Environmental Policy and Programs
What’s New
- The Federal Highway Administration (FHWA), Federal Railroad Administration (FRA), and FTA have released updated interim final guidance for project sponsors involved in surface transportation projects. The Section 139 Efficient Environmental Reviews for Project Decision-making and One Federal Decision Interim Final Guidance provides essential information regarding the statutory framework outlined in 23 U.S.C. 139 that governs the agencies’ environmental review processes. The document supersedes and replaces previous guidance, such as the SAFETEA-LU Environmental Review Process Final Guidance of 2006.
Overview
FTA's Office of Environmental Policy and Programs, part of the Office of Planning and Environment, develops and promotes approaches to enhance and integrate environmental decision-making into transportation planning, programming and projects. It works to minimize the impact of transportation projects through implementation of the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) and related legislation.
Additionally, the Office of Environmental Policy and Programs ensures up-to-date reporting for FTA projects on the Federal Permitting Dashboard, which increases agency accountability and public transparency for those projects.
The Environmental Policy and Programs webpages contain resources to support project sponsors with the environmental review process.
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The Environmental Review Process page provides an overview of the FTA environmental review process and resources related to preparing environmental review documents. It also includes FTA regulation, guidance documents, and standard operating procedures.
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The Environmental Resources Information page highlights the environmental resources and impact areas that are frequently considered as part of the environmental review process for FTA projects.
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The Environmental Training and Technical Assistance links to training and webinars that assist stakeholders with conducting FTA's environmental review process.