The Planning and Environment Linkages (PEL) umbrella approach is designed to streamline the project development and environmental review process by encouraging agencies to take an integrated systems perspective to support transportation, environmental, and community goals. The PEL approach provides strategies, practices, processes, and analytical tools, which encompass related Federal activities including Linking Planning and the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA), Eco-Logical, Context Sensitive Solutions, Corridor Planning, and Integrated Planning. When successfully implemented, the PEL approach makes the entire lifecycle of a project a more seamless process from planning to NEPA, and onto design, construction, and maintenance. This paper describes the PEL approach, discusses the Federal legislation and related activities, provides examples of effective practices, shares lessons learned, and directs the reader to additional resources for implementation.
Samenvatting