Appendix E to Part 651 - Content of the Environmental Impact Statement
32:4.1.1.3.6.10.1.1.7 : Appendix E
Appendix E to Part 651 - Content of the Environmental Impact
Statement
(a) EISs will:
(1) Be analytic rather than encyclopedic. Impacts will be
discussed in proportion to their significance; and insignificant
impacts will only be briefly discussed, sufficient to show why more
analysis is not warranted.
(2) Be kept concise and no longer than absolutely necessary to
comply with NEPA, CEQ regulations, and this part. Length should be
determined by potential environmental issues, not project size. The
EIS should be no longer than 300 pages.
(3) Describe the criteria for selecting alternatives, and
discuss those alternatives, including the “no action” alternative,
to be considered by the ultimate decision maker.
(4) Serve as a means to assess environmental impacts of proposed
military actions, rather than justifying decisions.
(b) The EIS will consist of the following:
(1) Cover sheet. The cover sheet will not exceed one page
(40 CFR 1502.11) and will be accompanied by a signature page for
the proponent, designated as preparer; the installation
environmental office (or other source of NEPA expertise),
designated as reviewer; and the Installation Commander (or other
Activity Commander), designated as approver. It will include:
(i) The following statement: “The material contained in the
attached (final or draft) EIS is for internal coordination use only
and may not be released to non-Department of Defense agencies or
individuals until coordination has been completed and the material
has been cleared for public release by appropriate authority.” This
sheet will be removed prior to filing the document with the
EPA.
(ii) A list of responsible agencies including the lead agency
and any cooperating agency.
(iii) The title of the proposed action that is the subject of
the statement and, if appropriate, the titles of related
cooperating agency actions, together with state and county (or
other jurisdiction as applicable) where the action is located.
(iv) The name, address, and telephone number of the person at
the agency who can supply further information, and, as appropriate,
the name and title of the major approval authority in the command
channel through HQDA staff proponent.
(v) A designation of the statement as a draft, final, or draft
or final supplement.
(vi) A one-paragraph abstract of the statement that describes
only the need for the proposed action, alternative actions, and the
significant environmental consequences of the proposed action and
alternatives.
(vii) The date by which comments must be received, computed in
cooperation with the EPA.
(2) Summary. The summary will stress the major
conclusions of environmental analysis, areas of controversy, and
issues yet to be resolved. The summary presentation will focus on
the scope of the EIS, including issues that will not be evaluated
in detail. It should list all federal permits, licenses, and other
entitlements that must be obtained prior to proposal
implementation. Further, a statement of compliance with the
requirements of other federal environmental protection laws will be
included (40 CFR 1502.25). To simplify consideration of complex
relationships, every effort will be made to present the summary of
alternatives and their impacts in a graphic format with the
narrative. The EIS summary should be written at the standard middle
school reading level. This summary should not exceed 15 pages. An
additional summary document will be prepared for separate
submission to the DEP and the ASA(I&E). This will identify
progress “to the date,” in addition to the standard EIS summary
which:
(i) Summarizes the content of the document (from an oversight
perspective).
(ii) Outlines mitigation requirements (to improve mitigation
tracking and the programming of funds).
(iii) Identifies major and unresolved issues and potential
controversies. For EIS actions that have been delegated by the
ASA(I&E), this document will also include status of
requirements and conditions established by the delegation
letter.
(3) Table of contents. This section will provide for the
table of contents, list of figures and tables, and a list of all
referenced documents, including a bibliography of references within
the body of the EIS. The table of contents should have enough
detail so that searching for sections of text is not difficult.
(4) Purpose of and need for the action. This section
should clearly state the nature of the problem and discuss how the
proposed action or range of alternatives would solve the problem.
This section will briefly give the relevant background information
on the proposed action and summarize its operational, social,
economic, and environmental objectives. This section is designed
specifically to call attention to the benefits of the proposed
action. If a cost-benefit analysis has been prepared for the
proposed action, it may be included here, or attached as an
appendix and referenced here.
(5) Alternatives considered, including proposed action and no
action alternative. This section presents all reasonable
alternatives and their likely environmental impacts, written in
simple, nontechnical language for the lay reader. A no action
alternative must be included (40 CFR 1502.14(d)). A preferred
alternative need not be identified in the DEIS; although a
preferred alternative generally must be included in the FEIS (40
CFR 1502.14(e)). The environmental impacts of the alternatives
should be presented in comparative form, thus sharply defining the
issues and providing a clear basis for choice among the options
that are provided the decision maker and the public (40 CFR
1502.14). The information should be summarized in a brief, concise
manner. The use of graphics and tabular or matrix format is
encouraged to provide the reviewer with an at-a-glance review. In
summary, the following points are required:
(i) A description of all reasonable alternatives, including the
preferred action, alternatives beyond DA jurisdiction (40 CFR
1502.14(c)), and the no action alternative.
(ii) A comparative presentation of the environmental
consequences of all reasonable alternative actions, including the
preferred alternative.
(iii) A description of the mitigation measures and/or monitoring
procedures (§ 651.15) nominated for incorporation into the proposed
action and alternatives, as well as mitigation measures that are
available but not incorporated and/or monitoring procedures (§
651.15).
(iv) Listing of any alternatives that were eliminated from
detailed study. A brief discussion of the reasons for which each
alternative was eliminated.
(6) Affected environment (baseline conditions) that may be
impacted. This section will contain information about existing
conditions in the affected areas in sufficient detail to understand
the potential effects of the alternatives under consideration (40
CFR 1502.15). Affected elements could include, for example,
biophysical characteristics (ecology and water quality); land use
and land use plans; architectural, historical, and cultural
amenities; utilities and services; and transportation. This section
will not be encyclopedic. It will be written clearly and the degree
of detail for points covered will be related to the significance
and magnitude of expected impacts. Elements not impacted by any of
the alternatives need only be presented in summary form, or
referenced.
(7) Environmental and socioeconomic consequences. This
section forms the scientific and analytic basis for the comparison
of impacts. It should discuss:
(i) Direct effects and their significance.
(ii) Indirect effects and their significance.
(iii) Possible conflicts between the proposed action and
existing land use plans, policies, and controls.
(iv) Environmental effects of the alternatives, including the
proposed action and the no action alternative.
(v) Energy requirements and conservation potential of various
alternatives and mitigation measures.
(vi) Irreversible and irretrievable commitments of resources
associated with the proposed action.
(vii) Relationship between short-term use of the environment and
maintenance and enhancement of long-term productivity.
(viii) Urban quality, historic, and cultural resources, and
design of the built environment, including the reuse and
conservation potential of various alternatives and mitigation
measures.
(ix) Cumulative effects of the proposed action in light of other
past, present, and foreseeable actions.
(x) Means to mitigate or monitor adverse environmental
impacts.
(xi) Any probable adverse environmental effects that cannot be
avoided.
(8) List of preparers. The EIS will list the names of its
preparers, together with their qualifications (expertise,
experience, and professional disciplines) (40 CFR 1502.17),
including those people who were primarily responsible for preparing
(research, data collection, and writing) the EIS or significant
background or support papers, and basic components of the
statement. When possible, the people who are responsible for a
particular analysis, as well as an analysis of background papers,
will be identified. If some or all of the preparers are
contractors' employees, they must be identified as such.
Identification of the firm that prepared the EIS is not, by itself,
adequate to meet the requirements of this point. Normally, this
list will not exceed two pages. Contractors will execute disclosure
statements specifying that they have no financial or other interest
in the outcome of the project. These statements will be referenced
in this section of the EIS.
(9) Distribution list. For the DEIS, a list will be
prepared indicating from whom review and comment is requested. The
list will include public agencies and private parties or
organizations. The distribution of the DEIS and FEIS will include
the CBTDEVs from whom comments were requested, irrespective of
whether they provided comments.
(10) Index. The index will be an alphabetical list of
topics in the EIS, especially of the types of effects induced by
the various alternative actions. Reference may be made to either
page number or paragraph number.
(11) Appendices (as appropriate). If an agency prepares
an appendix to an EIS, the appendix will consist of material
prepared in connection with an EIS (distinct from material not so
prepared and incorporated by reference), consist only of material
that substantiates any analysis fundamental to an impact statement,
be analytic and relevant to the decision to be made, and be
circulated with the EIS or readily available.