NEPA Practice Tips and Success Stories – The Perspective of NEPA Consultants

This session highlights practical lessons, success stories, and case studies demonstrating how NEPA can be leveraged for better decision-making and more efficient EIS processes.

Credit(s)

1.2

Duration

61 minutes

This session will explore lessons learned from past NEPA implementations and offer a forward-looking perspective from seasoned NEPA consultants on what strategies are most effective today. Speakers will showcase success stories demonstrating how the NEPA process, when properly applied, supports stronger decision-making and improved alternatives development without becoming a surrogate for project planning. The session also will review case studies of accelerated Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) processes, including practical tools and approaches that have enabled agencies and project sponsors to complete streamlined, 150-page EISs within one to two years—from notice of intent (NOI) to record of decision (ROD).

Speakers

Credits

Materials

1.2 CLE Credits

This course has been accredited for CLE credit in Colorado. CLE credit hours shown are for Colorado only. A CLE course number for Colorado will be provided to attendees on their certificates of attendance once a course has been completed. New Mexico attorneys who complete a course must notify us (cle@rmmlf.org) because we are required to report credits for you. If this course has been approved for RPL/CPL credit with the American Association of Professional Landmen (AAPL), the credits will be listed below in a separate section for AAPL. If applicable, Component Codes for AAPL recertification will also be provided. Please contact RMMLF if you need independent verification by the provider of your attendance or participation for CLE purposes. Except as provided above, RMMLF generally does not apply for accreditation from any other MCLE/CPD organizations for its online legal education program. Upon completion of a program a certificate of attendance will be issued to all attendees. Except as provided above, attendees must verify with their respective state bars and CPD organizations and their specific rules as to whether or not the certificate of attendance will be recognized by that body for MCLE/CPD purposes, and the number of CLE/CPD credits that may be available. The live presentation of the on-demand program has been accredited in most mandatory states as part of a larger course, but such accreditation does not assure recognition of the on-demand program.

MELANIE HERNANDEZ is an environmental attorney and the Co-Founder and Vice President of Scout, an environmental and engineering consulting firm headquartered in San Diego, California. Scout specializes in NEPA development and delivery, managing projects from initial planning and scoping through technical studies, public engagement, document preparation, and final decision-making. With over 20 years of experience in NEPA compliance and environmental law, Melanie serves as a senior NEPA program manager primarily for Department of Defense federal clients including the Navy, Marine Corps, Air Force, Army, Coast Guard, and Veterans Affairs. Prior to founding Scout, Melanie managed some of the Department of Defense’s most complex and high-profile Environmental Impact Statements in the Pacific region, including major aircraft basing and infrastructure initiatives, while living in Japan for five years. Her expertise also includes leading multidisciplinary teams for projects involving new military systems, construction, and public land access, as well as developing environmental law training programs covering NEPA, the Clean Air Act, Clean Water Act, and National Historic Preservation Act. Melanie holds a B.S. from Andrews University and a J.D. from The George Washington University Law School.

MATT PETERSEN is SWCA’s Senior Technical Director for Planning and NEPA. He has 30 years of experience as a NEPA project manager and planning specialist and has managed or provided NEPA oversight for more than 50 large-scale environmental impact statements (EISs) in Alaska, Arizona, California, Colorado, Idaho, New Hampshire, New Mexico, Texas, Utah, Vermont, and Wyoming. His NEPA experience includes work with most major federal agencies, including Bureau of Land Management (BLM), U.S. Forest Service (USFS) U.S Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS), U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE), U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT), Bureau of Reclamation (USBR), and the Federal Avian Administration (FAA). His NEPA projects include wind farms, transmission lines, agency resource management plans (RMPs), fire management plans, airports, stream restoration, mining, oil and gas development, pipelines, and power plants. Mr. Petersen managed the TransWest Express Transmission Project EIS, and the Robinson Mine Expansion EIS and provided NEPA oversight and alternatives facilitation for the Bears Ears National Monument EIS and the Wyoming Integrated Pipeline Corridor EIS.