Appendix 10: Department of Agriculture

• Author: Nicholas C. Yost
• Pages: 153-158

Department of Agriculture Regulations and Procedures (USDA Part 1b) Page 153

Part 1b—National Environmental

Policy Act

Sec.

1b.1 Purpose .

1b.2 Policy.

1b.3 Catego rical exclusions .

1b.4 Exclusi on of agen cies.

Authority:

5 U.S.C. 301; 42 U.S.C. 4321 et seq.; E.O. 11514, 3

CFR, 1966-1970 Comp., p. 902, as amended by E.O.

11991, 3 CFR, 1978 Comp., p. 123; E.O. 12114, 3

CFR, 1980 Comp., p. 356; 40 CFR 1507.3.

Source:

48 FR 11403, Mar. 18, 1983, unless otherwise noted.

§1b.1 Purpose.

(a) is part supplements the regulat ions for imple-

mentation of the National Environmental Polic y Act

(NEPA), for which regulations were published by t he

Council on Environmental Qu ality (CEQ) in 40 CFR

parts 1500 through 1508. is part inc orporates and

adopts those regulat ions.

(b) is part sets for th Departmental policy concern-

ing NEPA, establishes c ategorical exclusions of actions

carried out by the Depar tment and its agencies, and

sets forth those USDA agencies wh ich are excluded

from the requirement to prepare procedures i mple-

menting NEPA.

[48 FR 11403, Mar. 18, 1983, as amended at 60 FR

66481, Dec. 22, 1995]

§1b.2 Policy.

(a) All policies and program s of the various USDA

agencies shall b e planned, developed, a nd implemented

so as to achieve the goa ls and to follow the procedures

declared by NEPA in order to assure resp onsible stew-

ardship of the environment for present and f uture

generations.

(b) Each USDA agency is responsible for compliance

with this par t, the regulations of CEQ, and NEPA.

Compliance will i nclude the preparation and imple-

mentation of specic procedures and proc esses relating

to the programs and ac tivities of the individual agency,

as necessar y.

(c) e Under Secretary, Natural Resources a nd Envi-

ronment (NR&E), is responsible for ensuring t hat

agency implementing procedure s are consistent with

CEQ’s NEPA regulations and for coordinatin g NEPA

compliance for the Depar tment. e Under Secretar y,

NR&E, throu gh the Agricultural Counci l on Environ-

mental Qualit y, will develop the necessa ry processes

to be used by the Oce of the Secre tary in reviewing,

implementing, and planni ng its NEPA activities, deter-

minations, and policies.

(d) In connection with the policies and requ irements

set forth in thi s part, all USDA agencies are respon-

sible for compliance with Executive Order 12114,

“Environmental Eect s Abroad of Major Federal

Actions.” Compliance will i nclude the preparation and

implementation of specic procedures and proc esses

relative to the programs a nd activities of the individual

agencies, as neces sary. Agencies shall consult with the

Department of State; the Cou ncil on Environmental

Quality; a nd the Under Secretar y, NR&E, prior to

placing procedures and proc esses in eect.

[48 FR 11403, Mar. 18, 1983, as amended at 60 FR

66481, Dec. 22, 1995]

§1b.3 Categorical exclusions.

(a) e following are categories of acti vities which have

been determined not to have a signi cant individual

or cumulative eect on t he human environment and

are excluded from the preparat ion of environmental

assessment (EA’s) or environmental impact statement

(EIS’s), unless individual agency proc edures prescribed

otherwise.

(1) Policy development, planning a nd implementa-

tion which relate to routine activit ies, such as person-

nel, organizationa l changes, or similar admi nistrative

functions;

(2) Activities which dea l solely with the fund ing of

programs, such as progr am budget proposals, disburse-

ments, and transfer or reprogra mming of funds;

(3) Inventories, research activities, a nd studies, such

as resource inventories and routine d ata collection

when such actions are clea rly limited in context and

intensity;

(4) Educational and informat ional programs a nd

activities;

(5) Civil and crimina l law enforcement and investiga-

tive activities;

(6) Activities which a re advisory and consultative to

other agencies and public and private entitie s, such as

legal counsel ling and representation;