The Role of the Environmental Review Process in Federally Funded Highway Projects: Background and Issues for Congress
Congressional research reportApr 11, 2012
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The Role of the Environmental Review
Process in Federally Funded Highway
Projects: Background and Issues for Congress
-name redactedAnalyst in Environmental Policy
April 11, 2012
Congressional Research Service
7-....
www.crs.gov
R42479
CRS Report for Congress
Prepared for Members and Committees of Congress
The Role of the Environmental Review Process in Federally Funded Highway Projects
Summary
Under programs administered by the Department of Transportation’s (DOT’s) Federal Highway
Administration (FHWA), certain highway and bridge projects may be eligible for federal funding.
Project approval and the receipt of federal funds are conditioned on the project sponsor (e.g., a
local public works or state transportation agency) meeting certain standards and complying with
federal law. Activities necessary to demonstrate compliance with those requirements may be
completed at various stages of project development. Although the names of each stage may vary
from state to state, project development generally includes the following: planning, preliminary
design and environmental review, final design and rights-of-way acquisition, construction, and
facility operation and maintenance.
When there is debate over the time it takes to complete federal highway projects, the
environmental review stage has been a primary focus of congressional attention concerning
legislative options to speed project delivery. The current process includes activities necessary to
demonstrate that all potential project-related impacts to the human, natural, and cultural
environment are identified; effects of those impacts are taken into consideration (among other
factors such as economic or community benefits) before a final decision is made; the public is
included in that decision-making process; and all state, tribal, or federal compliance requirements
applicable as a result of the project’s environmental impacts are, or will be, met.
Compliance requirements depend on site-specific factors, including the size and scope of the
project, and whether and to what degree it may affect resources such as parks, historic sites, water
resources, wetlands, or urban communities. For all proposed federal-aid highway projects,
however, some level of review will be required under the National Environmental Policy Act of
1969 (NEPA, 42 U.S.C. §4321 et seq.). Broadly, NEPA requires federal agencies to consider the
environmental effects of an action before proceeding with it and to involve the public in the
decision-making process.
The time it takes to complete the NEPA process is often the focus of debate over project delays
attributable to the overall environmental review stage. However, the majority of FHWA-approved
projects require limited documentation or analyses under NEPA. Further, when environmental
requirements have caused project delays, requirements established under laws other than NEPA
have generally been the source. This calls into question the degree to which the NEPA compliance
process is a significant source of delay in completing either the environmental review process or
overall project delivery. Causes of delay that have been identified are more often tied to
local/state and project-specific factors, primarily local/state agency priorities, project funding
levels, local opposition to a project, project complexity, or late changes in project scope. Further,
approaches that have been found to expedite environmental reviews involve procedures that local
and state transportation agencies may implement currently, such as efficient coordination of
interagency involvement; early and continued involvement with stakeholders interested in the
project; and identifying environmental issues and requirements early in project development.
Bills in the House and Senate (the American Energy and Infrastructure Jobs Act of 2012 (H.R. 7)
and Moving Ahead for Progress in the 21st Century (MAP-21; S. 1813)) would reauthorize DOT
programs. Both include provisions intended to expedite project delivery by changing elements of
the environmental review process, particularly NEPA requirements. This report provides
information on existing NEPA and environmental review requirements, particularly requirements
that may be subject to change under the House and Senate proposals.
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The Role of the Environmental Review Process in Federally Funded Highway Projects
Contents
Introduction...................................................................................................................................... 1
Background and Overview of Issues ............................................................................................... 2
Environmental Reviews and Project Delays ............................................................................. 3
Challenges to Tying Project Delays to NEPA Compliance........................................................ 4
Highway Construction Impacts That Led to the Current Process.................................................... 6
Elements of the Environmental Review Process ............................................................................. 7
Requirements Applicable to Federal-aid Highways .................................................................. 8
Requirements Applicable to “Federal Actions”......................................................................... 9
Requirements Applicable to Certain Resources ...................................................................... 11
Implementing the Environmental Review Process ........................................................................ 12
Demonstrating Compliance with NEPA.................................................................................. 12
Identifying the Appropriate NEPA Document................................................................... 13
FHWA-Approved Projects By NEPA Class of Action ...................................................... 13
Selected Requirements for Each Category of NEPA Document ....................................... 17
Agency Roles and Responsibilities in the NEPA Process ................................................. 26
Public Involvement ........................................................................................................... 28
Demonstrating Compliance with Additional Requirements .................................................... 29
Environmental Reviews and Project Development ....................................................................... 31
Stages of Project Development................................................................................................ 31
Challenges in Measuring Stages of Project Development....................................................... 33
Causes of Delay in Completing Environmental Reviews........................................................ 35
Benefits to the Environmental Review Process....................................................................... 36
Expediting Environmental Reviews .............................................................................................. 37
Lessons Learned ...................................................................................................................... 37
Administrative Efforts ............................................................................................................. 40
Conclusions.................................................................................................................................... 40
Figures
Figure 1. FHWA-Approved Projects—By NEPA Class of Action ................................................ 14
Figure 2. Active FHWA Projects Requiring an EIS in Each State................................................. 15
Figure 3. Percentage of FHWA Program Funding Allocation by NEPA Class of Action .............. 16
Figure 4. NEPA Decision-Making Process .................................................................................... 17
Tables
Table 1. Federally Funded Highway Projects Specifically Listed as CEs ..................................... 18
Table 2. Examples of FHWA-Approved Projects That May Be Classified as a CE ...................... 19
Table 3. Required Elements of an EIS as Implemented by FHWA ............................................... 22
Table 4. Federal Law Commonly Applicable to FHWA-Approved Projects................................. 30
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The Role of the Environmental Review Process in Federally Funded Highway Projects
Table 5. Stages of Federal-Aid Highway Project Development .................................................... 32
Appendixes
Appendix. Surveys and Studies Applicable to the Environmental Review Process ...................... 42
Contacts
Author Contact Information........................................................................................................... 43
Congressional Research Service
The Role of the Environmental Review Process in Federally Funded Highway Projects
Introduction
Under programs administered by the Department of Transportation’s (DOT’s) Federal Highway
Administration (FHWA), certain highway and bridge projects may be eligible to receive federalaid funding.1 As a condition of receiving those funds, a project sponsor (e.g., a local or state
transportation agency) must meet certain standards and requirements applicable to activities
completed at every stage of project development. Although the names of those stages may vary
somewhat from state to state, those stages generally include initial project planning, preliminary
design/engineering and environmental review, final design and rights-of-way acquisition,
construction, and facility operation and maintenance.
Each stage of project development is initiated and completed largely at the state or local level,
with FHWA having ultimate responsibility for ensuring that individual projects comply with
requirements applicable to federal-aid highways.2 Also, each development stage involves a range
of activities that will affect the time it takes to deliver the project. Required elements of the
preliminary design and environmental review stage will vary by project, but generally include
processes necessary to identify and demonstrate compliance with environmental requirements
applicable to that project.
When there is debate over the time it takes to complete federally funded highway projects,3
particularly debate over activities that may expedite or delay project delivery, various elements of
the environmental review stage of project development have been the focus of attention.
However, whether or the degree to which elements of that process may delay projects is unclear.4
The two most recent laws authorizing DOT programs included requirements intended to expedite
the environmental review process that focused primarily on procedures necessary to demonstrate
compliance with the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969 (NEPA, 42 U.S.C. §4321 et
seq.).5 Current legislation to authorize DOT programs in the House and the Senate (the American
Energy and Infrastructure Jobs Act of 2012 (H.R. 7) and Moving Ahead for Progress in the 21st
Century (MAP-21; S. 1813)) also include provisions intended to expedite project delivery that
focus primarily on the NEPA process.6
1
This report focuses on projects approved under programs administered by FHWA. Although they involve similar
regulatory requirements, issues unique to transit projects approved under programs administered by the Federal Transit
Administration (FTA) are not addressed in this report.
2
Those requirements are largely established under Chapter 1, “Federal-aid Highways,” of Title 23, “Highways” of the
U.S. Code.
3
In this report, reference to “federal-aid highways,” “federal highways,” or “federal highway projects” means projects
that may receive federal funding pursuant to the Federal-aid Highways provisions of Title 23. Those projects include,
but are not limited to, the initial construction, reconstruction, replacement, rehabilitation, restoration, or other
improvements of a highway, road, street, parkway, right-of-way, bridge, or tunnel.
4
See CRS Report R41947, Accelerating Highway and Transit Project Delivery: Issues and Options for Congress, by
(name redacted) and (name redacted).
5
The Safe, Accountable, Flexible, Efficient Transportation Equity Act: A Legacy for Users (SAFETEA-LU or
SAFETEA; P.L. 109-59, for FY2005-FY2009) and the Transportation Equity Act for the 21st Century (TEA-21; P.L.
105-178, for FY1998-FY2003).
6
H.R. 7 was reported favorably by the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee on February 13, 2012.
MAP-21 passed the Senate on March 14, 2012.
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Despite the focus on the NEPA process, it is unclear whether or how changes to that process
would result in faster highway project delivery. Available evidence regarding potential causes of
project delays associated with environmental compliance is largely anecdotal and specific to
unique, individual projects. Still, that evidence, while limited, points to issues or requirements
apart from NEPA as more common causes of project delays.
This report identifies issues relevant to the debate over the role of the environmental review
process in transportation project delivery. It identifies social and environmental issues that led
Congress to enact the range of requirements that now make up the environmental review process,
as well as selected requirements applicable to its implementation (particularly NEPA
requirements). The report also identifies complexities in tying the environmental review process
to federal-aid highway project delivery time. In particular, it identifies issues that make it difficult
to determine the time it takes to complete the project development process, in general, or
individual stages of development (e.g., activities related explicitly to environmental reviews); or
to identify root causes of project delays tied to specific elements of the environmental review
process. This report also discusses various approaches identified by transportation stakeholders as
those that have expedited the environmental review process and overall project delivery.
Information and issues in this report were selected to help Members of Congress and their staff
understand the NEPA compliance process as well as additional environmental compliance
requirements that may be affected by H.R. 7 and MAP-21. Discussion of specific legislation is
provided separately in CRS Report R42445, Surface Transportation Reauthorization Legislation
in the 112th Congress: MAP-21 and H.R. 7, Major Provisions, coordinated by (name redacted).
Background and Overview of Issues
Activities that may take place during the environmental review process and how that process is
implemented will vary from project to project, from state to state. The environmental review
process does not involve compliance with a single federal compliance requirement. It involves
processes necessary to demonstrate compliance with a potentially wide array of requirements
applicable to projects approved under the Federal-aid Highways program. Broadly, for federally
funded highway projects, it involves two separate, but related processes—preparing appropriate
documentation required under NEPA; and identifying and demonstrating compliance with any
additional state, tribal, or federal environmental requirements applicable to that project.
For a given project, how NEPA and other environmental compliance requirements must be
demonstrated will largely depend on the degree to which the proposed project would have
adverse effects on communities, natural or cultural resources (e.g., wetlands, endangered species
habitat, historic sites, parks, or recreation areas), or special status land (e.g., farmland,
floodplains, or coastal zones). Compliance with those requirements may include obtaining a
permit, approval, study, or some level of analysis or consultation from an agency outside DOT.
NEPA was intended, in part, to ensure that federal agencies would consider the environmental
impacts of an action among other factors (e.g., economic or community benefits) in the federal
decision-making process. NEPA has two primary aims—to assure that federal agencies consider
the environmental effects of their actions before proceeding with them and to involve the public
in the decision-making process.
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NEPA does not require an agency to elevate environmental concerns above other factors in the
overall federal decision-making process. If the adverse environmental effects of a proposed action
are adequately identified and evaluated, an agency is not constrained by NEPA from deciding that
other project benefits outweigh the environmental costs and moving forward with the action. In
contrast, other requirements applicable to federal-aid highways may dictate or somehow affect the
outcome of a project decision. For example, other federal laws may require the selected project
alternative to be the one with the least impact to a particular resource, prohibit FHWA approval of
a project alternative that uses certain resources, require certain mitigation measures to limit a
project’s impacts, or require that certain activities take place in accordance with certain criteria
(e.g., as specified in a permit or approval).
Environmental Reviews and Project Delays
Required elements of the environmental review process, particularly compliance with NEPA, will
have an effect on project development. For example, before DOT can approve a project and allow
final project design, property acquisition, or project construction to proceed, the project sponsor
must appropriately document compliance with NEPA and complete any investigation, review, or
consultation necessary to demonstrate compliance with other applicable environmental
requirements. Further, it is DOT policy to use the NEPA compliance process as a mechanism to
balance transportation decision making by taking into account the potential impacts on the human
and natural environment and the public’s need for safe and efficient transportation.7
State and local transportation agency officials and other stakeholders with an interest in
transportation improvement generally acknowledge that elements of the environmental review
process provide important protections to the human, cultural, and natural environment. However,
those officials also sometimes argue that completing the process can be difficult and timeconsuming. Some have argued, for example, that the time it takes to complete required NEPA
documentation and supporting analysis or to obtain required input or approval from outside
agencies can delay completion of federally funded transportation projects.
It is generally not disputed that the time it takes to complete the environmental review process for
federally funded highway projects can take months or even years. What is unclear is the degree to
which elements of the environmental review process directly or routinely delay project delivery.
Determining the time it takes to complete activities associated with the environmental review
process, or delays directly attributable to those activities, is difficult for several reasons including,
but not limited to:
•
Limits to available data. There is no centralized source of data regarding
highway project delivery. States generally do not track project development time
from planning to construction. States generally do not attempt to isolate elements
of the environmental review process, which may overlap with preliminary project
planning, design, or engineering activities. Further, there is no standard measure
for determining when a project or the environmental review process, in
particular, is completed “quickly” or would be considered “delayed.”
7
See NEPA and Project Development: Program Overview on FHWA’s “Environmental Review Toolkit” webpage at
http://environment.fhwa.dot.gov/projdev/index.asp.
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•
The influence of local factors on project delivery. The environmental review
process may start, stop, and restart for reasons unrelated to environmental issues.
Local and state issues have been shown to have the most significant influence on
whether a project moves forward relatively quickly or takes longer than
anticipated. Those issues include the project’s level of priority among others
proposed in the state; changes in funding availability; and local controversy or
opposition to the project (which may or may not be connected to environmental
issues).
•
The variation in project type and complexity. The wide range of projects
approved under programs administered by FHWA (e.g., bridge repair versus
major new highway construction) do not easily allow an “apples to apples”
comparison of the time it takes to complete the environmental review process or
factors that may delay it. Anecdotal evidence regarding projects identified as
“delayed” have involved multiple, complex causes of delay (including local
issues) unique to that project, not a single cause that may be commonly
applicable to other projects.
•
Variation among state requirements and implementation processes. The
effect of requirements under federal law may be difficult to isolate since local,
state, or tribal requirements and procedures will also affect how environmental
compliance requirements are implemented. State DOTs implement their project
delivery process differently, depending on factors specific to their state and its
needs. For example, some states may implement unique design and contracting
processes that expedite project delivery that other states do not.
•
Time “saved” cannot be gauged. Depending on the scope and complexity of the
project, more time spent addressing environmental issues in the project planning
and preliminary design stage may result in faster completion of final design and
project construction (when delays may require actions that take more time and
money to address). Time may also be saved when adverse project impacts that
could lead to local opposition to the project are identified and addressed during
the early stages of project development.
Challenges to Tying Project Delays to NEPA Compliance
Transportation agency officials and project sponsors have broadly identified environmental
compliance requirements as a common source of frustration in completing the project
development process. However, limits to and contradiction in available data make it difficult to
clearly identify specific causes of delay that are directly and routinely attributable to specific
elements of environmental compliance. Identifying a distinct root cause of a delay will arguably
be necessary before effective “solutions” (procedures that would result in faster project delivery)
can be identified. That is, knowing that a delay occurred may be irrelevant if it is not determined
why the delay occurred. An understanding of why is useful in identifying a solution that directly
addresses a problem’s underlying cause.
Determining why a project was delayed may be difficult or may be attributable to multiple,
interrelated factors. Generally, the more complex the project, the more complex the potential
cause(s) of delay. For example, compared to a maintenance or repair project, a major new
construction project will require more extensive review, documentation, or analysis to
demonstrate compliance with NEPA and other applicable environmental requirements. However,
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the following factors call into question the degree to which NEPA alone is a significant source of
project delay in overall project development:
•
The majority of projects require limited review under NEPA. The majority of
FHWA-approved projects (approximately 96%) involve no significant
environmental impacts and, hence, require limited documentation, analysis, or
review under NEPA.
•
Compliance with DOT’s “NEPA regulations” extends beyond what is
required under NEPA. DOT’s “Environmental Impact and Related Procedures”8
prescribe the policies and procedures to ensure that FHWA-approved projects
will comply with NEPA as well as requirements established under Title 23
applicable to Federal-aid Highways (e.g., provisions applicable to the
consideration of adverse economic, social, and environmental effects (under
§109(h)), public hearings (§128), and preservation of parklands (§138)).
•
The NEPA compliance process is used to demonstrate compliance with all
applicable environmental review requirements. It is DOT policy that any
investigation, review, or consultation necessary to demonstrate compliance with
applicable environmental requirements be completed within the context of the
NEPA process. This use of NEPA as an “umbrella” compliance process can blur
the distinction between what is required under NEPA and what is required under
separate authority.
Transportation agency officials asked to identify sources of frustration or delay in completing the
environmental review process most commonly cite compliance requirements applicable to the
protection of parklands, historic sites, wetlands, or threatened or endangered species. The
potential root cause of delay in complying with those requirements could be attributable to a wide
range of project-specific factors (e.g., incomplete permit applications, challenges in obtaining
multiple approvals or permits for a complex project, or disagreement with a resource agency over
appropriate methods to mitigate project impacts).
Both existing law and regulations implementing NEPA include explicit directives and
requirements intended to streamline the NEPA process. Included among those requirements are
procedures intended to coordinate efficient agency interaction and cooperation, reduce NEPArelated paperwork and duplication of effort (e.g., documentation and analysis that may be
required by similar state, tribal, or federal requirements or from one stage of project development
to the next), and integrate the consideration of environmental compliance issues in a project’s
planning stage. Barriers to efficiently implementing existing requirements may be project-specific
or involve issues that may be difficult to address by simply amending or eliminating existing
federal requirements.
This is not to suggest that there are not instances where preparation of documentation and
analysis required under NEPA is not time-consuming or may contribute to delays in project
delivery. However, it is unclear whether or what additional federal requirements may be
implemented to expedite the NEPA process. Conversely, it is not clear whether the elimination of
certain NEPA-specific requirements may expedite project delivery or would alter the framework
for coordinating an already complex compliance process, resulting in additional project delay. For
8
23 C.F.R. Part 771.
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a given project, whether changes to the NEPA process might result in faster project delivery will
likely depend on the project’s scope and complexity; the degree to which it is affected by “local”
factors (e.g., state funding or project priorities); and compliance requirements applicable to the
project, in addition to those under NEPA.
Highway Construction Impacts That Led to the
Current Process
To understand why a complex array of requirements may apply to highway projects, it is useful to
understand the social and environmental concerns that led Congress to enact the various laws that
now form the framework of the environmental review process. Each requirement included within
that process represents past efforts by Congress to minimize adverse impacts from federally
funded highway projects or to minimize adverse impacts to certain communities or resources that
Congress identified as needing some level of protection.
The current debate over the environmental review process frequently centers around the effect
that completion of that process has on project delivery. The debate rarely recognizes the issues
that led Congress to enact the requirements that now make up that process. Requirements
included within the environmental review process, and procedures to demonstrate compliance
with them, have evolved over the past 50 years. However, many of the requirements that are
subject to particular scrutiny today were enacted between 1966 and 1972.
During the 1950s and 1960s, the public was becoming increasingly aware of and concerned about
the impacts that human activity were having on the environment. Increasing attention turned to
the effect that federally funded programs and projects were having on the human, cultural, and
natural environment. One federal program that generated particular concern was the development
and construction of the Interstate Highway System.
The Federal-Aid Highway Act of 1956 (P.L. 84-627) authorized and provided revenue sources for
the construction of the National System of Interstate and Defense Highways (commonly known
as the Interstate Highway System, Interstate System, or the Interstate). The Interstate System is a
network of limited-access roads including freeways, highways, and expressways forming part of
the National Highway System of the United States.9 Construction of the Interstate System took
approximately 35 years and resulted in a network of roads and bridges that currently includes
over 45,000 miles of rural highways, suburban and urban freeways, and bridges.10
Although the connection of rural, urban, and suburban communities resulted in a host of
economic and cultural benefits, construction of the Interstate System also brought certain adverse
impacts to both the human and natural environment. Those impacts were seen particularly in the
construction of the urban freeways. Planning for such projects often involved locating freeways
within available open space or where land acquisition costs were relatively low. “Available open
9
The National Highway System is approximately 160,000 miles of roadway important to the nation’s economy,
defense, and mobility.
10
For more information about the Interstate Highway System, see the U.S. Department of Transportation’s Federal
Highway Administration website, “Celebrating the Eisenhower Interstate Highway System,” http://www.fhwa.dot.gov/
interstate/homepage.cfm.
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space” often meant historic sites, parks, or recreation areas. Adverse impacts to those resources
from highway projects drew increased attention from newly formed stakeholder groups with an
interest in environmental protection and historic preservation.
Project planning that involved lower land acquisition costs often meant property acquisitions in
densely populated, working-class or high-poverty neighborhoods. Resulting urban freeway
projects had a disproportionate impact on the urban poor. One such example involved a segment
of I-95 north of Miami. The route selected by local transportation officials cut through the innercity community of Overtown, a once-thriving African-American community known as the
“Harlem of the South.” A 2009 FHWA report discussing lessons learned in complying with
environmental requirements describes the project as follows:
In 1957, the Overtown community was almost decimated by the development of the I-95 and
I-395 freeways. The constructed roadway had a disastrous impact on the economic and social
structure of the community. The community continues to shoulder the lingering effects of
those negative impacts, and as a result there is also persistent anger towards and distrust of
[the Florida Department of Transportation].11
Opposition to other urban freeway projects led to “freeway revolts” spearheaded by newly
established environmental and social justice groups.12 Freeway revolts took place in cities like
Baltimore, Boston, Los Angeles, New Orleans, New York, Reno, and San Francisco. As a result, a
significant number of projects were abandoned or significantly scaled back due to widespread
public opposition, especially by those whose neighborhoods would be disrupted or who would
displaced by the proposed freeways.
Elements of the Environmental Review Process
By the mid to late 1960s, Congress began to enact legislation intended to address the growing
public concern over projects implemented under the Federal-aid Highways program. During that
period, Congress also enacted legislation in response to increasing awareness and concern over
the impacts of all federal actions—not just federal highway projects. Also during the 1960s and
into the 1970s Congress began to enact a wide range of laws intended to identify, prohibit,
control, or mitigate adverse impacts of human activities to specific community, natural, or
cultural resources that Congress identified as in need of certain protection. This report identifies
and summarizes requirements that have been identified as those most commonly applicable to
federally funded highway projects.
11
Report prepared by the John A. Volpe National Transportation Systems Center Research and Innovative Technology
Administration, U.S. Department of Transportation for the Office of Project Development and Environmental Review,
Federal Highway Administration, “Strategies and Approaches for Effectively Moving Complex Environmental
Documents Through the EIS Process: A Peer Exchange Report,” January 2009, available on the Federal Highway
Administration’s “Streamlining/Stewardship” website at http://environment.fhwa.dot.gov/strmlng/eisdocs.asp.
12
For a discussion of issues related to freeway revolts and general issues with urban freeway construction, see “Paved
with Good Intentions: Fiscal Politics, Freeways and the 20th Century American City,” by Jeffrey A. Brown, Eric A.
Morris, and Brian D. Taylor, in the University of California Transportation Center’s Access magazine, Fall 2009,
available at http://www.uctc.net/access/35/access35_Paved_with_Good_Intentions_Fiscal_Politics_.shtml.
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Requirements Applicable to Federal-aid Highways
FHWA is prohibited from approving a project for funding under the Federal-aid Highway
program until the project sponsor demonstrates that the proposed project will comply with all
applicable federal, tribal, and state requirements. To the extent possible, compliance with any
requirements that apply to a project, as a result of that project’s effect on the human and natural
environment, must be appropriately documented and demonstrated during the environmental
review stage of project development.
Requirements specific to Federal-aid Highways include a host of standards, procedures, and
conditions applicable to the various stages of project development. Several requirements
(applicable primarily to activities that take place during the project planning, preliminary design,
and environmental review phases of development) reflect concern over the effects of urban
freeway construction (discussed above), including the following:
•
Directive to establish guidelines to assure consideration of adverse project
impacts (23 U.S.C. §109(h)). Directed DOT to establish guidelines to assure that
possible adverse, economic, social, and environmental effects of proposed
highway projects and project locations were fully considered during project
development, and that final project decisions be made in the best overall public
interest, taking into consideration the costs of eliminating or minimizing adverse
effects to air, noise, and water pollution; destruction or disruption of man-made
and natural resources; aesthetic values, community cohesion, and the availability
of public facilities and services; adverse employment effects, and tax and
property value losses; and injurious displacement of people, businesses, and
farms.
•
Directive to establish noise standards (23 U.S.C. §109(i)). Directed DOT to
establish standards for highway noise levels compatible with different land uses.
DOT cannot approve plans and specifications for any proposed federal-aid
project unless it includes adequate measures to implement those noise standards.
As implemented under DOT regulations, a project may be required to
demonstrate compliance with applicable standards through an analysis of traffic
noise impacts and, when necessary, to implement noise abatement measures.
•
Public hearings requirements (23 U.S.C. §128). For a proposed project
bypassing or going through any city, town, or village, a state transportation
department is required to certify that it held or afforded the opportunity for public
hearings; considered the economic and social effects of the project location, and
its impact on the environment; and considered the consistency of the project with
local planning goals and objectives.
•
Preservation of parklands requirements (23 U.S.C. §138). More commonly
referred to as “Section 4(f)”13 requirements, DOT is prohibited from approving a
13
The term “Section 4(f)” refers to the section of the Department of Transportation Act of 1966 (P.L. 89-670) under
which the requirement was originally set forth. It was initially codified at 49 U.S.C. §1653(f) and only applied to DOT
agencies. Later that year, 23 U.S.C. §138 was added with somewhat different language, which applied only to the
highway program. In 1983, as part of a general recodification of the DOT Act, §1653(f) was formally repealed and
codified in 49 U.S.C. §303 with slightly different language. This provision no longer falls under a “Section 4(f),” but
DOT has continued this reference, given that over the years, the whole body of provisions, policies, and case law has
been collectively referenced as Section 4(f).
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project that uses publicly owned (local, state, or federal) parks and recreation
areas, wildlife and waterfowl refuges, and publicly or privately owned historic
sites of national, state, or local significance. DOT may approve a project that uses
a 4(f) resource only if there is no prudent and feasible alternative to do otherwise,
and that use includes all possible planning to minimize harm to the resource.
Of the requirements specifically applicable to Federal-aid Highways, the preservation of
parklands requirements may have the greatest effect on highway project development and
delivery. Projects that would use a 4(f) resource require an evaluation analyzing project
alternatives (including location and design shifts) that avoid the resource.14 To be approved by
FHWA, the evaluation must show that alternatives that would not use the resource would result in
“truly unique problems,” resulting in costs or community disruption of extraordinary magnitude.
This test is often referred to as the “Overton Park Criteria,” after a court case in the 1970s in
Memphis, TN.15 In approving the use of a 4(f) resource, FHWA must also consider the
significance and importance of the resource itself.
SAFETEA amended Section 138 to allow for the use of a 4(f) resource if that use can be proven
to have de minimis impacts to the resource.16 Generally, de minimis impacts would result from the
use of minor amounts of a particular resource. Such a determination requires concurrence from an
official with jurisdiction over the resource. For example, for a transportation project adjacent to a
publicly owned park, recreation area, or wildlife and waterfowl refuge, FHWA would be required
to consult with, as appropriate, agencies within the Department of the Interior (e.g., the U.S. Fish
and Wildlife Service, National Park Service, or the Bureau of Indian Affairs) or state or local park
authorities. For historic sites, a de minimis impacts determination must be based on criteria
established under the National Historic Preservation Act applicable to uses that will have no
“adverse effect” on the site (16 U.S.C. §470f). The determination must receive concurrence from
the State Historic Preservation Officer (SHPO) and, if appropriate, the Advisory Council on
Historic Preservation (ACHP).
Compared to other environmental requirements likely applicable to federal-aid highway projects,
Section 4(f) is unique in its limits on the use of a protected resource. Most requirements intended
to protect communities or specific natural or cultural resources allow for adverse project impacts
if those impacts are sufficiently identified and considered in the decision-making process. Some
requirements may specify that a project implement certain mitigation measures or be
implemented in accordance with an approval or permit from an agency responsible for protecting
that resource. An outright prohibition on the use of a particular resource, except for de minimis
impacts or under extraordinary conditions, is not common to other environmental requirements.
Requirements Applicable to “Federal Actions”
In the 1960s Congress debated legislative options to address potential adverse impacts associated
with federal actions. An action may be deemed “federal” based on the role that a federal agency
14
Depending on project alternatives under consideration for a given project, compliance with Section 4(f) requirements
can be complex. This report does not discuss those requirements in detail. For more information, see the “Section 4(f)”
website included in FHWA’s “Environmental Review Toolkit,” at http://www.environment.fhwa.dot.gov/4f/index.asp.
15
Citizens to Preserve Overton Park v. Volpe, 401 U.S. 402 (1971).
16
See Department of Transportation, “Parks, Recreation Areas, Wildlife and Waterfowl Refuges, and Historic Sites,”
final rule, 73 Federal Register 13367-13401, March 12, 2008.
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The Role of the Environmental Review Process in Federally Funded Highway Projects
plays in a project’s approval or funding. A project funded under the Federal-aid Highways
program would generally be considered a federal action. Two laws applicable specifically to
federal actions that significantly affect the environmental review process for highway project
development are NEPA and the National Historic Preservation Act (16 U.S.C. §470, et seq.).
As discussed previously, NEPA has two primary aims—to require federal agencies to consider the
environmental impacts of a project and to give the public a meaningful opportunity to learn about
and comment on the proposed project before a final decision is made. It is a procedural statute.
That is, NEPA requires federal agencies to implement procedures to ensure that environmental
impacts of a project are included among, but not elevated above, other factors considered during
the federal decision-making process. If the adverse environmental impacts of the proposed action
are adequately identified and evaluated, the agency is not constrained by NEPA from deciding
that other benefits (e.g., community and economic benefits) outweigh the environmental costs
and moving forward with the action. (The NEPA compliance process is discussed under
“Demonstrating Compliance with NEPA.”)
The National Historic Preservation Act (NHPA) declared a national policy of historic preservation
to protect districts, sites, buildings, structures, and objects significant to American architecture,
history, archaeology, and culture. NHPA did not mandate preservation of historic resources or
prohibit adverse impacts to them, but Section 106 requires all federal agencies to consider the
impacts of a proposal prior to taking any action that may affect a site included in, or eligible for
inclusion on, the National Register of Historic Places.
NHPA also requires federal agencies to afford the Advisory Council on Historic Preservation (an
independent federal agency created by the law) a reasonable opportunity to comment on federal
actions that would affect properties on or eligible for inclusion on the National Register of
Historic Places. For federally funded highway projects, FHWA must consult with the Advisory
Council or the designated SHPO to determine project impacts to historic sites and potential ways
to mitigate those impacts.
There are similarities between requirements established under Section 4(f) and Section 106, but
also important differences between the statutes. Like NEPA, Section 106 establishes a procedural
requirement that directs all federal agencies only to consider project impacts on certain resources.
Section 4(f) applies only to DOT projects and prohibits the use of certain resources for those
projects, except under certain conditions.
Additional federal laws and executive orders apply explicitly to federal actions that affect certain
resources or communities. For example, a federally funded highway project may require
compliance with additional requirements applicable to federal actions if that project may:
•
involve the acquisition, rehabilitation, or demolition of real property that will
displace persons from their homes, businesses, or farms as protected under the
Uniform Relocation Assistance and Real Property Acquisition Act of 1970 (42
U.S.C. §4601, et seq., more commonly referred to as the Uniform Act);
•
affect wetlands or floodplains pursuant to Executive Order 11990 or Executive
Order 11988, respectively;
•
convert farmland to nonagricultural uses pursuant to the Farmland Protection
Policy Act of 1981 (7 U.S.C. §4201 et seq.);
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The Role of the Environmental Review Process in Federally Funded Highway Projects
•
cause disproportionately high and adverse impacts on minority and low-income
populations with respect to human health and the environment pursuant to
Executive Order 12898; or
•
affect human remains and cultural material of Native American and Hawaiian
groups pursuant to the Native American Grave Protection and Repatriation Act
(25 U.S.C. §3001 et seq.).
Requirements Applicable to Certain Resources
In addition to requirements applicable to federal-aid highways, specifically, and federal actions,
in general, Congress has enacted a host of individual statutes intended to protect certain natural,
environmental, and cultural resources from human-induced activities. A potentially long list of
federal compliance requirements could apply to a given highway or bridge project, but
requirements that will actually apply to a project will be limited by site-specific conditions and
the degree to which the proposed project may affect protected resources. Broadly, highway
projects may be subject to requirements intended to identify, minimize, or control adverse
impacts to:
•
Land—including land use that may affect the habitat of threatened or endangered
plant and animal species, migratory birds, archaeological sites, and land
designated as a national trail or national wilderness; and
•
Water resources or water quality—including projects that may affect wetlands,
aquatic ecosystems, navigable waters (e.g., rivers, streams, harbors), floodplains,
coastal zones, or designated “wild and scenic” rivers, or projects that may affect
water quality (e.g., discharge pollutants into U.S. waters).17
For a given federally funded highway project, compliance with a number of federal, state, or
tribal regulations intended to identify, control, mitigate, or minimize project impacts to land and
water resources may be required. Specific compliance requirements will depend on standards or
regulatory requirements of that law and the degree to which the proposed project may adversely
affect that resource. Depending on those factors, project development and implementation may
require some level of consultation, analysis, or approval from an agency with jurisdiction over the
resource. For example, a highway or bridge project that results in pollutants being discharged into
wetlands, rivers, or streams or that may affect navigable waterways or harbors likely will require
project development be completed in accordance with provisions established under the Clean
Water Act or the Rivers and Harbors Act. Pursuant to those laws, the selection of a particular
project alternative may require a permit or certification from the Army Corps of Engineers (the
Corps), the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), the United States Coast Guard, or a state or
tribal water quality control agency.
17
Air quality issues are also relevant to federal-aid highway project development. Under the Clean Air Act, FHWA
must insure that transportation plans, programs, and projects conform to the state’s air quality implementation plans.
Conformance with a state implementation plan is largely determined during project planning. Issues associated with
meeting federal air quality requirements are not discussed in this report.
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The Role of the Environmental Review Process in Federally Funded Highway Projects
Implementing the Environmental Review Process
The individual requirements discussed above were enacted by Congress after a particular concern
arose or need was identified. For an individual project, several requirements involving similar
compliance directives could apply. For example, depending on its impacts, a project may be
subject to different public hearing or notification requirements under separate federal regulatory
or statutory requirements.
The environmental review process is intended to function as the mechanism under which
potentially duplicative requirements are identified and coordinated (including duplicative state or
tribal requirements). Specifically, it is DOT policy that, to the fullest extent possible, any
investigation, review, and consultation necessary to demonstrate environmental compliance be
coordinated as a single process. The environmental review process is that single process. It forms
the framework under which all applicable compliance requirements intended to protect the
human, natural, or cultural environment are identified and demonstrated. Further, the NEPA
compliance process forms the framework for completing the environmental review process.
In the past, suggestions made by transportation stakeholders to expedite project delivery, as well
as legislative options proposed by some Members of Congress, have focused on requirements
established specifically under NEPA. However, examples of individual projects delayed by
environmental requirements more often involve issues associated with environmental compliance
obligations established under separate state or federal requirements. In identifying and
determining the potential effectiveness of nationally applicable approaches to expedite the
environmental review process, it is necessary to distinguish between what is required explicitly
under NEPA versus other federal environmental requirements.
Demonstrating Compliance with NEPA
The Council on Environmental Quality (CEQ) promulgated regulations implementing NEPA that
were broadly applicable to all federal agencies.18 CEQ required each federal agency to develop its
own NEPA procedures specific to typical classes of actions undertaken by that agency.19 In 1987,
DOT promulgated “Environmental Impact and Related Procedures.”20 Those regulations
prescribe the policies and procedures for FHWA to implement NEPA as it may apply to federally
funded highway projects. They also include procedures necessary to ensure compliance with
environmental requirements established under Title 23 applicable to Federal-aid Highways (e.g.,
procedures necessary to demonstrate compliance with requirements applicable to economic,
social, and environmental effects, public hearings, and preservation of parklands (Section 4(f))).
DOT’s regulations have been revised periodically in accordance with legislative directives from
Congress and to reflect court decisions applicable to DOT’s implementation of both the NEPA
process and its other environmental compliance obligations. Most recently, the regulations were
modified to reflect the new environmental review process established under SAFETEA.
18
40 C.F.R. §§1500-1508.
40 C.F.R. §1507.3.
20
23 C.F.R. Part 771.
19
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The Role of the Environmental Review Process in Federally Funded Highway Projects
Identifying the Appropriate NEPA Document
For a given highway project that receives funding or approval under Federal-aid Highways
programs, compliance with NEPA is demonstrated in the “NEPA document.” Requirements that
define the various categories of NEPA document and required elements of each are found in the
NEPA regulations promulgated by both CEQ and DOT.
Transportation projects vary in type, size, complexity, and potential to affect the environment. To
account for the variability of potential project impacts, NEPA regulations establish three basic
“classes of action” that dictate how NEPA compliance will be documented and implemented.
Determining the appropriate NEPA document and level of environmental review and analysis
necessary for that document is dependent upon the answer to the following question: “Will the
proposed action have any significant environmental impact?” Answers to that question, and the
corresponding NEPA documents, are as follows:
•
Yes. Those projects require an Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) followed
by a final Record of Decision (ROD).
•
Maybe. When the significance of a project’s impacts is not clear, an
Environmental Assessment (EA) must be prepared to determine whether an EIS
is necessary or a Finding of No Significant Impact (FONSI) is appropriate.
•
No. Those projects are categorically excluded from the requirement to prepare an
EIS or EA; as such, those projects are generally referred to as Categorical
Exclusions (CEs or CATEX).
Pursuant to NEPA’s aims, an evaluation of environmental impacts is required prior to
commitment of federal resources. To meet that requirement, preparation of the NEPA document
may begin in the project planning stage, but must be completed within the preliminary design and
environmental review stage of project development. Generally, subsequent stages of project
development (final design activities, property acquisition, or project construction) cannot proceed
until the necessary NEPA document is complete and approved by FHWA.
FHWA-Approved Projects By NEPA Class of Action
Major highway projects that require an EIS are the most studied and discussed when there is
debate over the time it takes to complete the NEPA process. Further, past legislative efforts to
expedite the NEPA process have focused primarily on the NEPA process as it applies to EIS
preparation. However, FHWA data from 1998 to 2007 show that approximately 4% of federal-aid
highway projects approved under programs administered by FHWA required an EIS. Projects
processed as a CE or with an EA/FONSI accounted for approximately 96% (see Figure 1).
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The Role of the Environmental Review Process in Federally Funded Highway Projects
Figure 1. FHWA-Approved Projects—By NEPA Class of Action
Average from 1998 to 2007
Source: Congressional Research Service, based on data available from FHWA’s “Streamlining/Stewardship:
Performance Reporting” website at http://environment.fhwa.dot.gov/strmlng/projectgraphs.asp.
More recent FHWA data illustrate a similar proportion of major new projects and smaller
maintenance/rehabilitation projects. In FY2009, of the approximately 55,043 miles of roadway
projects receiving federal-aid highway funds, approximately 50,166 miles (91%) involved
reconstruction projects with no added roadway capacity, restoration and rehabilitation activities,
or road resurfacing (i.e., projects likely to be processed as CEs). Approximately 4,877 miles of
road construction projects involved new construction, relocation, or reconstruction with added
capacity (i.e., projects likely to require preparation of an EA or EIS).21
In addition to representing a small number of overall projects, few projects currently being
developed require an EIS. As of November 18, 2011, 10 states had no active projects that
involved EIS preparation, 12 states and the District of Columbia and Puerto Rico were preparing
1, and 18 states were preparing between 2 and 5 (illustrated in Figure 2). Further, a significant
number of active EISs (68 of 175 or 39%) were being prepared in just five states—California,
Texas, North Carolina, Florida, and New York.
21
These statistics apply to projects funded under the Federal-aid Highway program. For more detail, see the Federal
Highway Administration’s “Highway Statistics for 2009: Obligation of Federal-Aid Highway Funds For Highway
Improvements Fiscal Year 2009 (Intended to Show Only Projects Authorized in FY 2009),” Table FA-10, October
2010, available at http://www.fhwa.dot.gov/policyinformation/statistics/2009/fa10.cfm.
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The Role of the Environmental Review Process in Federally Funded Highway Projects
Figure 2. Active FHWA Projects Requiring an EIS in Each State
Source: Congressional Research Service, based on FHWA’s list of Active and Inactive Environmental Impact
Statements (EISs) as of November 18, 2011, available on the agency’s “NEPA and Project Development” website
at http://www.environment.fhwa.dot.gov/projdev/active_eis.asp.
While projects requiring an EIS represent a small proportion of total projects and a small number
of active projects being developed in each state, they are more likely to be high-profile, complex
projects that affect sizeable populations and take years, even decades, from planning to
construction. They may cost millions, or even hundreds of millions, of dollars. For example, data
from 1998 to 2007 regarding FHWA funding allocation show that while projects processed as
CEs generally represent 90% of projects approved, those projects accounted for approximately
76% of FHWA program funds. Over that period, projects requiring an EIS accounted for
approximately 4% of the total projects approved, but 12% of allocated program funds (see Figure
3).
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The Role of the Environmental Review Process in Federally Funded Highway Projects
Figure 3. Percentage of FHWA Program Funding Allocation by NEPA Class of Action
Average from 1998 to 2007
Source: Congressional Research Service, based on data available on FHWA’s “Streamlining/Stewardship:
Performance Reporting” website, http://www.environment.fhwa.dot.gov/strmlng/projectgraphs.asp/.
While a project requiring an EIS will likely cost more than a project processed as a CE, there is
not necessarily a direct relationship between a project’s cost and its level of environmental
impacts. For example, it cannot be stated that projects that cost over $1 million, or even $10
million, will require an EIS. This point is illustrated by reviewing FHWA’s list of “Major
Projects,” defined to include those expected to receive over $500 million in federal assistance.22
Included on FHWA’s list of currently active major projects are several that are being processed as
CEs or with an approved FONSI.23 For example, the “Loop 12/State Highway 35E Corridor”
project in the Dallas-Fort Worth, TX, area is described as a reconstruction and widening project
estimated to cost $1.6 billion. Project letting for that project began after approval of an
EA/FONSI. Also included on the list is the “I-595 Corridor Improvements Project.” That project,
determined to be a CE, will add reversible lanes and involve major interchange improvements
along 10.5 miles of the I-595 corridor in Florida. It is estimated to cost $1.8 billion.
22
That definition of “Major Projects” was included among provisions in Section 1904 of SAFETEA that amended the
“Project approval and oversight” requirements under 23 U.S.C. §106. The identification of a project as “major,” in this
context, is unrelated to its potential distinction as a “major federal action significantly affecting the quality of the
human environment” pursuant to NEPA under 42 U.S.C. §4332(c).
23
See the FHWA Active Project Status Report, available on FHWA’s “Project Delivery” website,
https://fhwaapps.fhwa.dot.gov/foisp/publicActive.do.
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The Role of the Environmental Review Process in Federally Funded Highway Projects
Selected Requirements for Each Category of NEPA Document
Each NEPA document (EIS, EA, and CE) must include certain required elements (see Figure 4).
That is, the NEPA document must show that environmental impacts were considered as part of
the federal decision-making process, not a paperwork exercise to document impacts from a
project after a decision was made.
Figure 4. NEPA Decision-Making Process
Required Elements of NEPA Documentation
Source: FHWA guidance document, Integrating Road Safety into NEPA Analysis: A Primer for Safety and
Environmental Professionals, in the “FHWA Environmental Toolkit,” available at
http://www.environment.fhwa.dot.gov/projdev/pd6rs_primer_sec2.asp.
Requirements applicable to each element of each NEPA document, and how DOT requires an
applicant for federal funds to demonstrate compliance with each element, largely evolved in the
20 years after NEPA was enacted. Those requirements are reflected in both CEQ and DOT
regulations implementing NEPA. The evolution of the NEPA compliance process was also
influenced by the courts. For example, the courts played a prominent role in determining issues
such as what constitutes “significant” impacts, who must prepare an EIS, at what point an EIS
must be prepared, and how adverse comments from agencies should be handled. Changes to
required elements of the NEPA process, applicable to projects funded under DOT programs, are
also made by Congress.
Selected requirements applicable to each category of NEPA document, including requirements
established under SAFETEA, are discussed below.
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The Role of the Environmental Review Process in Federally Funded Highway Projects
Categorical Exclusion (CE) Determinations
As discussed above, projects processed as CEs represent the greatest proportion of projects
approved for federal-aid highway funds. DOT defines CEs as actions that, based on past
experience with similar actions, do not individually or collectively have a significant impact on
any natural, cultural, recreational, historic, or other resource, or involve significant air, noise, or
water quality impacts; and that will not
•
induce significant impacts to planned growth or land use for the area;
•
require the relocation of significant numbers of people;
•
have significant impacts on travel patterns; or
•
otherwise, either individually or cumulatively, have any significant
environmental impacts.24
A project may meet these criteria, but still involve “unusual circumstances” that would require
FHWA to ensure that a CE designation is appropriate. Unusual circumstances applicable to
federally funded highway projects include substantial project controversy on environmental
grounds; a significant impact on properties protected under Section 4(f) or Section 106 of the
National Historic Preservation Act (NHPA); or inconsistencies with any federal, state, or local
requirements relating to the environmental aspects of the action.25
DOT identifies two groups of surface transportation projects that would likely meet the CE
criteria (absent any unusual circumstances applicable to the project). The first group includes
specific actions that meet criteria applicable to CEs.26 DOT has determined that these projects
(presented in Table 1) will likely result in insignificant environmental impacts because they either
do not involve or directly lead to construction or involve minor construction.
Table 1. Federally Funded Highway Projects Specifically Listed as CEs
Non-construction activities (e.g., planning, technical
studies, or research activities).
Emergency repairs after a natural disaster or catastrophic
failure.
Installing fencing, signs, pavement markings, small
passenger shelters, and traffic signals that involve no
substantial land acquisition or traffic disruption.
Deploying electronic, photonic, communication, or
information processing systems to improve system
efficiency or safety.
Altering a facility to make it accessible to elderly and
handicapped persons.
Landscaping activities.
Implementing ridesharing programs.
Improving existing rest areas or truck weigh stations.
Scenic easement acquisition.
Installing noise barriers.
Activities in a state highway safety plan.
Constructing bicycle or pedestrian lanes or facilities.
Source: Congressional Research Service, taken from actions listed at 23 C.F.R. §771.117(c).
24
23 C.F.R. §771.117(a); further DOT criteria used to determine whether a project would meet necessary CE criteria
extend from CEQ regulations defining CEs at 40 C.F.R. §1508.4.
25
23 C.F.R. §771.117(b).
26
Listed at 23 C.F.R. §771.117(c).
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The Role of the Environmental Review Process in Federally Funded Highway Projects
A proposed action included in this list may or may not require an applicant for federal funds to
submit supporting documentation to FHWA. Necessary paperwork could range from a simple
checklist to substantial documentation. The extent of paperwork or supporting documentation is
directly related to the extent of the impacts and necessary analysis of those impacts. For example,
construction of a bicycle path or installation of traffic signals in a historic district may require
some level of compliance with Section 106 of the NHPA or Section 4(f).
The second group of CEs includes actions that past DOT experience has shown to have
substantial, but generally not “significant,” effects.27 For this group, DOT regulations include
“examples” of actions commonly approved by FHWA that may meet the regulatory definition of a
CE (presented in Table 2). Such projects require the project sponsor to provide FHWA with
documentation to confirm that the project does not involve “unusual circumstances” resulting in
significant environmental impacts. Unlike specifically “listed CEs” (Table 1), the potential
universe of “documented CEs” is not limited to projects identified by DOT. Instead, FHWA may
approve a CE designation for any action as long as documentation is provided that demonstrates
the project meets the regulatory definition of a CE.
Table 2. Examples of FHWA-Approved Projects That May Be Classified as a CE
Actions That May Be Designated a CE with Appropriate Documentation and FHWA Approval
Highway modernization through resurfacing, restoration,
rehabilitation, or reconstruction.
Bridge rehabilitation, reconstruction, or replacement.
Highway safety or traffic operations improvement
projects.
New truck weigh station or rest area construction.
Approval for changes in access control.
Approval for disposal of excess right-of-way or for joint
or limited use of right-of-way.
Acquisition of certain preexisting railroad right-of-way.
Land acquisition for hardship or protective purposes.
Construction of transportation corridor fringe parking
facilities.
Source: Congressional Research Service, taken from examples of actions listed at 23 C.F.R. §771.117(d).
Although they are excluded from the requirement to prepare an EIS or EA, CEs are sometimes
incorrectly identified as being exempt from NEPA or having no environmental impacts. No
significant environmental impact under NEPA does not mean the project has no other regulated
environmental impacts. For example, to demonstrate that a project meets both the CE criteria and
will comply with other environmental requirements, state DOTs routinely gather information
regarding a CE’s potential to
27
•
involve work that requires highway traffic or construction noise abatement;
•
be located within certain limits of a sole source aquifer or alter stream flow;
•
involve the acquisition of more than minor amounts of temporary or permanent
right-of-way;
•
require a Section 4(f) evaluation or “an opinion of adverse effect” under Section
106 of NHPA;
Listed at 23 C.F.R. §771.117(d).
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The Role of the Environmental Review Process in Federally Funded Highway Projects
•
involve commercial or residential displacement;
•
involve work in wetlands that would require a permit from the Corps; or
•
be constructed in a county that lists federal threatened and endangered species.
A project may involve any one or more of these (or other) activities that will have some effect on
the human or natural environment, yet have environmental impacts that do not rise to the level of
“significant” under NEPA. However, the threshold of significant impacts is primarily relevant to
NEPA compliance. Other laws intended to protect or mitigate impacts to natural or cultural
resources will have their own compliance thresholds applicable to that law. FHWA approval of a
project processed as a CE may be delayed if the project sponsor does not realize that its proposed
project may be subject to compliance requirements in addition to NEPA.
Within its responsibilities to oversee the Federal-aid Highway program, FHWA typically
establishes procedures with each state DOT regarding CE review and approval. In a given state,
“listed CEs” generally require minimal documentation before FHWA approval. NEPA review for
those projects would be included as part of FHWA’s project oversight and approval obligations
established under Title 23. For “documented CEs,” FHWA either reviews the NEPA
documentation as part of the project development process and any agreed-upon procedures as part
of the project review and approval, or the state DOT does this review in accordance with a formal
programmatic CE agreement established between FHWA and the state DOT.
A programmatic CE agreement sets forth specific project circumstances for which a CE could be
processed, and maintains FHWA oversight and responsibility for the NEPA determination. A
programmatic approach involves establishing a streamlined process for handling routine
environmental requirements, commonly applicable to specific types of project (e.g., bridge
maintenance or road resurfacing activities). It allows for repetitive actions to be considered on a
programmatic basis rather than project by project. Established on a local, regional, or statewide
basis, a programmatic CE may establish procedures for consultation, review, and compliance with
one or more federal laws. FHWA suggests that, to the extent possible, state DOTs take a
programmatic approach to CE determinations.
Apart from its potential to enter into programmatic CE agreements with FHWA, state DOTs may
assume FHWA responsibility for CE determinations. Pursuant to provisions in Section 6004 of
SAFETEA,28 FHWA may assign and a state DOT may assume responsibility for determining
whether certain highway projects meet the CE criteria. Under that authority, a participating state
would be authorized to determine all CE applicability, including determining whether proposed
projects that are not specifically listed under DOT’s NEPA regulations may meet the CE criteria.
States that choose to assume FHWA responsibility would be required to do so in accordance with
terms and conditions established in a memorandum of understanding (MOU) between the state
and FHWA.29 States assuming federal authority are legally liable for the NEPA determination.
That is, FHWA would not be liable for the NEPA determinations for CEs in states participating in
the program. FHWA would be required to conduct an annual review of a participating state’s
28
23 U.S.C. §326.
For more information, see memorandum from the U.S. Department of Transportation, Federal Highway
Administration, to Directors of Field Services and Division Administrators, regarding “Guidance on the State
Assumption of Responsibility for Categorical Exclusions (CE),” April 6, 2006, available at http://www.fhwa.dot.gov/
hep/6004memo.htm.
29
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The Role of the Environmental Review Process in Federally Funded Highway Projects
process for making CE determinations. To date, three states (Alaska, California, and Utah) have
requested and been assigned responsibilities under the Section 6004 program.
Environmental Impact Statements (EIS)
Projects requiring an EIS make up the smallest percentage of projects approved by FHWA, but
have generated the most attention when debating NEPA’s potential role in delaying highway
projects. FHWA does not specifically identify actions that require an EIS. That determination
must be made on a case-by-case basis. However, DOT identifies the following as examples of
highway projects that normally require an EIS: a new controlled access freeway; a highway
project of four or more lanes on a new location; and new construction or extension of a separate
roadway for buses or high-occupancy vehicles not located within an existing highway facility.30
Both the steps to complete an EIS and the EIS itself include certain required elements. Each
required element represents the evolution of NEPA compliance requirements—as established by
CEQ and, in part, as a result of judicial interpretation of NEPA’s mandate and how its procedural
requirements must be implemented. Required components in EIS preparation are
•
file a Notice of Intent (NOI)
•
scope the environmental issues
•
prepare a draft EIS
•
circulate the draft EIS for comment
•
prepare the final EIS
•
issue a final record of decision (ROD)
The NOI serves as the formal announcement of the project to the public and to interested federal,
state, tribal, and local agencies.31 As soon as possible after, or in conjunction with, the
determination that an EIS is needed, the agency is required to determine the scope of the project.
During that process, the project sponsor/applicant for federal funds should determine which
environmental laws, regulations, or other requirements may apply to the project. During the
scoping process, routes that may pose certain challenges and could be avoided may be identified
(e.g., the presence of terrain or resources that may involve potential engineering or technical
problems, regulatory restrictions, or public opposition). For example, during the scoping process,
a potential route or alignment may be identified that would avoid property of historical
significance, endangered species habitat, or wetlands—each of which may require compliance
with the NHPA, the Endangered Species Act, or the Clean Water Act, respectively.
Once the scope of the action and its environmental issues have been determined, EIS preparation
can begin. Required elements of an EIS, including selected elements in DOT’s NEPA regulations
or FHWA policy, are summarized in Table 3.
30
31
23 C.F.R. §771.115(a).
40 C.F.R. §1508.22.
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Table 3. Required Elements of an EIS as Implemented by FHWA
Elements of
an EIS
Definition/Description
Purpose
and need
statement
(§1502.13)
A brief statement, developed by the lead agency, specifying the underlying purpose of a project
and the need to which the agency is responding. According to FHWA, this section may be the
most important, as it establishes why the agency is proposing to spend large amounts of
taxpayers’ money while at the same time causing significant environmental impacts. A clear, welljustified statement explains to the public and decision makers that the use of funds is necessary
and worthwhile, particularly as compared to other needed highway projects. The statement forms
the basis on which potential alternatives to meet that need are identified and a final alternative is
ultimately selected. It cannot be so narrow that it effectively defines competing “reasonable
alternatives" out of consideration. The "purpose" may be a discussion of the goals and objective.
The "need" may be a discussion of existing conditions that call for some improvement, including
those applicable to transportation demand, safety, legislative direction, urban transportation plan
consistency, modal interrelationships, system linkage, and the condition of an existing facility.
Alternatives
(§1502.14)
Defined as the “heart” of the EIS, this section includes the identification and evaluation of all
reasonable alternatives that may meet a project’s purpose and need. FHWA requires the range of
alternatives to include a discussion of how and why all reasonable alternatives were selected for
consideration, and to explain why other alternatives were eliminated from detailed study. Each
alternative, and its associated impacts, must be evaluated in sufficient detail to allow decision
makers and the public an opportunity to compare the merits of each option.
Affected
environment
(§1502.15)
A succinct description of the environment of the area(s) to be affected or created by the
alternatives under consideration. DOT requires this section to include a description of the
existing social, economic, and environmental setting of the area potentially affected by all
alternatives presented in the EIS. Data may include demographics of the general population served
by the proposed project, as well as an identification of socially, economically, and environmentally
sensitive locations or features in the proposed project area. For example, the EIS should identify
the presence of affected minority or ethnic groups, parks, hazardous material sites, historic sites,
or wetlands, among other factors.
Environmental
Consequences
(§1502.16)
Analysis of impacts of each project alternative on the affected environment, including a discussion
of the probable beneficial and adverse social, economic, and environmental effects of each
alternative. Where applicable, this section must include a description of the measures proposed
to mitigate adverse impacts and methods of compliance with applicable legal requirements.
FHWA recommends this section be devoted largely to a scientific analysis of the direct and
indirect environmental effects of the proposed action relative to each alternative. Potential
environmental consequences identified by FHWA include land use, farmland, social, economic, air
quality, noise, water quality, wetland, wildlife, floodplain, or construction impacts; the requirement
to obtain any permits; impacts to wild and scenic rivers, coastal barriers, threatened or
endangered species, historic and archeological preservation, or hazardous waste sites; and any
irreversible and irretrievable commitment of resources. This section would likely require input
from other federal, state, tribal, or local agencies with expertise on the environmental
consequences under review.
List of
preparers
(§1502.17)
List of names and qualifications of individuals responsible for preparing the EIS. FHWA requires
this section to include lists of state and local agency personnel, including consultants, who were
primarily responsible for preparing the EIS/performing environmental studies and FHWA
personnel responsible for EIS preparation/review.
Appendix
(§1502.18)
Prepared if necessary. An appendix normally consists of material that substantiates analysis
fundamental to the impact statement.
Source: Congressional Research Service, taken from CEQ regulatory definitions under 40 C.F.R. §1502 and
requirements and definitions applicable to highway projects included in FHWA guidance “NEPA and
Transportation Decisionmaking: The Importance of Purpose and Need in Environmental Documents,” and
“Guidance for Preparing and Processing Environmental and Section 4(f) Documents.”
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The Role of the Environmental Review Process in Federally Funded Highway Projects
The EIS is prepared in two stages, resulting in a draft and a final EIS.32 Supplemental documents
may be required in some instances. Among other requirements, the final EIS must identify the
preferred project alternative; reflect an evaluation of all reasonable alternatives considered;
identify and respond to public and agency comments on the draft EIS; and summarize public
involvement. The final EIS should document compliance with requirements of all applicable
environmental laws, executive orders, and other related requirements. If full compliance is not
possible by the time the final EIS is prepared, it should reflect consultation with the appropriate
agencies and provide reasonable assurance that the requirements will be met. FHWA approval of
the environmental document constitutes adoption of any findings and determinations in the EIS.
The ROD presents the basis for the agency’s final decision and summarizes any mitigation
measures that will be incorporated in the project.
Each required element of the EIS involves compliance requirements established under both NEPA
and other environmental requirements. For example, a clear delineation of project purpose and
need is also necessary to meet the requirements under Section 4(f), executive orders on wetlands
and floodplains, and permitting requirements established under Section 404 of the Clean Water
Act. Identifying the potentially affected environment and analysis of environmental consequences
also demonstrate that environmental impacts are considered during, not after, the decision-making
process (as required under NEPA), but also include consultation, analysis, or input from resource
agencies that may be necessary to ensure compliance with other applicable environmental law.
SAFETEA included several provisions that applied to projects that require an EIS. Section 6002
amended Title 23 by adding “Efficient Environmental Reviews for Project Decision-making”
(§138). It established a new environmental review process applicable to all highways, transit, and
multi-modal projects requiring an EIS. Among other requirements, the new process
•
requires the project sponsor to notify DOT of the type of work, termini, length,
general location of the proposed project, and a statement of any anticipated
federal approvals;
•
establishes a new entity required to participate in the NEPA process, referred to
as a “participating agency,” which includes any federal, state, tribal, regional, and
local government agencies that may have an interest in the project;33
•
requires the lead agency to establish a plan for coordinating public and agency
participation in and comment on the environmental review process for a project
or category of projects;
•
requires the lead agency to establish a 60-day deadline on agency and public
comments on a draft EIS and a 30-day deadline on all other comment periods in
the environmental review process, except under certain circumstances (e.g., the
deadline is extended by the lead agency for “good cause”); and
•
prohibits claims seeking judicial review of a permit, license, or approval issued
by a federal agency for highway or transit projects unless they are filed within
180 days after publication of a notice in the Federal Register announcing the
32
40 C.F.R. §1502.9.
This category of agency participant in the NEPA process differs from a “cooperating agency,” discussed below, that
is defined as an agency having jurisdiction by law or special expertise with respect to any environmental impact of a
proposed project or project alternative.
33
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The Role of the Environmental Review Process in Federally Funded Highway Projects
final agency action, unless a shorter time is specified in the federal law under
which the judicial review is allowed (previously, the six-year limit under the
Administrative Procedure Act applied to NEPA-related claims).
DOT has produced guidance to help state DOTs implement SAFETEA’s revised environmental
review process and modified regulations implementing NEPA to reflect SAFETEA’s amendments
to Title 23.34
The National Cooperative Highway Research Program conducted a survey of state DOTs to
determine their impressions of the new environmental review process established by SAFETEA.
The DOTs responding to the survey were generally favorable regarding the act’s requirements.35
In particular, there was wide approval of the 180-day statute of limitations.36 However, survey
respondents expressed concerns about some provisions, including their impressions that it
represented no major change from what state DOTs were doing previously; it duplicated existing
coordination procedures; and DOT already involved outside agencies prior to implementing the
new procedures. Further, many survey respondents expressed concern that some requirements of
the new environmental review process seemed to run counter to streamlining initiatives by
creating additional requirements that could have a negative impact on schedules and budgets.37
Under Section 6005, SAFETEA amended Title 23 to establish a “Surface Transportation Project
Delivery Pilot Program” (§327). The pilot program allowed Oklahoma, California, Texas, Ohio,
and Alaska to assume certain federal environmental review responsibilities (in addition to the
assumption of CE determinations established under Section 6004, discussed above).
Responsibility could be assumed for environmental reviews required under NEPA, or any federal
law, for one or more highway projects within the state. As a condition of assuming federal
authority, Congress required the state to waive its right to sovereign immunity against actions
brought by citizens in federal court and consent to the jurisdiction of federal courts. That is, the
state would become solely liable for complying with and carrying out the federal authority that it
consents to assume.
To date, only California has agreed to and developed a program to participate in the pilot
program. Other states declined, primarily due to state legislature concerns regarding the potential
liability associated with assuming federal responsibility for NEPA.
Additionally, some state transportation agency officials and stakeholders with an interest in
transportation project development have expressed concern over DOT requirements
implementing the pilot program (as required pursuant to the directive in Section 6005). Those
objections have centered largely around DOT’s requirement applicable to rights-of-way (ROW)
acquisitions in states that choose to assume federal authority under NEPA. As discussed earlier,
34
See “SAFETEA-LU Environmental Review Process, Final Guidance,” November 15, 2006, available at
http://www.fhwa.dot.gov/hep/section6002/index.htm and the Department of Transportation’s “Environmental Impact
and Related Procedures; Final Rule,” 74 Federal Register 12517, March 24, 2009.
35
See the National Cooperative Highway Research Program’s “Legal Research Digest 54: Practice Under the
Environmental Provisions of SAFETEA-LU,” December 2010, available at http://onlinepubs.trb.org/onlinepubs/nchrp/
nchrp_lrd_54.pdf.
36
There was also wide approval of changes made to Section 4(f) under SAFETEA Section 6002, applicable to de
minimis project impacts (see “Requirements Applicable to Federal-aid Highways”) regarding the “preservation of
parklands” requirements.
37
See the summary of survey respondent impressions of SAFETEA provisions at pp. 16-21.
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The Role of the Environmental Review Process in Federally Funded Highway Projects
one of NEPA’s primary aims is to ensure that federal agencies consider the impacts of their
actions before proceeding with them. The NEPA process cannot simply document a decision that
has already been made. This requirement means that federal funds cannot be used for ROW
acquisitions (an action that could indicate that a final project decision has been made) before the
NEPA process is complete. Currently, states may make ROW acquisitions using state funds on an
at-risk basis. That is, they may purchase land using state funds, but risk losing future federal
funding for that purchase if the project ultimately involves an alternative that does not use that
property. By assuming DOT’s authority, a state would assume federal agency-level responsibility
to comply with NEPA. DOT has found that would mean, in its capacity as a federal agency, the
state would be precluded from making such advanced ROW acquisitions.
Some have argued that the loss of a state’s ability to make at-risk ROW acquisitions has been a
disincentive to states that may otherwise want to assume federal authority under NEPA. However,
when the fear of taking on federal liability and subjecting the state to the jurisdiction of federal
court were primary reasons that states did not want to assume NEPA authority, it is unclear how
states could be protected from potential judicial review if they are allowed to complete a
transaction that could appear to violate one of NEPA’s primary goals. Although state DOTs may
be willing to accept that risk, a state legislature may not, particularly when an incentive for a state
to assume the federal role under NEPA is to eliminate FHWA’s oversight of the NEPA process
(e.g., FHWA’s legal sufficiency review of an EIS).
Environmental Assessments (EAs)
The third category of NEPA document is an EA. It is required for an action that is not a CE and
does not clearly require an EIS, or where FHWA believes an EA would assist in determining the
need for an EIS. An EA is intended to be a concise public document that serves to provide
sufficient evidence and analysis for determining whether to prepare an EIS or a Finding of No
Significant Impact (FONSI).38
In preparing an EA, the applicant, in consultation with FHWA, is required to consult with
interested agencies at the earliest appropriate time to determine the project scope; determine
which aspects of the proposed action have potential for social, economic, or environmental
impact; identify alternatives and measures which might mitigate adverse environmental impacts;
and identify other environmental review and consultation requirements which should be
performed concurrently with the EA.39
The EA is subject to FHWA approval before it is made available to the public. The document
itself need not be circulated, but must be made available for public inspection and comment
(typically for at least 30 days). A notice of availability must be sent to state- and area-wide
clearinghouses and should be published locally. Depending on FHWA-approved state procedures,
a public hearing may or may not be required.
FHWA requires the basis of a request for a FONSI be clearly and adequately documented. Like an
EIS, the EA or FONSI is required to clearly document compliance with NEPA and all other
applicable environmental laws, executive orders, and related requirements. An approved FONSI
functions as the final agency decision on a project.
38
39
40 C.F.R. §1508.9.
23 C.F.R. §771.119(b).
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The Role of the Environmental Review Process in Federally Funded Highway Projects
Like projects processed as CEs, determining the time it takes to complete an EA is difficult. Local
and state transportation officials do not routinely, nor could they easily, track the time it takes to
complete an EA. A distinct end point could be identified (issuance of a FONSI), but a starting
point may be hard to identify. Further, since EAs likely require limited environmental review or
analysis under NEPA, any analysis or review that is prepared to support a FONSI would likely be
required under separate state or federal law. However, transportation agency officials have
complained that EAs sometimes approach the length of an EIS. If that is the case, factors
indirectly related to the NEPA compliance likely apply to the project. For example, a project that
may involve local controversy or opposition, but still have no significant impacts, may require
more analysis or documentation than anticipated. Also, a project with substantial environmental
impacts to certain resources may require time-consuming consultation, analysis, or approvals
from agencies outside DOT to confirm that no significant impacts will occur, or it could be an
indication that an EIS should have been prepared initially.
Agency Roles and Responsibilities in the NEPA Process
The NEPA document is prepared by a “lead agency,” and may require input and analysis from
“cooperating” or “participating” agencies. Depending on the environmental impacts of a given
project, both the lead and cooperating agencies are obligated to meet certain federal requirements.
The time it takes to meet those obligations has been identified by transportation agencies as a
potential source of frustration or project delay.
Lead Agencies
The “lead agency” is the federal agency responsible for preparing the NEPA document.40 DOT
must serve as the lead federal agency for a federally funded transportation project (FHWA
generally serves as the lead for highway projects). The direct recipient of federal funds for the
project must serve as a joint lead agency (a requirement explicitly established under SAFETEA).
For a federal-aid highway project, that is typically the state DOT, but may include a local agency
project sponsor or a federally recognized Indian tribal governmental unit. At the discretion of the
required lead agencies, other federal, state, or local governmental entities may act as joint lead
agencies. These include, but are not limited to toll, port, and turnpike authorities and metropolitan
planning organizations (MPOs). For example, the U.S. Department of Homeland Security may
serve as a joint lead agency with DOT and the project sponsor on a transportation improvement at
a national border crossing.
In practice, the entity seeking federal funds will prepare the NEPA document, and other
supporting environmental review documents, with guidance from FHWA (as necessary or as
requested). FHWA, however, has ultimate responsibility to ensure that a project seeking federal
funds will comply with the various laws, regulations, and executive orders applicable to the
project. In that capacity, before final approval and project funding, FHWA is required to
independently evaluate the necessary environmental documents and review the legal sufficiency
of a final EIS41 or Section 4(f) evaluation.42 This review is intended to ensure that the Section 4(f)
40
See 40 C.F.R. §1508.16.
23 C.F.R. §771.125(b). A legal sufficiency review of an EA may be required if FHWA determines that details of the
individual project warrant such a review.
42
23 C.F.R. §774.7(d).
41
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The Role of the Environmental Review Process in Federally Funded Highway Projects
evaluation or NEPA document is consistent with legal requirements. It includes a review of the
documentation and associated compliance efforts to determine if those efforts are sufficient to
assure compliance with applicable law. A separate technical review of the final NEPA/Section4(f)
document is also conducted by FHWA, prior to document approval.
Cooperating and, after SAFETEA, Participating Agencies
The lead agency must consult with and obtain the comments of any federal agency that has
“jurisdiction by law or special expertise with respect to any environmental impact involved” in an
action that requires an EIS.43 In CEQ’s NEPA regulations, those agencies are identified as
“cooperating” agencies.44 Pursuant to directive from Congress in SAFETEA, DOT’s NEPA
regulations were supplemented to also identify “participating” agencies, which may include any
federal and non-federal agencies that may have an interest in the project.45
At the request of the lead agency, the cooperating agency is required to assume responsibility for
developing information and preparing environmental analyses, including portions of the EIS
related to its special expertise. Cooperating agencies are also obligated to provide comments on
the NEPA document on areas within their jurisdiction, expertise, or authority. For projects
requiring an EIS, that role may be set out in a memorandum of understanding or agreement
between the agencies. The lead agency is also required to request comments from appropriate
state, local, or tribal agencies; any agency that has requested to receive EISs on similar actions;
and the project applicant.46
CEQ regulations specify requirements for inviting and responding to comments on the draft EIS
(including requirements that specify a cooperating agency’s duty to comment on the draft).47 The
lead agency is required to consider those comments and respond in one of the following ways:
•
modify proposed alternatives, including the proposed action;
•
develop and evaluate alternatives not previously considered;
•
supplement, improve, or modify its analyses;
•
make factual corrections in the EIS; or
•
explain why the comments do not warrant further response from the lead agency,
citing the sources, authorities, or reasons that support its position.48
As illustrated in the choices listed above, the lead agency is not precluded from moving forward
with a project if it explains why a cooperating agency’s comments do not warrant further
response. However, FHWA suggests that every reasonable effort be made to resolve interagency
43
42 U.S.C. §4332(2)(C).
40 C.F.R. §1508.5.
45
Specific only to DOT’s NEPA requirements, “participating” agencies for federal highway projects are defined at 23
C.F.R. §771.107(h) as a state, local, tribal, or federal agency that may have an interest in the proposed project and have
accepted an invitation to participate in the environmental review process.
46
40 C.F.R. §1503.1.
47
40 C.F.R. §1503.
48
40 C.F.R. §1503.4.
44
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The Role of the Environmental Review Process in Federally Funded Highway Projects
disagreements on actions before processing the final EIS. If significant issues remain unresolved,
the final EIS shall identify those issues and any consultation or other effort made to resolve them.
Some highway projects have involved disagreements regarding the appropriate authority and
extent of involvement of coordinating agencies in the NEPA process. For example, in 2003,
Transportation Secretary Norman Mineta requested CEQ Chairman James Connaughton to clarify
the role of lead and cooperating agencies in developing EIS statements of project purpose and
need statements.49 Secretary Mineta cited the sometimes lengthy interagency debates over those
statements as a cause of delay in highway project development. In his response, Chairman
Connaughton referred to CEQ regulations specifying that the lead agency has the authority and
responsibility to define a project’s purpose and need. Further, Chairman Connaughton referenced
previous federal court decisions giving deference to the lead agency in determining a project’s
purpose and need. Chairman Connaughton’s letter also quotes CEQ’s regulations, citing the lead
agency’s “responsibilities throughout the NEPA process for the ‘scope, objectivity, and content of
the entire statement or of any other responsibility’ under NEPA.”
Public Involvement
To meet NEPA’s goal applicable to public participation in federal decision making, CEQ’s
regulations require agencies to provide public notice of NEPA-related hearings, public meetings,
and the availability of environmental documents so as to inform public stakeholders.50 DOT
procedures extend beyond those established under CEQ regulations to reflect requirements
applicable to “public hearings” established under Title 23.51 For example, EAs do not need to be
circulated, but must be made available to the public through notices of availability in local, state,
or regional clearinghouses, newspapers, and other means. Depending on a state’s public
involvement procedures (approved by FHWA), a public hearing may or may not be required for
projects that proceed with an EA. Pursuant to DOT regulations implementing NEPA,
documentation necessary to demonstrate compliance with Title 23’s public hearing requirements
(e.g., public comments or hearing transcripts) must be included in the final EIS or FONSI, as
applicable.
Stakeholders that comment on surface transportation projects may be expected to vary depending
on a project’s impacts. They may include individuals or groups who may benefit from or be
adversely impacted by the project, or special interest groups with concerns about the project’s
impacts on certain affected environments. For example, a highway project that involves
upgrading existing roadways may involve construction activities that would affect adjacent
homes or businesses. The project may elicit comments from the local business community (e.g.,
individual businesses, the Chamber of Commerce, or local development organizations) or area
homeowners. A project that may affect sensitive environmental resources, such as wetlands or
endangered species, may generate comments from local or national environmental organizations.
If a member of the public has concerns about a project’s impacts, comments may be directed at
virtually any element of the NEPA process or related documentation. Someone may disagree with
the definition of project’s purpose and need discussion, the range of “reasonable” alternatives
49
Text of Secretary Mineta’s May 6, 2003, letter, and Chairman Connaughton’s May 12, 2003, response, are available
at http://www.environment.fhwa.dot.gov/guidebook/Ginterim.asp.
50
40 C.F.R. §§1500.2(d). 1506.6.
51
23 U.S.C. §128.
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selected for consideration and analysis, or the identified level of significance of the project’s
impacts (e.g., a FONSI was issued when the individual felt an EIS should have been required).
Issues that arise during the public comment period may also be the subject of legal action. Critics
of NEPA charge that those who disapprove of a federal project will use NEPA as the basis for
litigation to delay or halt that project. Others argue that litigation results only when agencies do
not comply with NEPA.52
Actual litigation played a prominent role in NEPA’s early implementation. However, it may be the
threat of litigation that affects its current implementation. The number of NEPA-related lawsuits
filed annually against FHWA is low.53 Still, the potential threat of litigation may result in an effort
to prepare a “litigation-proof” NEPA document. This may be the case particularly for projects that
are costly, technically complex (potentially requiring compliance with multiple environmental
laws), or controversial (e.g., opposed by or individuals affected by the project or groups that
anticipate adverse impacts to resources of concern to them). Some look at this positively,
asserting that the fear of a lawsuit makes agencies more likely to adhere to NEPA’s requirements.
Others counter that the threat of litigation may lead to the generation of wasteful documentation
and analyses that do not add value to, and slow, decision making.
Demonstrating Compliance with Additional Requirements
Unlike NEPA, which will apply in some way to all federally funded highway projects, additional
environmental requirements applicable to a project will depend on site-specific conditions and
potential impacts to resources at the site. For example, what and how requirements may apply to a
project will depend on its effect on water quality, water resources, and land use as well as
community, visual, noise, or social impacts, to name a few. While a wide array of requirements
may apply to federally funded highway projects, certain federal requirements apply more
commonly than other requirements. Also, certain compliance requirements have been identified
by transportation stakeholders as those more likely to delay the environmental review process
(see surveys and studies listed in Appendix). The most commonly applicable laws, and selected
compliance requirements, are listed in Table 4.
52
Plaintiffs have generally cited some inadequacy in the NEPA documentation as the basis for filing NEPA-related
lawsuits (see CEQ’s Litigation Surveys for each year from 2001 to 2009 on its “NEPA Litigation” web page at
http://ceq.hss.doe.gov/legal_corner/litigation.html). They may charge, among other things, that an EIS or EA did not
include sufficient analysis of all project alternatives, did not consider all “reasonable” project alternatives, did not
adequately analyze the effects of project alternatives, or that an EA was prepared when an EIS should have been (i.e., a
FONSI was issued when impacts were in fact significant).
53
From 2001 to 2009, NEPA-related lawsuits filed annually against FHWA ranged from a low of three to a high of 12;
see CEQ’s Litigation Surveys cited in footnote 52.
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Table 4. Federal Law Commonly Applicable to FHWA-Approved Projects
Federal Law
Selected Compliance Requirements
Section 4(f)
For projects that would use a 4(f) resource, an evaluation or a determination of de minimis
impacts must be prepared (see the discussion regarding “Preservation of parklands” in the
“Requirements Applicable to Federal-aid Highways” section). The evaluation or de minimis
impacts determination requires some level of consultation with or concurrence from the
official with jurisdiction over the resource (e.g., the Department of the Interior’s U.S. Fish and
Wildlife Service (FWS); federal, state or local park authorities; or the designated SHPO).
Section 106 of the
National Historic
Preservation Act
For projects that may affect a site included, or eligible for inclusion, in the National Register of
Historic Places, FHWA must consult with the Advisory Council on Historic Preservation
(ACHP) or the designated SHPO to determine impacts to the site and seek ways to avoid,
minimize, or mitigate adverse impacts. Affected parties must be involved in mitigation plans.
Endangered
Species Act
(Section 7)
FHWA must prepare a biological assessment when the presence of threatened or endangered
animals or plants is suspected to occur in the vicinity of a project. FHWA must consult with
the federal agency of jurisdiction (FWS or the Department of Commerce’s National Marine
Fisheries Service (NMFS)) that will issue a biological opinion on whether the proposed action
would jeopardize the continued existence of listed species, or destroy or adversely modify
their designated critical habitats.
The Clean Water
Act (Section 404)
Requires that the discharge of dredge and fill materials into navigable waters of the United
States be done in accordance with review and permitting procedures administered by the
Corps, under guidelines developed by EPA. Other federal agencies potentially involved in
permit evaluation process include FWS or NMFS.
Source: Congressional Research Service, taken from requirements listed in FHWA’s “Summary of
Environmental Legislation Affecting Transportation,” at http://www.fhwa.dot.gov/environment/env_sum.htm.
Note: This is not intended to be an exhaustive list of federal requirements potentially applicable to federally
funded highway projects or a complete description of potentially applicable compliance requirements established
pursuant to each law. However, the selected requirements illustrate the potential need to obtain permits or
consult with agencies outside DOT. Further, federal laws selected for listing in this table represent those
identified by transportation agency officials as a common source of delay in completing the environmental review
process.
As illustrated by the requirements listed in Table 4, when a federal highway project involves
regulated impacts to certain resources, an agency with jurisdiction over that resource may be
required to provide some level of analysis, consultation, or approval before a project can proceed.
Resulting consultation or approval may include directive(s) to the project sponsor regarding how
or whether the proposed project may use the resource. These requirements can lengthen the time
it takes to complete the overall environmental review process, if outside agency opinions, input,
and/or evaluations are required before the NEPA review can be completed. Whether such
requirements will lead to project delays could depend on a host of factors such as whether the
project sponsor anticipated the need for outside agency approval or the workload of the agency
processing the approval.
To integrate the NEPA compliance process and avoid duplication of effort associated with a
project’s overall environmental compliance obligations, CEQ’s NEPA regulations specify that, to
the fullest extent possible, agencies must prepare the NEPA documentation concurrently with any
other environmental requirements. The appropriate NEPA documentation should demonstrate
compliance with all applicable environmental requirements. It must indicate any federal permits,
licenses, and other approvals required to implement the proposed project. This means that
compliance requirements of any additional environmental laws, regulations, or executive orders
must be identified (but not necessarily completed) during the NEPA process. If full compliance is
not possible by the time the final NEPA document is prepared, the document should reflect
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consultation with the appropriate agencies and provide reasonable assurance that the requirements
will be met.
Environmental Reviews and Project Development
To understand how the environmental review process may affect project delivery, it is useful to
understand how the process fits into overall project development, as well as the challenges
associated with measuring each stage of that development. It is also useful to recognize root
causes of delay in completing the environmental review process, as well as how the process can
lead to more efficient project development.
Stages of Project Development
Federal-aid highway funds are generally apportioned to each state by FHWA for the construction,
reconstruction, and improvement of highways and bridges on eligible highway routes, and for
other special-purpose programs. Individual state DOTs are responsible for determining how and
on which projects those funds will be spent. In making that determination, multiple activities and
decisions occur from the time a tribal or state DOT, metropolitan planning organization, or local
program agency (such as a municipal public works agency) identifies a transportation-related
need and a project addressing that need is constructed.
Each stage of project development is initiated and completed largely at the local, tribal, or state
level, with ultimate project approval at the federal level—from FHWA for federally funded
highway projects. Although the names and details of each step may vary from state to state, they
generally include project planning, preliminary design and environmental review, final design and
right-of-way acquisition, and project construction. Activities common to each phase of the project
development process, including maintenance activities that may take place after project
construction, are described in Table 5. The table also identifies potential environmental
compliance obligations that may occur in each stage of project development.
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Table 5. Stages of Federal-Aid Highway Project Development
Common Project Activities and Environmental Compliance Obligations in Each Phase of Development
Project
Phase
Description/Common Activities
Common Environmental
Compliance Obligations
Planning
Transportation program or project planning
involves a cooperative process designed to
foster involvement by all users of the planned
system—such as the business community,
community groups, environmental
organizations, the traveling public, freight
operators, and the general public. During this
stage, a proactive public participation process
is conducted by the metropolitan planning
organization (MPO), state DOT, and transit
operators. Among other activities, MPOs and
state DOTs identify current and projected
future transportation problems and needs, and
analyze, through detailed planning studies,
various transportation improvement strategies
to address those needs. They also develop
long-range plans and short-range programs for
alternative capital improvement and
operational strategies for moving people and
goods.
Efforts have been made, in both FHWA
guidance and statutory directive from
Congress, to link statewide and metropolitan
planning to the environmental review process.
For example, Section 6001of SAFETEA
requires the development of long-range
transportation plans to include consultations
with resource agencies responsible for landuse management, natural resources,
environmental protection, conservation, and
historic preservation, which may involve
comparisons of resource maps and
inventories; discussion of potential mitigation
activities; and participation plans that identify
a process for stakeholder involvement.
Preliminary
design and
environmental
review
A project applicant identifies the preliminary
engineering issues, such as proposed alignment
of roadways, costs, and project details. This
stage includes preliminary engineering and
other activities and analyses, such as
topographic or metes and bounds surveys,
geotechnical investigations, hydrologic or
hydraulic analysis, utility engineering, traffic
studies, financial plans, revenue estimates,
hazardous materials assessments, and general
estimates of the types and quantities of
materials and other work needed to establish
parameters for the final design.
An applicant for federal-aid funds must
determine the appropriate NEPA document
to be prepared and identify various resources
potentially affected by a proposed project and
its alternatives. The final NEPA document
must identify and demonstrate compliance
with any other applicable environmental
requirement, to the maximum extent
possible, including completing necessary
environmental or engineering studies, outside
agency coordination or approvals, and public
involvement.
Final design
and rightof-way
acquisition
Final construction plans and detailed
construction specifications for the selected
project alternative are prepared. If necessary,
property appraisals and the acquisition of
rights-of-way (ROW) or property to mitigate
environmental impacts are made. Property
acquisition that may involve the relocation of
residents and businesses must be done in
accordance with the Uniform Act of 1970.
Also, if necessary, utilities are relocated.
Project costs are finalized.
Property or material purchases cannot
proceed until the NEPA document is
approved by FHWA. Property acquisitions
must be completed in compliance with
requirements identified in the document. If
late changes to the project are required, the
environmental review process may have to be
revisited if design changes result in
unanticipated or previously unidentified
environmental impacts.
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The Role of the Environmental Review Process in Federally Funded Highway Projects
Project
Phase
Description/Common Activities
Common Environmental
Compliance Obligations
Construction
The state DOT, or other project sponsor,
requests and evaluates bids, and awards
contracts. Project construction must reflect
decisions made during the planning,
environmental review, and design stages of
project development.
Necessary permits or other compliance
requirements identified during environmental
review must be in place. Mitigation measures
must be complete (e.g., installation of noise
barriers or implementation of wetland
mitigation). If elements of the project change,
the environmental review process may have
to be revisited if changes result in
unanticipated environmental impacts.
Maintenance
Although not considered part of project
development, the majority of projects funded
under FHWA-approved programs involve
activities that may be broadly described as
“maintenance.” Highway maintenance may
include modernization through roadway
resurfacing, restoration, rehabilitation,
reconstruction, or adding shoulders or
auxiliary lanes. Bridge maintenance may
include rehabilitation, reconstruction, or
replacement.
Identifying, planning, and implementing
necessary maintenance activities are likely
initiated and carried out at the local level,
with state DOT approval. Maintenance
activities would commonly involve a CE
determination as well as an assessment of
impacts that may require compliance with
additional environmental requirements (e.g.,
impacts to historic sites or structures or
endangered species habitat).
Source: Congressional Research Service, based on a review of state DOT practices.
Frequently, “environmental review” is considered synonymous with “NEPA compliance.” That is
not the case. However, completion of the NEPA compliance process and the overall
environmental review process are linked by DOT’s requirement that a project cannot be approved
and subsequent stages of project development cannot proceed until the project sponsor
appropriately documents compliance with NEPA and other applicable environmental
requirements.
Challenges in Measuring Stages of Project Development
There are distinct activities associated with each stage of project development. However, the
following factors make it difficult to estimate the time it takes to complete each stage:
•
Most state and local transportation agencies do not maintain a centralized source
of data tracking the time it takes to complete transportation projects. Further,
there is no acceptable measure of when a project is delivered in a timely manner
versus delayed. A project or a stage of its development may be considered
“delayed” if it took the project sponsor longer than anticipated.
•
Most state and local transportation agencies do not attempt to extract and
measure the time it takes to complete individual activities attributable to a single
stage of development (e.g., activities categorized distinctly as applicable to
“environmental review”). Further, tracking that data may be difficult since
elements of one phase may overlap with another (e.g., project planning activities
may include elements of environmental review) and a distinct start and end point
of individual activities may be difficult to identify.
•
Project development may start, stop, and restart for reasons unrelated to
environmental compliance. For example, EIS preparation may begin with
publication of a NOI, but preparation may stop and restart due to changes in state
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priorities, funding availability, or a host of other issues unrelated to NEPA. In
such cases, the time between issuing a NOI and ROD are an inaccurate measure
of the NEPA process.
•
Differences between state DOT project development processes make it difficult
to establish a nationally applicable measure of project development stages. Also,
the influence of tribal- or state-specific environmental compliance requirements
makes it difficult to isolate the time it takes to comply with federal requirements.
Considering these points, it is difficult to determine either the time it takes to meet specific
elements of the environmental review process (e.g., NEPA compliance or agency consultations
under the Endangered Species Act) or the degree to which completing the process delays project
delivery. Further, it is not possible to assert, with any degree of accuracy, broad, nationally
applicable values to the time it takes to complete the environmental review process. For example,
there are no data available to substantiate a statement such as “environmental compliance
accounts for X% to Y% of surface transportation project development time,” or “compliance with
NEPA or Clean Water Act permitting requirements delays X% to Y% of projects for X to Y
months/years.” Instead, it may be possible to determine “bridge reconstruction or rehabilitation in
state A takes from X to Y months/years” if state A is one that tracks such information.
Also, it may be generally stated that the time it takes to deliver larger, more complex or
controversial projects takes longer to complete than is typical for the majority of FHWAapproved highway projects (e.g., maintenance and rehabilitation projects). In addition to taking
longer to complete due to their potential cost, size, and complexity, they will likely require
compliance with more state, tribal, and federal requirements and may generate more public
interest or opposition.
In 2002, the General Accounting Office (GAO) released a report that attempted to determine the
typical amount of time it takes to complete overall project delivery as well as individual phases of
project development for certain federally funded highway projects.54 Data for this report were
compiled based on the professional judgment of FHWA staff, staff of state departments of
transportation, and transportation associations. According to FHWA, planning, gaining approval
for, and constructing federally funded major highway projects that involved new construction
typically took from nine to 19 years from planning to construction. FHWA estimated that the
preliminary design and environmental review phase for those projects typically took from one to
five years, depending on the complexity of the design and possible environmental impacts that
must be considered.55 It was noted that projects studied in the GAO report included those that
would typically require an EIS and represent a small percentage of federally funded projects. It
was also noted that, while there are many reasons new highway construction projects may take a
long time to complete, most studies on project delivery focused only on the timely resolution of
environmental issues to improve project completion times, rather than examining all aspects of
project development.56
54
U.S. General Accounting Office (now the Government Accountability Office), Highway Infrastructure: Preliminary
Information on the Timely Completion of Highway Construction Projects, September 19, 2002.
55
In addition to information from FHWA and state DOT staff, this report also looked at the time it took and the steps
necessary to complete six new highway construction projects in California, Florida, and Texas (the largest in the state,
in terms of federal funds received, and a randomly selected “medium-sized” project).
56
Consistent with the factors that make it difficult to measure individual phases of project development, discussed
above, GAO noted that federal and state governments do not maintain information centrally (or, in some cases, at all)
(continued...)
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The Role of the Environmental Review Process in Federally Funded Highway Projects
Causes of Delay in Completing Environmental Reviews
Although the extent to which the environmental review process may delay project delivery is
unclear, it is generally not disputed that the time it takes to demonstrate compliance with
environmental requirements can be time-consuming, particularly in cases where EIS preparation
is required. Also, while transportation agency officials may cite elements of the environmental
review process as a source of frustration or delay, it is not clear what specific environmental
compliance requirements currently and routinely lead to project delays or the root cause of those
delays.57 For example, a common complaint among transportation agency officials is that outside
agencies (including FHWA review and approval of the final NEPA documents) do not provide
necessary input or approval in a timely way. However, there is little information available that
clearly indicates why that may be the case on anything other than a project-specific level.
Few studies have looked at the root causes of project delay directly attributable to the
environmental review process. Available studies have looked at a limited number of major new
construction projects that required an EIS. By their nature, those projects involve unique projectspecific issues and are likely to involve complex design, engineering, and compliance issues.
Causes of delay for those projects more likely represent the exception and not the rule.
A 2003 FHWA study that attempted to identify causes of delay in completing EISs was unable to
identify common factors or conditions that directly or indirectly affected the time it took to
complete the NEPA process.58 Although timing varied by broad geographic region, it did not seem
to vary in relation to the majority of other variables considered (e.g., the presence of certain
“controversial issues” or the required participation of agencies outside DOT). Instead, it was
observed that the time it took to complete the NEPA process may have been more affected by
external social and economic factors associated with broad geographic regions of the country.59
Subsequent, albeit limited, study data and anecdotal evidence regarding individual projects also
point to factors external to environmental reviews as those most likely to delay the process. In
particular, causes of delay in completing environmental reviews arise primarily from potentially
overlapping local and project-specific issues including, but not limited to, the following:
•
Local issues—the project’s level of priority among others proposed in the state;
changes in funding availability; concerns of local property owners; or opposition
to the project (which may or may not be connected to environmental issues).
(...continued)
on the time it takes to complete highway projects. GAO also noted that there was no accepted measuring stick with
which to gauge whether project performance is “timely.” To make its determination on project timing, GAO relied on a
best estimate prepared by FHWA. According to FHWA, the estimate it provided to GAO was based on the professional
judgment of its staff and several state DOTs.
57
The identification of factors that currently affect project delivery is particularly relevant when considering legislative
options to address potential causes of delay in the environmental review process. State DOTs have improved their
environmental review procedures in the past 10 years. Also, FHWA has expanded its efforts to provide information and
guidance on the process, including increased efforts to encourage states to implement programmatic agreements
applicable to NEPA compliance and other environmental laws.
58
Federal Highway Administration and the Louis Berger Group, Evaluating the Performance of Environmental
Streamlining: Phase II, 2003, available on FHWA’s “Streamlining/Stewardship” website,
http://www.environment.fhwa.dot.gov/strmlng/baseline/phase2rpt.asp.
59
Ibid., under “Conclusions 4.2.”
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The Role of the Environmental Review Process in Federally Funded Highway Projects
•
Project-specific issues—the project’s technical complexity; changes in project
scope or design; lawsuits or the threat of litigation (which may or may not be
connected to environmental issues); poor consultant work; issues with city
documentation; issues with new alignment or coordination with other
transportation projects; or land use planning issues.60
As discussed previously, environmental requirements identified as a source of delay have been
associated with selected requirements established under Section 4(f); the Endangered Species
Act; the National Historic Preservation Act; and the Clean Water Act. If a project is delayed by
requirements under those laws, that delay may be attributable to project-specific issues.
Efforts to identify specific problems or causes of delay in meeting requirements other than NEPA
have found differing perceptions among resource agency and transportation agency officials. For
example, in completing its obligations as part of the environmental review process, resource
agencies have identified poor communication, problems with the project’s alternative analysis,
being given incorrect or incomplete information, disagreements or differences of opinion among
agencies, or environmental or biological issues associated with the project. Transportation agency
officials also cited disagreements or differences of opinion and environmental or biological issues
associated with the project, but identified a lack of timely response from resource agencies as the
primary problem.61
Benefits to the Environmental Review Process
When there is debate over potential options to expedite the environmental review process, that
process may be viewed as simply an obstacle to overcome before a highway or bridge project can
be built. Benefits to the process may be overlooked or hard to quantify. Potential benefits may
generally be thought of as those associated with balancing transportation and infrastructure needs
with environmental protection and community concerns. However, one benefit that is not often
considered is the degree to which the environmental review process may ultimately save time and
reduce overall project costs by identifying and avoiding problems in later stages of project
development. A study prepared for the Transportation Research Board made this point when
evaluating causes of delay in the construction phases of development.62
Among other findings, the study found that certain recognized management principles, identified
as relevant to timely completion of highway construction projects, should be applied by state
highway administrators and contractors. It found that adherence to these principles was often
inconsistent and lacking, usually resulting in construction delays. Among the principles identified
was the “Cost-Time Relationship,” under which, the study found,
60
Factors listed here are those that have been most commonly identified in surveys or studies conducted by FHWA and
GAO, as well as selected university and transportation organizations. For a list of the surveys and studies used to
prepare this report, see Appendix. Those surveys and studies have looked primarily at causes of delay applicable to
projects that require an EIS.
61
See “FHWA/Gallup Study on Implementing Performance Measurement in Environmental Streamlining,” available at
http://environment.fhwa.dot.gov/strmlng/gallup_05-07.asp.
62
Thomas, H.R. and Ellis, R.D, Avoiding Delays During the Construction Phase of Highway Projects, Transportation
Research Board, National Research Council, October 2001, NCHRP 20-24(12). Also see “The Root Causes of Delays
in Highway Construction,” a summary of the study’s findings submitted for presentation by the authors at the TRB
annual meeting in 2003, available at http://www.ltrc.lsu.edu/TRB_82/TRB2003-000646.pdf.
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The Role of the Environmental Review Process in Federally Funded Highway Projects
More time spent in design identifying problems will reduce construction time and result in a
shorter overall project time. A widely recognized principle is that spending more monies
during planning and design will reduce the time and cost required for construction by
avoiding unforeseen conditions, reducing to a minimum design errors and omissions, and
developing schemes that will support the most efficient approach to construction. In the
design phase, the opportunity to make decisions to influence the final project cost is greatest.
Yet, the expenditure of project funds is comparatively minimal, typically about 10% of the
capital budget.63
These study findings illustrate the potential problem with considering time spent in the planning
or preliminary design stage as a delay. It is impossible to determine whether or how much time
may be saved, and project delivery ultimately accelerated, by avoiding conditions identified early
in the process.
Expediting Environmental Reviews
Lessons Learned
The potential for the environmental review process to expedite project delivery is illustrated in
findings of a 2009 peer exchange between representatives from state DOTs and FHWA Division
Offices. The exchange was intended to identify strategies to more effectively move complex
environmental documents through the EIS process.64 Participants presented information on
projects in their states that had moved through the environmental review process quickly. They
highlighted the challenges encountered, methods used to successfully and efficiently navigate the
EIS process, and lessons learned from their experience. It was observed that the practices
described by state DOTs represented a fundamental shift in the way agencies have conducted
environmental reviews over the last 10 to 15 years. Those state DOTs were found to have
embraced innovative and creative solutions to balance transportation and infrastructure needs
with environmental protection and community concerns. The environmental review
processes for the successful projects … were conducted in a collaborative and transparent
manner, whereby [state DOTs] sought to include stakeholders early and often throughout
development of the EIS. Such methods not only lead to a faster completion of the
environmental review process, but perhaps more importantly, they result in the delivery of
better quality projects, ones that fulfill the transportation needs of communities while
maintaining protection of environmental resources at the same time.65
One recent event serves as a good example of how environmental compliance requirements can
be coordinated efficiently. That event was the reconstruction of the I-35 bridge in Minneapolis
after its August 1, 2007, collapse. A new bridge opened just over a year later on September 18,
63
“The Root Causes of Delays in Highway Construction,” p. 3.
Strategies and Approaches for Effectively Moving Complex Environmental Documents Through the EIS Process: A
Peer Exchange Report, prepared by the John A. Volpe National Transportation Systems Center Research and
Innovative Technology Administration, U.S. Department of Transportation for the Office of Project Development and
Environmental Review, Federal Highway Administration, January 2009, available on FHWA’s
“Streamlining/Stewardship” website at http://environment.fhwa.dot.gov/strmlng/eisdocs.asp.
65
Ibid., under “Recommendations for Successful Tools & Techniques.”
64
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The Role of the Environmental Review Process in Federally Funded Highway Projects
2008. The timing of that bridge reconstruction led to the question “Why can’t all projects be
completed that quickly?”
The answer to this question can be found, in part, in an FHWA study that examined how the key
elements of the environmental review process were completed after a bridge collapse.66 A primary
factor cited in the study was that, in the wake of an emergency, the major causes of surface
transportation project delay are absent. The “major causes of delay” identified were a lack of
funding or priority in the state for the project; local controversy; interested stakeholder or local
opposition; or insufficient political support.67 Other potential causes of delay could still apply to
emergency projects, including issues with the projects’ complexity, poor consultant work, or the
environmental review process.
The FHWA study looked at the Minnesota bridge collapse as well as other projects that involved
bridge reconstruction after a collapse. Projects in the study illustrated how efficiently the
environmental review process could be implemented if the more common sources of delay are
absent and environmental review involves efficient interagency cooperation.
Bridge reconstruction for the I-35 project required the same environmental permits that would
apply to any bridge reconstruction project of similar scope and scale. Despite the urgency of the
project, there was no waiver or exemption from the environmental review or permit requirements.
The replacement bridge was widened to accommodate future transit options, but did not increase
capacity. The project fit the criteria necessary to be processed as a CE, but still required
•
a permit issued by the Corps under Section 404 of the Clean Water Act;
•
a bridge construction permit issued by the U.S. Coast Guard;
•
an assessment of potential impacts to threatened and endangered species by a
consultation team formed by FHWA, Minnesota DOT (MnDOT), and the
Department of the Interior’s U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS);
•
a Minnesota Pollution Control Agency permit certifying compliance with the
Clean Water Act’s National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System and other
requirements; and
•
an assessment of potential cultural and historic issues through MnDOT’s Cultural
Resources Unit (CRU), in part, in accordance with a programmatic agreement
with the Minnesota SHPO and tribes interested in reviewing state projects.
Efficient interagency coordination on the project was a factor identified as one associated with
expedited reconstruction of the bridge. However, the efficiency of that agency interaction did not
begin with this project. FHWA observed that staff from state and federal agencies involved in the
environmental review process had worked collaboratively on past projects. The agencies
established lines of communication and understood the tasks and concerns of each other’s
66
See “Meeting Environmental Requirements After a Bridge Collapse,” prepared for the Office of Project
Development and Environmental Review, Federal Highway Administration, U.S. Department of Transportation, and
prepared by the John A. Volpe National Transportation Systems Center Research and Innovative Technology
Administration, U.S. Department of Transportation, August 2008, available at http://www.environment.fhwa.dot.gov/
projdev/bridge_casestudy.asp.
67
Major sources of project delay cited in the bridge study are those identified in FHWA survey results included in
Appendix.
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The Role of the Environmental Review Process in Federally Funded Highway Projects
agencies. Those existing relationships led to a quick response among those agencies after the
bridge collapse. Further, FHWA and MnDOT recognized that by limiting the scope of the project,
the environmental review process was expedited because no expanded environmental review was
needed (e.g., it met the criteria applicable to a CE). Further, federal and state resources were
focused on this project—its completion was a priority to the state.
Apart from issues cited in the FHWA bridge study, MnDOT cited its use of a design-build
procurement process as an important factor in the expediting project completion. A “designbuild” process brings designers and contractors together early in the project development process
and allows for a shortened process completion time by overlapping design and construction.68
Lessons learned from projects completed relatively quickly as well as suggested solutions from
transportation agency officials69 involve certain common approaches or procedures that have or
could streamline the environmental review process. Those approaches include the following:
•
efficient interagency communication and project coordination;
•
early and continued communication with stakeholders affected by a project;
•
improvements in internal processes and procedures;
•
demonstrated agency commitment to priority projects and project schedules;
and/or
•
programmatic approaches to meeting compliance obligations.
Each of these approaches can be implemented under existing standards and requirements
applicable to federally funded highway projects. For example, CEQ and DOT regulations
implementing NEPA include explicit requirements intended to identify potential environmental
issues early in the project development process and coordinate efficient interagency cooperation.
CEQ also provides federal agencies with guidance on improving the efficiency and timeliness of
their environmental reviews under NEPA.70 DOT provides guidance and information intended to
assist state and local agencies in implementing the environmental review process more
efficiently.71
68
For more information about the bridge reconstruction project, see the Minnesota DOT “I-35W St. Anthony Falls
Bridge” website at http://projects.dot.state.mn.us/35wbridge/index.html.
69
See findings in the 2007 FHWA/Gallup study (cited in footnote 61).
70
CEQ guidance “Improving the Process for Preparing Efficient and Timely Environmental Reviews under the
National Environmental Policy Act,” released on March 6, 2012, available at http://www.whitehouse.gov/
administration/eop/ceq/initiatives/nepa/efficiencies-guidance. CEQ stated that the guidance is part of its broader effort
to “modernize and reinvigorate” federal agency implementation of NEPA and to support goals established in President
Obama’s August 31, 2011, memorandum, “Speeding Infrastructure Development through More Efficient and Effective
Permitting and Environmental Review.” For information about CEQ pilot programs established to support those goals,
see http://www.whitehouse.gov/administration/eop/ceq/initiatives/nepa/nepa-pilot-project.
71
See FHWA’s online “Environmental Review Toolkit,” available at http://environment.fhwa.dot.gov/index.asp. It
includes, for example, guidance and information regarding linking project planning and environmental requirements;
NEPA requirements applicable to project development; a database of “lessons learned” related to streamlining and
environmental stewardship; and guidance on compliance requirements such as those applicable to wetlands, Section
4(f), and historic preservation.
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Administrative Efforts
In 2009, DOT initiated its “Every Day Counts” program to identify and implement approaches to
shortening project delivery (among other goals). The program includes an evaluation of potential
changes in DOT’s role in implementing the environmental review process, including the
following efforts:
•
Improve the link between project planning and environmental review—sets
up a framework for incorporating planning documents and decisions from the
earliest stages of project planning into the environmental review process.
•
Enhance legal sufficiency reviews—uses the process to identify the most
common problems in NEPA and Section 4(f) document development, their root
causes, and the measures local and state transportation agencies can take to avoid
the problems; and encourages reviews when documents are in their draft stage,
reducing the potential need for multiple legal reviews of a “final” document and
helping to resolve conflict and potential controversy earlier in the process, when
project schedules can better accommodate the change.
•
Expand the use of programmatic agreements—identify new and existing
programmatic agreements that may be expanded to a regional or national level.
•
Encourage the use of existing regulatory flexibility—clarify existing
requirements applicable to activities that may be allowed during the preliminary
design phase of development and to ROW acquisition and utility relocation.
These issues identified by both DOT and state transportation agencies illustrate the need to more
efficiently implement existing requirements or to identify barriers to implementing them.
Conclusions
There is little debate that delays in transportation project delivery can result in higher project
costs, as well as delay potential positive economic advantages such as bringing project-related
jobs to the community. Also, it is known that completing the environmental review process takes
time, sometimes years for complex, major projects. Meeting environmental compliance
requirements may result in project delays or, at least, a project taking longer than anticipated by
its sponsor. However, what is unclear is whether or what specific elements of the environmental
review process routinely delay project delivery.
The time it takes to complete the NEPA process is often the focus of debate over project delays
attributable to the environmental review process. However, the influence of environmental
requirements established under Title 23 and other federal law call into question the degree to
which changes in the NEPA process will expedite the environmental reviews and accelerate
project delivery. Further, although there are no comprehensive data and available information
tends to be anecdotal, when delays in the environmental review process have been identified, they
primarily stemmed from local or project-specific issues (e.g., project complexity, changes in state
priorities, or late changes in project scope).
Regardless of potential changes to the NEPA process or the overall environmental review process,
local factors will strongly influence project delivery time. State or local decision makers will
continue to have the most significant influence on project delivery in their capacity to establish
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The Role of the Environmental Review Process in Federally Funded Highway Projects
(and change) project priorities, allocate available funds, and be influenced by local controversy or
project opposition. A project’s environmental review process may be efficiently executed and
involve no delays in the process itself, but still take decades or never be completed if local and
state issues are acting against the project.
The potential success of efforts intended to expedite the environmental review process would
involve evidence that transportation projects were delivered more quickly. However, considering
the limits to measuring the time it takes to complete the environmental review process, the
relative success of a particular approach may be gauged in terms of the degree to which state or
local transportation agencies find it useful in meeting their environmental compliance obligations.
Compared to transportation planning and project development during construction of the
Interstate Highway System, state and local transportation agencies are more inclined to consider a
project’s effects on communities and resources. Apart from any potential changes to federal
environmental review requirements, local and state agency decisions regarding transportation
project planning, funding, and development will continue to be strongly influenced by a project’s
benefits and adverse effects to the environment and the community it serves.
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The Role of the Environmental Review Process in Federally Funded Highway Projects
Appendix. Surveys and Studies Applicable to the
Environmental Review Process
In this report, summary information and conclusions regarding factors applicable to measuring
the stages of project development, the time it takes to complete the environmental review process,
and primary sources of delay or perceptions among transportation agency officials regarding
causes of delay in completing the environmental review process were drawn from data included
in the following surveys and studies conducted by FHWA, GAO, universities, or transportation
organizations:
Federal Highway Administration (available on FHWA’s “Environmental Toolkit:
Streamlining/Stewardship—Performance Reporting” website, http://environment.fhwa.dot.gov/
strmlng/es10measures.asp).
•
Evaluating the Performance of Environmental Streamlining: Phase II, an FHWAcommission study conducted by the Louis Berger Group, 2003.
•
FHWA surveys, Reasons for EIS Project Delays and Information on Timeliness
on Completing the NEPA Process.
•
Strategies and Approaches for Effectively Moving Complex Environmental
Documents Through the EIS Process: A Peer Exchange Report, prepared for
FHWA by DOT’s John A. Volpe National Transportation Systems Center
Research and Innovative Technology Administration, January 2009.
•
FHWA/Gallup Study on Implementing Performance Measurement in
Environmental Streamlining, “Implementing Performance Measurement in
Environmental Streamlining,” May 2007.
Government Accountability Office.
•
Highway Infrastructure: Stakeholders’ Views on Time to Conduct Environmental
Reviews of Highway Projects, GAO-03-534, May 23, 2003.
•
Highway Infrastructure: Preliminary Information on the Timely Completion of
Highway Construction Projects, GAO-02-1067T, September 19, 2002.
University and Transportation Organization Studies.
•
What Influences the Length of Time to Complete NEPA Reviews? An Examination
of Highway Projects in Oregon and the Potential for Streamlining, by Jennifer
Dill, Center for Urban Studies, Nohad A. Toulan School of Urban Studies &
Planning, Portland State University, submitted for presentation at the 85th Annual
Meeting of the Transportation Research Board, November 15, 2005 (revised).
•
Causes and Extent of Environmental Delays in Transportation Projects, prepared
by TransTech Management, Inc., for the American Association of State Highway
and Transportation Officials (AASHTO), December 2003.
•
Environmental Streamlining: A Report on Delays Associated with the Categorical
Exclusion and Environmental Assessment Processes, prepared by TransTech
Management, Inc., for AASHTO, October 2000.
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Author Contact Information
(name redacted)
Analyst in Environmental Policy
[redacted]@crs.loc.gov, 7-....
Congressional Research Service
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