Center for Environmental Excellence by AASHTO

The Center for Environmental Excellence by AASHTO recently released a highlight video about the “Reconnecting Communities Summit,” held in St. Paul, MN, in October 2023, which featured presentations by national and local transportation industry leaders and workshops discussing vital issues such as project fund development, transportation equity, and environmental impact.

[Above photo by AASHTO]

The Center for Environmental Excellence by AASHTO – a partnership between the American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials and the Federal Highway Administration – worked with the Conference of Minority Transportation Officials to help sponsor that summit, which was hosted by nonprofit ReConnect Rondo and attracted representatives from 150 communities nationwide.

ReConnect Rondo seeks to transform the neighborhoods, businesses, and cultural ties on either side of Interstate 94 in St. Paul, which divided the historic Rondo neighborhood during the post-World War II highway building boom.

Those efforts have included a proposal to build a deck over part of the interstate and restore some of the amenities razed during road construction – and it received a $2 million grant from the U.S. Department of Transportation in March 2023 to do so.

The summit featured several opportunities for attendees, including presentations by national and local transportation industry leaders and workshops discussing vital issues such as project fund development, transportation equity and environmental impact.

“AASHTO is committed to improving quality of life by working toward a transportation system that serves the needs of every community safely, equitably, sustainably, and efficiently,” noted Joshua Rodriguez, director for the AASHTO Center for Environmental Excellence.

He added that the 2024 Reconnecting Communities Summit will take place September 11-13, again in St. Paul, MN. To register for the 2024 summit, click here.

The American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials Center for Environmental Excellence (CEE) is looking for state assistance in updating the contents of its Programmatic Agreement Library (PAL database).

The PAL database functions as a “central library” or “one-stop-shop” for programmatic agreements between state departments of transportation and/or the Federal Highway Administration in partnership with resource agencies that help streamline compliance with federal environmental laws such as the National Environmental Policy Act, the Endangered Species Act, and the National Historic Preservation Act.

The PAL contains not only the programmatic agreement information; but links to each full agreement and ongoing access for practitioners to research agreements that meet specific requirements.

However, most of the agreements within the database are 10 years old, so the CEE asks states to review their documents within the PAL to see if they are still valid, need to be updated, or removed entirely.

State agencies willing to help review PAL documents can reach out to jbillo@aashto.org for more information.

The Center for Environmental Excellence – a partnership through the American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials and the Federal Highway Administration – launched a new website to provide faster and easier access to information for users, available at: https://environment.transportation.org.

Established in 2001, the Center promotes environmental stewardship, encourages innovation and serves as a resource for transportation professionals seeking technical assistance, training, information exchange, and partnership-building opportunities.

The new website presents the Center’s resources in a more visually appealing and organized way – saving time and reducing frustration among users when searching the site for desired information.

The website includes practitioner handbooks; case studies highlighting what state departments of transportation are doing on various environmental topics; news stories; and a listing of upcoming events.

Visitors may also find information in one of several topical areas such as air quality, active transportation, sustainability, environmental justice, traffic noise, climate change, water quality, and many others. The new site also features several resources for researchers, including the Transportation and Environmental Research Ideas or TERI database – a central location for tracking and sharing new transportation and environmental research ideas.

“The Center has always featured an enormous amount of resources relating to transportation environmental topics,” explained Melissa Savage, director of the Center, in a statement. “But we found it could all be a little overwhelming. Now users are able to more clearly see what’s available,” she said. “Those who know what they’re looking for can find it quickly, while those who want to browse resources can do that in a more organized way that makes a lot more sense.

The American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials Center for Environmental Excellence (CEE) is looking for state assistance in updating the contents of its Programmatic Agreement Library or PAL database.

[Above photo courtesy of Oregon DOT.]

The PAL database functions as a “central library” or “one-stop-shop” for programmatic agreements between state departments of transportation and/or the Federal Highway Administration in partnership with resource agencies that help streamline compliance with federal environmental laws such as the National Environmental Policy Act, the Endangered Species Act, and the National Historic Preservation Act.

The PAL contains not only the programmatic agreement information; it contains a link to the full agreement and provides on-going access for practitioners to research agreements that meet specific requirements.

However, most of the agreements within the database are 10 years old, so the CEE is asking states to review the documents within the PAL to see if they are still valid, need to be updated, or removed entirely.

State agencies willing to help review those PAL documents can contact the CEE at environment@aashto.org.