The Internship as a Vehicle to Identity

1993 ◽  
Vol 15 (1) ◽  
pp. 16-18
Author(s):  
Jeffrey Schlotter
Keyword(s):  
Environmental Impact ◽  
Engineering Design ◽  
Public Involvement ◽  
Federally Funded ◽  
National Environmental Policy Act ◽  
Social Scientists ◽  
Highway Projects ◽  
For Profit ◽  
Environmental Impact Assessments ◽  
National Environmental

Since July 1986, my place of employment has been a small, for-profit consulting firm of civil engineers and urban planners called H. W. Lochner, Incorporated. Lochner was founded in the mid-1940s as a civil engineering design firm. When the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) became law in 1969, Lochner, like many other engineering firms, broadened its services to include NEPA-required environmental impact assessments of federally funded infrastructure projects. For the kind of highway projects conducted at Lochner, these impact assessments involve detailed comparisons of alternative roadway designs and locations. Such comparative evaluations are undertaken by a combination of engineers, environmental scientists, and social scientists (usually urban planners). My niche within the Lochner organization is centered around two general NEPA-related activities: impact assessment (both social and environmental) and public involvement.

scholarly journals US Forest Service Implementation of the National Environmental Policy Act: Fast, Variable, Rarely Litigated, and Declining

2020 ◽  
Vol 118 (4) ◽  
pp. 403-418
Author(s):  
Forrest Fleischman ◽  
Cory Struthers ◽  
Gwen Arnold ◽  
Mike Dockry ◽  
Tyler Scott
Keyword(s):  
Environmental Policy ◽  
Environmental Impact ◽  
Fast Variable ◽  
National Environmental Policy Act ◽  
Environmental Impact Assessments ◽  
Environmental Impact Statements ◽  
The Us ◽  
Us Forest Service ◽  
National Environmental ◽  
National Environmental Policy

Abstract Abstract This paper draws on systematic data from the US Forest Service’s (USFS) Planning, Appeals and Litigation System to analyze how the agency conducts environmental impact assessments under the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA). We find that only 1.9 percent of the 33,976 USFS decisions between 2005 and 2018 were processed as Environmental Impact Statements, the most rigorous and time-consuming level of analysis, whereas 82.3 percent of projects fit categorical exclusions. The median time to complete a NEPA analysis was 131 days. The number of new projects has declined dramatically in this period, with the USFS now initiating less than half as many projects per year as it did prior to 2010. We find substantial variation between USFS units in the number of projects completed and time to completion, with some units completing projects in half the time of others. These findings point toward avenues for improving the agency’s NEPA processes.

Educated Guesses: Health Risk Assessment in Environmental Impact Statements

1990 ◽  
Vol 16 (3) ◽  
pp. 399-427
Author(s):  
Pamela D. Harvey
Keyword(s):  
Public Health ◽  
Risk Assessment ◽  
Environmental Impact ◽  
Disease Risk ◽  
National Environmental Policy Act ◽  
The Public ◽  
Environmental Impact Statements ◽  
National Environmental ◽  
Scientific Tool ◽  
Predicted Risk

Environmental pollution threatens public health. The search for solutions has advanced the frontiers of science and law. Efforts to protect the environment and public health begin with describing potential adverse consequences of human activities and characterizing the predicted risk. The National Environmental Policy Act requires the preparation of environmental impact statements to describe the effects of proposed federal projects and provide information for agency decisionmakers and the public.Risks to public health are particularly difficult to quantify because of uncertainty about the relation between exposure to environmental contamination and disease. Risk assessment is the current scientific tool to present estimates of risk. The methodology has created controversy, however, when underlying assumptions and uncertainties are not clearly presented. Critics caution that the methodology is vulnerable to bias. This Note evaluates the use of risk assessment in the environmental impact statement process and offers recommendations to ensure informed decisions.

ANALYSIS OF OIL SPILL ACCIDENTS FOR ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT STATEMENTS

1975 ◽  
Vol 1975 (1) ◽  
pp. 39-45
Author(s):  
Bruce Beyaert
Keyword(s):  
Environmental Impact ◽  
Oil Spill ◽  
Technical Information ◽  
Petroleum Exploration ◽  
National Environmental Policy Act ◽  
State Laws ◽  
Oil Transportation ◽  
Environmental Impact Statements ◽  
Exploration And Production ◽  
National Environmental

ABSTRACT Environmental impact statements (EISs) are often required under the National Environmental Policy Act or similar state laws for proposed activities such as petroleum exploration and production or for new oil transportation facilities such as marine terminals and pipelines. One of the critical concerns which must be properly addressed in an EIS for such activities or facilities is the risk of an accidental oil spill and the environmental impact which would result. This paper describes a comprehensive approach to analysis of oil spill accidents in such EISs. It identifies sources of relevant data and technical information while also pointing out areas where knowledge is incomplete. Techniques are recommended for determining the probability and size of a spill, the fate of the oil, and the resulting environmental impacts. The paper is intended to serve as a useful guide for those preparing or reviewing EISs for proposed large projects which involve appreciable oil spill risks.

A SNAPSHOT OF GERMANY'S EIA APPROACH IN LIGHT OF THE UNITED STATES ARCHETYPE

2012 ◽  
Vol 14 (04) ◽  
pp. 1250022 ◽  
Author(s):  
JOHANN KÖPPEL ◽  
GESA GEIßLER ◽  
JENNIFER HELFRICH ◽  
JESSICA REISERT
Keyword(s):  
Environmental Impact ◽  
Impact Assessment ◽  
Environmental Impact Assessment ◽  
Role Model ◽  
The United States ◽  
Current Status ◽  
National Environmental Policy Act ◽  
25Th Anniversary ◽  
20Th Anniversary ◽  
National Environmental

November 2010 marked the 25th anniversary of the EU Environmental Impact Assessment Directive and the 20th anniversary of its implementation in Germany via the Environmental Impact Assessment Act (EIAA) in 1990. Reflecting back to the original role model for these pieces of legisiation, the 1969 US National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) can bring some interesting differences to light. Four decades of experience from the more mature US EIA system may hold some important lessons for Germany's younger EIAA. While an outright comparison is impossible at this present time, this article aims to contribute a comparative perspective to show the current status of the original US model, NEPA, and the differences in development and practice to Germany's younger EIAA.

Administering Public Participation

2019 ◽  
Vol 50 (2) ◽  
pp. 133-147 ◽  
Author(s):  
Adam Eckerd ◽  
Roy L. Heidelberg
Keyword(s):  
Environmental Policy ◽  
Environmental Impact ◽  
Public Participation ◽  
Impact Analysis ◽  
The Other ◽  
Public Administrators ◽  
National Environmental Policy Act ◽  
Environmental Impact Analysis ◽  
Participation Process ◽  
National Environmental

Participation and administration have long had an uneasy coexistence. On one hand, public participation in decisions that affect citizens is consistent with citizenship and democracy; on the other hand, much of what government does is complex and requires some level of technical understanding to make decisions. In this article, we report on public administrators’ perceptions of public participation and the ways that they understand the participation process. We find that public participation is managed by public administrators; they determine the extent of participation, shape the ways that the participation takes place, and decide whether or not participation is valuable for their work. In some cases, the process is rather democratic, whereas in others, it is not. We find that it is up to administrators to shape the spaces for participation and select the participants in a manner consistent with their understanding of the task to be accomplished. We explore this process in the context of Environmental Impact Analysis under the National Environmental Policy Act.

INVESTIGATION OF DIFFERENT STAKEHOLDER VIEWS OF LOCAL RESIDENT INVOLVEMENT DURING ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT ASSESSMENTS IN THE UK

2003 ◽  
Vol 05 (01) ◽  
pp. 45-82 ◽  
Author(s):  
MICHAEL ROBINSON ◽  
ALAN BOND
Keyword(s):  
Environmental Impact ◽  
Public Involvement ◽  
Limited Range ◽  
Local Resident ◽  
Environmental Impact Assessments ◽  
Rural And Urban ◽  
Resident Involvement ◽  
Chi Squared ◽  
Local Residents ◽  
The Uk

Based on the possibility that different stakeholders have different views and aspirations about public involvement in Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA), a study was carried out to test whether this was the case, and whether the urban/suburban public might have different views on involvement of local residents (who are considered to be stakeholders) in EIA to the rural public and whether the views of those with experience of such involvement differ from the views of those without such experience. A questionnaire survey was carried out of UK EIA consultants and residents of one rural village and one urban area in the UK. The questions were structured in relation to seven issues relating to local residents involvement in EIA: importance; when (at which EIA stage); when (with respect to development sector); when (with respect to impact areas, e.g. air, fauna); to what extent; who; and for what purpose. Chi-squared tests were carried out to identify significant differences between pairs of results. Significant differences were found between the views of the consultants (who would organise the local residents involvement) and the local residents themselves, for many of the issues investigated. There were also some differences in views between the views of the rural and urban/suburban public for a limited range of issues and some, but not many, differences between the views of those with experience of local residents involvement and those without. Bearing in mind the limited nature of the survey, the results indicate that there is potential, even where consultants design what they consider to be very good public involvement programmes, for poor acceptance from the local residents and a lack of confidence in the programme. Consultants need to be aware of the range of views of stakeholders in order to develop successful public involvement programmes.

Public Participation in Environmental Impact Assessments Between Spain and Portugal

2015 ◽  
Vol 17 (02) ◽  
pp. 1550022 ◽  
Author(s):  
Fernando Vicente ◽  
Teresa Fidélis ◽  
Gonzalo Méndez
Keyword(s):  
Environmental Impact ◽  
Public Participation ◽  
Impact Assessment ◽  
Environmental Impact Assessment ◽  
Public Involvement ◽  
Considerable Increase ◽  
Significant Development ◽  
The Public ◽  
Environmental Impact Assessments ◽  
The Impact

Since 2000, the Transboundary Environmental Impact Assessment (TEIA) process in the Iberian context has undergone significant development due to new circumstances that came into play at the bilateral and European levels: (i) the adoption of a collaborative TEIA Protocol between Spain and Portugal in 2008; and (ii) the increasing number of cross-border projects supported by European Union funds. Despite these developments, the impact of this bilateral regulation on public participation, the cornerstone of any Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA), has not yet been fully examined. Drawing from specific literature focusing on the involvement of the public as the basis of effective improvement of the TEIA, this paper critically analyses if the lates transboundary provision has encouraged public participation in this context. Although the analysis of the TEIA enforcement revealed a considerable increase in the number of consultations between the neighbouring states compared to the previous situation, public involvement has not increased. Based on these findings, this paper presents a set of recommendations to more effectively involve the public in transboundary consultations.

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