The Palm Beach County Department of Airports (PBC DOA), as the Airport Sponsor, has proposed an Airfield Improvement Project (AIP) to enhance capacity at PBI to accommodate the forecasted aviation demand at the airport. Implementation of the AIP would require certain actions by FAA, the lead Federal agency. Those actions would require that FAA follow the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969 (NEPA). As described below in the listing of Direct Actions, the AIP consists of constructing a new air carrier runway at PBI, a commercial service airport within the Miami-Ft. Lauderdale-Miami Beach, FL Metropolitan Statistical Area (MSA).
According to FAA Order 5050.4B, FAA experience shows that unconditional approval or Federal funding of a new runway to accommodate air carrier aircraft at a commercial service airport located in a MSA normally requires an EIS.
The FAA explored the purpose and need for the project, alternatives to the AIP, and the potential impact of the alternatives on the environment. The EIS describes and discusses any significant environmental impacts resulting from the No-Action (no build), the proposed AIP, and other reasonable alternatives.
The AIP, as proposed by PBC DOA, includes the following direct and connected actions that are shown in the figure below and which were evaluated in the EIS.
Direct Actions
Modifications to Runway 10R/28L
 • Relocate and construct Runway 10R/28L 100 feet south of its existing location (800 feet from the centerline of Runway 10L/28R) to a length of 8,000 feet and a width of 150 feet.
Modifications to Runway 14/32
• Shorten the southeast end of Runway 14/32 (currently 6,932 feet in length) by 3,412 feet and extend the northwest end of Runway 14/32 by 480 feet. The total adjusted length of Runway 14/32 would be 4,000 feet. Other Direct and Connected Actions
• Construct and install a localizer antenna array and supporting infrastructure, and two Medium Intensity Approach Lighting Systems with Runway Alignment Indicator Lights (MALSR) beyond each end of the improved Runway 10R/28L to support non-precision instrument approaches with 0.75-mile visibility minimums;
• Acquire approximately 16 acres of property.
• Relocate and construct Taxiway "R" 100 feet south, to the full length of Runway 10R/28L (8,000 feet) and to a width of 75 feet;
• Widen Taxiway "L", with taxiway connectors, from 50 feet to 75 feet along the full length of Runway 10L/28R and maintain runway to taxiway separation distance of 400 feet;
• Relocate approximately 750 feet of the Airport West Canal beyond the established limits of a portion of the Runway 10R/28L RSA;
• Relocate the Very High Frequency Omni-Directional Range (VOR) and Remote Transmitter / Receiver (RTR) to another location on the airport;
• Develop General Aviation and Fixed Base Operator (FBO) facilities in the aeronautical use area in the northwest quadrant of the airfield.
• Relocate some of the FBOs, aviation support facilities, and the Federal Inspection Services (FIS), from the south side of the airport to the northwest quadrant of the airfield and
• Extend parallel Taxiways "B" (approximately 800 feet) and "F" (approximately 380 feet) to the relocated Runway 14 end.
Proposed Airfield Improvement Project at
Palm Beach International Airport
Source: Palm Beach International Airport Airfield Improvement Project- Project Definition, CH2M Hill, December 2006
Types of Data Analyzed:
Under NEPA, numerous environmental resource categories are considered within EIS studies. These resource categories are listed below:
• Air Quality
• Coastal Resources
• Compatible Land Use
• Construction Impacts
• Department of Transportation Act, Section 4(f) Lands
• Farmlands
• Fish, Wildlife, and Plants
• Floodplains
• Hazardous Materials, Pollution Prevention, and Solid Waste
• Historical, Architectural, Archeological, and Cultural Resources
• Light Emissions and Visual Impacts
• Natural Resources, Energy Supply, and Sustainable Design
• Noise
• Secondary (Induced) Impacts
• Socioeconomic Impacts, Environmental Justice, and Children’s Environmental Health and Safety Risks
• Water Quality
• Wetlands
• Wild and Scenic Rivers Note: On December 17, 2009, the FAA changed the runway orientation designations at PBIA as follows.
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