Award Date

5-2005

Degree Type

Thesis

Degree Name

Master of Science in Environmental Science

Department

Environmental Science

First Committee Member

Dr. David Hassenzahl, Committee Chair

Number of Pages

72

Abstract

The U.S. Forest Service (USFS) has implemented the Healthy Forests Initiative (HFI) (2002), which streamlines the NEPA process for proposed forest fuel reduction projects. A key question is whether the USFS’s streamlined NEPA process produces an adequate environmental document and fulfills regulatory requirements. This thesis evaluates whether the streamlined approach practiced by the USFS under the HFI satisfies the NEPA requirements. A review of four streamlined documents assesses whether these requirements are met. The following NEPA requirements in particular are explored for each project to determine whether the NEPA requirements are met: consideration of a reasonable range of alternatives to the project, cumulative environmental impacts that may result from the project, and use of the best available data in the environmental analysis. The conclusions indicate that each streamlined document meets regulatory requirements. Failure to comply with the NEPA process under the HFI is not anticipated for future projects.

Keywords

Forest management; Fuel reduction (Wildfire prevention); Healthy Forests Initiative (HFI); National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA); Prescribed burning; United States. Forest Service (USFS); Wildfires environmental aspects; Wildfires prevention and control

Disciplines

Environmental Health and Protection | Environmental Policy | Environmental Sciences | Natural Resources Management and Policy | Public Administration | Public Affairs, Public Policy and Public Administration | Recreation, Parks and Tourism Administration

File Format

pdf

Degree Grantor

University of Nevada, Las Vegas

Language

English

Rights

IN COPYRIGHT. For more information about this rights statement, please visit http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/InC/1.0/

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