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| Phase I Phase I of the Cades Cove planning process was called the Cades Cove Opportunities Plan. Three steps in the process were completed as part of Phase I:
The Opportunities planning process included five rounds of public meetings over two years. |
Phase II Links: |
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The Opportunities Plan was created in the context of the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA). NEPA requires that all federal projects follow established environmental procedures (considering fully the environmental costs and benefits of proposed actions) and that all interested and affected members of the public are involved in the process before decisions are made. |
The NEPA process seeks to conserve and protect the nation's resources for the benefit of future generations. The mechanisms in place to achieve NEPA's intent require federal agencies to undertake a careful, complete and analytic study of the impacts of any proposal that may affect the environment — and alternatives to that proposal — well before decisions are made. The National Park Service (NPS) has a strong commitment to the NEPA process and projects that lack proper NEPA documentation are not implemented. The Knoxville Regional Transportation Planning Organization (TPO) led the project team under contract to and in partnership with Great Smoky Mountains National Park. The project team included staff from the TPO and NPS. The project manager for the consultant team served as the fourth member of the project team. This group met frequently and was responsible for coordinating information gathering, monitoring the progress of the process and preparing for public meetings. Staff from HNTB led the consultant team. HNTB was responsible for overall project management, development concept planning, transportation analysis, public involvement and the creation of the final plan document. David Evans & Associates provided expertise in environmental and alternative transportation planning as well as assisting in facilitating public meetings. Watson Heritage Strategies coordinated public involvement and facilitated public meetings. James Milner & Associates undertook the development of the Cultural Resource Summary Report and the Cultural Landscape Report. EA Engineering provided expertise on air quality and alternative fuels. The final report from this process is available for viewing online and at eight public locations. The next step in the process (Phase II) will be the development of a draft Environmental Impact Statement (EIS). |
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Page Updated: April 26, 2007