§ 1216.400 Preparation of environmental assessments.
(a) Generally. If an action is subject to NEPA, and, unless NASA finds that the proposed action is excluded from having to prepare an environmental assessment or environmental impact statement pursuant to a categorical exclusion, or by another provision of law, NASA will prepare an environmental assessment with respect to a proposed agency action that does not have a reasonably foreseeable significant effect on the quality of the human environment, or if the significance of such effect is unknown.
(b) Elements. For providing evidence and analysis for determining whether to prepare an environmental impact statement or a finding of no significant impact, environmental assessments will briefly discuss the:
(1) Purpose and need for the proposed agency action.
(2) Alternatives to the extent required by NEPA sec. 102(2)(H), 42 U.S.C. 4332(2)(H).
(3) The reasonably foreseeable effects of the proposed agency action for each of the alternatives considered.
(c) Agency actions normally requiring an environmental assessment. The following classes of actions normally require environmental assessments, but likely do not require an environmental impact statement:
(1) Altering the ongoing operations at a NASA Center where the significance of the environmental effect(s) is unknown.
(2) Construction or modifications of facilities that represent a major change to an existing master plan and could result in a change in the environmental effect(s).
(3) Actions that are expected to result in major changes to established land use that could potentially result in impacts to the environment.
(4) Launching a spacecraft containing a space nuclear system. Space nuclear systems include radioisotope power systems, such as radioisotope thermoelectric generators and radioisotope heater units, and fission systems used for surface power and spacecraft propulsion.
(d) Page limits. (1) The text of an environmental assessment will not exceed 75 pages, not including citations, appendices, explanatory maps, diagrams, graphs, tables, and other means of graphically displaying quantitative or geospatial information.
(2) Appendices are to be used for voluminous materials, such as scientific tables, collections of data, statistical calculations, and the like, which substantiate the analysis provided in the environmental assessment. Appendices are not to be used to provide additional substantive analysis because that would circumvent congressionally mandated page limits.
(3) Environmental assessments will be formatted for an 8.5”x11” page with one-inch margins using a word processor with 12-point proportionally spaced font, single spaced. Footnotes may be in 10-point font. Such size restrictions do not apply to explanatory maps, diagrams, graphs, tables, and other means of graphically displaying quantitative or geospatial information, although pages containing such material do count towards the page limit when an item of graphical material is larger than 8.5”x11”, each such item will count as one page.
(4) The breadth and depth of analysis in an environmental assessment will be tailored to ensure that the environmental analysis does not exceed this page limit. In this regard, as part of the finalization of the environmental assessment, a re-certification will be incorporated into the environmental assessment certifying that NASA has considered the factors mandated by NEPA; that the environmental assessment represents NASA's good-faith effort to prioritize documentation of the most important considerations required by the statute within the congressionally mandated page limits; that this prioritization reflects NASA's expert judgment; and that any considerations addressed briefly or left unaddressed were, in NASA's judgment, comparatively not of a substantive nature that meaningfully informed the consideration of environmental effects and the resulting decision on how to proceed.
(e) Deadlines. NASA will complete the final environmental assessment not later than the date that is one year after the date on which NASA provides notice on a public-facing website that an environmental assessment will be prepared. The environmental assessment will be published, unless the deadline is extended, at the latest, on the day the deadline elapses in as substantially complete form as is possible.
(f) Deadline extensions. If NASA determines it cannot meet the deadline prescribed by NEPA sec. 107(g)(1)(B), 42 U.S.C. 4336a(g)(1)(B), it must consult with the non-Federal entity, if any, pursuant to NEPA sec. 107(g)(2), 42 U.S.C. 4336a(g)(2). After such consultation, if needed, it may establish a new deadline. Cause for establishing a new deadline is only established if the environmental assessment is so incomplete, at the time at which NASA determines it cannot meet the statutory deadline, that issuance would, in NASA's view, result in inadequate analysis. Such new deadline must provide only so much additional time as is necessary to complete such environmental assessment. The announcement of the new deadline will specify the reason why the environmental assessment was not able to be completed under the statutory deadline and whether the non-Federal entity, if any, consented to the new deadline.
(g) Certification related to deadline. When the environmental assessment is published, a certification will be incorporated into the environmental assessment certifying that the resulting environmental assessment represents NASA's good-faith effort to fulfill NEPA's requirements within the congressional timeline; that such effort is substantially complete; that, in NASA's expert opinion, it has thoroughly considered the factors mandated by NEPA; and that, in NASA's judgement, the analysis contained therein is adequate to inform and reasonably explain NASA's final decision regarding the proposed Federal action.
(h) Scope of analysis. (1) In preparing the environmental assessment, NASA will focus its analysis on whether the environmental effects of the action or project at hand are significant.
(2) Similarly, NASA will document in the environmental assessment where and how it drew a reasonable and manageable line relating to its consideration of any environmental effects from the action or project at hand that extend outside the geographical territory of the project or might materialize later in time.