Table Of ContentEnvironmental Impact Assessment
in the United States
Environmental impact assessment is now firmly established as an important and often
mandatory part of proposing any development project. Environmental Impact Assessment in the
United States provides foundational knowledge of environmental review in the United States
as carried out at federal, state, and local levels, with detailed information about the National
Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) and its applications, and other relevant federal and state
legislation. This book will aid planners, architects, engineers, project managers, or consultants
who work with environmental impact statements to assess the effects of a proposed activity on
the environment and who develop and assess measures to avoid or minimize those impacts. It
will serve as a desk reference for professional environmental planners as well as a core textbook
for students who intend to work in the fields of environmental policy, civil engineering,
environmental law, resources management, or other areas of environmental management.
Robert M. Sanford (Rob) is Professor Emeritus of Environmental Science and Policy at the
University of Southern Maine in Gorham, Maine. He received a BA in anthropology (archaeology)
at SUNY Potsdam, and his MS and PhD in environmental science from SUNY College of
Environmental Science and Forestry. He served as an environmental hearing officer in Vermont for
9 years. Before and after that, he was an environmental impact assessment and planning consultant.
His research interests include environmental impact assessment, environmental planning, and
environmental education. He was a co-director of the SENCER (Science Education for New
Civic Engagements and Responsibilities) New England Center for Innovation (SCI) from 2012
to 2022. In 2019, he was appointed to the Maine Board of Environmental Protection. His recent
books include Reading Rural Landscapes: A Field Guide to New England’s Past; Environmental Science:
Active Learning Laboratories and Applied Problem Sets (3rd Ed.); River Voices, Practicing Archaeology
(3rd Ed.); and Environmental Site Plans and Development Review.
Donald G. Holtgrieve earned his PhD degree from the University of Oregon in 1973.
He taught geography, environmental studies, and environmental planning at California State
University campuses at Hayward and Chico before moving back to Eugene at the University of
Oregon. He created two environmental planning consulting firms and supervised the preparation
of environmental impact reports, resource management plans, and various other community
planning documents for federal, state, and local agencies. He planned environmentally sensitive
land development projects and created three wildlife preserves for non-profit watershed groups.
He is involved with volunteer service to the McKenzie River Trust and the Hatfield Marine
Science Center in Newport, Oregon.
Environmental Impact
Assessment in the
United States
Robert M. Sanford and
Donald G. Holtgrieve
Illustrations by Patricia Boyle
Cover image: Robert M. Sanford
First published 2023
by Routledge
605 Third Avenue, New York, NY 10158
and by Routledge
4 Park Square, Milton Park, Abingdon, Oxon, OX14 4RN
Routledge is an imprint of the Taylor & Francis Group, an informa business
© 2023 Robert M. Sanford and Donald G. Holtgrieve
The right of Robert M. Sanford and Donald G. Holtgrieve to be identified as authors
of this work has been asserted in accordance with sections 77 and 78 of the Copyright,
Designs and Patents Act 1988.
All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reprinted or reproduced or utilised in any
form or by any electronic, mechanical, or other means, now known or hereafter invented,
including photocopying and recording, or in any information storage or retrieval system,
without permission in writing from the publishers.
Trademark notice: Product or corporate names may be trademarks or registered trademarks,
and are used only for identification and explanation without intent to infringe.
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Names: Sanford, Robert M., author. | Holtgrieve, Donald G., author. | Boyle, Patricia,
illustrator
Title: Environmental impact assessment in the United States / Robert M. Sanford and
Donald G. Holtgrieve ; illustrations by Patricia Boyle.
Description: New York, NY : Routledge, 2023. | Includes bibliographical references
and index.
Identifiers: LCCN 2022030743 (print) | LCCN 2022030744 (ebook) |
ISBN 9780367467319 (hardback) | ISBN 9780367467326 (paperback) |
ISBN 9781003030713 (ebook)
Subjects: LCSH: Environmental impact statements—United States.
Classification: LCC TD194.5 .S26 2023 (print) | LCC TD194.5 (ebook) |
DDC 333.71/40973—dc23/eng/20221011
LC record available at https://lccn.loc.gov/2022030743
LC ebook record available at https://lccn.loc.gov/2022030744
ISBN: 978-0-367-46731-9 (hbk)
ISBN: 978-0-367-46732-6 (pbk)
ISBN: 978-1-003-03071-3 (ebk)
DOI: 10.4324/9781003030713
Typeset in Bembo MT Pro
by Apex CoVantage, LLC
Contents
List of figures vii
List of tables ix
Foreword xiii
Acknowledgments xv
1 Introduction 1
2 The EIA process 21
3 Screening, scoping, and related aspects 46
4 Assessing environmental impacts 65
5 Geology, topography, and earth resources 80
6 Hydrology, water quality, and water supply 92
7 Biological: Species and habitats 103
8 Air quality and climate change 115
9 Archaeology and historic preservation 127
vi Contents
10 Energy 138
11 Noise impact analysis 150
12 Aesthetics and visual impact analysis 161
13 Social impacts and environmental justice 171
14 Infrastructure, fiscal impacts, and community services 182
15 Traffic and transport systems 193
16 Writing the report 205
17 Making and implementing the decision 216
Appendices
National Environmental Policy Act Implementing Regulations 237
Preparation of students as environmental practitioners 302
Index 309
Figures
1.1 A public notice of Finding of No Significant Impact (FONSI) commonly
associated with the dispensation of federal funding 4
1.2 How EIA relates to environmental planning 7
1.3 Stages in the EIA process 9
2.1 Spheres of US global involvement 31
3.1 Land development process for a private sector project 50
3.2 Public participation in EIA and EIS 60
4.1 Accuracy and precision illustrated 71
5.1 Basic soil properties 82
5.2 Callahan Mine site 88
6.1 Well plume 97
8.1 Air quality assessment cycle 116
8.2 Air quality model 120
9.1 Area of potential effect for a transmission line 132
9.2 NEPA and Section 106 flow chart (based on Neumann and Sanford,
2010: 43) 134
10.1 Three energy aspects for EIA review: exterior, interior, and production 139
11.1 Airport noise contours 155
12.1 Viewshed area 163
14.1 Projects can involve a variety of services 183
17.1 Decision tree for impact significance in Brazil (Tagliani and Walter, 2018) 218
17.2 Value tree analysis for decisions 224
tables
2.1 EIA hierarchy and the branches of US government 25
2.2 State equivalent NEPA laws (“Little NEPA”) as of 2022 29
2.3 Hypothetical display of how potential environmental impacts may vary
depending on the phase (life stage) and nature of the project 34
2.4 Sample job plan outline created by students in an EIA class
(budget column and other details omitted) 39
2.5 Another sample job plan outline 40
2.6 One-year timeline for an EIA 41
3.1 Screening matrix for a project to construct an erosion control
and stormwater barrier dike 48
3.2 Sample matrix for offshore wind turbine project impact assessment 57
3.3 Project and environment matrix 58
3.4 Stakeholder exercise 61
3.5 Master plan stakeholder matrix 63
4.1 Two-month timeline for EIA project management 68
4.2 Categories of impact matrix 73
4.3 EIA report timeline 78
5.1 Earth resource components of an environmental setting 83
5.2 Projects associated with significant earth resource issues 84
5.3 Sample checklist for a soil engineering report 85
5.4 Sample checklist for erosion control plans and details 86
5.5 Sample California checklist for sites in unstable areas 87
5.6 Factors to consider in control of erosion through vegetation 89
6.1 Sample wetland functions and values checklist for an EIA on a site
that contains wetlands 94
6.2 Major pollutants affecting water management 96
6.3 Water impact categories 98
6.4 Checklist of water resource categories of impact for project phases
in an EIA 99
7.1 Checklist of items for assessing an environmental setting 105
7.2 Brief comparison of Habitat Evaluation System and Habitat
Evaluation Procedure 107
