made a decision to deploy or construct an additional interceptor site.

In addition to Camp Ravenna, sites at Fort Custer Training Center in Michigan and Fort Drum in New York are also under consideration.

The MDA is asking for written comments on the draft EIS by July 18, 2016. (View Draft)

Comments can be sent via email to MDA.CIS.EIS@BV.com, or to
Black & Veatch Special Projects Corp. Attn: MDA CIS EIS, 6800 W. 115th Street, Suite 2200, Overland Park, KS 66211-2420.