1. Why do we need an Army National Training Center?

2. Why not use simulation for these requirements?

3. Will the Army or NTC fail if the expansion doesn't go through?

4. Do the manuevers threaten the Desert Tortoise population?

5. How will this expansion affect the surrounding Mojave Desert?

6. Who owns the extra 110,000acres of land that are not presently part of the NTC?

7. According to the LURS study--there is a shortfall of 60,000 acres, so what kind of training will the NTC be able to conduct?

8. Why doesn't the Army just clear Leach Lake and use it for maneuvers?

9. Can't the Air Force use bombing ranges at Nellis AFB, instead of Leach Lake?

10. Couldn't the Army use other military lands, like NAWS China Lake for training?

11. What criteria are used to determine the proposed expansion area?

The mission of the U.S. military is to preserve and protect the American way of life. The key to adequate defense is readiness and the key to readiness is realistic training. To survive and win future conflicts and wars, the Army must have experienced soldiers and leaders. Actual war is not the place to learn from mistakes. The NTC is the only place in the United States where our soldiers have the space and topography for realistic battlefield training of brigade sized units. Sophisticated military equipment and advanced technology require a comprehensive battlefield that realistically simulates the tempo, range, and intensity of current and, most importantly, future conflicts. The NTC must provide all the necessary components to achieve world-class training for the world's best Army.For more detailed information, see the NTC Land Expansion Article.

Simulation can take training only so far; it can only stress a system to a certain point. Simulation cannot take the rigors and unexpected events of the battlefield fully into account. Live, realistic training is the only way to fulfill the Army's training mission of "train as you fight."

3. Will the Army or NTC fail if the expansion doesn't go through?

The Army is not going to fail. But we are very concerned about about the cost of lives vs. training. The more realistic the training, the less loss of life in war.

Operations at the NTC have not had significant impacts on the Desert Tortoise population. On average 3-5 Tortoises are accidentally killed per year (allowed 15 under the Biological Opinion). This low rate is due to the cautionary measures the Army takes to protect the Desert Tortoise. The relatively low-density of tortoises on NTC and their ability to move into areas not used for maneuvers (above 20 percent slope) also contributes to the low death rate.

Due to the on-going stewardship efforts made by the Army, the Desert Tortoise is able to co-exist with NTC training. The NTC won the prestigious Hammer Award for outstanding stewardship of the environment in 1996. This award, given by Vice President Al Gore through the Secretary of Interior, cited the NTC's ongoing efforts to manage its lands in a responsible and effective manner.

The Mojave Desert encompasses 34.5 million acres of land in California, Arizona, and Nevada. The military currently uses less than 10 percent (approximately 3 million acres) of the total Mojave Desert. The proposed expansion alternative adds an additional 141,888 acres to the available maneuver training area. This expansion plan presents minimal impact on the environment and local residences.

The expansion concept calls for the withdrawal and reservation of two parcels of land, one to the west of Fort Irwin and one to the east of Fort Irwin. This land has been withdrawn by Congress and is currently managed by the Army under the Interim Management Plan (IMP).

The LURS is still valid; however, DA and DOI needed to balance the needs for an expansion and the needs of federally protected species. From a doctrinal perspective, the length of the new maneuver corridor is nearly correct for brigade operations.

The Leach Lake Impact Area comprises approximately 92,000 acres within the current Fort Irwin boundaries. It has been used since 1981 for live-fire exercises by the Army and as a live ordnance bombing range for the Air Force. The NTC considered the use of Leach Lake to help meet its additional training land needs; however, the following factors make the use of the area infeasible:

Training Value: Leach Lake is an essential component of the Air Force’s Air Warrior Program. Air Warrior trains aircrews the same way the NTC trains mechanized and support units. During a scenario, the NTC incorporates all the various facets required to realistically reproduce actual battle conditions. Such realism includes incorporation of Air Force sorties in support of training units (BLUFOR) and the opposing forces (OPFOR) to simulate air cover and attack. Air Warrior allows both Army and Air Force units to train together in the same way they would fight together in actual combat. Leach Lake is also separated from the base by mountain ranges and would not provide a wide enough corridor.

Training Compatibility: If Leach Lake were not available for Air Warrior pilots to drop live ordnance, they would be forced to use bombing ranges at the Nevada Test and Training Range (NTTR) north of Nellis AFB. Using valuable training time to access the NTTR would greatly reduce the time available to fly to Fort Irwin for Air Warrior combat support missions. Leach Lake is also used as an emergency jettison range for live ordnance to ensure aircrew safety during Air Warrior exercises.

Cost: The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers estimated the cost of clearing unexploded ordnance from this site at approximately $200 million. In addition to the high cost of clearing the area, the Air Force would have to abandon their use of Leach Lake, which would compromise their combat training and mission readiness.

The Air Force does use bombing ranges at Nellis AFB; however, an aircraft can only stay airborne for a limited time. Using a large portion of that time to access Nellis ranges greatly limits the time available to fly to NTC for Air Warrior combat missions. In addition, the Nellis range is too small to allow the kind of training exercises possible at Leach Lake. Finally, Leach Lake is also used as an emergency jettison range for live ordnance to ensure aircrew safety during Air Warrior exercises.

In 1993, representatives from Fort Irwin approached China Lake managers to explore joint use of training lands. At the Army’s request, the Navy commissioned a Mission Compatibility Study of the National Training Center’s Proposal for NTC Armored Maneuver Training at NAWCWPNS (NAWC 1993) to determine the compatibility of the NTC and China Lake NAWC missions. The study included: rotational schedules, radio frequency interference from jamming, airspace interference between rotations and on going missions, and geographic obstacles that limit access between the two installations. The study concluded that shared use was not feasible.

A number of factors are taken into consideration, such as:

1. Training value: Training value is the measure of how useful a particular tract of land is to the mission of the NTC. The Army has long recognized that additional land area is needed to support better maneuver capabilities and to increase the diversity of mission scenarios. The amount of land is not necessarily the most critical factor in considering the training value of the land being evaluated. Instead, it is the usefulness of a particular tract of land to meet training requirements.

2. Impacts on the Environment and the Surrounding Communities: The NTC takes into consideration the impacts the expansion would have on the environment, to include the Desert Tortoise and the Lane Mountain Milkvetch, along with impacts that may affect the surrounding businesses and communities.

3. Long-term Use and Manageability: The NTC wants to ensure successful management and long-term viability of the Desert Tortoise population, as well as other species on the NTC. In addition, they want to make certain they meet the guidance and standards put forth by the West Mojave Plan which is intended to serve as a Habitat Conservation Plan for the western Mojave area.

4. Mitigation Measures: The NTC takes into consideration the most feasible approach when it comes to offsetting impacts associated with the expansion. Mitigation measures include: avoiding, minimizing, rectifying, reducing, or compensating. In general, the optimal mitigation measure is one that meets the Army's training objectives while concurrently meeting the Army's environmental stewardship responsibilities.