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1. What is NEPA?
 | NEPA is the National Environmental Policy Act, signed into law in 1970. |
| All federal agencies must comply with NEPA and make environmental consideration a
necessary part of the agencies’ decision-making process. |
| Specifically, the agencies should take into account environmental consequences when
making decisions that could become "major actions". |
2. Who does SAGE perform NEPA-evaluations for?
Personal
Wireless Service Providers
3. Why?
| The Federal Communications Commission (FCC)’s Wireless Telecommunications Bureau
(WTB) complies with NEPA under Subpart I of the FCC’s rules, 47 C.F.R. |
| WTB requires that an evaluation for the licensee’s actions be conducted prior to
the proposed site development. |
| Specifically, the wireless holders are responsible for considering the environmental/and
or cultural effects of their proposed construction plans, including but not limited to:
towers, transmission stations, buildings, and access ways leading to these structures. |
4. What is evaluated?
Under the rules implementing NEPA, the FCC lists eight criteria to be evaluated for
environmentally sensitive areas or potentially significant impact.
| Facilities that are to be located within an officially designated wilderness area. |
| Facilities that are to be located in an area of officially designated wildlife preserve. |
| Facilities that: (1) may affect listed threatened, or endangered species or their
critical habitat. (2) are likely to jeopardize the continued existence of any proposed
endangered or threatened species, destroy, or adversely modify proposed critical habitats
as determined pursuant to the Endangered Species Act of 1973. |
| Facilities that may affect districts, sites, buildings, structures, or objects,
significant in American history, architecture, archeology, engineering, or culture, that
are listed, or are eligible for listing in the National Register of Historic Places. |
| Facilities that may affect Indian Religious Sites. |
| Facilities, whose construction involves significant alterations in surface features
(e.g. wetland fills, deforestation, or water diversion). |
| Facilities that are to be located in a 100-year floodplain. |
| Antenna towers and/or supporting structures that are to be equipped with high intensity
white lights which will be located in residential neighborhoods as is defined by the
applicable zoning law. |
| Additionally, an evaluation for radio-frequency emissions is included. |
- How are the evaluations performed?
SAGE performs seven out of the
eight listed requirements for NEPA-evaluation.
| We utilize the database search known as GIS (Geographical Information
Systems) to perform the evaluation for wilderness areas, wildlife
preserves, critical habitats, endangered species, floodplains, and surface features.
Accuracy of this system is approximately 95%. |
| To determine whether a proposed site significantly impacts historically or
archaeologically sensitive properties of national significance, SAGE makes
inquiries to the appropriate State Historic Preservation Officer (SHPO). Upon receipt of
our request, the SHPO has approximately 30 days to turn over a response for the site.
–For Massachusetts sites, SAGE researches the information prior to our inquiry
from the SHPO. Our research is conducted at the Massachusetts Historical Commission (MHC)
in Boston where they make information regarding historical and archaeological available to
the public. –SAGE conducts this research to prepare for the SHPO’s response and
to let our client know about any potential impact the historic properties. |
| Evaluation for high intensity white lights is completed by the engineer working for the
telecommunications provider. It is not an evaluation that SAGE performs. |
| To determine whether or not Indian Religious Sites will be impacted, inquiries are made
to the authorized official in charge of these burial areas for each state. |
| Wetland delineations are made upon request of the wireless provider to mark out the
surrounding land of a proposed site for any wetlands or wetland vegetation. If wetlands
are observed within proximity to the proposed telecommunications site, a 100-foot buffer
zone is set up. The buffer zone marks the exact distance from a wetland or its vegetation
that construction is allowed. |
6. What happens after the NEPA-evaluation?
| Upon completion of these eight
criteria, SAGE produces a well-documented NEPA report of the findings for the
client. |
| If the proposed construction does not
fall under any of the listed categories, then the telecommunications provider may proceed
with their proposed project without providing any documentation to the WTB. |
| SAGE will retain a copy of the
NEPA evaluation in case a situation ever evolves in which we need to defend our
determinations to the WTB, or if any "interested parties" are attempting to
hinder or slow down the construction schedules. |
| If it is determined that the proposed
construction plans will fall under one or more of the listed categories, then the wireless
provider is responsible for filing an Environmental Assessment (EA) with WTB. This filing
will then become a "major environmental action". |
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