National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA)

1. National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) By : Christian Calkins and Sierra Copeland EPA!!!!

2. NEPA 1969 • One of the first laws ever created to protect the environment • Came into effect due to public concern about the deteriorating human environment and the environmental impacts of major federal projects.

3. Intent • The intent of NEPA is to insure safe, healthful productive, and esthetically and culturally pleasing surroundings. • The basic policy is to assure that all branches of government give proper consideration to the environment prior to undertaking any major federal action.

4. History • The Santa Barbara Oil Spill was the leading catalyst for the act. • Another driving force were the Freeway Revolts that occurred in the ‘60’s when the interstate highway system was being built. • The law has since been applied to any project federal state or local that involves federal funding

5. History Continued • Introduced in the Senate by Henry M. Jackson on February 18, 1969 • Agreed to by the Senate on December 20, 1969 and by the House of Representatives on December 23, 1969 • Signed into law by Richard Nixon on January 1, 1970

6. Content • Three important sections: - The statement of national environmental policies and goals - The establishment of action-forcing provisions for federal agencies to enforce those policies and goals - The establishment of a Council of Environmental Quality in the Executive Office of the President

7. Council of Environmental Quality (CEQ) • Who are they? - a division of the Executive Office of the President that organizes federal environmental efforts in the United States What do they do? - Work closely with agencies and other White House offices in the development of environmental and energy policies and initiatives • Under NEPA, CEQ works to balance environmental, economic, and social objectives in pursuit of NEPA's goal of "productive harmony" between humans and the human environment

8. Terms to know • Categorical Exclusion (CE)- actions which do not have a significant effect on the human environment and do not need an environmental assessment or an environmental impact statement. • Environmental Assessment (EA)- When the significance of impacts of a transportation project proposal is unknown, an EA is made to help make this decision. If it is found that there will be significant impacts, there will be an EIS implemented. • Environmental Impact Statement (EIS)- NEPA requires Federal agencies to prepare EISs for major Federal actions that affect the quality of the human environment. An EIS is a document that states the process through which a transportation project was developed. It includes a range of reasonable alternatives, analyzes the possible impacts resulting from the alternatives, and demonstrates cooperation with other environmental laws and executive orders

9. NEPA chart CEQ process chart

10. Works Cited • EPA. (n.d.). National Environmental Policy Act. US EPA. Retrieved August 24, 2011. Fromhttp://www.epa.gov/region1/nepa/ • FEMA. (n.d.). National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA). FEMA. Retrieved August 24, 2011. From http://www.fema.gov/plan/ehp/ehplaws/nepa.shtm • http://www.nps.gov/history/local-law/fhpl_ntlenvirnpolcy.pdf • http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/National_Environmental_Policy_Act • http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Council_on_Environmental_Quality • http://environment.fhwa.dot.gov/projdev/docuce.asp

11. The End!