Guide to the West-Wide Energy Corridor Final Programmatic Environmental Impact Statement (PEIS)

Summary: Front matter for Volume I of the Final PEIS document, including cover page, letter to readers, table of contents, notation, units of measure, and Executive Summary.

Summary: A brief overview of the Final Programmatic EIS, including discussion of the need and purpose of the PEIS, scope of the PEIS, summaries of the proposed action and alternatives, method employed for siting energy corridors, and potential impacts under the alternatives.

Summary: Includes discussion of the need and purpose of the PEIS, existing administrative challenges to federal rights-of-way authorization, summary of the proposed action, expediting the application process, reason for “no effect” determination under the Endangered Species Act, alternatives considered, proposed planning decisions, project outreach, and applicable laws and regulations.

Summary: Description of the two alternatives analyzed in detail in the PEIS: (1) No Action: no land would be designated as a Section 368 energy corridor, and (2) Proposed Action: designation of Section 368 energy corridors and amendment of land use plans on federal land. This chapter also details the process taken to site corridors that would be designated under the Proposed Action Alternative. Other alternatives considered but eliminated from detailed study are also described. A summary comparison of the environmental consequences of the analyzed alternatives is presented.

Summary: Description of the nature and condition of potentially affected resources in the eleven Western States as well as descriptions of the types of impacts that are typical during the construction, operation, and decommissioning of energy transport projects, regardless of project location. Resource-specific mitigation measures that could be used to minimize, avoid, or compensate for project-specific impacts are also presented.

Summary: Discussion of the impacts associated with West-wide energy corridor designation and land use plan amendments (the Proposed Action) in a broader context that takes into account the full range of impacts of actions taking place within the eleven Western States in the foreseeable future.

Summary: Discussion of unavoidable adverse impacts to resources that could occur as a result of the development and operation of energy transport projects within the corridors designated under the Proposed Action or within project-specific ROWs under No Action.

Summary: Discussion of the relationship within each alternative between the short-term use of the environment and the maintenance and enhancement of long-term productivity.

Summary: Discussion of irreversible and irretrievable commitments of resources could be incurred as a result of the designation of energy corridors under the Proposed Action Alternative, and also with implementation of specific energy transport projects within the designated corridors.

Summary: List of individuals who participated in the preparation of the Final PEIS, including a summary of their expertise, experience, professional discipline, and contribution to the Final PEIS.

Summary: A list of references cited in Chapters 1 through 7 of the PEIS.

Summary: Definitions of scientific and technical terms used in the Final PEIS.

Summary: Front matter for Volume II of the Final Programmatic EIS document, including cover page, table of contents, notation, and units of measure.

Summary: Table listing proposed land use plan amendments for designating EPAct Section 368 energy corridors.

Summary: A summary of the public scoping process for the PEIS, including summaries of public scoping comments received.

Summary: A discussion of relevant statutes and orders requiring consultation, a description of the consultation process for this project, a summary of consultation that has occurred, lists of the Native American Tribes contacted, and copies of the materials provided to the Tribes.

Summary: A listing of all individuals, agencies, and organizations which received copies of the Draft PEIS .

Summary: Tables listing the major federal and state laws and Executive Orders that establish requirements, permits, approvals, or consultations that may apply to the designation of energy corridors in the eleven Western States that are the subject of this PEIS.

Summary: Lengths, widths, and compatible energy uses for Section 368 Corridors on Federal Lands under the Proposed Action.

Summary: Detailed physical descriptions and discussion of energy transport technologies and hypothetical energy transport projects.

Summary: Table listing sensitive resource areas that would be intersected by proposed Section 368 corridors, including feature name, feature type, corridor segment ID, corresponding map identifier, and description of the nature of the intersection.

Summary: Description of geographic information system data used for the PEIS, including data types, sources, scales, and quality.

Summary: Table listing webcasts held for corridor review and revision, listing states, dates, and participating agencies.

Summary: A table listing, by state, changes in Section 368 energy corridors between the draft and final versions of the PEIS.

Summary: Eleven-state map showing proposed Section 368 corridors that intersect or occur near military training routes (MTRs) and special use areas (SUAs) where low-altitude military aircraft flights may regularly occur, or that intersect DOD facilities.

Summary: Table listing sites owned by federal agencies and Tribes (includes site name, state, administrative unit, and length or area) by state.

Summary: Table listing the PFYC classes and general locations of geologic units intersecting the proposed corridors under the Proposed Action as identified on state geologic maps.

Summary: Tables listing Wild and Scenic Rivers by state, designation classification and administration authority for Wild and Scenic Rivers in the eleven Western States, and length of rivers crossing Section 368 corridors under the Proposed Action and their associated HLRs.

Summary: Evaluation of potential impacts to floodplains and wetlands from the designation of Section 368 energy corridors in the eleven-state area.

Summary: Brief descriptions of Level III ecoregions for 34 ecoregions covering the eleven-state area.

Summary: Identifies the species and critical habitats in counties that are crossed by the proposed Section 368 energy corridors, and discusses the nature of impacts of future project development in the corridors.

Summary: Tables listing intersections and proximity events of West-wide Energy Corridors with selected sensitive visual resource areas under the Proposed Action, including feature name, feature type, corridor segment ID, and corresponding map identifier.

Summary: Description of Section 106 (of the National Historic Preservation Act) consultation activities for the PEIS, and the cultural resources data request made to federal agencies in the eleven Western States. Includes status and results of the collection.

Summary: Regional archaeological, historic, and ethnographic overviews for the Great Basin, Southwest, Plains, Plateau, California, and Northwest Coast cultural areas.

Summary: Table listing, by state, NRHP-listed properties within 1 mile of any proposed Section 368 energy corridor centerlines.

Summary: Discussion of socioeconomic analysis of project developments and assessment of impacts at the state level for each of the eleven Western States.

Summary: Front matter for Volume III of the Final Programmatic EIS document, including cover page, and document contents.

Summary: 48 detailed maps showing proposed corridors and supporting information.

Summary: Eleven state maps that show proposed corridors and supporting information.

Summary: 43 detailed maps showing proposed corridors in relation to selected sensitive resource areas.

Summary: Eleven state maps that show where proposed corridors follow existing transportation and utility right of ways.

Summary: 22 state maps that show proposed Section 368 corridors and the boundaries of the plans that would be amended to designate them.

Summary: Two maps that show proposed Section 368 corridors and indicate which of the proposed corridors presented in the Draft PEIS were revised for the Final PEIS, and which also show the nature of the corridor revisions.

Summary: This volume presents the concerns raised during the public comment period for the Draft PEIS and presents the Agency response to those concerns.