May 5 2007 AASHTO Standing Committee on Highways

May 5, 2007 AASHTO Standing Committee on Highways

CENTER WEB SITE www. environment. transportation. org § Transportation Environmental Research Ideas Database § Environmental Stewardship Practices in Construction and Maintenance § Programmatic Agreements Library

TRAINING: PRACTITIONERS HANDBOOKS § § § § Maintaining A Project File and Preparing an Administrative Record for a NEPA Study Responding to Comments on an Environmental Impact Statement Managing the NEPA Process for Toll Lanes and Toll Roads Tracking Compliance with Environmental Commitments/Use of Environmental Monitors Utilizing Community Advisory Committees for NEPA Studies Consulting under Section 106 of the National Historic Preservation Act Under development: § Defining the Purpose and Need and Determining the Range of Alternatives for Transportation Projects § Developing and Implementing an Environmental Management System in a State DOT § Considering Environmental Issues in Statewide and Metropolitan Transportation Planning § Achieving Environmental Streamlining through the SAFETEA-LU Environmental Review Process

TRAINING § AASHTO/ACEC/FHWA effort to Improve the Quality of Environmental Documents § Quality and Clarity of Environmental Documents and Legal Sufficiency Report § Webinar May 17 th § Peer Exchanges/Meetings § Problem Solving Meetings

TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE § § Topics Covered: § Air Quality Conformity/Air Toxics, § Community Impacts, § Context Sensitive Solutions, § Endangered Species/Ecosystem Management, § Environmental Justice, § Environmental Management Systems, § Hazardous Waste/Waste Management, § Historic and Cultural Resources, § Indirect and Cumulative Impacts, § Land Use, § Legal, § NEPA/Environmental Process Generalist, § Project Management, § Public Involvement/Agency Coordination and § Wetlands/Water Resources. Environmental Management Systems (EMS) Technical Assistance Program

MAJOR INITIATIVES CONTEXT SENSITIVE SOLUTIONS n n National AASHTO/FHWA Context Sensitive Solutions Peer Exchange 2005 and 2006 Best Practices Competitions

MAJOR INITIATIVES § Taking the High Road, The Environmental and Social Contributions of America’s Highway Programs Report Update: § Transportation Enhancements, § Historic Preservation and Cultural Resources, Including Tribal Consultation, § Recycling and Waste Management, § Air Quality, § Context Sensitive Solutions, § Brownfields Redevelopment and Smart Growth/Land Use, § Bicycle and Pedestrian, § Wetlands and Water Quality, § Wildlife and Ecosystems, § Noise Abatement, § Scenic Byways and § Vegetation Management

Future Activities § Improve Planning and Environmental Processes to Achieve Better Results and Timeliness § Advance Awareness of SAFETEA-LU Environmental Provisions and Good Practices § Advance Use of Technology, Geospatial Tools, and Decision Support Tools to Support Integrated Decision Making § Integrate Context Sensitive Solutions (CSS) Throughout all Aspects of Planning, Project Development, Construction, Maintenance and Operations § Advance Environmental Review Process Innovation to Support Congestion Relief and Public Private Partnerships § Promote Commitment Tracking Methods and Environmental Management Systems § Advance and Showcase Exemplary Ecosystem and Human Environmental Initiatives § Increase Availability and Access to Information-Sharing/Problem Solving Activities § Build Partnerships to Leverage and Coordinate the Center’s Activities and Other Related Research Efforts § Advance National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) Cost Estimating and Project Oversight Tools

COMMENTS/INFORMATION Shannon Eggleston seggleston@aashto. org (202) 624 -3649 www. environment. transportation. org