ABSTRACT

The preceding chapter summarized the requirements of the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) and this chapter addresses meeting those requirements. The process of implementing NEPA mandates is first presented based on a flow diagram and is followed by a discussion of elements in the process that are NEPA specific. Although several of the NEPA-specific elements can be useful tools in any environmental impact analysis, they have unique application in NEPA and therefore are discussed in this chapter. The elements that are universal to any environmental impact analysis, including NEPA, are only briefly mentioned in this chapter but discussed in detail in the context of an overall impact analysis approach presented in Chapters 4 and 5. Following a discussion of the NEPA process, the critical elements central to NEPA compliance are discussed in detail. These include purpose and need for the proposed action, categorical exclusions, and NEPA enforcement. In some ways this chapter may seem out of sequence because many of the NEPA-specific aspects of analysis are best considered within the context of an overall environmental impact analysis (Chapters 4 and 5). However, it is important to point out that NEPA specifics immediately follow the history and requirements of NEPA (i.e., Chapter 2). Thus it may be beneficial to the reader to revisit some sections of this chapter after studying the overall environmental impact analysis and assessment approaches presented in the following chapters.