A model for determining the scope and level of detail that is appropriate for a programmatic EIS

Since the inception of the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA), no definitive guidance has been established for determining the scope of topics and issues, or the level of detail suitable for presentation within a Programmatic Environmental Impact Statement (P-EIS). Lacking such guidance, an inordinate amount of time and resources can be expended in determining the scope that is most appropriately addressed within a P-EIS versus the more detailed scope that is best reserved for lower-tier documents. Faced with this predicament, agencies often err on the side of including too much detail, resulting in P-EISs that are over bloated and unnecessarily complex. Moreover, lack of definitive guidance leads to a great deal of inconsistency in the preparation of P-EISs among federal agency programs. A paradigm for assisting decisionmakers in making such determinations is presented below. This model expedites the preparation of P-EISs by providing a consistent and systematic approach for determining the scope and level of detail that is most appropriately addressed at the programmatic level. In many cases, the model provides agencies with an effective tool for managing and streamlining the NEPA process by de-scoping needless and unnecessary issues from the scope of a P-EIS