Environmental Assessment Process

The National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) is a Federal statute that requires federal agencies to use a systematic, interdisciplinary approach for considering the potential environmental impacts of a Proposed Solar Facility Project and factoring them into the decision-making process. The Council on Environmental Quality (CEQ) Regulations for implementing NEPA set the standards for NEPA compliance and direct federal agencies to develop their own procedures. Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) Order 1050.1F provides the FAA’s agency-wide policies and procedures for ensuring compliance with NEPA and the CEQ Regulations.

The EA identifies and assesses the potential environmental impacts of the Proposed Action and its reasonable alternatives. Depending upon whether certain environmental thresholds of significance are exceeded, the EA may lead either to a Finding of No Significant Impact (FONSI) or the need to prepare an Environmental Impact Statement (EIS). The FAA is the lead federal agency ensuring compliance with NEPA for this Proposed Action; therefore, the EA is consistent with FAA Order 1050.1F, Environmental Impacts: Policies and Procedures (including the 1050.1F Desk Reference), and FAA Order 5050.4B, NEPA Implementing Instructions for Airport Actions.

As outlined in FAA Order 1050.1F, the EA will consider impacts to the following resources:

• Air quality
• Biological resources (including fish, wildlife, and plants)
• Climate
• Resources protected under the Department of Transportation Act, 49 U.S.C. §303(c) (known as Section 4(f) “resources”)
• Farmlands
• Hazardous materials, solid waste, and pollution prevention
• Historical, architectural, archeological, and cultural resources
• Land use
• Natural resources and energy supply
• Noise and noise-compatible land use
• Socioeconomics, environmental justice, and children’s environmental health and safety risks
• Visual effects (including light emissions)
• Water resources (including wetlands, floodplains, surface waters, groundwater, and Wild and Scenic rivers)