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ENVIRONMENTAL REVIEWS AND CASE STUDIES: Streamlining the National Environmental Policy Act Process

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  09 February 2015

Joseph Trnka  and
Elizabeth Ellis
Joseph Trnka*
Affiliation:
Joseph Trnka, BA, AICP, CEP, Principal Investigator, J Trnka Consulting, Fargo, North Dakota. Elizabeth Ellis, MES, CEP, Environmental Review Coordinator, Washington State Department of Ecology, Lacey, Washington.
Elizabeth Ellis
Affiliation:
Joseph Trnka, BA, AICP, CEP, Principal Investigator, J Trnka Consulting, Fargo, North Dakota. Elizabeth Ellis, MES, CEP, Environmental Review Coordinator, Washington State Department of Ecology, Lacey, Washington.
*
Address correspondence to: Joe Trnka, AICP, CEP, J Trnka Consulting, Fargo, ND 58102; (phone) 701-353-2019; (e-mail) joe@jtrnka.com or www.jtrnka.com.
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Abstract

The article offers an examination of recent efforts to streamline the NEPA process. Proposed streamlining methods are evaluated to answer whether streamlining initiatives would either improve NEPA or result in a cautionary tale of unintended consequences. Examples are given of commonly encountered sources of delay outside of NEPA that streamlining initiatives cannot address. The article concludes with a discussion of ways to reduce delay in NEPA review.

Environmental Practice 16: 302–308 (2014)

Type
Features
Information
Environmental Practice , Volume 16 , Issue 4 , December 2014 , pp. 302 - 308
Copyright
© National Association of Environmental Professionals 2014 

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References

References

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Further Reading

Andreas, E., and Kennedy, K., for Wiley Rein, LLP. 2012, June 28. NEPA and Renewable Energy Practices: Streamlining Sustainability. ABA Environmental Litigation 23(3). Available at http://www.lexology.com/library/detail.aspx?g=6c2f0e4a-48a9-4419-95f3-eb6890fb0b10.Google Scholar
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Council on Environmental Quality (CEQ) and Advisory Council on Historic Preservation (ACHP). 2013, March. NEPA and NHPA: A Handbook for Integrating NEPA and Section 106. CEQ and ACHP, Washington, DC, 47 pp. Available at http://www.achp.gov/docs/NEPA_NHPA_Section_106_Handbook_Mar2013.pdf.Google Scholar
Environmental Law Institute (ELI). 2010, August. NEPA Success Stories: Celebrating 40 Years of Transparency and Open Government. ELI, Washington, DC, 34 pp. Available at http://www.eli.org/research-report/nepa-success-stories-celebrating-40-years-transparency-and-open-government.Google Scholar
Gaines, L., and Lurie, S.. 2007, May 16. NEPA for the 21st Century: A Comparative Analysis of Other Organization’s Environmental Review Structures: Final Report. Institute for Natural Resources, Oregon State University, Corvallis, 46 pp. Available at http://www.fs.fed.us/pnw/about/programs/fsd/NEPA/Final%20Draft%20Report-160507.pdf.Google Scholar
Lake, E.A. 2013, March 19. Integrating NEPA and NHPA Section 106 Reviews: New Guidance Document Provides Useful Advice, But Leaves Some Questions Unanswered. Holland & Knight, Washington, DC. Available at http://www.hklaw.com/publications/integrating-nepa-and-nhpa-section-106-reviews-new-guidance-document-provides-useful-advice-but-leaves-some-questions-unanswered-03-19-2013/.Google Scholar
Lake, E.A., and Targ, N.W.. 2013, March 19. Federal Efficiency/Streamlining: CEQ Issues New NEPA Guidance Documents. Holland & Knight, Washington, DC. Available at http://www.hklaw.com/publications/federal-efficiencystreamlining-ceq-issues-new-nepa-guidance-documents-03-19-2013/.Google Scholar