Opinion ID: 3050627
Heading Depth: 3
Heading Rank: 2

Heading: Failure to properly assess significance

Text: “Categorical exclusions, by definition, are limited to situations where there is an insignificant or minor effect on the environment.” Alaska Ctr., 189 F.3d at 859; see also 40 C.F.R. § 1508.4. The Forest Service must document that the action to be undertaken is insignificant because the “threshold question in a NEPA case is whether a proposed project will ‘significantly affect’ the environment, thereby triggering the requirement for an EIS.” Blue Mountains Biodiversity Project v. Blackwood, 161 F.3d 1208, 1212 (9th Cir. 1998) (citing 42 U.S.C. § 4332(2)(c)). The Forest Service did not do this. It 15948 SIERRA CLUB v. BOSWORTH failed to consider adequately the unique characteristics of the applicable geographic areas, the degree to which effects on the quality of the environment were controversial or the risks were unknown, the degree to which the CEs might establish a precedent for future actions with significant effects or represented a decision in principle about future considerations, the degree to which the actions might affect endangered species, and whether there existed cumulative impacts from other related actions. 40 C.F.R. § 1508.27(b).
[5] The Forest Service concedes that no cumulative impacts analysis was performed for the Fuels CE as a whole. The Forest Service must perform this impacts analysis prior to promulgation of the CE. See 40 C.F.R. § 1508.4. “[C]umulative impact analysis must be timely. It is not appropriate to defer consideration of cumulative impacts to a future date when meaningful consideration can be given now.” Kern v. U.S. Bureau of Land Mgmt., 284 F.3d 1062, 1075 (9th Cir. 2002) (citing Neighbors of Cuddy Mountain, 137 F.3d at 1380). That the Forest Service may perform an impacts analysis at the project level does not relieve it of its obligation to ensure that the Fuels CE as a whole has no cumulative impacts. Relying solely on a project level analysis is inadequate because it fails to consider impacts from past, present, or reasonably foreseeable future Fuels CE projects which may be located in close proximity, in the same watershed or endangered species habitat area. The CEQ regulations define “cumulative impact” as the impact on the environment which results from the incremental impact of the action when added to other past, present, and reasonably foreseeable future actions regardless of what agency (Federal or nonFederal) or person undertakes such other actions. SIERRA CLUB v. BOSWORTH 15949 40 C.F.R. § 1508.7. The regulations further state that “[c]umulative impacts can result from individually minor but collectively significant actions taking place over a period of time.” Id. The record of decision must contain a “useful analysis of the cumulative impacts of past, present, and future projects,” which requires “discussion of how [future] projects together with the proposed . . . project will affect [the environment].” Muckleshoot Indian Tribe v. U.S. Forest Serv., 177 F.3d 800, 810 (9th Cir. 1999) (internal quotation marks omitted) (alterations in original). Moreover, “NEPA [ ] prohibit[s] an agency from breaking up a large or cumulative project into smaller components in order to avoid designating the project a major federal action” that would be subject to NEPA analysis requirements. Churchill County v. Norton, 276 F.3d 1060, 1076 (9th Cir. 2001) (internal quotation marks omitted). As the Sierra Club points out, if assessing the cumulative impacts of the Fuels CE as a whole is impractical, then use of the categorical exclusion mechanism was improper. Cf. Nat’l Parks & Conservation Ass’n, 241 F.3d at 733 (“[T]he Parks Service’s repeated generic statement that the effects are unknown does not constitute the requisite ‘hard look’ mandated by the statute if preparation of an EIS is to be avoided.”). [6] That an impacts analysis be done is of critical importance in a situation such as here, where the categorical exclusion is nationwide in scope and has the potential to impact a large number of acres. While dependent on the risk of wildfire, the Fuels CE could potentially be applicable beyond the wildland-urban interface to all units of the national forest system, totaling 192 million acres of land within 155 national forests and 20 national grasslands. National Forest System Land and Resource Management Planning, 65 Fed. Reg. 67514, 67514 (Nov. 9, 2000). The final notice published in the federal registry for the Fuels CE states that the projects surveyed represent a reasonable projection of its future use, 68 Fed. Reg. at 33815, which, at 2.5 million acres over 2 15950 SIERRA CLUB v. BOSWORTH years, would exceed 1.2 million acres per year treated under the Fuels CE. The Forest Service’s assertion that the Fuels CE is not a nationwide program that would necessitate a cumulative impacts analysis because it has no immediate direct effects is disingenuous; the Fuels CE is precisely a nationwide program that was designed to implement the 10-year plan in a way that avoids the need for production of EIS’s or EAs. And, as demonstrated by the number of projects already planned or approved in just the Eldorado and Lassen National Forests, actions directly affecting the environment are being taken under the Fuels CE. In addition, as the Sierra Club points out, we rejected similar arguments regarding the hypothetical nature of causation in Citizens for Better Forestry v. U.S. Dep’t of Agric., 341 F.3d 961, 973-75 (9th Cir. 2003), and Kootenai Tribe of Id. v. Veneman, 313 F.3d 1094, 1115 (9th Cir. 2002). An environmental analysis must be performed even for broad programmatic actions. See 40 C.F.R. § 1502.4(b); cf. Nat’l Parks & Conservation Ass’n, 241 F.3d at 733-34; Blue Mountains Biodiversity Project, 161 F.3d at 1213. [7] Although the record does contain a report from the Department of Interior summarizing the results of the data call, this report is inadequate as a cumulative impacts analysis because it offers only conclusory statements that there would be no significant impact. Cf. Muckleshoot, 177 F.3d at 811 (“While the district court was correct in observing that there are ‘twelve sections entitled cumulative effects,’ these sections merely provide very broad and general statements devoid of specific, reasoned conclusions.”). The Forest Service does not reveal its methodology or offer any quantified results supporting its conclusory statements that there are no cumulative impacts — it argues only that through the exercise of its expertise it determined that there was no such impact. This is insufficient. See Klamath-Siskiyou Wildlands Ctr. v. B.L.M., 387 F.3d 989, 993 (9th Cir. 2004) (“A proper considSIERRA CLUB v. BOSWORTH 15951 eration of the cumulative impacts of a project requires some quantified or detailed information.” (internal quotation marks omitted)). Moreover, the cumulative impacts analysis cannot focus only on the beneficial effects of hazardous fuels management in terms of controlling forest fires, but must also analyze the effects on the environment as a whole. Cf. Muckleshoot, 177 F.3d at 811 (“The statement notably contains no evaluation whatsoever of the impact on natural resources of timber harvesting . . . , nor does it assess the possible impacts . . . upon surrounding areas. The statement focuses solely on the beneficial impact the exchange will have on lands received by the Forest Service.”). For example, in assessing the effects on air quality from prescribed burning, the report states that “a review of the project data showed that these environmental effects were not individually or cumulatively significant.” No hard data is provided to support this conclusion. There is no information on how effects on air quality will be mitigated nor does the documentation explicitly state with which policies or smoke management plans the actions taken under the Fuels CE must comply. Furthermore, the report reveals potential significant effects, such as effects on soil and water quality from mechanical treatments, thinning operations, fire rehabilitation activities, and temporary road construction. The report also notes that seventy-four of the fuels projects in the data call resulted in temporary increases in erosion, localized sterilization of soil, and sedimentation of water quality. Nevertheless, the report summarily concludes, without citing hard data to support its conclusion, that there were no cumulative impacts because the effects were “localized, temporary, and of minor magnitude.” Yet this is precisely the reason why a global cumulative impacts analysis must be performed — if multiple Fuels CE projects are located in close proximity, then the effects on soil and water quality could no longer be said to be localized or of minor magnitude. In addition, the report reveals effects on 15952 SIERRA CLUB v. BOSWORTH wildlife and vegetation. The effects include displacement of wildlife from noise and activity caused by mechanized equipment, and habitat modification (changes in food sources, thermal and hiding cover) from changes in vegetation composition, invasive weed species, and reduced vegetation density. [8] Although the report lists potential mitigation measures, actions taken under a categorical exclusion do not require mitigation measures and the Fuels CE itself does not prescribe such measures. In addition, while significant mitigation measures may compensate for adverse environmental effects, the mitigation measures here are not “developed to a reasonable degree” and lack supporting analytical data. Nat’l Parks & Conservation Ass’n, 241 F.3d at 734 (internal quotation marks omitted); cf. Okanogan Highlands Alliance v. Williams, 236 F.3d 468, 473-75 (9th Cir. 2000) (in analyzing mitigation measures, the Forest Service conducted computer modeling to predict the quality and quantity of environmental effects, discussed the monitoring measures to be put in place, ranked the probable efficacy of the different measures, detailed steps to achieve compliance should the measures fail, and identified the environmental standards by which mitigation success could be measured). In order to assess significance properly, the Forest Service must perform a programmatic cumulative impacts analysis for the Fuels CE. The cumulative impacts analysis cannot merely consist of conclusory statements, because “[g]eneral statements about ‘possible’ effects and ‘some risk’ do not constitute a ‘hard look’ absent a justification regarding why more definitive information could not be provided.” Neighbors of Cuddy Mountain, 137 F.3d at 1380. “The cumulative impact analysis must be more than perfunctory; it must provide a ‘useful analysis of the cumulative impacts of past, present, and future projects.’ ” Kern, 284 F.3d at 1075 (quoting Muckleshoot, 177 F.3d at 810); see also Heartwood, Inc. v. U.S. Forest Serv., 73 F. Supp. 2d 962, 976 (S.D. Ill. 1999), aff’d, SIERRA CLUB v. BOSWORTH 15953 230 F.3d 947 (7th Cir. 2000) (vacating and enjoining application of timber harvest CE, in part because the “[Forest Service] failed to adequately address or provide support for its position that the timber harvests of these magnitude would not have cumulative effects on the environment”). The impacts analysis must also contain “some quantified or detailed information.” Neighbors of Cuddy Mountain, 137 F.3d at 1379; see also Norton, 311 F.3d at 1177-78 (concluding that government needed to better document application of CE to oil lease suspensions that allowed oil companies to maintain production rights). “Agency regulations require that public information be of ‘high quality’ because [a]ccurate scientific analysis, expert agency comments, and public scrutiny are essential to implementing NEPA.” Idaho Sporting Cong., 137 F.3d at 1151 (internal quotation marks omitted) (emphasis in original). [9] In accordance with the CEQ regulations, to assess significance and measure context and intensity, the Forest Service must assess cumulative impacts on a programmatic level. While “[w]e recognize that the determination of the extent and effect of [cumulative impact] factors, and particularly identification of the geographic area within which they may occur, is a task assigned to the special competency of the appropriate agencies,” Blue Mountains Biodiversity Project, 161 F.3d at 1215, the Forest Service must ensure that impacts are assessed at a level of detail such that useful data can be generated to facilitate review. See 40 C.F.R. §§ 1502.4(b), 1508.27. The Forest Service must also consider the impacts on wildlife and wildlife habitat. Cf. Heartwood, 73 F. Supp. 2d at 976 (vacating and enjoining application of the timber harvest CE, in part because the Forest Service “did not distinguish between the environmental effects of live trees harvests and salvage sales . . . and, in fact, failed to address the issue of potential negative effects on wildlife at all”). At this point, the Forest Service has a wealth of data that it could review to determine cumulative impacts, including 15954 SIERRA CLUB v. BOSWORTH the projects in the data call, the projects already undertaken pursuant to the Fuels CE, and reasonably foreseeable future projects. See 40 C.F.R. §§ 1508.7, 1508.27; Muckleshoot, 177 F.3d at 811-12 (“An agency must analyze the incremental impact of the action when added to other past, present, and reasonably foreseeable future actions.” (internal quotation marks omitted) (emphasis in original)). This would address the assertion that the projects in the data call are not comparable to those taken under the CE because the data call projects were for the most part subject to mitigation measures.
[10] The Forest Service also erred in assessing significance by failing to consider the extent to which the impact of the fuels reduction projects on the environment was highly controversial and the risks uncertain. See 40 C.F.R. § 1508.27; Jones, 792 F.2d at 828. A proposal is highly controversial when “substantial questions are raised as to whether a project . . . may cause significant degradation of some human environmental factor,” Nw. Envtl. Def. Ctr. v. Bonneville Power Admin., 117 F.3d 1520, 1536 (9th Cir. 1997) (internal quotation marks omitted), or there is a “substantial dispute [about] the size, nature, or effect of the major Federal action,” Blue Mountains Biodiversity Project, 161 F.3d at 1212 (alteration in original) (internal quotation marks omitted). “A substantial dispute exists when evidence, raised prior to the preparation of an EIS or FONSI, casts serious doubt upon the reasonableness of an agency’s conclusions.” Nat’l Parks & Conservation Ass’n, 241 F.3d at 736 (citation omitted). [11] Here, the comments of several federal and state agencies submitted in response to the Fuels CE raised substantial questions as to whether the project would cause significant environmental harm and expressed serious concerns about the uncertain risk, size, nature, and effects of actions under the CE. The United States Fish and Wildlife Service (“FWS”) stated that reconstruction of decommissioned roads or creSIERRA CLUB v. BOSWORTH 15955 ation of temporary roads could increase road density, decrease wolf security habitat and grizzly bear core area, and contribute to increased sedimentation rate in streams. The FWS further questioned the need for a categorical exclusion, stating that it “supports the intent of the Healthy Forest Initiative, but believes the existing NEPA processes are a useful and necessary tool to analyze the full environmental effects of most hazardous fuels reduction projects.” The FWS also expressed concern that “efforts to streamline these analyses should not results [sic] in a process counter to the basic premise of NEPA — public disclosure.” The Arizona Game and Fish Department (“AGFD”) noted that fuel reduction activities have a higher likelihood of affecting the environment than rehabilitation/stabilization activities, yet the Forest Service data call does not adequately identify the nature or scope of individual projects to allow for a more detailed evaluation. AGFD pointed out that a recent Forest Service timber sale proposed as a means to reduce fuel loading provided for the cutting of large-diameter ponderosa pine trees, even though ponderosa pine is a fire-resistant tree species. AGFD also disputed the Forest Service’s determination that the Fuels CE would cause no significant impacts and identified five of the ten evaluation criteria for significance that are implicated by the Fuels CE, including highly uncertain risks on forest structure, wildlife species, exotic species invasion, erosion/sedimentation, and wildlife disease transmission. The AGFD further commented that it was “concerned about making hazardous fuels reduction and rehabilitation/ stabilization actions for categorical exclusion.” The AGFD expressed other concerns, including: “the types of activities that will be categorically excluded; the lack of limitations on the scope and scale of such activities; the lack of monitoring of effects of the categorical exclusions on non-listed wildlife species and habitats; and the over-all general nature of the categorical exclusion language.” 15956 SIERRA CLUB v. BOSWORTH The California Resources Agency (“CRA”) commented that the Forest Service has not evaluated the impacts of understory treatments on native plants and animals, and noted that the brush to be removed in California under fuels reduction is a significant component of fire-adapted ecosystems. The CRA also cited a scientific article which finds that the effects of thinning on wildlife and habitat are negative for at least 10 years, and unknown in the long-term. The CRA concluded that “[a] significant amount of uncertainty regarding the effectiveness of treatments on reduced risk and habitat use remain.” In addition, the CRA expressed disapproval of the use of a categorical exclusion not requiring full NEPA review, concluding that “the proposal could lead to significant degradation of public forestland in the state, especially when considered in combination with the many other federal forest policy proposals pending on both the state and regional levels.” The CRA explained that “[f]uel reduction projects will require trade-offs that need analysis and debate by the public and decision-makers; and this is the very purpose for which Congress passed, and President Nixon signed, the National Environmental Policy Act.” [12] The Forest Service failed to meet its burden to provide a “well-reasoned explanation” demonstrating that these responses to the Fuels CE “do not suffice to create a public controversy based on potential environmental consequences.” Nat’l Parks & Conservation Ass’n, 241 F.3d at 736 (internal quotation marks omitted). Given the large number of comments, close to 39,000, and the strong criticism from several affected Western state agencies, we cannot summarily conclude that the effects of the Fuels CE are not controversial. See id. (stating that 450 comments, with 85% negative, was “more than sufficient to meet the outpouring of public protest” test (internal quotation marks omitted)); Sierra Club v. U.S. Forest Serv., 843 F.2d 1190, 1193 (9th Cir. 1988) (Forest Service awarded timber contracts containing groves of giant SIERRA CLUB v. BOSWORTH 15957 sequoia redwoods without preparing an EIS; after evidence from numerous experts showing the EA’s inadequacies and casting serious doubt on the Forest Service’s conclusions, we held that this was “precisely the type of ‘controversial’ action for which an EIS must be prepared”). The Forest Service must address these issues prior to promulgating the Fuels CE.