Engineering Inc - May/June 2017 - 65
GUESTCOLUMN
To Expand Private Infrastructure Investment,
Simplify the Federal Permitting Process
BY ERIC B. BEIGHTEL
T
o fully realize the promise of President Donald
Trump's plan to make America's infrastructure
"second to none," we need more than a
designation as a "high-priority" project to
advance critical infrastructure investments.
We need a greatly simplified federal permitting
and review process, and it should be easier for
the private sector to participate in funding and
planning infrastructure development.
The president and Congress must work together to advance
substantive reform while maintaining protections of our most
valuable natural resources. It is absolutely possible to expedite
the approval of needed infrastructure while retaining important
environmental safeguards.
First, the federal review and approval process under the
National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) should be modified
to account for the influx of private capital in public infrastructure
projects. There is no longer any practical infrastructure rebuilding scenario in which public works
projects are funded solely through public sources,
and the president's $1 trillion infrastructure plan
relies on substantial private sector investment.
To promote public-private partnerships, we need
a better way to include potential investors in the
environmental review process to ensure a project
both meets approval and is an attractive investment
opportunity. Currently, the NEPA process mainEric B. Beightel
tains a firewall between those performing the analysis
and those with interest in the outcome in order to preserve
objectivity. However, this firewall can prevent critical input from
potential investors and can lead to approving projects that must
then be modified, triggering additional analysis, increased costs
and further delays.
Instead of keeping potential funders at arm's length during the
NEPA process, federal agencies should invite their participation
in scoping and preliminary design, which would limit the need
to revisit issues already considered.
Second, federal agencies must have the resources and expertise necessary to handle projects using design-build and other
nontraditional procurement methods. Project delivery mechanisms such as design-build often require conditional approvals
based on limited design early in development. Too often, lack of
familiarity with the design-build process by agency staff results
in unnecessary delays and escalating costs. Design-build will
become more prevalent as we continue to seek efficiencies in
contracting and construction practices, so our federal partners
must be able to support this growth-and not be an obstacle to
progress.
Next, we need better collaboration among federal agencies in
facilitating project planning, siting and permitting. Confusion
among private-sector sponsors about the regulatory process and
competing federal approving agencies result in too much delay.
Identifying critical resources early in development helps eliminate unnecessary delays due to avoidable conflict or resource
impacts. The Fixing America's Surface Transportation (FAST)
Act of 2015 took important steps in this regard, but more can be
done to strengthen the role of the lead federal agency to define
the project and the alternatives considered. Establishing a strong
federal lead agency empowered to set parameters will help avoid
unnecessary study and review.
Additionally, federal agencies should be able to share their
standardized approvals for specific project types ("categorical
exclusions" in NEPA parlance) to avoid unnecessary analysis of
otherwise routine actions.
A more radical idea: Consolidate certain oversight
and permitting responsibilities such as reducing the
number of agencies charged with approvals and centralizing the federal government's oversight of planning, reviewing, approving and funding projects. For
example, both the Pipeline and Hazardous Materials
Safety Administration (PHMSA) and the Federal
Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) have jurisdiction over pipelines, but neither has "ownership."
Is it possible to combine the safety and rate oversight
functions of PHMSA and FERC in one department? It's an
option worth exploring.
These strategies are not a panacea, nor are they exhaustive, but
they are a good place to start. They also avoid some pitfalls of
other proposed approaches such as establishing hard deadlines or
delegating all authority to the states.
The environmental review process takes time because there
are hard decisions to make. We cannot rush those decisions, but
we can make it easier to avoid situations where every decision
is difficult. Ultimately, we can strengthen the role the private
sector plays in environmental planning while ensuring positive
outcomes for communities and the environment. ■
Eric B. Beightel is associate director of the federal environmental
policy practice at WSP USA. He advises the firm's clients regarding
the federal environmental review and approval processes related to
the development of large infrastructure projects. He was previously
a senior environmental policy advisor in the Office of the Secretary,
U.S. Department of Transportation.
MAY / JUNE 2017
ENGINEERING INC.
65
Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Engineering Inc - May/June 2017
Engineering Inc - May/june 2017
Contents
From Acec to You
Market Watch
Legislative Action
2017 Annual Convention Wrap-Up
Acec 2017 Engineering Excellence Awards
Sustainable Cities Worldwide
Joint Coalitions Roundtable
Grooming Future Engineers
Guest Column
Mergers and Acquisitions
Members in the News
Business Insights
Engineering Inc - May/June 2017 - Intro
Engineering Inc - May/June 2017 - Engineering Inc - May/june 2017
Engineering Inc - May/June 2017 - Cover2
Engineering Inc - May/June 2017 - Contents
Engineering Inc - May/June 2017 - 2
Engineering Inc - May/June 2017 - 3
Engineering Inc - May/June 2017 - From Acec to You
Engineering Inc - May/June 2017 - 5
Engineering Inc - May/June 2017 - Market Watch
Engineering Inc - May/June 2017 - 7
Engineering Inc - May/June 2017 - Legislative Action
Engineering Inc - May/June 2017 - 9
Engineering Inc - May/June 2017 - 2017 Annual Convention Wrap-Up
Engineering Inc - May/June 2017 - 11
Engineering Inc - May/June 2017 - 12
Engineering Inc - May/June 2017 - 13
Engineering Inc - May/June 2017 - 14
Engineering Inc - May/June 2017 - 15
Engineering Inc - May/June 2017 - Acec 2017 Engineering Excellence Awards
Engineering Inc - May/June 2017 - 17
Engineering Inc - May/June 2017 - 18
Engineering Inc - May/June 2017 - 19
Engineering Inc - May/June 2017 - 20
Engineering Inc - May/June 2017 - 21
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Engineering Inc - May/June 2017 - 48
Engineering Inc - May/June 2017 - 49
Engineering Inc - May/June 2017 - 50
Engineering Inc - May/June 2017 - 51
Engineering Inc - May/June 2017 - Sustainable Cities Worldwide
Engineering Inc - May/June 2017 - 53
Engineering Inc - May/June 2017 - 54
Engineering Inc - May/June 2017 - 55
Engineering Inc - May/June 2017 - 56
Engineering Inc - May/June 2017 - 57
Engineering Inc - May/June 2017 - Joint Coalitions Roundtable
Engineering Inc - May/June 2017 - 59
Engineering Inc - May/June 2017 - Grooming Future Engineers
Engineering Inc - May/June 2017 - 61
Engineering Inc - May/June 2017 - 62
Engineering Inc - May/June 2017 - 63
Engineering Inc - May/June 2017 - 64
Engineering Inc - May/June 2017 - Guest Column
Engineering Inc - May/June 2017 - Mergers and Acquisitions
Engineering Inc - May/June 2017 - 67
Engineering Inc - May/June 2017 - Members in the News
Engineering Inc - May/June 2017 - 69
Engineering Inc - May/June 2017 - 70
Engineering Inc - May/June 2017 - 71
Engineering Inc - May/June 2017 - Business Insights
Engineering Inc - May/June 2017 - Cover3
Engineering Inc - May/June 2017 - Cover4
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