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From page 59... ... 57 \| P a g e 4 Recommendations for Implementing NEPA Risk Management There is a growing body of knowledge of risk management as applied to highway development by State DOTs. In addition to this guide on NEPA risk management, two other guides are under development or recently published: • NCHRP 8-60, which produced a Guidebook on Risk Analysis Tools and Management Practices to Control Transportation Project Costs. Read the entire page →
From page 60... ... 58 \| P a g e Internal Risks Internal NEPA risks are those related to an agency's program, staffing or project management processes. They range from how projects are managed on a program-level as a whole, including processes for ensuring that projects are viable (i.e., they can be built) Read the entire page →
From page 61... ... 59 \| P a g e Table 11: Program-level Strategies to Address Internal NEPA Risks Internal Origins of NEPA Risk Manifestation of Risks Program-level NEPA Risk Management Strategies Program Risks Over-programming: DOT does not have the staff to deliver its program; Projects in the program which cannot be built, due to financial or environmental issues; Shifting priorities mean that DOT staff start and stop project development, multiple times Some projects in the program for inordinate amount of time without NEPA approval The DOT should have clear and defensible guidance and criteria for project selection. Sometimes this can take the form of a project selection board or commission, or even legislative oversight panel, which can: • Ensure the program is calibrated to available staff resources • dissuade sponsors from developing projects which are not viable • Prioritize locally if not statewide Commitment to Program Delivery Do the public and resource agencies have confidence that the DOT will deliver its program? Read the entire page →
From page 62... ... 60 \| P a g e Table 11: Program-level Strategies to Address Internal NEPA Risks Internal Origins of NEPA Risk Manifestation of Risks Program-level NEPA Risk Management Strategies Staff Risks Problems with NEPA processes can occur when the DOT has • insufficient staffing capacity for program delivery; • lack of specialty skills in technical disciplines and project management • high turnover in staff, either through retirement, moves to the private sector, or shifts within the DOT • Create project management offices composed of all technical disciplines to manage large or complex projects • Perform long-range assessment of internal staffing against o Program forecast o Core competencies of internal staff o Rates of attrition in staff areas of critical technical skill • Implement training programs and certifications for staff, in the fields of project management and other technical disciplines • Assign strong, responsible project managers Project Management The internal processes involved in managing projects can create risks in complying with NEPA processes • Organization structure with silos that are build around technical disciplines instead of interdisciplinary project development • Processes that inhibit collaboration in project development -- e.g., handoffs from one step in project development to another • Lack of management systems to aid critical functions, including project schedule and budget tracking; and systems to support technical disciplines like NEPA commitment tracking • Create project management offices composed of all technical disciplines to manage large or complex projects o Addresses technical discipline silos o Fosters collaborative project development • Review existing project development process to eliminate redundancy and streamline parallel processes o Is there a published process? o Do resource agencies understand and buy-in to the process? Read the entire page →
From page 63... ... 61 \| P a g e Table 12: Program-level Strategies to Address External NEPA Risks External Origins of NEPA Risk Manifestation of Risks Program-level NEPA Risk Management Strategies Resource Agency People and Process There are a large number of NEPA risks which derive from a DOTs relationship with external resource agencies, and in turn those agencies': • Capacity to review NEPA documents • Understanding of the project and/or its NEPA issues • Consistency in agency decision making, including different units of the same organization (e.g., US Army Corps of Engineers) or the same organization over time • Resource agency staff turnover • DOT-resource agency relationships • State DOT leadership develops and cultivates ongoing relationships with resource agency leaders • Establish formal MOUs or teaming agreements with resource agencies o Possibly include conflict resolution processes • Joint training exercises with the DOT and resource agencies, in NEPA law and process, project management, and conflict resolution • Develop programmatic agreements to address a specific category of resources (e.g., endangered flora or fauna) Read the entire page →
From page 64... ... 62 \| P a g e Table 12: Program-level Strategies to Address External NEPA Risks External Origins of NEPA Risk Manifestation of Risks Program-level NEPA Risk Management Strategies Quality of the "administrative record" associated with the project • Provide staff training on creating and maintaining an administrative record of the project development/NEPA process Federal agency being named as a defendant in NEPA litigation, rather than the state DOT which developed the project • Intervention by the project sponsor, to participate in the defense of the NEPA decision with the federal agency •FHWA and FTA seek to minimize litigation risks by conducting legal sufficiency reviews for all EISs and Section 4(f) evaluations; legal reviews also occur on a case by case basis for other types of environmental documents. Read the entire page →

From page 59...

... 57 | P a g e 4 Recommendations for Implementing NEPA Risk Management There is a growing body of knowledge of risk management as applied to highway development by State DOTs. In addition to this guide on NEPA risk management, two other guides are under development or recently published: • NCHRP 8-60, which produced a Guidebook on Risk Analysis Tools and Management Practices to Control Transportation Project Costs.

Read the entire page →

From page 60...

... 58 | P a g e Internal Risks Internal NEPA risks are those related to an agency's program, staffing or project management processes. They range from how projects are managed on a program-level as a whole, including processes for ensuring that projects are viable (i.e., they can be built)

Read the entire page →

From page 61...

... 59 | P a g e Table 11: Program-level Strategies to Address Internal NEPA Risks Internal Origins of NEPA Risk Manifestation of Risks Program-level NEPA Risk Management Strategies Program Risks Over-programming: DOT does not have the staff to deliver its program; Projects in the program which cannot be built, due to financial or environmental issues; Shifting priorities mean that DOT staff start and stop project development, multiple times Some projects in the program for inordinate amount of time without NEPA approval The DOT should have clear and defensible guidance and criteria for project selection. Sometimes this can take the form of a project selection board or commission, or even legislative oversight panel, which can: • Ensure the program is calibrated to available staff resources • dissuade sponsors from developing projects which are not viable • Prioritize locally if not statewide Commitment to Program Delivery Do the public and resource agencies have confidence that the DOT will deliver its program?

Read the entire page →

From page 62...

... 60 | P a g e Table 11: Program-level Strategies to Address Internal NEPA Risks Internal Origins of NEPA Risk Manifestation of Risks Program-level NEPA Risk Management Strategies Staff Risks Problems with NEPA processes can occur when the DOT has • insufficient staffing capacity for program delivery; • lack of specialty skills in technical disciplines and project management • high turnover in staff, either through retirement, moves to the private sector, or shifts within the DOT • Create project management offices composed of all technical disciplines to manage large or complex projects • Perform long-range assessment of internal staffing against o Program forecast o Core competencies of internal staff o Rates of attrition in staff areas of critical technical skill • Implement training programs and certifications for staff, in the fields of project management and other technical disciplines • Assign strong, responsible project managers Project Management The internal processes involved in managing projects can create risks in complying with NEPA processes • Organization structure with silos that are build around technical disciplines instead of interdisciplinary project development • Processes that inhibit collaboration in project development -- e.g., handoffs from one step in project development to another • Lack of management systems to aid critical functions, including project schedule and budget tracking; and systems to support technical disciplines like NEPA commitment tracking • Create project management offices composed of all technical disciplines to manage large or complex projects o Addresses technical discipline silos o Fosters collaborative project development • Review existing project development process to eliminate redundancy and streamline parallel processes o Is there a published process? o Do resource agencies understand and buy-in to the process?

Read the entire page →

From page 63...

... 61 | P a g e Table 12: Program-level Strategies to Address External NEPA Risks External Origins of NEPA Risk Manifestation of Risks Program-level NEPA Risk Management Strategies Resource Agency People and Process There are a large number of NEPA risks which derive from a DOTs relationship with external resource agencies, and in turn those agencies': • Capacity to review NEPA documents • Understanding of the project and/or its NEPA issues • Consistency in agency decision making, including different units of the same organization (e.g., US Army Corps of Engineers) or the same organization over time • Resource agency staff turnover • DOT-resource agency relationships • State DOT leadership develops and cultivates ongoing relationships with resource agency leaders • Establish formal MOUs or teaming agreements with resource agencies o Possibly include conflict resolution processes • Joint training exercises with the DOT and resource agencies, in NEPA law and process, project management, and conflict resolution • Develop programmatic agreements to address a specific category of resources (e.g., endangered flora or fauna)

Read the entire page →

From page 64...

... 62 | P a g e Table 12: Program-level Strategies to Address External NEPA Risks External Origins of NEPA Risk Manifestation of Risks Program-level NEPA Risk Management Strategies Quality of the "administrative record" associated with the project • Provide staff training on creating and maintaining an administrative record of the project development/NEPA process Federal agency being named as a defendant in NEPA litigation, rather than the state DOT which developed the project • Intervention by the project sponsor, to participate in the defense of the NEPA decision with the federal agency •FHWA and FTA seek to minimize litigation risks by conducting legal sufficiency reviews for all EISs and Section 4(f) evaluations; legal reviews also occur on a case by case basis for other types of environmental documents.

Read the entire page →

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