Many construction and developmental projects may have a significant impact on the surrounding environment. In order to minimize environmental costs, the government often requires that a business or other entity submit a report called an environmental impact statement (EIS)¹ to the local government planning board² for consideration when deciding whether to grant the necessary licenses or permits to begin the project. You always want to ensure that your EIS is skillfully drafted in order to maximize your chances of success with your project.

Preparing an environmental impact statement is often one of the first steps in pursuing a project. You want to ensure that you will receive the applicable permits and licenses before you start any major stages of development or construction. Therefore, tackling an EIS often happens very early in the process.

An environmental impact statement must contain many kinds of information, including but not limited to the following:

• Resource and energy costs of the development
• Environmental effects of your project, including direct and indirect effects
• Whether or not your project will interfere with any existing local activities
• Methods that you can use to minimize damage to the environment or activity interruption throughout the duration of your project
• The potential for repair and conservation of the environment after your project is completed
• Your plans for preservation of historic, cultural, and urban quality of the area

An EIS may be even more difficult if buildings on the property or in the area have been designated as historic landmarks. This can create significant limitations on how you can change or develop the property surrounding the landmark or the landmark building itself.

Schedule a consultation with a Tacoma environmental law lawyer today

If you need to submit an environmental impact statement to a planning board in order to begin work on your business project, you should always seek out assistance from an experienced Tacoma environmental law lawyer as soon as possible. The quality and accuracy of an EIS can make or break your chances of success on a project, so please call the Dickson Frohlich Phillips Burgess for help today at 253-572-1000.

References:

¹https://www.law.cornell.edu/cfr/text/39/775.11
²https://www.cityoftacoma.org/government/committees_boards_commissions/planning_commission/