Administrative Rules of Montana › Department 32 - LIVESTOCK › Chapter 32.2 - OVERALL DEPARTMENT RULES › Subchapter 32.2.2 - Montana Environmental Policy Act › Rule 32.2.229 - PREPARATION AND CONTENTS OF DRAFT ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT STATEMENTS

Current through Register Vol. 13, July 5, 2024
(1) If required by these rules, the agency
				shall prepare a draft environmental impact statement using an interdisciplinary
				approach and containing the following:
(a) a
				description of the proposed action, including its purpose and
				benefits;
(b) a listing of any
				state, local, or federal agencies that have overlapping or additional
				jurisdiction and a description of their responsibility for the proposed
				action;
(c) a description of the
				current environmental conditions in the area affected by the proposed action or
				alternatives, including maps and charts, whenever appropriate. The description
				must be no longer than is necessary to understand the effects of the action and
				alternatives. Data analysis must be commensurate with the importance of the
				impact with less important material summarized, consolidated, or simply
				referenced;
(d) a description of
				the impacts on the quality of the human environment of the proposed action
				including:
(i) the factors listed in ARM
				32.2.225(3) (d) and
				(e), whenever appropriate;
(ii) primary, secondary, and cumulative
				impacts;
(iii) potential
				growth-inducing or growth-inhibiting impacts;
(iv) irreversible and irretrievable
				commitments of environmental resources, including land, air, water and
				energy;
(v) economic and
				environmental benefits and costs of the proposed action; and
(vi) the relationship between local
				short-term uses of man's environment and the effect on maintenance and
				enhancement of the long-term productivity of the environment. Where a
				cost-benefit analysis is prepared by the agency prior to the preparation of the
				draft EIS, it shall be incorporated by reference in or appended to the
				EIS;
(e) an analysis of
				reasonable alternatives to the proposed action, including the alternative of no
				action and other reasonable alternatives that may or may not be within the
				jurisdiction of the agency to implement, if any;
(f) a discussion of mitigation, stipulations,
				or other controls committed to and enforceable by the agency or other
				government agency;
(g) a discussion
				of any compensation related to impacts stemming from the proposed
				action;
(h) an explanation of the
				tradeoffs among the reasonable alternatives;
(i) the agency's preferred alternative, if
				any, and its reasons for the preference;
(j) a section on consultation and preparation
				of the draft EIS that includes the following:
(i) the names of those individuals or groups
				responsible for preparing the EIS;
(ii) a listing of other agencies, groups, or
				individuals who were contacted or contributed information; and
(iii) a summary list of source materials used
				in the preparation of the draft EIS;
(k) a summary of the draft EIS as required in
				ARM 32.2.228; and
(l) other sections that may be required by
				other statutes in a comprehensive evaluation of the proposed action, or by the
				National Environmental Policy Act or other federal statutes governing a
				cooperating federal agency.