editor – Page 13 – Environmental Technical Assistance Program Newsletter

AASHTO Comments on CEQ’s Proposed NEPA Revisions

The American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials recently submitted a six-page comment letter to the Council on Environmental Quality or CEQ regarding proposed revisions to the National Environmental Policy Act or NEPA.

[Above photo by AASHTO]

The CEQ issued a notice of proposed rulemaking in July in which the agency seeks to create a more “effective environmental review process” that promotes better decision making; ensures full and fair public involvement; provides for an efficient process and regulatory certainty; and provides for sound decision making grounded in science, including consideration of relevant environmental, climate change, and environmental justice effects.

AASHTO noted in its comment letter that it “shares CEQ’s goals” of providing for efficient and effective environmental reviews, ensuring full and fair public involvement, providing regulatory certainty, promoting better decision-making grounded in science, and protecting the environment.

To that end, AASHTO offered a slate of comments regarding CEQ’s proposed rule:

The group supports provisions in the 2020 regulations that modernized the NEPA process, improved efficiency, enhanced accountability, and encouraged interagency coordination on compliance with NEPA and the requirements of other environmental laws and supports their retention in CEQ’s proposed rule.
AASHTO said CEQ’s NEPA regulations should be legally sound, grounded in the statute – as recently amended by the Fiscal Responsibility Act and recent case law – and build upon well-established principles developed through decades of agencies’ experience implementing NEPA. “The significant regulatory changes over the past few years have caused uncertainty, additional work, delays in project delivery, and litigation risks for projects,” the group said in its letter. “Another significant upheaval to the NEPA process and regulatory requirements will only compound these problems.”
AASHTO noted that there should be no “one-size-fits-all” way to comply with NEPA. “Each transportation project is unique,” the group pointed out in its letter. “Flexibility [is needed] to tailor the NEPA process based on a particular project’s circumstances [so] agencies should be able to meet NEPA’s requirements in a way that minimizes the financial and administrative burdens, informs public decisions, protects the environment, and avoids unintended consequences such as public or agency uncertainty and increased litigation risk.”
AASHTO said CEQ’s NEPA regulations should provide clear direction to agencies, project sponsors and applicants, and the public. “To improve agency and public understanding of the regulatory framework, CEQ should be clear about which aspects of the regulations are statutorily required,” the group emphasized. “AASHTO is concerned that CEQ’s proposed regulations introduce new undefined terms and create new vague requirements, which will lead to delays in project delivery and increase litigation risk for projects. For example, in various areas throughout the regulations, CEQ proposes to replace the term ‘significant’ with the ambiguous and undefined terms ‘important’ or ‘substantial.’”

New York Offers $165 Million for Community-Based Projects

Governor Kathy Hochul (D) recently announced $165 million in new funding is available to support community-based investments designed to strengthen the cultural, aesthetic, and environmental aspects of local and regional transportation systems while promoting safety and mobility.

[Above photo by NYSDOT]

Those funds come from the Federal Highway Administration and will be administered by the New York State Department of Transportation through its Transportation Alternatives Program or TAP, the Congestion Mitigation and Air Quality Improvement Program or CMAQ, and the Carbon Reduction Program or CRP.

Gov. Hochul said in a statement that funding will support projects that create new and enhance existing bicycle and pedestrian facilities, improve access to public transportation, create safe routes to schools, convert abandoned railway corridors to pedestrian trails, and help reduce congestion and greenhouse gas emissions from the transportation sector.

In addition, these funds may be used by municipalities to support activities that meet the requirements of the Clean Air Act and the Americans with Disabilities Act, the governor’s office noted.

“These community-based projects reaffirm New York’s nation-leading commitment to the environment while facilitating local economic development and improving public health,” Gov. Hochul said. “It’s imperative that we continue to make investments in clean, environmentally-friendly transportation alternatives.”

“[These] smart transportation policies afford all New Yorkers safe and environmentally sound opportunities for work, recreation, and social connectivity,” added NYSDOT Commissioner Marie Therese Dominguez. “These critical community-based investments will provide positive impacts for regions all across New York, enhancing the overall safety and quality of life for residents and visitors, while continuing the fight against global climate change.”

NYSDOT will accept project applications for that funding through January 9, 2024; noting that projects applying for funding must be related to the surface transportation system and provide full access to the public. They’ll also be rated based on established criteria that include public benefit, air quality improvements, cost-effectiveness, and partnerships, the agency noted.

NYSDOT added that TAP-CMAQ-CRP project awards will amount to no less than $500,000 and no more than $5 million for any single project, with the agency providing up to 80 percent of the total eligible project costs with a minimum 20 percent match provided by the project sponsor.

FHWA Seeks 2024 EEA Program Entries

Now through November 3, the Federal Highway Administration will be accepting nominations for its 2024 Environmental Excellence Awards or EEA program.

[Above image via FHWA]

Since the program started in 1995, the biennial EEA program has recognized outstanding transportation projects, processes, and organizations that incorporate environmental stewardship into the planning and project development processes using FHWA funding sources.

[Editor’s note: The FHWA pointed to the 2022 EEA program winners to show how such projects exemplify the agency’s priorities of climate change and sustainability, equity and environmental justice, complete streets, economic strength, and safety for all road users.]

The EEA program is coordinated with FHWA’s Offices of Human Environment, Natural Environment, plus Project Development and Environmental Review to reflect the notion that “environment” means a connection to both human and natural environmental systems.

FHWA noted that it accepts nominations for any project, process, group, or individuals involved in a project or process that has used agency funding to make an “outstanding contribution” to both transportation and the environment.

All nominations must be submitted electronically using the online submission form available via the award’s web portal, FHWA said, but if for any reason the electronic submittal of entries is not possible, faxed and mailed copies are acceptable. For more information about the submission of entries, please contact EEAwardsNomination@dot.gov.

RIDOT Helps Support ‘Gotham Greens’ Path Project

The Rhode Island Department of Transportation is helping support – in concert with various federal, state, and local agencies – the new “Gotham Greens” off-road multi-use path along the Woonasquatucket River Greenway via stormwater mitigation efforts.

[Above photo by RIDOT]

This new path, located behind the Gotham Greens building in Olneyville, offers new access to the Woonasquatucket River and will serve as a connector between the Greenway and the Washington Secondary Bike Path – helping “knit together” a “patchwork of pathways” in the City of Providence to promote active transportation use while protecting the local environment from stormwater flooding.

The nonprofit Woonasquatucket River Watershed Council, the City of Providence, and Gotham Greens jointly built the new path, while RIDOT – in concert with the Environmental Protection Agency, Rhode Island Department of Environmental Management, and the Narragansett Bay Estuary Program – will work to mitigate the potential for future flooding along the pathway.

“Urban flooding and resilience are complex issues that demand collaborative, innovative, and targeted responses,” explained Governor Dan McKee (D) in a statement.

This second phase of improvements to the pathway – currently under RIDOT’s supervision and supported in part by the National Coastal Resilience Fund – focuses on streambank restoration and “green infrastructure,” which is the installation of plants, soil, and other natural materials to manage stormwater and prevent flooding and pollution.

Environmental News Highlights – October 4, 2023

Petroleum-Equivalent Fuel Economy Calculation -DOE (Notification of ex parte communication; request for comment)

Air Plan Approval; Washington; Southwest Clean Air Agency; Emission Standards and Controls for Sources Emitting Gasoline Vapors -EPA (Final rule)

Air Plan Approval; Washington; Southwest Clean Air Agency, General Air Quality Regulations -EPA (Final rule)

Notice of Availability of the Draft Environmental Review Document for Amended Arrival Routes at Los Angeles International Airport -FAA (Public comment period for the FAA’s draft environmental review document)

Restoring Healthy and Abundant Salmon, Steelhead, and Other Native Fish Populations in the Columbia River Basin -White House (Administrative Order)

Public Meeting of the Colorado River Basin Salinity Control Advisory Council -Bureau of Reclamation (Notice of public meeting)

New USDOT Volpe Transportation Research Center Opens

Officials from the U.S. General Services Administration, the U.S. Department of Transportation, and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology – among others – recently held a ribbon-cutting ceremony to open the new USDOT John A. Volpe National Transportation Systems Center.

[Above photo by the USDOT]

The event celebrated the completion of the decade-long $750-million project to design and build a sustainable USDOT facility for experts focused on “transforming transportation for all” across the various modes of mobility.

In 2012, USDOT and GSA began conversations about redevelopment of USDOT’s 14 acres in the Kendall Square area of Cambridge, MA. In 2017, GSA entered into a first-of-its-kind Exchange Agreement with MIT to design and construct a state-of-the-art, low-emissions building as a new home for the Center on approximately four acres of a 14-acre site.

In exchange for the design and construction of the new facility, the federal government agreed to convey the portion of the property no longer needed by the federal government to MIT for mixed-use development.

“The Volpe development is a unique collaboration that benefits everyone involved,” said MIT President Sally Kornbluth in a statement. “Through their cutting-edge research and policy work, the center’s transportation experts will continue to serve the nation by grappling with crucial transport challenges – but now in a facility that reflects the quality of their far-sighted work.”

The new facility will replace the Volpe Center’s six existing buildings and surface parking lots with a highly energy efficient, climate resilient structure that will house multiple agencies. The new facility is expected to reduce emissions by over 50 percent from a typical building and achieve Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design or LEED Platinum certification.

It includes triple-paned glass, heat recovery chillers, electric vehicle charging stations, rainwater reclamation and reuse system, green and cool roof technology including a rooftop solar array, and an Advanced Building Automation System to optimize energy use, USDOT noted.

“Since its establishment in 1970, the Volpe Center has been the engine for research, innovation and deployment for U.S. DOT and beyond. The experts who come to work every day for Volpe are an integral part of the DOT family,” noted Carlos Monje Jr., USDOT under secretary of transportation policy.

“This was a unique opportunity to make smart investments in sustainability, empower the federal workforce, and ensure that federal buildings remain vital parts of the communities around them,” added GSA Administrator Robin Carnahan.

GSA noted that, although the majority of the Volpe Center’s work is sponsored by USDOT, it also lends key technical support to over a dozen other federal agencies including the Department of Defense, NASA, the Department of the Interior, and Department of Homeland Security, as well as state and local governments.

Arizona DOT Hosts Highway Litter Cleanup Event

The Arizona Department of Transportation and its “Adopt a Highway” volunteer program recently conducted a roadway trash cleanup event; collecting 214 bags worth of litter from along state highways across Arizona.

[Above photo by the Arizona DOT]

Fifteen groups with 123 volunteers answered the call to participate in day-long event on September 16. One of those groups, the Coalition for Sonoran Desert Protection, had seven volunteers fill 13 bags with litter along Oracle Road (State Route 77) on the north side of Oro Valley.

“It feels good just cleaning up native habitat along the highway and making sure that all the native vegetation has space to grow and that people have a nice place to bike,” said Jonni Zeman, the group’s program and communications coordinator, in a statement. “It’s great to just be here making a difference, even if it’s small.”

Arizona DOT’s Tucson North Motor Vehicle Division office had 12 team members pick up 16 bags of litter along Oracle Road between Ina and Orange Grove roads, while two other team members delivered drinks and collected bags. The office has adopted this segment and will hold cleanups throughout the year.

“It’s just a way for us to connect to the community and be part of it,” said Jessica Robeson, an MVD customer service representative.

Other state highways where volunteers removed roadside trash included Interstate 19, State Route 260 and US 60.

This event complements the work of more than 6,000 volunteers participating in Arizona DOT’s Adopt a Highway program who help keep state highways as trash-free as possible throughout the year. In 2022 alone, these volunteers filled more than 12,500 bags of litter while contributing time and effort worth more than $600,000.

State departments of transportation are using a variety of tactics to combat littering on state highways.

For example, the Mississippi Department of Transportation recently launched a new anti-litter webpage as part of a renewed statewide anti-littering campaign that kicked off in August – a “one-stop hub” that contains information about the state’s Adopt-a-Highway program, Mississippi litter statistics and resources, stormwater pollution information, anti-litter resources for school teachers, and much more.

Then there is the Tennessee Department of Transportation, which recently celebrated the 40th anniversary of its “Litter Grant Program.” That program – started in 1983 – provides funding to all 95 counties within the state to pay for a wide variety of litter-related efforts, such as litter and tarp law enforcement; cleanup and recycling events; and litter prevention education campaigns.

Meanwhile, in April, the Illinois Department of Transportation launched a new public outreach effort called “Think Before You Throw!” as part of its ongoing awareness campaign to reduce littering on state highways and roads.

The “Think Before You Throw!” initiative aims to reduce roadside litter along the state’s more than 150,000 miles of roads by raising awareness of the negative environment impact of trash, for both state residents and the nearly 100 million tourists who visit annually, the agency said.

And, in March, the Maryland Department of Transportation launched “Operation Clean Sweep Maryland,” a new initiative that seeks to nearly double the frequency of litter pickup and mowing efforts along state roads.

This new effort – which began in the Baltimore and Washington, D.C., regions – is under the purview of the Maryland State Highway Administration, one of Maryland DOT’s modal divisions.

Environmental News Highlights – September 27, 2023

FEDERAL ACTION

Administration Announces New Actions to Reduce Greenhouse Gas Emissions and Combat the Climate Crisis -White House (fact sheet)

PHMSA Invests Nearly $15 Million to Improve Pipeline Safety -Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration (media release)

COVID-19

Transit Agencies Rethink Schedules for Fewer Commuters –Governing

INFRASTRUCTURE RESILIENCE AND SUSTAINABILITY

San Francisco considers lifting the Ferry Building by 7 feet to save it from the sea -NPR/WNYC

Can more canal trails connect Utah’s transportation and water needs? –KSL

Miami-Dade again floats using its waters to curb traffic -Florida Politics

Mississippi DOT Promotes National Roundabouts Week 2023 -Mississippi DOT (media release)

New infrastructure strategy meets climate change head-on -Michigan Department of Environment, Great Lakes, and Energy (media release)

AIR QUALITY

EPA approval for Denver smog-reduction plan partially tossed by US appeals court –Reuters

Wildfires are destroying decades of clean air efforts in the U.S. -NBC News

Sustainable aviation fuel: agriculture’s ticket to redemption? -S&P Global

ENVIRONMENTAL JUSTICE

Chicago takes on new approach to fight pollution problems, focusing on environmental justice -WLS-TV

To Achieve Justice and Climate Outcomes, Fund These Transit Capital Projects –TransitCenter

Pa.’s expanded environmental justice policy goes into effect this month –WHYY

Chesapeake Bay Trust establishes $17M environmental justice participatory fund -Maryland Daily Record

Four Decades of Work on Environmental Justice at Duke -Duke University (media release)

NATURAL RESOURCES

Florida looks to increase number of wetland mitigation banks, credits available to developers -Florida Politics

Missouri farmers face soaring harvest transportation costs amid drought and low Mississippi River levels -KRCG-TV

MARTA Railcars Head For Atlantic Ocean As Part Of Department Of Natural Resources Reef Project -MARTA (media release)

CULTURAL RESOURCES

Disneyland’s renovation plan gets environmental review -Los Angeles Times

Secrets of the World’s Coolest Bike Tunnel –CityLab

FHWA, National Park Service Celebrate Completion of Roadway Safety Improvements Along Natchez Trace Parkway -FHWA (media release)

HEALTH AND HUMAN ENVIRONMENT/ACTIVE TRANSPORTATION

Bozeman City Commission finalizes Parks, Recreation and Active Transportation plan -KECI-TV

Transportation safety advocates want SF to ban turns on red -Axios San Francisco

Complaints continue to mount as Austin finds itself unable to regulate driverless rideshares -KEYE-TV

To Help Cyclists, and the Environment, This Tool Looks for Crashes -New York Times

Houston could have two bike share programs soon -Axios Houston

Union County, NJ to receive One Million Dollars for NY Connects to Union County NJ East Coast Greenway Bikeway Project -Union County, NJ (media release)

George Washington Bridge upgrades improve pedestrian, cyclist accessibility -North Jersey Transportation Planning Authority (media release)

TRB RESOURCES/ANNOUNCEMENTS

TRB Webinar: Maximizing the Power of the Research in Progress (RIP) Database –TRB

Airfield Turf and Vegetation Management Practices –ACRP

E-Scooter Safety: Issues and Solutions -Behavioral Traffic Safety Cooperative Research Program

Homelessness: A Guide for Public Transportation –TCRP

Postwar Commercial Properties and Section 106: A Methodology for Evaluating Historic Significances –NCHRP

Postwar Commercial Properties and Section 106: Piloting the Methodology for Evaluating Historic Significance –NCHRP

Telecommuting, Remote Work, and Hybrid Schedules: Managing the Shift to a Flexible Work Future –NCHRP

FEDERAL REGISTER NOTICES

Notice of Adoption of Electric Vehicle Charging Stations Categorical Exclusion Under the National Environmental Policy Act -Office of the Secretary, USDOT (Notice)

Interstate System Access -FHWA (Notice of proposed rulemaking; request for comments)

Surface Transportation Project Delivery Program; Florida DOT Audit #4 Report -FHWA (Notice)

Notice of Availability of Programmatic Assessment of Greenhouse Gas Emissions From Transit Projects; Request for Comments -FTA (Notice)

Safety Advisory 23–1 Bus-to-Person Collisions -FTA (Notice of Safety Advisory)

Railroad Safety Advisory Committee; Notice of Meeting –FRA (Notice)

Spring Valley II Solar Project -Tennessee Valley Authority (Notice of intent)

Advisory Committee on Landslides; Request for Nominations -U.S. Geological Survey (Notice)

National Boating Safety Advisory Committee; October 17, 2023 Virtual Meeting -U.S. Coast Guard (Notice)

Hazardous Materials: Modernizing Regulations To Improve Safety and Efficiency; Extension of Comment Period -Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration (Advance notice of proposed rulemaking; Extension of comment period)

FHWA Issues Funds for National Park Storm Repairs

The Federal Highway Administration recently issued $4.575 million in “quick release” Emergency Relief funds to the National Park Service, the U.S. Forest Service, and the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service to offset costs of repair work for roads, trails, parking areas, and other infrastructure damaged by floods caused by Tropical Storm Hilary in Death Valley National Park and other western federal lands in August.

[Above photo by the National Park Service]

FHWA noted in a statement that its Emergency Relief program provides funding to states, territories, tribes, and federal land management agencies for highways and bridges damaged by natural disasters or catastrophic events.

Such “quick release” Emergency Relief funds are an initial resource installment to help restore essential transportation.

Additional funds needed to repair damages on the federal lands affected by Tropical Storm Hilary will be supported by the Emergency Relief program through further nationwide funding allocations, the agency said.

Tropical Storm Hilary’s record rainfall in late August resulted in flash flooding and debris flow across several states, including California and Nevada, for several days. Within Death Valley National Park, the flash flooding damaged numerous transportation facilities including roads, trails and parking areas, and resulted in roads being buckled or completely destroyed, bridges impacted, road surfacing lost, and damage caused by significant debris and erosion.

This tranche of FHWA emergency funding will also be used for repair work at the Manzanar Historic Site, San Bernardino National Forest, Inyo National Forest, and Sonny Bono Salton Sea National Wildlife Refuge in California.

That emergency fiscal relief will also support flood damage projects in the Humboldt-Toiyabe National Forest and Ash Meadows National Wildlife Refuge in Nevada to repair transportation facilities, road segments, and collapsed culverts.

Podcast: Colorado DOT & Environmental Product Declarations

The latest episode of the AASHTO re:source podcast sits down with the Colorado Department of Transportation to gain insights into how the implements Environmental Product Declaration or EPD requirements for materials used in infrastructure projects statewide.

[Above image by Colorado DOT]

AASHTO re:source – a division of the American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials – provides services and tools through three major programs: the Laboratory Assessment Program or LAP, the Proficiency Sampling Program or PSP, and the AASHTO Accreditation Program. It launched this podcast series in September 2020.

Craig Wieden, state materials engineer with the Colorado DOT, noted that an EPD is a “transparent and verified report” that presents the environmental impacts of a product. In the case of state DOTs, “the ones that we’re interested in are [for] the construction products we use in our infrastructure projects,” he said.

According to a measure passed by the state legislature, the Colorado DOT must collect EPDs on five construction product categories: cement, concrete, asphalt, asphalt mixtures, and steel, Wieden pointed out.

“There are numerous aspects of the environmental impacts presented in the EPDs that we look at,” he explained. “The one that we’re [most] interested in is global warming potential. Other environmental factors include ozone depletion, acidification, smog, etc. What we’re trying to do with our benchmarking effort is to collect EPDs for the products that are produced specifically in Colorado or provided to our Colorado projects that meet our specifications.”

To hear more from this podcast episode, click here.