When first established decades ago, most U.S. military installations were far from major cities and towns. That is no longer true. A growing population and changing land development patterns over the past several decades have led to lands vital to military readiness being surrounded by urban, suburban, and other types of development. Such development, especially large residential tracts, can limit the installation's operational capability. Complaints about noise, dust, and smoke from aircraft, weapons, and vehicles force commanders to curtail training of certain types or during certain hours. As development destroys or displaces native species of plants and animals, military posts become their critical refuge, and their presence further restricts military operations. These constraints have been so severe in some cases that installations have had to close. Such pressures are called encroachment. Encroachment can be defined as issues external to military operations that affect military installation testing, training, and other operations and overall military readiness. Recognizing the gravity of the problem, Congress provided legislative authority to allow military departments to partner with government or private organizations to establish buffer areas near training and testing areas. The Office of the Secretary of Defense(OSD) created the Conservation Partnering Program (now known as the Readiness and Environmental Protection Initiative (REPI)2) to implement this authority.
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