What is an Environmental Re-evaluation?
- An Environmental Re-evaluation is a written document prepared to determine whether the contents of an environmental document are still valid, up-to-date, and complete.
- Under the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA), an Environmental Re-evaluation is required on projects wth an Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) where no action to advance the project has occurred within a three-year period.
- Changes in any of the following items, and the relevance of the change, are considered in the Environmental Re-evaluation:
- Scope of the proposed project.
- Social, economic, or environmental circumstances of the project study area (i.e., the affected environment).
- State-of-the-art practice for environmental analysis (i.e. new technology).
- Federal or state statutory environmental standards.
- Information available related to possibly significant social, economic, or environmental impacts of the proposed project.
- Proposed mitigation measures.
- The Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) reviews the Environmental Re-evaluation to determine if changes or new information may result in significant environmental impacts that were not evaluated in the EIS.
- If significant environmental impacts may result, a Supplemental Environmental Impact Statement (SEIS) will be required.
- There is no formal NEPA requirement for Public Involvement with an Environmental Re-evaluation. However, in keeping with the spirit of an open, collaborative process, a draft Re-evaluation will be made available for public comment.
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