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National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) Enforcement

Top Tasks
  1. Submit an EIS or Environmental Assessment
  2. Submit an EID for a Special Appropriations Project
  3. Look up Region 5 Comment letters
National Links

The National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) requires federal agencies to integrate environmental values into their decision making processes by considering the environmental impacts of their proposed actions and reasonable alternatives to those actions.
NEPA requirements are invoked when federal agency actions are proposed that have potential to impact the environment. Typical actions may involve federal lands, federal permits, or federal funding (e.g., airports, federal buildings, military complexes, highways, and federal land management)
To comply with NEPA, federal agencies have 3 options:

EPA is required by law (Clean Air Act Section 309) to review and comment on EISs prepared by other federal agencies. EPA also has the discretion to review and comment on EAs and other NEPA documents.  EPA maintains a national filing system for all EISs, and assures that its own actions comply with NEPA. Note that many EPA actions are not subject to NEPA.

Region 5 EIS Information since 2008

EIS Comments

The best way to access past EPA comments is to use the Environmental Impact Statement Database. It has summaries of EPA comments on EISs going back to 2004 and comment letters going back to 2008.

Submit an Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) or Environmental Assessment

A federal agency must submit the EIS to the EPA regional office no later than the date that agency files and submits the EIS with EPA's Office of Federal Activities in Washington, DC.

Environmental Impact Statement
  1. File and submit your environmental impact statements with EPA's Office of Federal Activities
  2. Submit 2 paper copies and 1 CD of the EIS to:
     US Environmental Protection Agency Region 5
    NEPA Implementation Section (Mail Code E-19J)
    77 W. Jackson Blvd.
    Chicago, IL 60604
Environmental Assessments

Submit one paper copy and one CD to the above address.

Special Appropriation Projects

EPA must comply with NEPA when deciding whether to issue  a Special Appropriation Project grant as earmarked by Congress. We strongly advise Special Appropriation Project grant applicants  to complete this Environmental Information Document template (PDF) (19pp, 118K About PDF) to provide information about a proposed project.

Region 5 NEPA Staff

NEPA staff reviews and comments on other federal agencies' EISs and EAs.

Ken Westlake (westlake.kenneth@epa.gov), 312-886-2910
Chief, NEPA Section

Shanna Horvatin (horvatin.shanna@epa.gov), 312-886-7887
Energy, Health Impact Analysis, Noise, Highways, SAPs

Kathleen Kowal (kowal.kathleen@epa.gov), 312-353-5206
National Forests, Corps of Engineers, Endangered  Species Act, Highways, National Parks and Refuges, General Aviation, Energy, SAPs

Virginia Laszewski (laszewski.virginia@epa.gov), 312-886-7501
IN/MN Highways, General Aviation, National Historic Preservation Act, Pipelines, SAPs

Liz Pelloso (pelloso.elizabeth@epa.gov), 312-886-7425
Wetlands, Commercial and General Aviation, Highways, Corps of Engineers, SAPs

Elizabeth Poole (poole.elizabeth@epa.gov), 312-353-2087
WI Highways, Nuclear Power, Mining, Environmental Justice, National Parks, SAPs

Mike Sedlacek (sedlacek.michael@epa.gov), 312-886-1765
Mining, Defense, Highways, General Aviation, Tribal, Corps of Engineers, Coast Guard, SAPs

Norman West (west.norman@epa.gov), 312-353-5692
IL/MI/OH Highways, Railroads, Transit, Noise, Sustainability Energy, SAPs

Cross Agency NEPA information

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