The MIS/NEPA Study Process

The National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA), enacted in 1970, applies to "major Federal actions significantly affecting the quality of the human environment." The NEPA process refers to the procedures involved in analyzing the impacts of a proposal and its alternatives, and provides a method of documenting the analysis of those results.

The Intermodal Surface Transportation Efficiency Act (ISTEA) required that communities over 200,000 in population complete a MIS for all new major transportation projects. The Anchorage Metropolitan Area Transportation Study (AMATS), identified the NSH as a corridor improvement project meeting the requirements for a MIS. Subsequent legislation, the Transportation Equity Act for the 21st Century (TEA-21), eliminated the MIS as a separate requirement and allowed it to be integrated into the existing planning procedures under the 1969 NEPA. This integrated process has been used for the NSH Project: Rabbit Creek Road to 36th Avenue.

The scoping process is used to determine the scope of the work that should be performed. The scope of the project is developed based on the project's purpose and need. During the scoping process, as much existing information as possible is gathered and collected. This includes: public and agency input, feasibility studies, traffic projections, bridge inventories, accident reports, previous studies and planning efforts, GIS mapping, and aerial photography.

Public Involvement Process and Project Timeline

Your opinions, concerns, and ideas are critical to an effective public involvement process, and will help to shape the recommendations for this corridor. Issues will be identified through a series of public and agency scoping meetings.

The ultimate goal of public involvement is a well-informed public that has had the chance to contribute to transportation decision-making in a meaningful way through a broad array of involvement opportunities at key stages of project development. This input, in turn, contributes to policy and design solutions that are well-grounded in local values as well as engineering expertise.

The public review of the resulting Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) will assist ADOT&PF in making decisions on how to manage current and projected traffic demand. Over the next year, ADOT&PF will listen to residents and business owners, analyze options, and assess potential environmental impacts.

Preparation of an Environmental Impact Statement (EIS)

A Notice of Intent to prepare an EIS is published in the Federal Register and invites the public to comment on the scope of the issues and the alternatives to be addressed in the document.

At a minimum, the New Seward Highway EIS will discuss:

  • The existing natural and built environment in the project corridor
  • The deficiencies along the New Seward Highway corridor
  • The project's public involvement and agency coordination activities
  • The range of alternatives that address existing and future travel demand
  • The potential impacts of alternative New Seward Highway improvements

The EIS is prepared in two stages, the draft and the final. Once the draft is completed it is filed with the Environmental Protection Agency where it is circulated for 45 days. After receiving and considering the comments on the draft EIS, the final EIS is prepared and filed with the EPA.

A record of decision (ROD) is issued at least 30 days following the publication of the final EIS. The ROD is a concise public record that states what the decision is, discusses the alternatives considered, and identifies the most environmentally preferable alternative.