NEPA and State Environmental Impact Assessment Laws
Our experience with the National Environmental Policy Act and many of its state analogues is unparalleled and our practice is nationally preeminent.
A Sonnenschein partner was General Counsel of the President’s Council on Environmental Quality (CEQ) and the lead draftsperson of the federal government’s regulations implementing NEPA (40 CFR Parts #1500-1508). Another served as CEQ Associate Director for Natural Resources, while a third supervised the drafting and implementation of the Department of Energy’s NEPA procedures.
No NEPA document whose preparation was overseen by the firm's NEPA practitioners has ever been overturned in court.
We specialize in “bullet-proofing” environmental analyses by working closely with our clients’ in-house experts, consulting engineers and other specialists. No matter how complex or controversial a proposed project or action may be, we know how to plan, prepare, and defend environmental reviews so that our clients’ projects can go forward. When requested by our clients, we also critique NEPA documents prepared by others, and, where necessary, advocate before agencies or bring litigation to secure compliance.
Our NEPA expertise is evidenced by the fact that government agencies repeatedly call upon Sonnenschein for assistance with their own NEPA procedures and proceedings. As leaders in the field, our NEPA specialists frequently address professional gatherings, lead NEPA-related committees and associations, and publish in the area. We maintain extensive contacts with CEQ personnel, as well as with the NEPA specialists at EPA, the Department of the Interior, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, U.S. Forest Service, Department of Transportation (e.g., FHWA, OPS, and FAA), the Federal Communication Commission and Department of Defense.
Sonnenschein lawyers have helped our clients with NEPA reviews of Indian gaming facilities, electric transmission lines and generation facilities, pipelines, commercial fisheries, water supply developments, real estate developments, highways, bridges, light rail, hydropower projects, telecommunication and broadcast tours, the revision of an entire agency’s NEPA procedures, and development of inter-agency procedures for simultaneous implementation of NEPA, Endangered Species, and Clean Water Act reviews of energy infrastructure projects. We are particularly active in new facility siting in the Western States, including compliance with the California Environmental Quality Act.
We have worked with clients to help agencies establish categorical exclusions for certain actions, significantly streamlining regulatory compliance requirements. Our work often involves helping clients develop and win agency support for mitigation measures adequate to support issuance of an environmental assessment and “Finding of No Significant Impact,” in lieu of an environmental impact statement. Our familiarity with environmental management systems places us in the forefront of efforts to improve agency NEPA procedures.
Sonnenschein’s NEPA practice is enhanced by our expertise in many related federal environmental laws, including the Endangered Species Act, Clean Water Act, Coastal Zone Management Act, National Historic Preservation Act, Nuclear Waste Act, Federal Land Policy and Management Act, National Forest Management Act, Antiquities Act, Migratory Bird Treaty Act, Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act, Federal Power Act, and Administrative Procedure Act.
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