# EIS Document Structure

Detailed document spec for the Environmental Impact Statement. SKILL.md keeps the loop and the authority-status anchor; this file is the section-by-section content guide. Apply alongside the lead agency's NEPA implementing procedures.

## Statutory framing reminder

- NEPA: 42 U.S.C. § 4321 et seq., as amended by FRA 2023 (Pub. L. 118-5).
- Page limits (§ 4336a): EIS 150 pages standard, 300 pages "extraordinary complexity"; appendices and citations excluded.
- Time limits (§ 4336a): 2 years from determination an EIS is required.
- CEQ implementing regulations (formerly 40 CFR Parts 1500–1508) rescinded effective April 11, 2025; lead-agency procedures control. Many of the structural elements below were adopted by every agency under the former CEQ regime and remain in lead-agency procedures.

## 1. Project Overview

A table at the top with: project title, lead agency + NEPA coordinator, cooperating agencies and roles, statutory authority, and the specific decision to be made. The "decision to be made" framing matters because alternatives are scoped to the decision, not to the project.

## 2. Purpose and Need

- State the problem or opportunity requiring federal action.
- Cite legal/policy mandates driving the action.
- Scope must bound reasonable alternatives without predetermining outcome.
- Hard-look standard: courts scrutinize whether the purpose-and-need statement is artificially narrow to exclude meaningful alternatives.

## 3. Alternatives Analysis

Required alternatives:

| Alternative | Requirements |
|---|---|
| **No Action** | Forward-looking future conditions under current management — not a snapshot of present state. Hard-look applies to this analysis equally. |
| **Proposed Action** | Full description: location, phases, methods, ancillary facilities, all reasonably foreseeable elements |
| **Additional alternatives** | Different location, technology, or scale — must represent a genuine range that responds to purpose and need |
| **Alternatives considered but eliminated** | Brief description + dismissal rationale (infeasibility, outside agency jurisdiction, fails purpose and need) |

The "reasonable range" requirement is statutory and case-law-driven; lead-agency procedures elaborate.

## 4. Affected Environment

Organize by resource category — include only the detail needed to understand current conditions and trends. Each resource section should orient the reader, not encyclopedically catalog every datum.

- **Physical** — geology, topography, soils, minerals, paleontological resources.
- **Water** — surface hydrology, groundwater, water quality, floodplains, wetlands, Wild & Scenic Rivers, navigable waters (note post-*Sackett* WOTUS scope).
- **Air** — attainment status, applicable SIP requirements, criteria pollutants, HAPs.
- **Biological** — vegetation, wildlife habitat, listed species, critical habitat, essential fish habitat (under MSA), wildlife corridors.
- **Cultural** — archaeological sites, historic structures, TCPs, NRHP-eligible properties, tribal areas of significance. Coordinate with Section 106 (NHPA) consultation.
- **Human environment** — land use, demographics, recreation, visual resources, noise, transportation, treaty rights.
- **Socioeconomic** — employment, fiscal impact, public services.

The page budget under § 4336a forces ruthless pruning. Resource sections that have nothing meaningful to discuss are noted briefly; resource sections that drive the decision get the page allocation.

## 5. Environmental Consequences

For each resource category × each alternative, analyze:

- **Direct** — same time and place as the action.
- **Indirect** — later in time or farther in distance but reasonably foreseeable.
- **Cumulative** — incremental contribution combined with past, present, and reasonably foreseeable future actions.

Per-resource analytical checklist:

- [ ] Intensity, duration, geographic extent.
- [ ] Short-term vs. long-term; temporary vs. permanent.
- [ ] Beneficial and adverse effects.
- [ ] Irreversible / irretrievable resource commitments.
- [ ] Significance criteria and rationale for determinations.
- [ ] Scientific uncertainty or incomplete information — flag explicitly; identify what would be needed to resolve.
- [ ] Conflicts with federal / state / local plans or regulations.

Significance methodology was historically anchored at 40 CFR § 1508.27 (intensity + context). Lead-agency procedures retain analogues; apply the agency's current significance framework.

## 6. Cumulative Impacts

- Define geographic and temporal scope with rationale.
- Identify contributing past, present, and reasonably foreseeable future actions.
- Assess whether combined effects exceed resource capacity or significance thresholds.
- Address resource condition trends (improving, stable, degrading).

This section is a frequent litigation target. Insufficient cumulative-impacts analysis (or undocumented assumptions about reasonably-foreseeable actions) is a recurring basis for remand under hard-look review.

## 7. Mitigation Measures

Per resource category, specify for each measure:

- **Description** — specific and enforceable; not aspirational.
- **Type** — avoid / minimize / rectify / reduce / compensate.
- **Applicable alternatives** — which alternatives the measure attaches to.
- **Implementation** — responsible party, timing, method.
- **Monitoring** — verification approach, adaptive management triggers.
- **Residual impact** — what remains after mitigation and why further mitigation is infeasible.

Distinguish agency-authority measures from those requiring voluntary third-party action. Voluntary measures may not satisfy hard-look review where the agency has authority to require enforceable mitigation.

## 8. Consultation and Coordination

- **Public involvement** — scoping, meetings, comment periods; document how input shaped the analysis.
- **Draft EIS comments and responses** — substantive comments and how the Final EIS responds.
- **Tribal consultation** — government-to-government process; traditional knowledge integration where shared with consent; treaty rights. Operates under E.O. 13175 + statute-specific tribal-consultation provisions, not just NEPA.
- **Section 106 (NHPA)** — status and findings.
- **Section 7 (ESA)** — biological assessment / opinion status.
- **Section 404 (CWA)** — joint NEPA / 404 process where applicable; post-*Sackett* WOTUS jurisdictional considerations.
- **Other coordination** — state / local agencies, other federal consultations.

## 9. List of Preparers

Table with name, affiliation, expertise, and sections responsible. Preparer disclosure supports hard-look review by demonstrating the EIS reflects qualified judgment.

## Appendices

Appendices are excluded from the page count under § 4336a. They typically include:

- Scoping documents
- Public comment record (in summary; full record by reference)
- Technical reports (cultural, biological, hydrologic, etc.)
- Maps and figures
- Modeling results
- Programmatic-document tiering documentation, if applicable
- Joint-document records (e.g., joint NEPA / NHPA / ESA process)