4

:

5

4

However, NEPA does not specify whether this

balancing of environmental and other considera-

tions must be spelled out in the environmental

impact statement under Section 102(2)(C).
Each
of the five items expressly required to be

included in the statement relates to environ-

mental effects -- except the third, which does
not specify what type of information should be
given about "alternatives to the proposed action.”

From the bare language of Section 102(2) (Cc), it
is not wholly clear whether the 102 statement is

to catalog only the environmental effects of the
proposed action and of alternatives, or whether

the statement is to discuss all of the important
considerations bearing on the wisdom of the

‘proposed action.

The legislative history: suggests that Congress did
Eewect the.102“statement-“to-record=“theagenéy' S.. Te

trade-offs-of “competing vatues >eplaining

“the bill-on the ‘Seniate-floor, “Senater-Jackson- said: |
Subsection 102(c)

"6

establishes a procedure

designed to insure that in instances where
a proposed major Federal action would have
a significant impact on the environment
that the impact has in fact been considered,

that any adverse effects which cannot be
te ee
avoided are justified bysome other Stated >" =
consideration of national policy, that shortterm uses are consistent with long-term
2%

productivity, and that any irreversible
and irretrievable commitments of resources
are warranted.
115 Cong. Rec. 29055 (Oct. 8,
1969).

(Emphasis added.)

This interpretation is supported by several statements in court decisions.
In the Calvert Cliffs

case the court stressed the necessity for "balanc~ ing" under-NEPA and the role of the 102 statement
in showing how the balancing was done:

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