NEPA · design criteria

Which forest is the project on?

Build the design criteria (resource protection measures) table for your EA or CE from your forest plan, National Core BMPs and signed decisions.

Free to read
No sign-up until the draft
Every fact cites its source

ePlan fills in

Forest plan and amendments
Plan standards and guidelines
National Core BMPs
Streams and riparian areas
Soils and slope

How it works

Design criteria table, from one answer

Pick the forestOne answer starts the project. ePlan names it and looks up the place.
Choose the activities and resources3 more questions, each with a "not sure yet" way out.
Read the table free; download it for $49The draft marks what to check (amber), what to pick (blue) and what to fill in (violet).

What you get

Design criteria table and 3 more documents

The first draft is free to read. Each document after it is drafted from the same confirmed facts.

The first draft

Design criteria table

Resource
Criterion as written
Source: plan standard, plan guideline, National Core BMP or prior decision
Mandatory (standard) or departure allowed (guideline)
Units or activities it applies to
Who checks it, and when

Next · 2

BMP crosswalk

Activity
National Core BMP
State forestry BMP
Project measure

Modeled on: National Core BMP Technical Guide, FS-990a

Next · 3

Monitoring checklist

Criterion
When to check
Who checks
Result and follow-up

Next · 4

Contract clause notes

Criterion
Where it goes in the contract or permit
Operating season and equipment limits

From public data

What ePlan fills in, and from where

Forest plan and amendments (example: Tahoe NF)USDA Forest Service, forest planning page
National Core BMPs for water qualityUSDA Forest Service, FS-990a (April 2012)
StreamsUSGS National Hydrography Dataset
SoilsUSDA NRCS Web Soil Survey
SlopeUSGS 3D Elevation Program

2 kinds

of forest plan constraint: standards are mandatory, and guidelines allow departure if their purpose is met. Each criterion should say which it follows.
Source: 36 CFR 219.7(e)(1)(iii)–(iv)

Questions

Design criteria table: what people ask

Do design criteria have to follow the forest plan?

Yes. Every project must be consistent with the applicable plan components, and the approval document must say how. Under plans revised with the 2012 planning rule, standards are mandatory and a project may depart from a guideline only if it still meets the guideline's purpose.

Source: ecfr.gov

What are the National Core BMPs?

The Forest Service's national best management practices for water quality on National Forest System lands, published in April 2012 as the National Core BMP Technical Guide, FS-990a. Water and soil design criteria can cite them by number.

Source: fs.usda.gov

Which plan governs the Tahoe National Forest?

The 1990 Tahoe National Forest Land and Resource Management Plan, as amended by the 2004 Sierra Nevada Forest Plan Amendment and the Sierra Nevada Forests Management Indicator Species Amendment.

Source: fs.usda.gov