First-in-state machine gun range proposed for Cape Cod

CAPE COD — An eight-lane machine gun range that would be the first in the state is being planned for Camp Edwards, the Massachusetts Army National Guard training area at Joint Base Cape Cod.

The proposal, contained in a 100-page environmental assessment prepared for the Guard and an accompanying draft finding that says the project would have no significant impacts, calls for clearing 170 acres of forest and disturbing about 199 acres of land. The selected location is the current KD, or known distance, range.

More than 5,000 acres would be required to accommodate the operation, since it would include the area where projectiles fired on the range would land, based on types of weapons and ammunition used.

The range would be used for training of military personnel and weapons qualification.

Anticipated weapons used include several types of machine guns, 12-gauge shotguns, grenade launchers and pistols.

Potential noise in surrounding neighborhoods would be “varied,” according to a report done as part of the assessment. The area of most intense noise, peaking above 130 decibels, would be contained within the base, but some noise could affect “multiple neighborhoods as well as an elementary school” located to the east of the range.

The National Guard would notify neighbors of upcoming training events, particularly for use of .50-caliber weapons.

So-called “firebreaks” are planned around the perimeter to reduce wildfire hazard.

“Range use at Camp Edwards introduces significant wildfire hazard into unmanaged and high-risk fuels conditions, through the use of tracers and ammunition,” the assessment says. Tracers are forms of ammunition that include a pyrotechnic charge to show trajectory.

The report notes that Camp Edwards already has a campwide firebreak and management plan and integrated wildland fire management plan in place.

Currently, soldiers and units must travel to train at Camp Ethan Allen in Jericho, Vermont, which is 270 miles away.

“Camp Edwards’ primary mission is to prepare soldiers for combat missions overseas as well as missions to serve and protect the homeland stateside,” the assessment says. “As Camp Edwards serves as the primary (Army National Guard) training site for Massachusetts, the proposed action is also needed to ensure the continued and long-term viability of Camp Edwards as a training center.”

The use of the Camp Edwards property would increase by nearly 19% as a result of military personnel using the range.

Sandwich Town Manager George “Bud” Dunham said he has not heard anything from residents regarding the range, and the selectmen have not submitted any comments on the environmental assessment.

“Abutting the base, we’re all pretty used to the ‘normal’ military activity noises we hear regularly, especially on the weekends,” Dunham said via email. “That being said, I’m not sure how widespread the knowledge is about the project.”

The Army National Guard is the federal decision-maker on the proposed machine gun range.

The ongoing National Environmental Policy Act process is intended “to provide the Army’s planners and decision-makers with a meaningful review of environmental considerations,” notes the assessment. “The analysis set forth in this Environmental Assessment allows the decision-makers to carefully balance the protection of these environmental resources while fulfilling the Army’s essential roles, including national defense and the Massachusetts Army National Guard’s mission to provide adequate training facilities in support of the military mission.”

Both environmental staff and military personnel within the Guard “were consulted and provided guidance on the development of the Environmental Assessment,” the report states.

Jan Hively, of West Yarmouth, was asked to respond on behalf of the Women’s International League for Peace and Freedom/Cape Cod Branch. Hively will submit a written statement, but said Wednesday that she was surprised at a finding of no significant impact “with 170 acres of trees being taken down.”

“To add to environmental impacts, there is the traffic issue,” she said, noting the planned replacement of the Cape Cod Canal bridges.

“I think the main point is we should have a public hearing on Cape Cod,” she said. “We are the public it’s going to be affecting.”

In a written statement, Mary Ann Jones, of Harwich, said, “To use 5,000 acres of forested land to create the one and only machine gun range in Massachusetts, to invite any and all military to use it, to clear-cut 175 acres for the footprint seems like environmental impact to me.”

The environmental assessment looked at the preferred project alternative outlined above, a reduced-scale alternative and a no-action alternative. Money for the project has not yet been appropriated, and the funding request that has been submitted did not include some additional tweaks to the two middle lanes. Those would have to be funded later.

In a written statement provided by Don Veitch, director of public affairs for the Massachusetts National Guard, the agency said it had developed the plan “to meet the demands of complex military training while embracing our responsibility to our community and the environment.”

“Stakeholders, including state and federal environmental and conservation agencies, contributed several years to this project’s planning strategy and Massachusetts Environmental Policy Act process. Every project decision — including the ongoing conservation program and reduction of conventional range design to limit usage impact — illustrates our commitment to conservation and sustainable development,” the Guard statement says.

Several years of planning and design resulted in a proposal that meets a high standard for wildlife habitat and water quality, according to the statement. The project footprint includes redeveloping an existing 40-acre range and additional environmental protections.

According to the Guard, much of the habitat and rare species mitigation tactics already have been put in place, and 4 acres of rare species habitat are being preserved for every acre affected. The Francis Crane Wildlife Management Area also will be expanded through direct land transfer of 260 acres. Several design changes had been made to minimize environmental impact, including reducing the number of lanes from 10 to eight, the Guard says.