Environmental Compliance

1
Environmental Compliance

• Negotiating our way through the process

2
Overview of Environmental Process for this Project

• NEPA
• Corps of Engineers CWA (404 permit)
• Section 106 of the National Historic Preservation
  Act Compliance
• Tribal Consultation
• Section 7 Consultation
• Other Criteria

3
NEPA Analysis

• Will this project have a significant impact on
  the Human environment?
• Site specific Environmental Evaluations
• Supplement existing State CREP Environmental
  Assessments

4
Corps of Engineers 404 Permit

• Expand Regional Permit 34
• Special conditions needed to comply with Regional
  Permit 34
• Section 106 of the National Historic Preservation
  Act Compliance
• State Historic Preservation Officer (SHPO)
  Consultation
• Tribal Consultation
• Section 7 of the Endangered Species Act Compliance

5
Section 106-SHPO Consultation

• Consult with SHPO to determine if Historic
  Properties may be affected
• FSA makes a finding of No Historic Properties
  Affected or Historic Properties Affected
• If SHPO concurs with FSA No Historic Properties
  Affected time frame is up to 30 days
• If SHPO does not concur with FSA or if FSA
  determines there are historic properties that are
  likely to be affected, additional consultation is
  required - time frame at least 30 days, could be
  much more

6
Section 106-Tribal Consultation -if the project
is on Tribal lands

• We must also consult with Tribes that attach
  religious and cultural significance to historic
  properties whether they are on or off tribal
  lands (i.e., ancestral or ceded lands)
• may take much more then 30 days, if on Tribal
  lands (Tribal governments may not follow the 30
  day time frame)
• You also must consult with the SHPO at the same
  time with the typical time frame of 30 days

7
Section 7 Informal Consultation

• Is threatened and/or endangered species and/or
  critical habitat present?
• FSA requests or prepares list threatened and/or
  endangered in project area and sends to USFWS
• USFWS either concurs with FSA list or supplies
  list to FSA - 30 day response time
• USFWS determines
• No species and/or critical habitat present - end
  consultation
• Yes, Options
• Further Consultation with FWS
• USFWS issues no effect determination - time frame
  unknown
• FSA Prepares Biological Assessment
• 180 days to prepare
• FWS has 30 days to respond to assessment

8
Section 7-Formal Consultation

• FSA requests initiation of formal consultation
• Once clock starts, FWS in consultation with FSA
  formulates a Biological Opinion and incidental
  take statement - 90 day time frame
• FSA reviews draft biological opinion- comments
  and then FWS delivers final biological opinion
  and incidental take statement - 45 days

9
Other Regional 34 Permit Criteria

• Additional state specific environmental
  compliance criteria such as specific design
  criteria or other State permits depending on type
  of project implemented and proximity to streams,
  etc.
• State regulatory requirements can be done
  concurrently with the NEPA and consultation
  processes

10
Success through collaboration

• Lessons learned from Iowa
• Develop MOUs, state level agreements, or other
  mechanisms to facilitate intra-agency cooperation
  
• Start the NEPA process early to aid
  decision-makers
• National impact through local actions