FHWA 2006 ENVIRONMENTAL CONFERENCE
FHWA AT FIFTY YEARS: A LOOK AT THE PAST, PRESENT AND FUTURE

Welcome to the 2006 FHWA Environmental Conference. In this session, participants will be welcomed to the Conference as well as given an overview of the Conference agenda. The theme of this year's Conference will be "The FHWA at Fifty Years: A look at the Past, Present and Future." Participate in an interactive "walk down memory lane" of the past 50 years of the FHWA and the Interstate System. The session will conclude with a look into the future of FHWA.

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This plenary session will focus on the present FHWA and its latest transportation authorization act, SAFETEA-LU. This overview session will highlight the nuances of the bill and its various relevant sections, such as the CE delegation, provisions concerning noxious weeds, the Interstate exemption, planning provisions, STEP, and more. Many of these topics will be further addressed in subsequent conference breakout sessions.

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In 2005, FHWA issued updated guidance on Section 4(f) and Congress passed SAFETEA-LU, which included changes to Section 4(f). This plenary session will provide an overview of the updated Section 4(f) Policy Paper and the provisions in SAFETEA-LU affecting Section 4(f).

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Need some new tools for building your 106 experiences and expertise? From land swaps to training the local Sheriff's department on how to detect and prevent archeological looting, this session will present some non-traditional approaches to addressing section 106 issues. There will also be a presentation on writing effective Programmatic Agreements, a discussion on the Council's draft policy for human remains, and an update on the survey of exceptional elements of the Interstate Highway System.

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The assessment of indirect and cumulative impacts increasing has become a focus area of resource agencies and the public. Indirect and cumulative impacts can be an impediment to completion of the NEPA process and can present an area for legal challenges. The session will discuss current resources and training availability as well as have a dialogue of ongoing practices.

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Big and controversial projects often attract time-consuming FOIA requests. Need help on FOIA issues? This breakout session will provide tips on managing the FOIA process and will include plenty of time for your questions.

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This session will feature presentations on the development of a programmatic consultation and biological assessment/opinion in Wyoming by Rod Vaughn, and the implementation of a web-based biological assessment template and database by Mary Gray. There will also be a discussion on current topics related to compliance with the Migratory Bird Treaty Act and the Bald and Golden Eagle Protection Act, highlighting issues, best practices, and current policy of the FWS (Paul Garrett).

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Many of the concepts found in public participation originally were developed in the 1960s with the birth of advocacy planning, then formalized in state and federal legislation and regulation, during implementation of Great Society programs. Recent changes in transportation, technology and U.S. society are challenging our core assumptions regarding what effective public participation is. Do we need to adjust and modernize our approaches for working with the public? Or are we looking at long-term trends that will fundamentally alter our understanding of public participation? This session will describe how professional practice is responding to these changes through the examples of working with people with Limited English Proficiency, using visualization techniques to engage audiences, discussing the value of highway pricing projects and discovering new media for changing lifestyles.

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This session will discuss state DOT's and Division office's efforts to manage and improve their project development processes in order to produce quality NEPA documents. Session topics will include: A summary of the findings and recommendations from the AASHTO/ACEC/FHWA Quality Document Initiative; lessons learned from the award winning Legacy Parkway Supplemental EIS; and observations on document quality from the legal perspective.

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This plenary session will deal with discussions on three topics that are quickly becoming hot topics in many States.

Major Projects- what are the new SAFETEA-LU criteria and directives? How will the environmental staff become involved in Major Projects?

Design Build- Currently, FHWA is in the process of creating new regulations for design build. What will that mean?

Public Private Partnerships- SEP-14, SEP-15, tolling projects? How does this impact FHWA now and in the future?

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This session will address integrated planning concepts as they apply to the new environmental consultation and mitigation provisions of SAFETEA-LU Section 6001. There will be presentations on Wildlife Action Plans, Watershed Planning concepts and Historic Preservation Plans and inventories and how these can be used to inform decision-making in both in transportation planning and project development. There will also be an overview presentation that explains the "linkages" between integrated planning and other FHWA initiatives such as Green Highways, CSS and "Eco-Logical: An Ecosystem Approach to Developing Infrastructure Projects."

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This session will include a presentation about Noise Compatible Land Use Planning, which discusses the key concepts in preventing and reducing highway traffic noise impacts on adjacent land uses. The presentation will discuss the important role of highway agencies in promoting noise compatible land use planning. In addition, the session will highlight the latest developments in use of various pavements to reduce tire noise, an important component of highway traffic noise. The presentation will also discuss quiet pavement pilot programs and quiet pavement research. The Interactive Sound Information System (ISIS), a software program that generates noise from various sources, will be demonstrated.

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This session will review the major points of SAFETEA-LU Section 6002, which established a new environmental review process for FHWA and FTA projects. The presentation will discuss and explain the new aspects of the process such as project initiation, participating agencies, agency and public input on purpose and need and range of alternatives, and statute of limitations. The joint FHWA/FTA guidance on this section will be used as the basis for this discussion.

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The Council on Environmental Quality and Office of Management and Budget have directed federal agencies to increase the use of collaborative processes to address environmental issues and demonstrate the results. This session will describe what we can expect to achieve from collaborative processes and how those results compare with traditional decision making approaches. The results presented are part of an ongoing evaluation effort to capture environmental and economic effects of various decision making processes.

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The best way to survive a lawsuit is to ensure that your NEPA document is legally sufficient, and that you have a comprehensive administrative record. In this session, you will obtain a better understanding of these two issues, as well as discuss recent court cases that may affect FHWA. Though there should be time for questions and answers, Wednesday's final breakout session provides the opportunity to meet with your attorney in an informal session to discuss legal issues important in your state or region.

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Attendees will hear the latest about how air toxics are demanding more attention in NEPA decision documents. You will learn the new requirements for PM2.5 hot spot, and best practices for addressing air toxics in environmental documents. Both the legal/policy implications as well as the technical tools will be presented. Much of this session will be open for questions and answers. Everyone will walk away with practical examples, and contact information about where to go for help or to learn more.

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This session will discuss the results of the FHWA Domestic Scan of Successful Wetland Mitigation Programs and provide a summary of the USACE/EPA Proposed Rule for Compensatory Mitigation, including FHWA comments on the proposed rule. This session will include insights from the USACE regarding benefits, responsibilities, operation, establishment and the future of existing in-lieu fee programs.. The importance of noxious weed control and the establishment of native plants and the new provisions for these activities under SAFETEA-LU will be also be discussed. This session will conclude with an interactive question and answer period

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At 7:30PM, this evening, we will be holding a session titled "Federal Aid Funding and SAFETEA-LU," which will discuss funding of wetland banks and in-lieu fee programs. Panel includes Abdelmoez Abdalla, Michigan Division, Rob Ayers, North Carolina Division, Anthony Goodman, Kentucky Division, Maiser Khaled, California Division, Jaclyn Lawton, Wisconsin Division, Randal Looney, Arkansas Division, Mark Schrader, North Dakota Division, and Cecil Vick, Mississippi Division.

The afternoon regional breakout sessions are intended to provide conference participants the opportunity to meet with their respective attorneys, ask questions and discuss their ideas. The breakout sessions will address particular issues in the West, Midwest, South, and Northeast on the Federal-Aid side, with a separate session for Federal Lands. Meet the attorneys who review your environmental documents and can provide help during the entire environmental review process.

This session will include a panel discussion of Right-of-Way or related actions undertaken as part of a project's Environmental Mitigation. This discussion will include an introductory description of right-of-way activities on the local and national level. FHWA staff from three Division Offices will provide in-depth discussions on Mitigation Actions in their states involving the acquisition of rights-of-way or replacement of real property. Following these presentations, the panel will address questions and comments from the audience.

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This session will provide an update on the FHWA CSS program, including the new CSS training course. This session will feature a presentation on CSS and safety from the Headquarters Office of Safety. Federal Lands Highway Division will present CSS success stories.

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This session will focus on two areas of tribal coordination: Section 106 tribal consultation and trust resources. Section 106 of the National Historic Preservation Act requires consultation with tribes with historic ties to the geographic area of a proposed federal project. This session will examine ways in which FHWA can more effectively and efficiently consult with tribes through coordination among FHWA Division Offices. FHWA, as a federal agency, is responsible for protecting and preserving tribal trust resources. This session will describe what is meant by a tribal trust resource, how these resources can be identified and FHWA's responsibilities concerning these resources.

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Re:NEPA (http://nepa.fhwa.dot.gov/ReNepa/ReNepa.nsf/home), FHWA's online community of practice, has been a tremendous success for sharing information and discussing related issues. The purpose of the session is to address controversial, complex issues and questions appearing in RE: NEPA as well as related topics. Questions will be generated by the conference participants throughout the conference through a "RE: NEPA question box," (Question forms are located in participant folders.) Participants will also have the chance during this session to ask any other questions they may have about the NEPA process or any questions from the previous days that have not yet been answered.

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