As the nation’s wars wind down in Iraq and Afghanistan, the military in Hawaii will need to train more at Pohakuloa Training Area on Hawaii island, not less, the Army says in a new environmental report.

A series of ambitious projects to modernize aging training ranges and facilities at the 133,000-acre range is detailed in a draft programmatic environmental impact statement released this month by the Army.

Among the upgrades being sought are a $29 million infantry platoon battle area on 200 acres in western PTA that would include a live-fire "shoothouse," a mock village and a battle course more than 2 miles long with stationary and moving targets, trenches and machine-gun bunkers with sound-effects simulators.

The plan also calls for a larger aerial gunnery range more than 2 miles wide and nearly 4 miles long. Like the platoon battle area, it would be built within five years along with new roads and other facilities.

In the longer term, the Marine Corps wants to realign the 3,700-foot Bradshaw Army Airfield runway and build a 5,600-foot "full-strength" paved runway, and build an "urban close-air support range" with mock villages for Cobra attack helicopter and MV-22 Osprey tilt-rotor training.

The Army in the long term also wants to replace old Quonset huts with new barracks. The improvements are being sought to replace outdated facilities that no longer meet training requirements, the Army said.

The Army is seeking public comment on the plan, which does not provide estimated costs beyond the platoon battle area, as part of National Environmental Policy Act requirements.

Meetings to take public comments will be held Nov. 8 and 9 on Hawaii island, and written comments can be mailed or emailed to the Army. More information can be found at www.garrison.hawaii.army.mil/PTAPEIS/default.htm. The 45-day public comment period ends Nov. 30.

Between 10,000 and 20,000 troops train annually at PTA, the Army has said. The Army, Navy, Air Force, Marine Corps and Hawaii Army National Guard are among its users.

The aerial gunnery range could be used to train companies of about 150 soldiers, the environmental report said. The Army previously said it intended to move company-level, live-fire training from Makua Valley, which was suspended in 2004 due to lawsuits, to PTA.

"The proposed action would improve the current shortfall in collective (group) live-fire training capabilities for units stationed in Hawaii," U.S. Army Garrison Hawaii said in a news release.

The draft environmental review said the frequency of home station training at PTA started to decrease in 2001 when units began deploying to Iraq and Afghanistan.

"As the Army moves toward a sustainable operational tempo and begins to draw down forces overseas, units will redeploy to Hawaii," the report states. "The dwell time (time spent at home) will mean that training at PTA will return to the previous historic levels."

Federally listed species such as the Hawaiian hoary bat and nene goose could be affected by habitat alteration, and "significant and irreversible" impacts could occur to cultural resources, but the Army said it will consult with Native Hawaiian groups on avoidance measures.

Pohakuloa Training Area was established in 1956 and is the largest live-fire training complex in Hawaii, with a centrally located 51,000-acre ordnance impact area.