National Environmental Policy Act

National Environmental Policy Act

The National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) is the basic national charter for protecting the environment. It ensures that information about the environmental effects of any government agency's proposal and alternative actions are available to agency decision-makers. The Fish and Wildlife Service provides technical and biological information for use in the NEPA review process. In that way, we seek to ensure that impacts on fish and wildlife resources are described adequately and mitigation needs are met. For more information on NEPA, visit the Council on Environmental Quality NEPANET Home Page.

Environmental Coordination

The Branch of Advanced Planning and Habitat Conservation in our Division of Habitat and Resource Conservation is responsible for coordinating Service activities associated with NEPA.

That coordination includes

internal compliance with NEPA related to Service proposals and environmental documents;

Service involvement with NEPA in the coordination and review of the environmental documents of other federal agencies

We are involved in the preparation of about 65 environmental impact statements and 1,000 environmental assessments annually for Service actions on Service lands. In addition, our field, region or other offices review and comment on more than 2,000 environmental documents annually from other federal agencies.

Our NEPA Reference Handbook contains Fish and Wildlife Service and Department of the Interior NEPA guidance and procedures.

Last Updated: Fri, August 10, 2007 15:00