Environmental Process

In 2000, Maryland developed a streamlined environmental and regulatory process. It incorporates various agency coordination and regulatory requirements, state environmental regulations and federal National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) requirements to create a single, unified process. This process seeks to improve the effectiveness and efficiency of the transportation project decision making process and to improve the overall timeliness of project decisions.

On the US 301 Waldorf Area Transportation Improvements Project, numerous Federal, state, and local agencies will work closely with the project team from start to finish within the context of this streamlined process. The important parts of this process include obtaining agency concurrence and/or comments at three key project milestones – purpose and need, alternatives retained for detailed study, and SHA’s preferred alternative and conceptual mitigation.