University of Arizona NEPA Training

WestLand was invited to teach an on-line class about the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) for law students and senior level managers through the James E. Rogers College of Law at the University of Arizona.

The goal of the class was to discuss the application of NEPA based on legal guidance and our extensive experience as NEPA practitioners. WestLand developed a series of 28 presentations beginning with the history of NEPA and early case law that guided the initial interpretation for implementation of the law. Next, WestLand reviewed the key components of the NEPA process and the framework for the preparation of defensible NEPA documents.

The focus of the last half of the class was on NEPA practice, professional experience, and case law for navigating the NEPA process with various Federal agencies including the Bureau of Land Management, the US Forest Service, and the Army Corps of Engineers.

Experts from WestLand’s staff presented on other pertinent laws including the Administrative Procedures Act, Endangered Species Act, the National Historic Preservation Act, the Clean Water Act and Environmental Justice.

The closing session focused on trends in NEPA including Federal direction to streamline the NEPA process and recent case law. WestLand assisted in the development of the final examination for the class.