“The NEPA process is intended to help public officials make decisions based on understanding of environmental consequences, and take actions that protect, restore, and enhance the environment”
NEPA is one of the federal laws that outlines policies to protect our environment. It establishes policy, sets goals, and provides a means for carrying out policy. Further, the NEPA process makes sure that environmental information is available to public officials and citizens before decisions are made and actions are taken.
An evaluation process, called an environmental review, is undertaken to determine whether the proposed project may have significant impact on the environment and therefore require the preparation of an environmental impact statement (EIS). If an EIS is necessary, the first step in the process is for the agency to publish a Notice of Intent (NOI) in the Federal Register.
In addition to providing notice that an EIS will be prepared, the NOI usually includes a project description and possible alternatives, describes the scoping process and states the intent of the lead agency, in this case, Western, to study the environmental impacts of the project. Additionally, the NOI gives the name and address of a person within the agency to contact concerning the EIS.
The NOA provides notice that the EIS has been completed. The NOA also includes a brief summary of the EIS (including the Proposed Action and alternatives), a list of the lead and cooperating agencies, and the date the document will be made available. Additionally, the NOA gives the name and address of a person within the agency to contact concerning the EIS.
If you do not have Acrobat Reader for viewing pdf files - click on the button below, which will take you directly to Adobe's site where you can download it for free.
The scoping process helps to foster public participation in the agency’s EIS preparation. During scoping, federal, state, and local agencies, as well as interested citizens and organizations, are asked to identify key environmental issues that they believe should be addressed in the EIS prepared for the project. Public comments during scoping are used to make factual corrections, to evaluate alternatives, and to modify and improve analyses.
Once scoping is complete and the range of actions and alternatives has been identified, Western will begin preparation of the EIS. An EIS, as defined by NEPA, is a detailed, written document prepared by a federal agency analyzing the environmental impacts of its proposed alternatives for major action. The EIS should provide a full and fair discussion of significant environmental impacts and alternatives that would avoid or minimize adverse impacts or enhance the quality of the human environments.
The Final EIS is prepared to incorporate responses to the comments on the Draft EIS. After a Final EIS is prepared and at the time of its decision, Western will prepare a public record of its decision, addressing how the findings of the EIS, including consideration of alternatives, were incorporated into Western’s decision-making process. The Record of Decision is a public document that describes mitigation measures to be undertaken which will make the selected alternative environmental acceptable.
Western’s public involvement program is intended to bring the public into the process, inform the public on the issues, and discuss the issues. Thus, the public has an important role in the NEPA process, particularly during scoping, and at the Draft EIS stage, in providing input on what issues should be addressed in an EIS and in commenting on the findings in the Draft EIS. Formal public involvement opportunities include the scoping meeting and review period, the Draft EIS review and public meeting, and the Final EIS. Western provides informal opportunity to contact Western throughout the process. Comments obtained from the general public, any affected Federal, state and local government agencies, and other interested parties will be addressed in the EIS.
Western is the lead agency under NEPA for this project and can be contacted in a variety of ways, including letter, phone, e-mail, and internet. Western has an established and open public process and invites all interested parties to participate in the NEPA process for this project. For more information, please call or write:
Environmental Project Manager:
Loreen McMahon
114 Parkshore Drive
Folsom, CA 95630-4710
1-916-353-4460
E-Mail: McMahon@wapa.gov—please include "SVS Comments" in the subject line
Toll-free hotline: 1-877-913-4440Alternate Contact:
David Christy
Public Information Officer
1-916-353-4436
E-mail: christy@wapa.gov
For more information on NEPA, please click on the links to the left in the navigation menu under the "Related Links" topic.