The purposes of this chapter are: To declare a national policy which will encourage productive and enjoyable harmony between man and his environment; to promote efforts which will prevent or eliminate damage to the environment and biosphere and stimulate the health and welfare of man; to enrich the understanding of the ecological systems and natural resources important to the Nation; and to establish a Council on Environmental Quality.
(a) Creation and maintenance of conditions under which man and
nature can exist in productive
harmony
The Congress, recognizing the profound impact of man's activity
on the interrelations of all components of the
natural environment, particularly the profound influences of
population growth, high-density urbanization, industrial
expansion, resource exploitation, and new and expanding
technological advances and recognizing further the critical
importance of restoring and maintaining environmental quality to
the overall welfare and development of man,
declares that it is the continuing policy of the Federal
Government, in cooperation with State and local governments,
and other concerned public and private organizations, to use all
practicable means and measures, including financial
and technical assistance, in a manner calculated to foster and
promote the general welfare, to create and maintain
conditions under which man and nature can exist in productive
harmony, and fulfill the social, economic, and other
requirements of present and future generations of Americans.
(b) Continuing responsibility of Federal Government to use all
practicable means to improve and coordinate
Federal plans, functions, programs, and resources
In order to carry out the policy set forth in this chapter, it is
the continuing responsibility of the Federal
Government to use all practicable means, consistent with other
essential considerations of national policy, to improve
and coordinate Federal plans, functions, programs, and resources to
the end that the Nation may -
The Congress recognizes that each person should enjoy a healthful
environment and that each person has a
responsibility to contribute to the preservation and enhancement of
the environment.
(A) utilize a systematic, interdisciplinary approach which will
insure the integrated use of the natural and social
sciences and the environmental design arts in planning and in
decisionmaking which may have an impact on man's
environment;
(B) identify and develop methods and procedures, in consultation
with the Council on Environmental Quality
established by subchapter II of this chapter, which will insure
that presently unquantified environmental amenities
and values may be given appropriate consideration in
decisionmaking along with economic and technical
considerations;
(C) include in every recommendation or report on proposals for legislation and other
major Federal actions
significantly affecting
the quality of the human environment,
a detailed statement by the responsible
official
on -
Prior to making any detailed statement, the responsible Federal
official shall consult with and obtain the comments
of any Federal agency which has jurisdiction by law or special
expertise with respect to any environmental impact
involved. Copies of such statement and the comments and views of
the appropriate Federal, State, and local
agencies, which are authorized to develop and enforce
environmental standards, shall be made available to the
President, the Council on Environmental Quality and to the public
as provided by section 552 of Title 5, and shall
accompany the proposal through the existing agency review
processes;Section 4331. Congressional declaration of national
environmental policy [NEPA Section
101]
(c) Responsibility of each person to contribute to
preservation and enhancement of environmentSection 4332. Cooperation of agencies; reports; availability of
information; recommendations; international
and national coordination of efforts [NEPA Section 102]
The Congress authorizes and directs that, to the fullest extent
possible: (1) the policies, regulations, and public
laws of the United States shall be interpreted and administered in
accordance with the policies set forth in this
chapter, and (2) all agencies of the Federal Government shall -
The procedures in this subparagraph shall not relieve the Federal official of his responsibilities for the scope, objectivity, and content of the entire statement or of any other responsibility under this chapter; and further, this subparagraph does not affect the legal sufficiency of statements prepared by State agencies with less than statewide jurisdiction.
(E) study, develop, and describe appropriate alternatives to recommended courses of action in any proposal which involves unresolved conflicts concerning alternative uses of available resources;
(F) recognize the worldwide and long-range character of environmental problems and, where consistent with the foreign policy of the United States, lend appropriate support to initiatives, resolutions, and programs designed to maximize international cooperation in anticipating and preventing a decline in the quality of mankind's world environment;
(G) make available to States, counties, municipalities, institutions, and individuals, advice and information useful in restoring, maintaining, and enhancing the quality of the environment;
(H) initiate and utilize ecological information in the planning and development of resource-oriented projects; and
(I) assist the Council on Environmental Quality established by subchapter II of this chapter.
Section 4333.
Conformity of Administrative procedures to
national environmental policy [NEPA
Section 103]
All agencies of the Federal Government shall review their present statutory authority, administrative regulations, and current policies and procedures for the purpose of determining whether there are any deficiencies or inconsistencies therein which prohibit full compliance with the purposes and provisions of this chapter and shall propose to the President not later than July 1, 1971, such measures as may be necessary to bring their authority and policies into conformity with the intent, purposes, and procedures set forth in this chapter.
Nothing in section 4332 or 4333 of this title shall in any way
affect the specific statutory obligations of any
Federal agency (1) to comply with criteria or standards of
environmental quality, (2) to coordinate or consult with
any other Federal or State agency, or (3) to act, or refrain from
acting contingent upon the recommendations or
certification of any other Federal or State agency.
The policies and goals set forth in this chapter are
supplementary to those set forth in existing authorizations of
Federal agencies.
The President shall transmit to the Congress annually beginning
July 1, 1970, an Environmental Quality Report
(hereinafter referred to as the "report") which shall set forth (1)
the status and condition of the major natural,
manmade, or altered environmental classes of the Nation, including,
but not limited to, the air, the aquatic,
including marine, estuarine, and fresh water, and the terrestrial
environment, including, but not limited to, the
forest, dryland, wetland, range, urban, suburban, and rural
environment; (2) current and foreseeable trends in the
quality, management and utilization of such environments and the
effects of those trends on the social, economic,
and other requirements of the Nation; (3) the adequacy of available
natural resources for fulfilling human and
economic requirements of the Nation in the light of expected
population pressures; (4) a review of the programs
and activities (including regulatory activities) of the Federal
Government, the State and local governments, and
nongovernmental entities or individuals, with particular reference
to their effect on the environment and on the
conservation, development and utilization of natural resources; and
(5) a program for remedying the deficiencies
of existing programs and activities, together with recommendations
for legislation.
There is created in the Executive Office of the President a
Council on Environmental Quality (hereinafter referred
to as the "Council"). The Council shall be composed of three
members who shall be appointed by the President
to serve at his pleasure, by and with the advice and consent of the
Senate. The President shall designate one of the
members of the Council to serve as Chairman. Each member shall be
a person who, as a result of his training,
experience, and attainments, is exceptionally well qualified to
analyze and interpret environmental trends and
information of all kinds; to appraise programs and activities of
the Federal Government in the light of the policy
set forth in subchapter I of this chapter; to be conscious of and
responsive to the scientific, economic, social,
aesthetic, and cultural needs and interests of the Nation; and to
formulate and recommend national policies to
promote the improvement of the quality of the environment.
(a) The Council may employ such officers and employees as may be
necessary to carry out its functions under
this chapter. In addition, the Council may employ and fix the
compensation of such experts and consultants as may
be necessary for the carrying out of its functions under this
chapter, in accordance with section 3109 of Title 5 (but
without regard to the last sentence thereof).
(b) Notwithstanding section 1342 of Title 31, the Council may
accept and employ voluntary and uncompensated
services in furtherance of the purposes of the Council.
It shall be the duty and function of the Councilþ
(1) to assist and advise the President in the preparation of the
Environmental Quality Report required by section
4341 of this title;
(2) to gather timely and authoritative information concerning the
conditions and trends in the quality of the
environment both current and prospective, to analyze and interpret
such information for the purpose of determining
whether such conditions and trends are interfering, or are likely
to interfere, with the achievement of the policy set
forth in subchapter I of this chapter, and to compile and submit to
the President studies relating to such conditions
and trends;
(3) to review and appraise the various programs and activities of
the Federal Government in the light of the policy
set forth in subchapter I of this chapter for the purpose of
determining the extent to which such programs and
activities are contributing to the achievement of such policy, and
to make recommendations to the President with
respect thereto;
(4) to develop and recommend to the President national policies
to foster and promote the improvement of
environmental quality to meet the conservation, social, economic,
health, and other requirements and goals of the
Nation;
(5) to conduct investigations, studies, surveys, research, and
analyses relating to ecological systems and
environmental quality;
(6) to document and define changes in the natural environment,
including the plant and animal systems, and to
accumulate necessary data and other information for a continuing
analysis of these changes or trends and an
interpretation of their underlying causes;
(7) to report at least once each year to the President on the
state and condition of the environment; and
(8) to make and furnish such studies, reports thereon, and
recommendations with respect to matters of policy and
legislation as the President may request.
In exercising its powers, functions, and duties under this
chapter, the Council shall -
(1) consult with the Citizens' Advisory Committee on
Environmental Quality established by Executive Order
numbered 11472, dated May 29, 1969, and with such representatives
of science, industry, agriculture, labor,
conservation organizations, State and local governments and other
groups, as it deems advisable; and
(2) utilize, to the fullest extent possible, the services,
facilities, and information (including statistical information)
of public and private agencies and organizations, and individuals,
in order that duplication of effort and expense may
be avoided, thus assuring that the Council's activities will not
unnecessarily overlap or conflict with similar activities
authorized by law and performed by established agencies.
Section 4334. Other statutory obligations of agencies [NEPA
Section 104]
Section 4335. Efforts supplemental to existing authorizations
[NEPA Section 105]
Section 4341. Reports to Congress; recommendations for
legislation [NEPA Section 201]
Section 4342. Establishment; membership; Chairman; appointments
[NEPA Section 202]
Section 4343. Employment of personnel, experts and consultants
[NEPA Section 203]
Section 4344. Duties and functions [NEPA Section 204]
Section 4345. Consultation with Citizen's Advisory Committee on
Environmental Quality and other
representatives [NEPA Section 205]