Applying the NEPA Process and Writing Effective NEPA Documents

Description

Participants in this highly acclaimed training workshop learn how to fulfill the spirit and letter of NEPA and CEQ while preparing documents. Interdisciplinary specialists who carefully manage the NEPA process will generate better NEPA documents that require less preparation time, and that facilitate informed decisions and specific comments. (There are additional writing exercises and practical skills applications in the 4-day workshop) 

Objectives

Upon completion of this workshop, participants will be able to do the following:

  • Manage the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) process so that the spirit and the letter of the act are fulfilled legally and efficiently
  • Implement the Council on Environmental Quality (CEQ) regulations and agency regulations
  • Oversee contractors who conduct environmental analyses and/or write Environmental Assessments (EAs) and Environmental Impact Statements (EISs)
  • Review the following documents for compliance with NEPA, CEQ regulations, and the agency implementing procedures:
    • EAs
    • EISs
    • Records Of Decision (RODs)
    • Findings Of No Significant Impact (FONSIs)
  • Write high-quality EAs, EISs, FONSIs, Notices Of Intent (NOIs), and other environmental documents using approved NEPA, CEQ, Government Printing Office (GPO), and agency-specific guidelines
  • Understanding the NEPA and CEQ Regulations 
    Understand NEPA law, its fundamental principles, and the relationship of the analysis process to the documents.
  • Selecting the Appropriate Level of Documentation 
    Understand the difference and significance of NEPA document types.
  • Developing Alternatives 
    Discover how to develop a reasonable range of alternatives.
  • Identifying Issues and Scoping 
    Learn to define cause-and-effect relationships, plan public involvement strategies, assemble records, and identify other relevant environmental laws.
  • Predicting Environmental Consequences 
    Learn a systematic process for quantitatively and qualitatively predicting effects.
  • Understanding NEPA Decisionmaking and Decisionmaker Skills 
    Understand the legal roles of FONSIs and RODs. Learn skills to identify the actions needed.

Audience

Participants for this training generally include resource specialists, team leaders, decisionmakers, and other agency professionals who must understand the NEPA process to fully execute their responsibilities.ProcessHow to Manage the NEPA Process is an interactive workshop designed to build practical skills. For optimum learning, class size is limited to between 15 and 25 participants.This 3- or 4-day workshop consists of a carefully designed combination of the following:

  • 35% Lecture
  • 65% Discussion and exercises

Materials

Participants receive the following:

  • Comprehensive Workshop Manual
  • Workshop Resources Workbook