Public Notice
Title (Project Name): Fiber Upgrade Project at NSF Dahlgren
Description: The U.S. Department of the Navy proposes to install an underground conduit across Upper Machodoc Creek via horizontal direction drilling at Naval Support Facility (NSF) Dahlgren in King George County, Virginia. The newly installed conduit will house fiber optic cables to replace the current connection between the northern and southern portions of NSF Dahlgren. The new conduit will occur along the same route as the existing fiber optic cable, provide an environmentally hardened solution to upgrade the current infrastructure, facilitate future upgrades as required and improve the physical security of the unclassified internet network infrastructure. No existing infrastructure will be removed; the existing cable will remain in place on the creek bed. To finalize the bore design, two terrestrial and marine surveys will be conducted. The underground conduit will consist of approximately 1,300 meters of 5-inch steel casing. The total area impacted by construction, storage and supporting processes on the entrance and exit sites will be less than three acres. The U.S. Navy submitted a federal consistency determination (FCD) for this project. The proposed activity is subject to review for consistency with the enforceable policies of the Virginia Coastal Zone Management Program.
Public comment period: September 15, 2025 to October 9, 2025
Applicant name and project number: U.S. Navy; DEQ #25-155F
Facility name and address: NSF Dahlgren; 6509 Sampson Road, Dahlgren Virginia 22448
DEQ contact (for public comments and additional information): Megan Black, Megan.Black@deq.virginia.gov
HOW TO COMMENT
DEQ accepts comments from the public by email or postal mail. All comments must include the name, address and telephone number of the person commenting and be received by DEQ within the comment period. The public may review the project documents at DEQ’s central office in Richmond.
DEQ Central Office
Office of Environmental Impact Review
1111 East Main Street, Suite 1400
Richmond, Virginia 23219
