General Guidance
WSDOT Environmental Procedures Manual (EPM)
The WSDOT Environmental Procedures Manual (EPM) defines the procedures WSDOT will use to ensure compliance with all applicable environmental laws and regulations throughout the WSDOT Transportation Decision-Making Process, which includes Transportation Planning, Project Scoping and Programming, Design and Environmental Review, Environmental Permitting and PS&E (Plans, Specifications, and Estimates), Construction, Maintenance and Operations, and Property Management. The manual is generally updated and published on the webpage accessed above on an annual basis, and any errata or addenda prepared between updates will be posted here:
Errata:
The following errata and/or changes (or described future changes) have been identified as corrections for the current edition of the WSDOT Environmental Procedures Manual:
[None at this time]
Addenda:
[None at this time]
Interagency Agreements
WSDOT's current agreements with other agencies on environmental matters are listed on the Interagency Agreements web page.
Environmental Executive Orders
Environmental Executive Orders issued at the federal and state level can address a variety of policy matters, and they remain active until rescinded.
Environmental Directives
The following directives issued by the Governor deal with environmental matters:
The following directives issued by the Secretary of Transportation deal with environmental matters:
- D 22-22 - Noise Evaluation Procedures for Existing State Highways
- D 27-09 - Public Notice U.S. Army Corps of Engineers/U.S. Coast Guard
- D 31-12 - WSDOT Protection of Wetlands Action Plan
Environmental Instructional Letters
Occasionally WSDOT Executives will issue what is known as an "Instructional Letter" to accomplish a particular purpose within a specified period of time. Usually, such letters will have both an effective date and an expiration date that will allow enough time for a prescribed procedure to be incorporated into an appropriate WSDOT manual. The following Instructional Letters pertaining to environmental matters are currently in effect:
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IL-4074.00 - Design Guidance for Liquefaction Impacts
(pdf 38 kb)
Environmental Compliance Assurance Procedure (ECAP)
WSDOT developed an Environmental Compliance Assurance Procedure (ECAP) for construction projects in 2004, and the procedure has since been incorporated into the WSDOT Construction Manual. It is designed to enable WSDOT to recognize and eliminate environmental violations during the construction phase on WSDOT construction sites, and to ensure prompt notification to WSDOT management and agencies.
WSDOT has also developed an Environmental Compliance Assurance Procedure (ECAP) for maintenance projects. It may be found in Chapter 790 of the WSDOT Environmental Procedures Manual. The procedure is also incorporated into several Regional Environmental Compliance Plans applicable to maintenance.
Project Scoping Guidance
During Project Scoping, we:
- Define the purpose and need for a project;
- Identify alternative design solutions and evaluate them from an engineering and environmental standpoint; and
- Prepare a Project Summary to document the results and define the overall “scope” and cost of the proposed solution.
With this information, WSDOT and the legislature can decide whether to fund the project.
WSDOT staff prepare a Project Summary by using the WSDOT Project Summary Database to electronically fill out three Project Summary Forms, a Project Definition form, a Design Decisions form, and an Environmental Review Summary form.
The Environmental Review Summary form is used to identify the potential environmental issues and impacts, any proposed mitigation, and any NEPA/SEPA documents and environmental permits that are likely to be required for the project.
If a NEPA Documented Categorical Exclusion (DCE) is required for the project, the Environmental Review Summary (ERS) will later get changed to an Environmental Classification Summary (ECS) for approval by the lead federal agency to document completion of the Environmental Review Process. The following form is used for this purpose:
Example Environmental Review Summaries
The following are examples of an ERS for each class of project recognized by NEPA; however, they were prepared using an earlier version of the ERS form:
Critical Path Timelines for Project Delivery
The following critical path timelines have been developed as example project schedules for environmental work on a hypothetical project requiring a:
Environmental Review Guidance
National Environmental Policy Act / State Environmental Policy Act Guidance
This guidance is available to help WSDOT comply with the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) and State Environmental Policy Act (SEPA), both of which require the agency to consider the environmental consequences of agency actions in the transportation decision-making process.
Department of Transportation Act, Section 4(f) Guidance
This guidance is available to help WSDOT comply with Section 4(f) of the Department of Transportation Act, which is designed to protect public parks, recreation areas, wildlife and waterfowl refuges, and historic sites from encroachment by public transportation facilities.
Land and Water Conservation Fund Act, Section 6(f) Guidance
This guidance is available to help WSDOT comply with Section 6(f) of the Land and Water Conservation Fund Act, which is designed to prevent outdoor recreation properties acquired or developed with Land and Water Conservation Funds from being converted to another use unless replacement lands of equal value, location, and usefulness are provided.
Environmental Justice (EJ)
The Environmental Justice page contains numerous resources for researching, learning about and analyzing effects on environmental justice populations. You will find a comprehensive listing of related laws and regulations, a series of frequently asked questions for the project team, the analyst and general background. There are also links to other websites with information on environmental justice.
Reader-Friendly Environmental Documents
The Reader-Friendly Environmental Documents page explains how WSDOT is applying the Governor’s Plain Talk direction to our environmental documents. The page gives you direct access to the tools we’ve created and posts recent project document examples. It also provides links to state and federal resources.
Environmental Document Distribution Guidance
This guidance is available in table form to help WSDOT identify all of the appropriate recipients for each type of environmental review document and ensure that those recipients receive the correct number of copies in an appropriate form (paper copy and/or compact disk). The table also provides links to the following lists of addresses for appropriate recipients:
Environmental Permit Guidance