Tailored Workshops

By selecting Environmental Planning Strategies, Inc., you are guaranteed that Ms. Judith Lee, who is recognized as a premier consultant/instructor in NEPA and environmental planning, will be your instructor and partner for your tailored workshops.

Ms. Lee, as President of Environmental Planning Strategies, Inc., has developed a unique and effective training approach tailored specifically for National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) practitioners, managers, and document reviewers. These workshops can also be tailored for any level and type of environmental planning and decisionmaking, including that required by other environmental laws.

You will learn Environmental Planning Strategies, Inc.'s proven, practical, and effective "Facilitated Planning Approach" for conducting analyses and consistently reviewing NEPA documents, including cumulative impact analyses, that she shares with her workshop participants in a challenging and enjoyable way.

These workshops use real case studies for teaching how to effectively, efficiently, and consistently conduct the analyses and/or review and comment on NEPA documents, so that participants can apply what they learn directly to their daily work.

Ms. Judith Lee has been successfully and effectively conducting environmental analysis, documentation, and training for over 25 years, and as President of Environmental Planning Strategies, Inc., since 1996. Her satisfied NEPA workshop clients include:

• U.S. EPA Headquarters and Regions
• Federal Highway Administration/state DOTs for Illinois, Kentucky, Indiana, Missouri, Colorado, South Carolina, Michigan, Utah
• Bureau of Indian Affairs
• U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Dialogue of Understanding with US EPA
• USDA APHIS Wildlife Services nationwide
• Illinois Department of Natural Resources
• NOAA NMFS Boise, Seattle, Lacey WA, Portland, Honolulu
• US Forest Service, all regions
• Open Enrollments including representatives from US Fish and Wildlife Service, National Park Service, Federal Aviation Administration, US Coast Guard, Office of Surface Mining, US Army, and others
• Department of Defense, US Navy, US Marines, US Air Force
• Department of Energy
• Bureau of Land Management
• Federal Energy Regulatory Commission

Please select from the following workshops the ones which will work best for you. Please contact Ms. Lee to tailor a workshop for your special needs!

With GSA Schedule Contract GS-10F0046R, you can purchase your workshop with minimal effort. Call Judith to ask how!

1. NEPA Document Review under Section 309 of the Clean Air Act for the Environmental Protection Agency
2. Conducting Effective NEPA Document Reviews for NEPA Practitioners and Managers
3. Powerful Planning Using NEPA and the Facilitated Planning Approach
4. Conducting Quality Cumulative Impact Analyses under the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA)
5. The National Environmental Policy Act: A Dialogue of Understanding for Quality Planning
6. Developing and Implementing Effective NEPA Planning Strategies
7. National Environmental Policy Act: Powerful Planning Focusing on Purpose and Need

1. NEPA Document Review under Section 309 of the Clean Air Act for the Environmental Protection Agency

This interactive workshop, tailored specifically for the Environmental Protection Agency and its client Federal and state agencies, focuses on conducting effective reviews of agency NEPA documents for adequacy of analysis and severity of environmental impacts, then developing commenting strategies pertinent to environmental and political issues, policies, and precedent. The emphasis on practical review processes for analysis of NEPA document content and analyses includes CEQ and EPA guidance, court decisions and precedents, and effective review tools and processes, including a proven Document Review Packet. This workshop can be tailored to beginner and advanced NEPA reviewers and practitioners, and can be effectively used to improve working relationships between EPA reviewers and Federal and state agency NEPA practitioners and managers. The workshop uses a combination of lecture, facilitated discussion, and “real life” case studies, tailored to each individual audience to ensure that participants learn NEPA and effective methods of document review and commenting that can be used directly in their work.

---

2. Conducting Effective NEPA Document Reviews for NEPA Practitioners and Managers

This interactive workshop, individually tailored for the Federal/state agency requesting training, focuses on conducting effective reviews of agency NEPA documents for adequacy of analysis and severity of environmental impacts for improving the quality of agency NEPA documents and providing comments to other agencies. The emphasis on practical review processes for analysis of NEPA document content and analyses includes CEQ guidance, court decisions and precedents, and effective review tools and processes, including a proven Document Review Packet. This workshop can be tailored to beginner and advanced NEPA reviewers and practitioners, and can be effectively used to improve working relationships between agency reviewers and Federal and state agency NEPA practitioners and managers. The workshop uses a combination of lecture, facilitated discussion, and “real life” case studies, tailored to each individual audience to ensure that participants learn NEPA and effective methods of document review and commenting that can be used directly in their work.

---

3. Powerful Planning Using NEPA and the Facilitated Planning Approach

This interactive workshop, individually tailored for the Federal/state agency requesting training, focuses on conducting effective and practical NEPA planning processes and impact analyses using the proven NEPA Facilitated Planning Approach, ensuring complete and adequate planning strategies and environmental impact analyses. The emphasis on practical planning processes and strategies, based on powerful and readily implementable planning approaches, includes CEQ regulations and guidance, the agency NEPA procedures, court decisions and precedents, and effective planning tools and processes. This workshop can be tailored to beginner and advanced NEPA practitioners, reviewers, and managers for the specific agency, and can be effectively used to improve interdisciplinary working relationships within the agency and with cooperating and commenting agencies. The workshop uses a combination of lecture, facilitated discussion, and “real life” case studies, tailored to each individual audience, to ensure that participants learn NEPA and effective methods of environmental planning and document preparation that can be used directly in their work.

---

4. Conducting Quality Cumulative Impact Analyses under the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA)

This interactive workshop, individually tailored for the Federal/state agency requesting training, focuses on conducting effective and practical NEPA cumulative impact analyses, including selecting the proper scope of analysis and decisions, developing the appropriate baseline, incorporating correct past, present, and reasonably foreseeable future actions, and conducting complete and sufficient cumulative impact analyses. The emphasis on practical planning and impact processes and strategies, based on powerful and readily implementable planning approaches, includes CEQ regulations and cumulative impact guidance, Environmental Protection Agency cumulative impact guidance, court decisions and precedents, and effective impact analysis tools and processes. This workshop is tailored to advanced NEPA practitioners, reviewers, and managers, and can be effectively used to improve interdisciplinary working relationships within the agency and with cooperating and commenting agencies. Participants actively discuss cumulative impact analysis cases, implementing the process for conducting cumulative impacts systematically, within the framework of NEPA, the CEQ regulations, CEQ and EPA guidance, and legal precedent. A variety of cumulative impact analyses, including quality analyses, prepared by other agencies are reviewed and local cases analyzed.

---

5. The National Environmental Policy Act: A Dialogue of Understanding for Quality Planning

This highly consultative and tailored workshop is intended for agency managers and advanced NEPA practitioners in several agencies to work together in a safe and facilitated environment to create a common language and understanding of the legal and practical application of NEPA and the CEQ implementing regulations; to better understand the policies, processes, and organization of each agency to foster better working relationships; to identify and affirmatively address areas of conflict, and cooperatively develop practical and effective means for issue resolution acceptable to all participating agencies; and to create interpersonal and interagency trust, affirmative patterns of communication, and positive mutually beneficial long-term relationships.

---

6. Developing and Implementing Effective NEPA Planning Strategies

This highly consultative and tailored workshop uses the proven NEPA Facilitated Planning Approach to work the interdisciplinary planning team through a specific NEPA planning effort, simultaneously training the participants in developing effective NEPA planning and implementation strategies. The workshop uses the CEQ regulations and guidance, agency NEPA procedures, legal cases, and the proven Facilitated Planning Approach to develop the purpose and need, scope of decisions to be made, issues using cause-and-effect relationships, a reasonable array of alternatives and specific mitigation measures, and strategies for integrating other environmental laws and conducting impact analyses, including any necessary cumulative impact analyses. The interdisciplinary team, with the consultant, begins preparation of the NEPA document content and a public involvement strategy. The consultant can also be available for long-term support of the NEPA planning effort.

---

7. National Environmental Policy Act: Powerful Planning Focusing on Purpose and Need

This highly consultative workshop, individually tailored for the Federal/state agency requesting training, is intended for agency managers and advanced NEPA practitioners to learn effective methods for determining and articulating in writing the specific and focused need for action and objectives (purpose and need) and the scope of decisions to be made. This workshop focuses on interdisciplinary processes for identifying the connected and similar actions included within the scope of a particular decision to be made, and conducting the analysis necessary to determine the true underlying problem that needs to be addressed. Participants learn how to identify the possible metrics for evaluating effectiveness (objectives) and select the most appropriate objectives for developing the array of reasonable alternatives and conducting effectiveness monitoring after project implementation. Using real case studies, participants learn how to make the discretionary administrative decisions necessary for identifying and selecting the scope of the need(s) for action, objectives, and scope of decisions to be made from the array of possible scopes, with well-reasoned rationale. Participants actively discuss and evaluate actual NEPA documents appropriate for their agency and learn to implement the process for initiating their planning process clearly with clear analysis and documentation of their need for action, objectives, and scope of decisions to be made, within the framework of NEPA, the CEQ regulations, CEQ and EPA guidance, and legal precedent.

---