Transcript SCOE, Executive Order 13274 - AASHTO

Executive Order 13274
Environmental Stewardship and
Transportation Infrastructure
Project Reviews
Priority Issues
EO 13274
Purpose

Enhance environmental stewardship

Streamline NEPA environmental review and
decision making process

Develop and implement projects in an efficient
and environmentally sound manor
EO Highlights

Promote environmental stewardship in Nation’s
Transportation system and expedite environmental
reviews of priority projects

Formulate and implement policy and procedures to
ensure completion of reviews in timely and
environmentally sensitive manner

Advance environmental stewardship through
cooperative actions in planning, development, ….

Designate a list of priority projects that should receive
expedited agency reviews
EO Task Force
Transportation Infrastructure Streamlining Task
Force

Monitor and assist Agencies in expediting
review of transportation projects

Review projects on the list

Identify and promote policies that can
effectively streamline the approval process
Task Force Members

Department of Transportation

Council on Environmental Quality

Department of Agriculture

Department of Commerce

Department of Interior

Department of Defense

Environmental Protection Agency

Advisory Council on Historic Preservation
Priority Issues
Task Force Identified 3 Priority Issues

Purpose and Need

Indirect and Cumulative Impacts

Integrated Planning
Interagency Workgroups

Identify barriers to timely and effective
completion of the NEPA process

Suggest potential solutions to improve
coordination and integration
Interagency Workgroup Activities

Identify existing problems and individual Agency needs
related to the issues

Position Papers – “Work Plans”
- Background and review of issue, problems statement, needs,
and recommendations

Work Plans reviewed by the Task Force

Final recommendations presented to the Task Force

Task Force agreement with recommendations and
prioritization
Purpose and Need

Provides essential context

Alternatives development

Decision making

Important to other Agency decisions
Purpose and Need
Prioritized Recommendations

Crafting purpose and need statements

Integrating NEPA purpose and need with other
requirements

Economic development as part of
transportation need
Indirect and Cumulative Impacts

Required by NEPA and other environmental
laws and regulations

Complicated and complex

Thinking, understanding and interests vary
Indirect and Cumulative Impacts
Prioritized Recommendations

Clarify specific analysis and mitigation requirements of
program authorities

Identify existing analysis and opportunities for
watershed or landscape-level approaches

Collect and share information on existing guidance and
analysis methodologies

Enhance coordination and scoping related to indirect
and cumulative impacts
Integrated Planning

Linking planning and environment can
streamline the NEPA process

Barriers include



Separate areas of authority and jurisdiction
Lack of early coordination
Funding and resource constraints
Integrated Planning
Prioritized Recommendations

Baseline of current legislation, regulations, guidance
and training

Assessment of the constraints – funding and staffing

Innovative methods to improve interagency
coordination and participation

Review recent tiered documents for examples

Highlight successful integration of transportation
planning and environmental review
Where We Are

Review legislation, regulation and case law


Compile relevant guidance and training


Baseline of understanding
Share and determine need
Best practices and good examples of
documentation and coordination