West-wide Energy Corridor Programmatic EIS Information Center

This Web site is the online center for public information and involvement in the West-wide Energy Corridor Programmatic Environmental Impact Statement (Energy Corridor PEIS).

The United States Department of Energy, the United States Department of the Interior Bureau of Land Management, the United States Department of Agriculture Forest Service, and United States Department of Defense (the Agencies) will prepare a Programmatic Environmental Impact Statement (PEIS) to evaluate issues associated with the designation of energy corridors on federal lands in eleven Western states. Based upon the information and analyses developed in this PEIS, each Agency would amend its respective land use plans by designating a series of energy corridors. This Web site is the online center for public information and involvement in the PEIS process.

Public Participation

Public participation in the West-wide Energy Corridor PEIS is important. This Web site provides information and services to help you participate in the PEIS process.

Other Resources

Other resources include a list of frequently asked questions (FAQs), news updates, and e-mail notices of important events.

Public Hearings

Public hearings for the West-wide Energy Corridor Draft PEIS were held in eleven western states between January 8 and February 5, 2008. Dates and locations for the public hearings are available on the Public Hearings page.

Background Information

Section 368 of the Energy Policy Act of 2005 (the Act), Public Law 109-58 (H.R. 6), enacted August 8, 2005, directs the Secretaries of Agriculture, Commerce, Defense, Energy, and the Interior (the Agencies) to designate under their respective authorities corridors on federal land in 11 Western States (Arizona, California, Colorado, Idaho, Montana, Nevada, New Mexico, Oregon, Utah, Washington, and Wyoming) for oil, gas, and hydrogen pipelines and electricity transmission and distribution facilities (energy corridors).

Section 368 requires the Agencies to conduct any "environmental reviews" necessary to complete the designation of Section 368 energy corridors. The proposed designation of Section 368 energy corridors would not result in any direct impacts on the ground that may significantly affect the quality of the human environment.

Nevertheless, the Agencies have decided to prepare a PEIS to conduct a detailed environmental analysis at the programmatic level and to integrate NEPA at the earliest possible time. The proposed designation of more than 6,000 miles of Section 368 energy corridors among the various Agency land use plans is a forward-looking response, mandated by statute, to address a national concern.

The Agencies have concluded that preparing a PEIS at this time to examine region-wide environmental concerns is appropriate, even in the absence of on-theground environmental impacts resulting from the designation. Actual local environmental impacts must inevitably await site-specific proposals and the required site-specific environmental review. A quantifiable and accurate evaluation of impacts at the local scale can be made only in response to an actual proposed energy project, when a proposal for an action with specific environmental consequences exists.

A PEIS allows for early public participation in the Section 368 energy corridor designation process through a mechanism familiar to interested members of the public. The designation of several thousand miles of energy transportation corridors is a large task. The PEIS allows the Agencies to seek public input very early in the process through open comment periods and public forums where concerns regarding Section 368 energy corridors can be raised. The Agencies are seeking public review and comment on this proposal to better inform their decision-making process.