Defining the Full Scope of the Federal "Action"
Segmentation:
- The scope of the federal action, consisting of directly related federal and non-federal actions, must be clearly defined PRIOR to determining the level of documentation to ensure that all connected actions have been considered.
- NEPA requires that the sum of related components making up a "larger" action be evaluated in one document.
- It is unacceptable to divide a large action into a series of smaller actions or to not consider the proposed action in context with other actions taking place. These are often called connected actions.
Actions are connected when:
- One action justifies the other
- One action "federalizes" the other
- It is unreasonable or unwise to take one action without the other
- One action triggers the other
- One action is a commitment to the other
- One action precludes alternatives to the other
Actions are not connected when:
- One action is remote and speculative
- The "federal connection" is minor
- The actions are tiered - the second action is later in time or may not occur, and can be changed in the interim
Last Modified: Thursday, 04-Jun-2009 11:43:01 EDT