Opinion ID: 162578
Heading Depth: 3
Heading Rank: 1

Heading: D & RG Alignment

Text: 14 The Appellants contend that at least three practicable alternatives to the Legacy Parkway exist including (i) a different highway alignment, (ii) a narrower highway configuration, and (iii) a mass transit alternative. They urge that these alternatives are far less environmentally damaging and would have reduced significantly the wetlands impact from the project. 15 We begin with the argument that NEPA was violated by the elimination of the Denver & Rio Grande (D & RG) Regional Alignment 3 as an alternative in the FEIS. 4 The FEIS's chapter on alternatives states that the D & RG Regional Alignment was not selected for further study because of its high cost and high impact on existing development relative to the GSL Regional Alignment. I Aplee. App. at 290. The Appellees assert that, in addition to high cost and high impact, the D & RG was also eliminated because the railroad right of way was under active consideration for future light rail and mass transit. Aplee. Br. at 32. Although the FEIS does mention in its summary of corridor and local planning studies that various organizations have recommended the preservation of the D & RG right of way for future commuter rail use, I Aplee. App. at 228-29, the FEIS does not identify this as a reason for eliminating the D & RG Regional Alignment. We can only affirm agency action, if at all, on grounds articulated by the agency itself. Olenhouse v. Commodity Credit Corp., 42 F.3d 1560, 1565 (10th Cir.1994). Therefore, we consider this to be a post-hoc rationalization and do not consider it. 16 The Appellants contend that the D & RG Regional Alignment was eliminated in violation of NEPA because the Agencies failed to verify the cost estimates supplied by the Applicant UDOT and failed to respond to comments filed by the Appellants raising this issue. See II Aplt.App. 683-84, III Aplt.App. 950 (comments by Sierra and Utahns questioning the cost estimates used to eliminate D & RG and to select GSL). Both NEPA and the COE regulations for implementing NEPA require that the agency verify the accuracy of information supplied by an applicant, 40 C.F.R. § 1506.5(a); 33 C.F.R. Part 325, App. B § 8(f)(2), and respond to substantive issues raised in comments, 40 C.F.R. § 1503.4(a); 33 C.F.R. Part 325, App. B § 13; Van Abbema v. Fornell, 807 F.2d 633, 639-40 (7th Cir.1986). The record does not reveal, and the Appellees do not assert, that they either verified the cost estimates supplied by the Applicant or responded to the comments submitted by the Appellants on this issue. See IV Aplt.App. at 1243 (letter from COE's Office of Counsel stating that the COE has no records relating to the estimated cost of the D & RG Regional Alignment or the Legacy Parkway Project). The Agencies, therefore, failed to follow their own regulations. Agencies are under an obligation to follow their own regulations, procedures, and precedents, or provide a rational explanation for their departure. Big Horn Coal Co. v. Temple, 793 F.2d 1165, 1169 (10th Cir.1986) (citation omitted). No rational explanation has been given. 17 This is more than a technical requirement when it comes to the cost of the project and alternatives. The FEIS rejected the D & RG Regional Alignment in part on the basis of comparative costs — a $300 million estimate for the Legacy Parkway and a $460 million estimate for the D & RG Regional Alignment. 5 III Aplee. App. 931.2-31.3. Appellants suggest that shortly after the COE permit decision, the estimated cost for the Legacy Parkway was $451 million, significantly closer to the initial $460 million estimate for the DR & G Regional Alignment. They suggest that the COE also relied upon the outdated cost estimates. Appellees counter that had the D & RG Regional Alignment cost estimate been updated, there would have been a proportional increase, and thus, the relative cost relationships would have remained the same. Aplee. Br. at 34-35. This is pure speculation because there is no cost methodology applicable to the D & RG Regional Alignment contained in the record. It also demonstrates why the FEIS is inadequate to meet the NEPA goals of informed decisionmaking and public comment. 6 18 The second reason for eliminating the D & RG Regional Alignment given in the FEIS was high impact to existing development. Although there is some support that the D & RG Regional Alignment would have a high impact on existing development, we conclude in II.A that the record is insufficiently developed for purposes of rejecting it as impracticable under the CWA. Thus, we do not decide whether the high impact rationale is adequately explored and sufficiently discussed to comply with NEPA.