Assessing the Impacts of Climate Change on the Built Environment Under NEPA and State EIA Laws: A Survey of Current Practices and Recommendations for Model Protocols

Sabin Center for Climate Change Law, Columbia Law School, August 2015

65 Pages Posted: 30 Sep 2015 Last revised: 29 Oct 2015

See all articles by Jessica Wentz

Jessica Wentz

Columbia University - Sabin Center for Climate Change Law

Date Written: August 1, 2015

Abstract

This paper outlines a set of model protocols for assessing the impacts of climate change on projects undergoing environmental reviews in accordance with NEPA and state equivalents. In addition, the paper describes: (i) the rationale for integrating climate impact considerations into environmental impact assessment (EIA) processes, (ii) the legal basis for requiring agencies to evaluate climate impacts during reviews conducted under NEPA and other EIA laws, (iii) a survey of existing guidelines for such evaluations, (iv) a survey of how climate change impacts are evaluated in recent federal EISs, and (v) a summary of outcomes from a stakeholder workshop convened to discuss the development of these protocols.

Keywords: National Environmental Policy Act, NEPA, environmental impact assessment, environmental impact statement, adaptation, resilience, climate change, built environment

Suggested Citation

Wentz, Jessica, Assessing the Impacts of Climate Change on the Built Environment Under NEPA and State EIA Laws: A Survey of Current Practices and Recommendations for Model Protocols (August 1, 2015). Sabin Center for Climate Change Law, Columbia Law School, August 2015, Available at SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=2667247 or http://dx.doi.org/10.2139/ssrn.2667247

Jessica Wentz (Contact Author)

Columbia University - Sabin Center for Climate Change Law ( email )

Jerome Greene Hall
435 West 116th Street
New York, NY 10027
United States

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