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Goddard Environmental Planning & Impact Assessment

Return to Program Areas about Goddard Environmental Planning & Impact Assessment

Program Contacts: 
Shari Miller (757) 824-2327
Irene Romero (301) 286-0469

Environmental planning provides a process to identify environmental impacts, issues, and requirements associated with a project and to incorporate them into project planning and decision-making. Environmental planning is done early into the planning process for proposed Goddard projects and activities.

NASA uses the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) process as a framework for balanced and integrated environmental planning. NEPA requires federal agencies to consider the environmental impacts of actions in their planning and decision-making processes. This facilitates compliance with other environmental laws, minimizes impacts to the environment, and avoids cost and schedule impacts to the project. Goddard implements NEPA in accordance with the Council on Environmental Quality’s (CEQ) regulations implementing NEPA (40 CFR Parts 1500-1508) and NASA’s Procedures for Implementing NEPA (14 CFR 1216.3).

The Medical and Environmental Management Division (MEMD) assists in the evaluation of environmental impacts associated with institutional and mission-related projects and programs. This review is available for all Goddard projects, including those occurring at Goddard facilities, other U.S. sites, or international locations.

We provide the following services:

  • Review new or potential projects for inclusion within existing NEPA analyses.
  • Identification of potential environmental requirements, issues, impacts, consultations, and/or permits.
  • Determination of the appropriate level of NEPA documentation [i.e., Categorical Exclusion (CatEx) Environmental Assessment (EA), and Environmental Impact Statement (EIS)].
  • Assistance in the preparation of NEPA and other related documents in accordance with NASA and Goddard Procedural Requirements NPR 8580.1, NPR 7120.5, and GPR 8500.1. Documents include Records of Environmental Consideration (RECs), EAs, EISs and Environmental Management Plans (EMPs).
  • Assistance to ensure that necessary actions are taken to meet the applicable requirements of environmental laws and regulations. This includes support for required permitting, reporting, mitigation, and monitoring activities.
  • Coordinate public and regulatory comment process and attend public meetings.
  • Coordinate NASA NEPA training for relevant project personnel. (Overview of NASA Goddard NEPA training).

Project managers are encouraged to submit their project early in the planning stages to ensure environmental and safety requirements are identified and incorporated into project planning and decision-making.

Goddard uses the Environmental and Safety Review (E&SR) process for all projects, including institutional and mission related and those occurring at Goddard facilities and other U.S. and international locations.

To initiate an E&SR, use the following link:  https://mosi.ndc.nasa.gov/EnvironmentalSafetyReview/ (internal)

Greenbelt NEPA Project Pages:

Large dish antenna pointing over trees and up to a blue sky with clouds. Access road and grass in the foreground.

Pacific Missile Range Facility and Kōkeʻe Park Geophysical Observatory Real Estate EIS

An aerial photograph of the NASA Goddard Visitor Center, with white and brick rectangular buildings peeking out from among dense green trees behind a tall white rocket. The rocket stands in the center of a tan paved circle and is shaped like a pencil with a long, slim tower and a slight bulge at the top. Several smaller red, white, and yellow rockets are displayed on their sides around the paved circle, with another rocket standing in a smaller, white paved circle near the trees.

Greenbelt Campus Master Plan

Wallops NEPA Project Pages:

View from south to north of the NASA Wallops Flight Facility causeway and bridge over Cat Creek that runs through wetlands between the Mainland and Wallops Island.

Causeway Bridge Replacement

An east to west aerial photograph of the Unmanned Aerial System (UAS) Airstrip surrounded by vegetation and water, on the northern end of NASA Wallops Flight Facility's Wallops Island in Accomack County, Virginia.

Wallops Island Northern Development

Construction equipment in a dried marsh area. There are three vehicles lined up in a row cutting a line through the marsh. Personnel are holding long, black cable lines that are being buried into the ground.

Marsh Fiber Project

Work being performed on shoreline with equipment on beach pushing sand.

Wallops Island Shoreline Restoration and Resiliency Programs

final assessment

Wallops Site-Wide Programmatic Environmental Impact Statement

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Aerial image of NASA's Wallops Flight Facility main base, with two long air strips with buildings surrounding it.
Aerial image of the main base at NASA’s Wallops Flight Facility.
NASA

Wallops NEPA Documents:

2017 Redacted Wallops Environmental Resources Document

Feb 12, 2024

PDF (11.89 MB)

Initial Environmental Evaluation/Environmental Assessment Southern Hemisphere Ultra Long Duration Ballooning Operations Expansion

Feb 12, 2024

PDF (7.34 MB)

Southern Hemisphere Ultra Long Duration Ballooning Operations Expansion Finding of No Significant Impact

Feb 12, 2024

PDF (1.02 MB)

Greenbelt NEPA Documents:

Instrument Development Facility Area Development Plan Final Environmental Assessment / FONSI

Feb 12, 2024

PDF (16.04 MB)

Expansion of Satellite Ground Communications Terminal Facilities and Operations – Blossom Point Research Facility, Maryland Environmental Assessment / FONSI

Feb 12, 2024

PDF (15.82 MB)

OSIRIS-REx Environmental Assessment / FONSI

Feb 12, 2024

PDF (3.74 MB)

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