1、AASHTO PrAcTiTiOnerS HAndbOOkThe Practitioners Handbooks are produced by the Center for Environmental Excellence by AASHTO. The Handbooks provide practical advice on a range of environmental issues that arise during the planning, development, and operation of transportation projects.The Handbooks ar
2、e primarily intended for use by project managers and others who are responsible for coordinating compliance with a wide range of regulatory requirements. With their needs in mind, each Handbook includes key issues to consider; a background briefing; and practical tips for achieving compliance. In ad
3、dition, key regulations, guidance materials, and sample documents for each Handbook are posted on the Centers web site at http:/environment.transportation.org.USing THe SAFeTeA-LU envirOnmenTAL review PrOceSS (23 U.S.c. 139)Section 6002 of the Safe, Accountable, Flexible, Efficient Transportation Eq
4、uity Act: A Legacy for Users (SAFETEA-LU) established an environmental review process for highway and transit projects that involve preparation of an environmental impact statement (EIS). This Handbook provides assistance to practitioners in complying with the Section 6002 requirements, while also u
5、sing this process to achieve better, faster, and more efficient environmental reviews.Issues covered in this Handbook include:Initiating the Environmental Review ProcessInviting Participating AgenciesEstablishing the Coordination PlanIncluding a Project Schedule in the Coordination PlanSetting Comme
6、nt DeadlinesProviding an “Opportunity for Involvement” to Agencies and the Public in Developing the Purpose and Need and the Range of AlternativesDefining the Purpose and NeedDetermining the Methodologies and Level of Detail for the Alternatives AnalysisResolving Issues of ConcernDeveloping the Pref
7、erred Alternative to a Higher Level of Detail (Optional)Reporting Delays in Permit DecisionsAmerican Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials09January 2008Center for Environmental Excellence by AASHTOCopyright 2008, Center for Environmental Excellence by AASHTO (American Association
8、 of State Highway and Transportation Officials). All Rights Reserved. This book, or parts thereof, may not be reproduced in any form without written permission of the publisher. Printed in the United States of America.This material is based upon work supported by the Federal Highway Administration u
9、nder Cooperative Agreement No. DTFH61-07-H-00019. Any opinions, findings, and conclusions or recommendations expressed in this publication are those of the Author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the view of the Federal Highway Administration.Using the SAFETEA-LU Environmental Review Process (23 U.
10、S.C. 139) 1OverviewIn Section 6002 of the Safe, Accountable, Flexible, Efficient Transportation Equity Act: A Legacy for Users (SAFETEA-LU), Congress established an environmental review process for highway and transit projects. This process must be followed for highway and transit projects that requ
11、ire the approval of the U.S. Department of Transportation (U.S. DOT) and involve preparation of an environmental impact statement (EIS). The process is intended to make environmental reviews more efficient and timely by clarifying agency roles and responsibilities, improving coordination, setting de
12、adlines, and improving dispute resolution. This new process is now included in Section 139 of Title 23 of the U.S. Code (23 U.S.C. 139).This Handbook is intended to help practitioners ensure compliance with Section 139 and use the new opportunities in Section 139 to achieve the underlying goal of th
13、is process: bringing about a better, faster, and more efficient environmental review process. For additional information, readers should refer to Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) and Federal Transit Administrations (FTA) comprehensive guidance on Section 139: SAFETEA-LU Environmental Review Pro
14、cess Final Guidance (“FHWA/FTA Guidance”).1key issues to considerInitiating the Environmental Review ProcessAre there decisions that you would like to carry forward from the planning process into National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA)e.g., on the purpose and need and the range of alternatives? If
15、so, how will these be addressed in the project initiation letter?Who will be designated as “lead agencies”? FHWA and state DOT only? Or will there be additional lead agencies for this project?How will responsibilities be divided among the lead agencies?Inviting Participating AgenciesWhich Federal, s
16、tate, local, and/or tribal agencies will be invited to serve as participating agencies?Of the participating agencies, which ones (if any) will be invited to serve as cooperating agencies?Establishing the Coordination Plan and ScheduleIs there a standard template that can be used in your state for de
17、veloping the coordination plan?Are there any project-specific issues that will need to be given special consideration in developing the coordination plan for your project?What streamlining measures, if any, will be included in the coordination plan? For example, will the coordination plan designate
18、primary points of contact for each agency? Establish regular meeting dates and locations? Define the types of documentation that will be shared with agencies and time frames for review?Will the coordination plan include dispute-resolution procedures?1A link to this guidance is available on the Cente
19、rs web site, http:/environment.transportation.org, in the Practitioners Handbooks section. 2008 by the American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials.All rights reserved. Duplication is a violation of applicable law.2 Using the SAFETEA-LU Environmental Review Process (23 U.S.C. 1
20、39)Will the coordination plan include a project schedule? If so, what regulatory requirements apply to your project that will need to be considered in developing the schedule?Will the coordination plan be incorporated into a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) that is signed by the participating agenc
21、ies?Will you incorporate the standard comment deadlines (60 days maximum for draft environmental impact statement DEIS comments; 30 days maximum for other comment periods)? Or are there reasons to set longer comment periods for this project?Providing an “Opportunity for Involvement” to Agencies and
22、the Public in Developing the Purpose and Need and the Range of AlternativesWhat opportunity for involvement will be provided to the participating agencies in determining the purpose and need and the range of alternatives? For example, what documentation will be shared with the agencies? What meeting
23、s or other opportunities will be provided for agency input?What opportunity for involvement will be provided to the public? Will this occur as part of a scoping meeting? Will there be additional opportunities, after the scoping meeting, for public input on these issues?Will the opportunity for invol
24、vement on the purpose and need occur separately from the opportunity for involvement on the range of alternatives? Or will these occur at a single point in time, as allowed by the FHWA/FTA Guidance?If agencies and/or the public provide comments on the proposed purpose and need and the range of alter
25、natives, how and where will those comments be addressed? How will the comments and your responses be documented?Do you have a “merger” agreement that requires concurrence from specific agencies on the purpose and need and the range of alternatives? If so, how will the merger requirements be addresse
26、d?Determining the Methodologies for Alternatives AnalysisWhat process will be used to collaborate with participating agencies on determining the methodologies for analyzing alternatives?Are there existing standard methodologies that can be followed without the need for additional collaboration?Are t
27、here methodology issues that will need to be discussed specifically with the agencies? Which agencies have applicable expertise in those issues?How will the participating agencies involvement in developing the methodologies be documented?Resolving Issues of ConcernAre there existing dispute resoluti
28、on procedures that will apply to this project? For example, does your state have an existing streamlining agreement that provides for dispute resolution?Are there known issues that are likely to result in disputes among agencies? If so, what steps can be taken to anticipate and address those issues?
29、Will this project benefit from the use of a professional mediator or facilitator to assist in managing meetings among agencies?Developing the Preferred Alternative to a Higher Level of Detail (Optional)Do you intend to develop the preferred alternative to a higher level of detail? If so, at what poi
30、nt in the process will this occur?What level of detail will be needed to ensure a fair comparison of all reasonable alternatives prior to selection of the preferred? What additional level of work will be performed solely for the preferred alternative? 2008 by the American Association of State Highwa
31、y and Transportation Officials.All rights reserved. Duplication is a violation of applicable law.Using the SAFETEA-LU Environmental Review Process (23 U.S.C. 139) 3background briefingKey Terms in Section 139. Section 139 introduces some new terms and uses some familiar termse.g., “lead agency”with a
32、 specific meaning that may differ from the meaning of those terms in other contexts. Practitioners should be familiar with the following key terms as used in Section 139:Project. The term “project” refers to a “highway project, public transportation capital project, or multimodal project that requir
33、es the approval of the U.S. DOT.”2A multimodal project is defined as one that involves funding under Title 23 (highways) or Chapter 53 of Title 49 (transit) of the U.S. Code and requires approval from more than one agency within U.S. DOT.Project Sponsor. The term “project sponsor” refers to “the age
34、ncy or other entity, including any private or public-private entity, that seeks approval of the Secretary for a project.”3This means that a state DOT will typically be the “project sponsor” for federally funded highway projects. The project sponsor also can be a state or regional toll road agency, a
35、 local government, or a private entity.Environmental Review Process. The term “environmental review process” includes both the process of preparing an NEPA document and the “process for completion of any environmental permit, approval, review, or study required for a project under any Federal law” o
36、ther than NEPA.4Therefore, permitting under other statutes, such as Section 404 of the Clean Water Act, is considered part of the “environmental review process.”Lead Agency. The term “lead agency” includes the Federal lead agencytypically, FHWA for a highway project or FTA for a transit projectand a
37、ny other governmental entity that is serving as a “joint lead agency.”5The project sponsor must be designated as a joint lead agency if it directly receives funds under Title 23 or Chapter 53 of Title 49. For highway projects, the state DOT is the direct recipient and, therefore, must be a joint lea
38、d agency. Local governments that are sub-recipients of highway funds may be designated as joint lead agencies, at the discretion of U.S. DOT.6The FHWA/FTA Guidance explains how “lead agency” decisions can be made:Where not otherwise specified, the lead agencies are free to perform all tasks and make
39、 all decisions jointly, or to allocate their joint responsibilities and authorities among themselves by mutual written agreement. If the lead agencies do not agree on a particular matter under their joint authority, then they must work out their differences because that particular matter cannot prog
40、ress until the lead agencies reach agreement.Participating Agency. The lead agencies are required to invite any agency that “may have an interest in the project” to be a participating agency. Upon being invited, a Federal agency is automatically designated as a participating agency, unless it declin
41、es the invitation (see Practical Tips, Inviting Participating Agencies, p. 8). Non-Federal agencies are designated as participating agencies only if they affirmatively accept the lead agencies invitation. The responsibilities of participating agencies are defined in Section 139. The FHWA/FTA Guidanc
42、e includes sample letters for inviting participating agencies.Cooperating Agency. The term “cooperating agency” is not defined in Section 139. This term continues to have the same meaning that it has traditionally been given in the NEPA process under Section 1508.5 of the Council on Environmental Qu
43、ality (CEQ) regulations, which define a cooperating agency as one with jurisdiction by law or special expertise regarding the proposed action. Cooperating agencies are a sub-set of the participating agencies: every cooperating agency will also be a participating agency, but many participating agenci
44、es will not be cooperating agencies.Initiation Notice. Section 139 requires the project sponsor to notify the U.S. DOT of a proposed project and request that the environmental review process be initiated. This document is referred to in the FHWA/FTA Guidance as an “initiation notice” or “notificatio
45、n letter.” It is distinct from the Notice of Intent (NOI), which is a separate document 223 U.S.C. 139(a)(6).323 U.S.C. 139(a)(7).423 U.S.C. 139(a)(3).523 U.S.C. 139(a)(4). 6For further information, see Question 16 in the FHWA/FTA Guidance. 2008 by the American Association of State Highway and Trans
46、portation Officials.All rights reserved. Duplication is a violation of applicable law. Using the SAFETEA-LU Environmental Review Process (23 U.S.C. 139)published by the Federal agency in the Federal Register. The FHWA/FTA Guidance notes that requirement for an initiation notice can be satisfied prog
47、rammatically or by “batching” notification for multiple projects into a single notice.Coordination Plan. A “coordination plan” refers to a document prepared by the lead agencies that defines the process for meeting the agency coordination and public involvement requirements in the environmental revi
48、ew process, including both NEPA and related laws. This document must be developed early in the environmental review process. It does not require concurrence of the participating agencies.Issue of Concern. An “issue of concern” is defined as an issue, raised by a participating agency, that “could sub
49、stantially delay or prevent an agency from granting a permit or other approval that is needed for the project.” The participating agencies are responsible for identifying issues of concern as early as practicable in the process. The scoping process can be used to identify issues of concern. These issues also can be identified later in the process as additional information is developed.Projects That Must Follow Section 139. The environmental review process in Section 139 must be used for any high
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