Transportation & Public Facilities

Nome Airport Runway Safety Area Expansion Project

AKSAS Project No. 61413

PROJECT UPDATE AUGUST 2011

After further studies, the proposed relocation of the Snake River
has been found impracticable because of the estimated construction cost.

DOT&PF is currently looking at other options for RSA improvement for Runway 10
that will fit within the available funding.
The next public meeting is anticipated in October 2011.

INTRODUCTION
The Alaska Department of Transportation and Public Facilities (DOT&PF), in cooperation with the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), proposes a project at the Nome Airport to improve the Runway Safety Areas (RSA) as required by a congressional mandate. The RSA is a cleared and graded surface surrounding the runway that is capable of supporting snow removal, rescue and firefighting equipment, and serves to reduce the risk of damage to airplanes in the event of an undershoot, overshoot, or excursion from the runway. An aircraft that strays from a runway into a safety area encounters a lower probability of sustaining damage and loss of human life.

FAA standards identify that a runway servicing commercial jet traffic should include a safety area that is 500 feet wide and extends 1,000 feet beyond each runway end (threshold). Currently, the runways at Nome Airport do not meet FAA design standards (Figure 1). Public law mandates all applicable airports to improve their RSAs according to FAA standards by 2015.

Figure 1

PROJECT DESCRIPTION
Several alternatives to address the required RSA improvements at the Nome Airport were examined in a practicability study conducted by Northern Region DOT&PF and approved by the FAA. One “build” alternative has been identified as the most feasible and practicable to improve the Nome Airport RSAs and is termed the Proposed Action. DOT&PF and FAA are currently considering the Proposed Action and a No-Build Alternative as part of a Nome Airport Runway Safety Area Improvements project.
The Proposed Action would provide the most effective solution for RSA improvements and greater accessibility to the Nome Airport. Elements of the Proposed Action are shown on Figure 2 and are described below. Follow the PROPOSED ACTION DETAILS link for more information.

Improve RSA deficiencies for both runways as follows:

Construct safety area beyond both thresholds of the main runway
Widen the main runway safety area
Shift thresholds of the crosswind runway north to allow construction of safety area beyond both thresholds of the crosswind runway
Widen the crosswind runway safety area

Relocate a portion of Construction Road, as required to accommodate extension of the runway safety area for the crosswind runway
Relocate the Snake River to accommodate extension of the runway safety area for the main runway
Develop a disposal area for unused excavated material generated from the Snake River relocation
Property acquisition for Right of Way

Figure 2

PUBLIC INVOLVEMENT
Two public meetings have been held to discuss the Nome Airport RSA Improvements project. On September 17, 2009 and June 2, 2010 community members were invited to meet with the project team to learn about the proposed project and to share input and concerns. To date, comments have been received that express concerns about contaminated soils, property access, constructing in permafrost, reducing freshwater flow to the harbor, impacting property values, and more. All comments received have helped us to develop the most practicable build alternative and to design useful investigations to examine impacts. All public comments have been reviewed and considered during the design process and will be included in the environmental documentation.

A third public meeting is tentatively scheduled for August 2011. The community will be invited to learn about updates to the proposed project. DOT&PF will present the design alternatives for the proposed project and share findings from all technical studies to date. The process of the ongoing environmental documentation will be outlined during the meeting and a tentative schedule of project progress will be presented. Announcements for the public meeting will printed in the Nome Nugget, aired on public radio, and published on this website.

RESOURCE AGENCY CONSULTATION
DOT&PF is consulting with local, state and federal agencies with jurisdiction over known resources within the project area as well as other parties to ensure that impacts to natural and cultural resources are minimized. Agency concerns are being considered in the project design and will be documented in the environmental document.

PROJECT STATUS
The project components of design engineering, hydrology, and environmental studies are drawing to a close. DOT&PF, in cooperation with FAA, initiated an environmental review process to ensure compliance with the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) and to identify and assess potential environmental consequences of the Proposed Action. The result of the review process, an Environmental Assessment is scheduled to be released for public review in August 2011. At that time, the public will be invited to review and make comments on the environmental document. Follow the link for PROJECT SCHEDULE to find information on the project timeline.

We want to hear from you! Please Submit your comments.

Click here to send comments to the Runway Safety Area Expansion project team.


	Main Project Page
	Proposed Action Details
	Project Schedule
	Project Publications
	Comments
	Please note:You must have Acrobat Reader to open any documents on this page. If you do not have Acrobat Reader, click to download the FREE software.

Nome Airport Runway Safety Area Expansion Project

Project Information