About the Process

The Southline Transmission Project complies with multiple federal, state, and local permitting requirements.

The National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) mandates a federal environmental review process. The Bureau of Land Management (BLM) and the Western Area Power Administration (WAPA) jointly served as the federal lead agencies responsible for implementing NEPA for the Southline Transmission Project. BLM and WAPA have released a Final Environmental Impact Statement (FEIS) for the project that examines a set of reasonable alternatives that would avoid or minimize adverse impacts or enhance the quality of the environment and indicates a preferred route for the project. The agencies have also issued their Records of Decision (RODs) for the project, which includes the final route and stipulations about the project. For more information about the agency-led NEPA process, check the BLM and WAPA websites.

For general information about NEPA, visit the Council on Environmental Quality website, download A Citizen's Guide to the NEPA, or visit BLM’s NEPA process website. WAPA's NEPA Implementing Procedures, applicable to all agencies that are part of the U.S. Department of Energy, can be found in the Code of Federal Regulations (CFR) at 10 CFR Part 1021.