NEPA – Writing Environmental Assessments, Part 1

River Management SocietyDenver, Colorado April 15, 2014

1

History• Events of the 1940s, 1950s, and 1960s that paved the way for

the passage of the National Environmental Policy Act• Passed by Congress December 23, 1969• Signed by Richard Nixon January 1, 1970

2

NEPA

• Prevent/eliminate damage to environment• Create/maintain harmony between people &

environment• Understand ecological systems & natural

resources• Established Council on Environmental Quality

(CEQ)

3

Basic Mandates of NEPA• Consider the environment in your decisions• Improve the environment• Protect the environment• Document impacts• Productive harmony• Public involvement

4

Implementation• Law

• CEQ Regulations

• Agency regulations

• Agency policies

• Agency handbooks

• Regional/local procedures 5

Other legal considerations• Clean Air Act• Clean Water Act• Endangered Species Act• National Historic Preservation Act• Archeological Resources Protection Act • Executive Orders 11988, 11990, 12898, and 13045

6

Hard Look Doctrine

• Assumptions spelled out

• Inconsistencies explained

• Methodologies disclosed

• Contradictory evidence rebutted

• Records referenced solidly grounded in science

• Guesswork eliminated

• Conclusions supported in a manner capable of judicial understanding

7

Major federal actions• New and continuing:

• Activities• Funding• Permits

• Categories:• Plans• Policies• Programs• Projects

8

Significance

• Context:• Society as a whole• Regional• Local

• Intensity:• Severity of impacts• Degree of controversy• Uncertainty of impacts• Cumulative impacts• Cultural resources, endangered species, wild rivers,

etc.

9

Proposed Federal Action

Categorical Exclusion Exists, and No Extraordinary

Circumstances Present

Internal Scoping

No Significant Environmental Effects

Significant Environmental Effects

NEPA Decision Making

Notice of Intent (NOI)

Environmental Assessment

Public Scoping*

Significance of Environmental Effects

Uncertain

Categorically Excluded from

Further Documentation

Environmental Action Statement

(EAS)**

Public Scoping

Draft Environmental Impact Statement

Final EIS

Record of Decision (ROD)

* Public scoping for an EA is optional under 40 CFR 1500 et seq., but public involvement required under DOI NEPA regs., 43 CFR 46.305.

** Individual programs (e.g., WSFR, ES for HCPs, Partners Program) may require use of other forms ***FONSI is the FWS decision document for an EA, but not considered as such under NEPA regulations

Implementation

NOA & Comment Period

NOA & Waiting Period

Finding of No Significant Impact

(FONSI)***

Significant Impacts

No Significant Impacts

OptionalPublic Scoping

10

NE PA is a c ycli cal proc ess

Develop a proposal with

specific objectives

identify the

environmental issues and other decision-making factorsDevelop

alternatives that meet

objectives and

address issues

Establish methodologies for analyzing projected effects

Evaluate the action alternatives against

the criteria and the no-action alternativ

e

Select the alternative that

best meets the

objectives and

satisfies criteria

Document and

implement the

decision and

monitor performanc

e Monitor and

evaluate decisions, actions,

and directions

11

NEPA Documents• 3 Primary NEPA Documents:

• Categorical Exclusions (CEs or CATEXs)• Environmental Assessments (EAs)• Environmental Impact Statements (EISs)

12

Categorical Exclusions (CE, CATEX)

• A proposed action qualifies for a CATEX:• When the action would not individually or cumulatively cause a

significant impact on the human environment.• Matches a category in the Agency’s list of CATEXs in their

published NEPA Regulations.

13

Environmental Assessment (EA)

• Not eligible for a categorical exclusion

• The proposed action probably would not cause significant, adverse environmental effects

• Finding of No Significant Effect (FONSI)

14

Environmental Impact Statement (EIS)

• Proposed action does not qualify for categorical exclusion or Finding of No Significant Impact

• Proposed action might cause significant adverse effects to the environment

• Might have substantial environmental controversy or significance or nature of the environmental effects of the proposed action

• Record of Decision (ROD)

15

NEPA• 3 Primary Functions of NEPA Documents:

• Provide sufficient information to the decision-maker to make an informed decision

• Provide that procedural requirements of NEPA have been followed and completed

• Inform the interested public

16

Interdisciplinary Teams• The interdisciplinary team consists of:

• Leader• Core team members• Extended team members

17

Reducing Paperwork

• Tiering

• Incorporating by reference

• Adoption

18

Suggested Content of an EA• Cover sheet• Summary• Table of Contents• Purpose of and need for action• Alternatives including the proposed action• Affected environment• Environmental consequences• List of preparers• List of Agencies, Organizations, and persons to whom copies of

the document are sent• Appendices

19

Defining Your Problem (Need) Traps

People are convinced that they know what is supposed to be done, so they don’t think there is any reason to take time clarifying the problem.

20

Defining Your Problem (Need) Traps

People mistake symptoms for causes.

21

Chapter 1 Purpose and Need• Purpose and Need for the Action • Explain who wants to do what and where and when they want

to do it (background).• Agency versus applicant

• Describe the need for the action (i.e., Why this action is important). If the need is related to your agency’s mandates give the source.

• Lists the project’s purpose (goals or objectives ). What does the agency hope to achieve and how will it be measured (quantify).

• Selection criteria for reasonable alternatives.22

Chapter 1 Purpose and Need• Identifies the laws, regulations, or other EISs/EAs that

influence the scope of this EIS/EA. Include a list of Federal, state, or local permits, licenses, or other consultation requirements.

• Summarizes the decision(s) to be made.• Summarizes the scoping/public involvement process, and lists

the relevant issues/resources to be analyzed and those dismissed from further analysis.

23

Chapter 1 Purpose and Need• Compare the desired condition against the existing condition

and ask yourself:• What is the disparity between them?• Is there a need for change?• Should an action be taken?• If so, what types of action(s) would help in the solving the

problem(s) between desired conditions and existing conditions?

24

Chapter 1 Purpose and Need• Problem Framing—What is the Problem?

• You don’t want to define the problem too widely

• You don’t want to define the problem too narrowly

25

Exercise 1• Review EA ~ Chapter 1• Discuss as a group the strengths and weaknesses of the

purpose and need statement for the project:• Who was proposing what, where, and when• Why the action was being proposed/the need• List of objectives with measurable outputs• Other relevant laws, policies and documents and any potential

Federal, State and/or local consultation requirements • Summary of decisions to be made• Summary of scoping: who was contacted, what were the relevant

issues identified

26

Scoping and Public Involvement

• Scope• Scoping

• Public Involvement• Public includes all groups or individuals outside your agency• Organize all information/comments received from the public

in your administrative file• Respond to all comments in your document

27

Scoping and Public Involvement

• Identify and talk with all Federal, State, local agencies, and other affected/interested public

• Consult with Indian Tribes – government to government consultation

• Identify and talk within your agency – leadership; other divisions

• Identify all mandatory review and consultation requirements• Identify all NEPA and related documents that already address

any aspect or are related to the proposal

28

Scoping and Public Involvement

• Identify all relevant issues/resources to be analyzed in-depth and eliminate issues not relevant

• Define the scope of the environmental analysis in terms of actions, impacts, and alternatives

• Describe the actions of the Alternatives ~ No Action and all action Alternatives

29

Scoping and Public Involvement

• Considerations for Public Involvement:• Who will be interested in or affected by the action?• Who has the information and expertise needed for the analysis?• What information do you need from each person, agency, or

organization on your list?• How do you involve the public so you can get the information you

need, inform them of what you are doing, and solicit their input?• At what point in the NEPA process do you ask for the

information?

• Public involvement needs to be early, frequent, representative, and taken seriously

30

Response to Comments • Develop a procedure for handling comments

• Appoint someone on the team to screen all comments for substantive points

• Keep a clean copy of all comments and letters received

• Consolidate duplicate comments

• Always respond with substance - no matter how far out you may feel the comment is

31

Exercise 2• Review the scoping letter - identify key points that you should

include in your analysis

32

. . . After careful review, we have the following requests of the Controlling Agencies:

A. An established noxious weed control plan needs to be implemented and monitored for effectiveness on a regular basis.

B. Spring Hollow, the Teton Dam Site, and the Felt Power Plant Access currently need physical improvements, in addition, is the need for ongoing maintenance to insure safe and efficient public access.

C. If public improvements are needed in and around the Teton River Canyon, and these improvements require access/usage via Teton Country Roads, we ask that our office be both notified and included in the planning process.

33

Summary & Review• Basic mandates• Procedural requirements• Significance• Documents• Interdisciplinary teams• Reducing paperwork• Purpose and need• Scoping and public involvement

34

Questions/Comments??

35