Chapter 39 - Incorporating Environmental Commitments into Design

The ECR must be prepared just prior to completion of the final environmental document determination. Phase 1 (Design) begins after Phase 0 (PA&ED) has been completed. At this phase, the CE or ED and the project have already been approved. Based on the information in these documents, an ECR is updated for the project. It should reflect environmental commitments made and documented in the approved CE or ED. There is a preliminary design, and funding has been committed to continue, at minimum, to the final design.

Early in Phase 1, review the CE or ED for environmental commitments. The environmental commitments can be found in the “Avoidance, Minimization, and/or Mitigation Measures” portions of the ED as well as in the “Mitigation Summary” section. Also, review the Workplan for the project and see if it needs changing or updating, because it may not reflect the environmental commitments. For more on work planning, including information on Work Breakdown Structure (WBS) items for Phase 1, see the Guide to Project Delivery Workplan Standards.

Check the ECR and revise it if there are errors or if there were changes at the Final ED or during a subsequent reevaluation of the CE or ED.

Note that this is an iterative step. The ECR is a living document and must be revised as needed throughout the life of the project. This is especially important since permits may be needed during the Phase 1 stage.

A meeting of the PDT should be held at the very beginning of Phase 1. One purpose of PDT meetings is to identify internal tasks that must be scheduled so that all the environmental commitments will be included in the PS&E. Environmental specialists, as appropriate, and representatives from other functional groups who will be involved in the design phase should participate in the PDT as well.

Before the meeting, make sure steps 1 and 2 have been completed. Be sure to confer with involved specialists, landscape architects and others as needed.

Here are a just a few examples of things to discuss:

• Avoidance, minimization, and/or mitigation measures identified in the CE or ED
• Seasonal work windows
• Areas that must be avoided by the contractor (ESAs)
• Hazardous waste requirements
• Input from any earlier public meetings that will be relevant to Phase 1
• Permits and approvals/agreements that will be needed before RTL, and their associated conditions
• Requirements for pre- and post-construction surveys

Remember, this is an iterative step. Attend PDTs and update the ECR as needed. The PDT should include review and any needed changes to the ECR as a standing item at each team meeting.

This is a dynamic process where the generalist, design engineers, and specialists must work closely and communicate effectively.

Many permits and approvals/agreements are identified during Phase 0 or earlier but not obtained until Phase 1, when needed design and technical information becomes available. Each of the topic chapters in the SER includes information on typical permits and agreements. For an example, see the permits section in Volume 1, Chapter 14, Biological Resources. 

Permitting involves several distinct actions:

• Coordinate – work related to informing and obtaining feedback from resource agencies on issues related to their permit/approval during the development of the environmental document;
• Obtain – work directly involved in securing permits and approval, usually during PS&E, including: preparation of permit applications and additional supporting documentation, payment of fees, and compliance with public notice requirements;
• Implement – the work associated with ensuring permit terms and conditions are met before and during construction; this does not include long-term monitoring and maintenance;
• Renew – work associated with ensuring that permit/approval is extended past its expiration if work will extend beyond expiration date;
• Amend – work involved in renegotiating permit/approval terms and conditions if project or circumstance surrounding project change.

Each Caltrans District has its own procedures for obtaining permits and agreements/approvals. In some districts, permits are obtained by environmental staff, while in other districts, permits are obtained by the project engineers. An important consideration about permits is that they can take a long time to obtain, because of the need to work through the iterative consultation process. This can cause project schedule delays if the project has not been properly scoped and scheduled. Effective scheduling and coordination of internal tasks at the PDT level—as well as proper scoping, resourcing, and scheduling in the Project Workplan can help minimize delays.

Generally, there are several conditions/terms associated with each agency permit. The ECR should be revised to include these permit conditions. The PDT should be informed of these conditions as well.

As the permitting and consultation processes proceed and mitigation costs become more defined, remember that biological and cultural mitigation costs of greater than half a million dollars requires HQ-DEA review. For more information, see the memorandum on HQ-DEA Review of Biological and Cultural Mitigation Costs greater than $500,000.

It is important to keep in mind that many terms and conditions of a permit or approval require the preparation and execution of a cooperative agreement. A cooperative agreement is an agreement between Caltrans and another party(ies) for the purposes of doing work on the State Highway System; they are also used to implement environmental commitments. For example, transferring funds to another party to create a wetland mitigation site. The Division of Design has an online training course explaining the basics of cooperative agreements.

Contract specifications and provisions are work items that must be completed by the contractor in order to fulfill the contract requirements. If an environmental commitment does not get incorporated into the plan and addressed in the construction contract by way of a specification or provision prior to being awarded, it is not binding on the contractor and may only be added via a Contract Change Order (CCO). CCOs are costly and time-consuming; therefore, make sure that commitments are included in the original contract.

There are Standard Specifications that appear in most every contract. In addition, there are Standard Special Provisions (SSPs) and Non-Standard Special Provisions (NSSPs) that can be used to direct the contractor’s work as necessary and/or applicable. Note that Standard Specifications and SSPs have been developed and are available for use. An example would be the existing cultural resource specifications. NSSPs, however, are developed for individual projects and require a separate approval process before they can be used. An example would be an ESA, which is site-specific.

To ensure your environmental commitments and/or permits are incorporated into the plan, convey them early to the PDT as soon as they are known. Inform key staff on the team and your District Office Engineer (OE) contact, if necessary, that these are to be incorporated into the PS&E package. This, at times, requires the Generalist to continually coordinate with the Project Engineer until the final PS&E package reflects all environmental commitments.

Caltrans’ Division of Engineering Services Office Engineer (DES-OE) maintains the listing of Standard Specifications and SSPs.

During Phase 1 of the project, the design will progress from a conceptual plan with no specifications and a rough estimate of costs to the PS&E, a sophisticated set of contract documents that will provide all the information needed to construct the project and any associated environmental commitments.

Designing a project is a give and take process. There are many successive changes needed in order to incorporate all the various project requirements. Communication on the PDT is essential so that design objectives can be met while including the environmental commitments.

Here is a short list of environmental issues that can affect the design of a project:

• Changes/adjustments to minimize effects on views
• Avoiding sensitive natural or cultural resources
• Protecting a waterway or riparian area
• Adjustments to design to protect air quality
• Changes affecting placement of noise barriers

On the other hand, there are design issues at this phase that can affect the environment:

• Incorporation of Traffic Operations elements
• Hydraulics requirements
• Utility relocations
• Construction Staging, Access, Storage and Detours
• Drainage Easements

In addition to regular meetings with the PDT throughout design, there will be a periodic circulation of the PS&E at various stages of completion. See the Guide to Project Delivery Workplan Standards for more details on when plans are reviewed.

Keep track of environmental requirements throughout the review stages by using the PS&E review tool on the SER Forms and Templates page. The review tool is a detailed checklist for reading and interpreting plans, checking specifications, and ensuring that environmental mitigation costs are included in the estimate. The review tool isn’t just for completed designs, but can help identify and track issues through the process. There is also a special section for reviewing the project prior to RTL.

Note: As mentioned above, the ECR should be updated throughout the design process as needed. When the PDT has determined that the design work is complete, it is important to review the final (100%) PS&E to ensure that the PS&E package includes all the environmental commitments and that the scope of the project is consistent with the CE or ED.

The last stage of design is called RTL. This is the stage where the PS&E is finished and the project is being prepared for contract advertisement. Before a project can be certified as RTL, an Environmental Certification must be completed by the Environmental Office Chief. The Environmental Certification indicates that:

• The environmental document is appropriate for the project and remains valid
• All actions in the PS&E are covered in the environmental document or subsequent permits and approvals/agreements
• All environmental commitments belonging in the PS&E have been included

This is Environmental’s final opportunity to ensure that all of the above is true and correct. Remember, if the environmental commitments are NOT included in the PS&E package at this stage, they will not be part of the construction contract and will not be binding on the contractor. They can be incorporated later only through the costly and time-consuming CCO process.

For more details on the Environmental Certification for RTL, see the memorandum by the Caltrans Chief for the Division of Environmental Analysis.

Note that the Environmental Certification expires if a project has not been advertised within one year of RTL certification.

The DES-OE has completed a Ready to List Guide (PDF) that may be helpful.

The purpose of the Certificate of Environmental Compliance (CEC) is 1) to document Caltrans' environmental compliance efforts (see WBS 295.35 of the Workplan Standards Guide) at Construction Contract Acceptance (CCA), also known as Milestone 600, and at Project Closeout (Milestone 800) for all measures specified in final environmental (or other project) documentation, including permits and agreements, and 2) to inform all project stakeholders, including regulatory agencies, as to the outcome of Caltrans' environmental commitment measures. A Certificate of Environmental Compliance is required for all projects at Milestone 600 and Milestone 800. At Milestone 600, the Generalist or Environmental Construction Liaison completes the form in cooperation with the Project Manager (PM), Resident Engineer (RE), and Environmental Branch Chief as signatories. At Milestone 800, the form is signed by the Mitigation Specialist (or other responsible staff), the Environmental Branch Chief, and the PM.

Preparation of the CEC assists addressing CEQA (Public Resource Code Section 21081.6) and Caltrans' continued environmental stewardship responsibilities. Cross-functional coordination and cooperation (e.g., Design, Construction, Environmental, Office Engineer, PM) is needed to ensure that all commitments have been carried out. Attach the updated ECR and Stormwater Treatment Best Management Practice (TBMP) Certification to the completed CEC in order to document commitments completed, as specified or modified commitments. The completed CEC, along with the updated ECR, is filed in the project file as evidence that Caltrans' environmental compliance obligations have been met.

For any commitments not completed by the end of construction (CCA), initiate notification to, and have on-going communication with, appropriate staff including but not limited to, the RE, PM, and Environmental Branch Chief to discuss and document the logistics (timing, staff, resources) of when those commitments will be completed along with identifying who is responsible for tracking such completion efforts. Upon Project Closeout, a final CEC is prepared (along with an updated ECR and Stormwater TBMP Certification) to capture the completion of post-construction environmental commitments and placed in the project file.