Environmental Assessment

Overview

The vital role of the Rochester International Airport (RST) in serving the Mayo Clinic’s patient and medical materials transport needs requires the Airport to be open and operational 24 hours a day, 365 days a year. To meet critical aircraft operational needs, at least one runway always needs to remain fully operational. During the development of RST’s recent Airport Master Plan, it was recognized that the most significant need to continue the safe and efficient operation of the Airport was the reconstruction of both runways within the next decade, as the pavement on each runway is reaching the end of its useful life. The Master Plan identified a plan to reconstruct and extend RST’s north-south runway, Runway 2/20, while maintaining uninterrupted service. This will provide adequate runway length for RST’s critical users in order to support 24/7/365 operation of the Airport whenever the east-west runway, Runway 13/31, becomes unavailable.

In 2021, RST completed an environmental review process for proposed airfield improvements to provide this uninterrupted service. In addition to the runway reconstruction and extension, the proposed project involves moving utilities and roadways to accommodate the extension of Runway 2/20, including a petroleum pipeline, overhead power lines, and portions of 31^st Avenue SW, 90^th Street SW (former Trunk Highway 30), and 95^th Street SW, and acquiring land associated with the Runway Protection Zone. In accordance with the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA), RST and its consultant developed a Federal Environmental Assessment (EA), which evaluated the potential physical, environmental, and social impacts of the proposed action.

The Draft EA was made available for public review and comment from April 19 through June 1, 2021. A virtual public hearing was held on May 19, 2021. The meeting began with a presentation and Q&A, followed by the official public hearing. The public hearing transcript is included in Appendix I of the Final EA.

RST and its consultant then developed a Final EA that addressed the public and agency comments received during the comment period.

As the lead agency responsible for this EA, the Federal Aviation Administration issued a Finding of No Significant Impact/Record of Decision (FONSI/ROD) in July 2021 for the RST Runway 2/20 Project – Uninterrupted Service EA. Based on the analysis in the Final EA, the FAA determined that RST’s proposed project will not result in significant impacts to resources identified in accordance with FAA Orders 1050.1F and 5050.4B. Therefore, an environmental impact statement will not be prepared, and the project can proceed into design and construction.

The FAA's 2021 Finding (FONSI/ROD) and 2021 Final EA files can be accessed via the links at the bottom of this page.

Supplemental Environmental Assessment

Since issuing the 2021 EA FONSI/ROD, the FAA has determined that the approved action needs to be updated to include project components not explicitly considered by the 2021 EA. These include modifications to the petroleum pipeline alignment and limits of disturbance, construction staging areas, revised land acquisition boundaries, updated road easements, modifications to communication line relocations, additional tree clearing, relocated field accesses, and additional on-airport runway lights and access roads. In accordance with its responsibilities under NEPA, the FAA required the City to complete a Supplemental EA (SEA) to evaluate the environmental, economic, and social effects of the proposed supplemental project components. The results of the analysis are published in the Final SEA document, which can be accessed below. The supplemental project components include an additional .08 acre of temporary wetland impacts.

The Draft SEA was made available for public review and comment from January 15, 2023, through March 3, 2023. The City of Rochester held a public hearing on February 15, 2023, to receive testimony relative to the draft federal SEA. The meeting began with a presentation and the opportunity for Q&A, followed by the official public hearing. The public hearing transcript is included in Appendix D of the Final SEA.

RST and its consultant then developed a Final SEA that addressed the comments received during the comment period.

As the lead agency responsible for this SEA, the Federal Aviation Administration issued a Finding of No Significant Impact/Record of Decision (FONSI/ROD) in May 2023 for the RST Runway 2/20 Project – Uninterrupted Service SEA. Based on the analysis in the Final SEA, the FAA determined that RST’s supplemental project components will not result in significant impacts to resources identified in accordance with FAA Orders 1050.1F and 5050.4B. Therefore, an environmental impact statement will not be prepared, and the project can proceed into the next phase of design and construction.

Final SEA Documents

The Final SEA documents are available through the following links. For ease of accessing the document, the main report body file includes the figures at the end of each associated chapter, while each appendix can be downloaded separately.

Report Body (Including Figures)
Final Federal Supplemental Environmental Assessment for Runway 2/20 Project – Uninterrupted Service

FAA Finding (FONSI/ROD)
FAA Finding of No Significant Impact/Record of Decision (FONSI/ROD)

Appendices
Appendix A – Listed Species
Appendix B – Cultural Resources
Appendix C – Wetland Delineation and Correspondence
Appendix D – Public and Stakeholder Engagement Materials

2021 EA – Final EA Documents

The Final EA documents are available through the following links. For ease of accessing the document, the main report body file includes the figures at the end of each associated chapter, while each appendix can be downloaded separately.