As a community member, you have the opportunity and right to participate
in decisions that affect your environment and quality of life. Major
federal actions in your community like building a highway, a new
power plant, or commercial logging require an Environmental Impact
Statement (EIS). One part of this public process is called scoping;
this is an opportunity for you to raise questions and concerns about
how a proposed project may affect you and your community. You may
submit your public comment at public hearings or in writing, or
both.
Following are examples of questions and concerns you may raise during
the scoping process:
Geographic Scope:
- What will be the geographic scope of air quality effects
included in the EIS? (Examples: Metropolitan area, airshed or global
atmosphere)
- What will be the geographic scope of water quality effects
included in the EIS? (Examples: stream, watershed, river basin,
estuary, aquifer, or parts thereof)
- What vegetative resources will be included the EIS address?
(Example: watershed, forest, range, or ecosystem)
- What will be the geographic scope of effects on resident wildlife
included in the EIS? (Example: a specific habitat or ecosystem)
- What will be the geographic scope of study on migratory wildlife?
(Example: breeding grounds, migration route, wintering areas, or
total range)
- What historical resources will be included in the EIS? (Example:
neighborhood, rural community, tribal territory, or known or possible
historic district)
- What sociocultural resources will be included in the EIS?
(Example: neighborhood, community, distribution of low-income or
minority population, or culturally valued landscape.)
- What will the geographic scope of socioeconomic impacts be?
(Community, metropolitan area, county, state, or country)
Cumulative Environmental Effects:
- How will the EIS address frequent and repetitive effects
on an environmental system? (Example: forest harvesting rates that
exceed regrowth.)
- Will the EIS include delayed effects? (Examples: exposure
to environmental toxins, mobilization of persistent or bioaccumulated
substances through the food chain)
- Will the EIS address other nearby activities that will have a similar
environmental impact? (Example: multiple livestock areas in
a compressed space; multiple wastewater dischargers to the same resource)
- Will the EIS analyze fragmentation of the landscape? (Example:
fragmentation of a historic district)
- Will the EIS include additive effects? (Example: multiple
contaminants in the environment)
- Will the EIS address the indirect or secondary effects? (Example:
commercial development following highway construction)
- Will the EIS analyze fundamental changes in systems like
groundwater, surface water, biodiversity, and other natural systems?
Components of the Affected Environment:
- What will be the scope of study for potential air quality effects?
(Examples: human health hazards, poor visibility, ambient air quality,
particulates, regional air quality issues,"acid rain")
- What will be the scope of study for potential surface water
effects? (Examples: water quality from multiple sources; water
quality degradation from land uses that result in nonpoint-source
pollution, sedimentation from erosion caused by construction, forestry
practices, or agriculture, water shortages from overuse, deterioration
of recreational uses from overdevelopment)
- What will be the scope of study for groundwater effects?
(Examples: non-point pollution and multiple-source pollution that
may infiltrate to groundwater; depletion of groundwater resources
from overuse)
- What will be the scope of study for lands and soils? (Examples:
diminished land fertility and productivity from nonsustainable agricultural
practices; soil loss from multiple, uncoordinated activities such
agriculture on excessive gradients, overharvesting in forestry, and
highway construction)
- What will be the scope of study for wetlands? (Examples:
habitat loss and diminished flood control capacity resulting from
dredging and filling individual tracts of wetlands, sedimentation
from irrigation and urban runoff)
- What will be the scope of study for ecological systems? (Example:
loss of biological diversity; habitat fragmentation from multiple
activities such as logging, agriculture, and urban development; degradation
of sensitive ecosystems from incremental stresses; loss of fish and
wildlife systems from the from the creation of multiple barriers to
migration)
- What will be the scope of study for historic and archaeological
resources? (Examples: cultural site degradation resulting from
streambank erosion, construction, plowing and land leveling; fragmentation
of historic districts)
- What will be the scope of study for socioeconomic effects?
(Examples: over-burdened social services due to population changes
resulting from multiple projects and activities; unstable labor market
resulting from changes in the pool of eligible workers)
- What will be the scope of study for effects on the community?
(Examples: disruption of community mobility and access as a result
of changes in infrastructure, changes resulting from the incremental
displacement of community members as a result of development, loss
of neighborhoods or community character through incremental development)
Citizens for Safe Water Around Badger (CSWAB) is working
to empower, unify, and strengthen communities affected by environmental
contamination; to restore the integrity of natural systems including air,
water, soil, and biodiversity; and to ensure mutual respect and social
justice for all peoples, free from any form of discrimination or bias.
For more information:
contact CSWAB at E12629 Weigand�s Bay South, Merrimac, WI 53561
(608) 643-3124 or visit our websites at http://www.speagle.com/cswab
and http://www.cswab.com.
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