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Environment
The IL Route 13 Phase I Project Report will be prepared following the requirements of the National Environment Policy Act (NEPA) of 1969. NEPA established a national environmental policy intentionally focused on federal activities and the desire for a sustainable environment balanced with other essential needs of present and future generations. The NEPA process is intended to help public officials make decisions that are based on understanding of environmental consequences and take actions that protect, restore, and enhance the environment.
NEPA requires that any federally funded proposed or future action (such as construction of a roadway) be carefully analyzed for all impacts to natural and cultural resources and to the human environment. This analysis must be documented and made available for public review and comment near the end of the study.
Because transportation projects vary in type, size, complexity, and potential effects to the environment, NEPA encompasses three levels of documentation:
- Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) – for projects where it is known that the action will have a significant effect on the environment.
- Environmental Assessment (EA) – for projects in which the significance of the environmental impact is not clearly established.
- Categorical Exclusions – for actions that do not individually or cumulatively have a significant effect on the environment.
In coordination with the Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) Illinois Division, the IL Route 13 Preliminary Engineering Study is anticipated to be processed as a Categorical Exclusion.
