Environmental Review$0$0$0$0$0Upcoming Events$0$0$0$0$0  $0$0$0$0$0$0$0$0$0$0$0$0$0$0$0$0$0$0$0$0Keep Informed$0$0For continuous updates on HSR $0$0add us on Facebook or follow $0$0us on Twitter. For periodic HSR $0$0email updates join our Maillist $0$0and stay informed with what's next.$0$0$0$0$0$0$0$0$0$0$0$0$0$0Overview$0$0$0$0$0All projects in California, both public and private, must go $0$0through environmental review to gain approval. The state $0$0law governing the environmental review process is called $0$0the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) and the $0$0federal law governing the environmental review process is $0$0calledthe National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) $0$0$0$0CEQA “requires state and local agencies to identify the significant environmental impacts of their $0$0actions and to avoid or mitigate those impacts, if feasible."$0$0$0$0$0CEQA and NEPA have been around for about 40 years and have a body of case law defining their $0$0implementation. Over time, CEQA and NEPA have gone from being part of the overall approval $0$0process to really defining the process.$0$0$0$0$0Environmental Review Documents$0$0$0$0$0The first step in the environmental review process is deciding whether a full-fledged $0$0environmental review is warranted by the potential impacts of a project. If so, as in the case of $0$0HSR, then a set of very specific documents called an Environmental Impact Report (EIR) under $0$0CEQA and an Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) under NEPA must be prepared.$0$0$0$0$0$0$0$0$0 Document Name$0$0 Jurisdiction            $0$0Environmental Agency $0$0$0$0 Environmental Impact Report (EIR) $0$0 State of California$0$0 CEQA $0$0$0$0 Environmental Impact Statement (EIS)     $0$0 Federal                   $0$0 NEPA$0$0$0$0$0$0$0$0$0In the case of the EIR/EIS documents related to HSR it has been decided the process called $0$0Context Sensitive Solutions (CSS) will be applied allowing for even further public input and $0$0examination. $0$0$0$0$0$0$0$0$0$0$0EIR & EIS Tiering$0$0$0$0$0For this project the CHSRA has used a provision in both CEQA and NEPA called “tiering.” $0$0Tiering allows a project sponsor, in this case the CHSRA, to do a high-level review called a $0$0program level EIR/EIS followed by a more detailed review called a project level EIR/EIS.$0$0$0$0$0Program Level EIR & EIS – The program level EIR/EIS covers generic aspects of the project $0$0and then uses those findings as a guide for the project level EIR/EIS.$0$0$0$0$0Project Level EIR & EIS – The project level EIR/EIS is a step within the program level EIR/EIS and $0$0has to address in detail all environmental impacts of the project.$0$0$0$0$0EIR & EIS Involved Agencies$0$0$0$0$0Multiple agencies are involved win the EIR/EIS process. However, there are five main parties in $0$0the process: the applicant, the consultants, the courts, the lead agency, and the public.$0$0$0$0$0Applicant – The applicant is the government entity or private company that wants to do a project. $0$0The applicant is the CHSRA.$0$0$0$0$0Consultants - The consultants typically do the work of writing and assembling the EIR/EIS $0$0documents. The main consulting firm representing the CHSRA and working on the EIR/EIS is $0$0Parsons Brinckerhoff (PB).$0$0$0$0$0Courts - The courts resolve any disputes concerning the EIR/EIS in the event of a lawsuit.$0$0$0$0$0Lead Agency – The lead agency is the main project approver who gets to certify the EIR/EIS. $0$0The lead agency is the CHSRA and the Federal Railroad Administration (FRA).$0$0$0$0$0Public – The public's role is to provide comments on the EIR/EIS about anything they think should $0$0be addressed in the EIR/EIS. Under CEQA the public is explicitly charged with making sure that the $0$0laws governing the EIR/EIS are followed.$0