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2008 SESSION
083941400Be it enacted by the General Assembly of Virginia:
1. That § 10.1-1188 of the Code of Virginia is amended and reenacted as follows:
§ 10.1-1188. State agencies to submit environmental impact reports on major projects.
A. All state agencies, boards, authorities and commissions or any branch of the state government shall prepare and submit an environmental impact report to the Department on each major state project.
"Major state project" means the acquisition of an
interest in land for any state facility construction, or the construction of
any facility or expansion of an existing facility which is hereafter undertaken
by any state agency, board, commission, authority or any branch of state
government, including state-supported institutions of higher learning, which
costs $100,000 $1
million or more. For the purposes of this chapter, authority shall
not include any industrial development authority created pursuant to the
provisions of Chapter 49 (§ 15.2-4900 et seq.) of Title 15.2 or Chapter 643, as
amended, of the 1964 Acts of Assembly. Nor shall authority include any housing
development or redevelopment authority established pursuant to state law. For
the purposes of this chapter, branch of state government shall apply to any
county, city or town of the Commonwealth only in connection with highway
construction, reconstruction, or improvement projects affecting highways or
roads undertaken by the county, city, or town.
Such environmental impact report shall include, but not be limited to, the following:
1. The environmental impact of the major state project, including the impact on wildlife habitat;
2. Any adverse environmental effects which cannot be avoided if the major state project is undertaken;
3. Measures proposed to minimize the impact of the major state project;
4. Any alternatives to the proposed construction; and
5. Any irreversible environmental changes which would be involved in the major state project.
For the purposes of subdivision 4 of this subsection, the report shall contain all alternatives considered and the reasons why the alternatives were rejected. If a report does not set forth alternatives, it shall state why alternatives were not considered.
B. For purposes of this chapter, this subsection shall only apply to the review of highway and road construction projects or any part thereof. The Secretaries of Transportation and Natural Resources shall jointly establish procedures for review and comment by state natural and historic resource agencies of highway and road construction projects. Such procedures shall provide for review and comment on appropriate projects and categories of projects to address the environmental impact of the project, any adverse environmental effects which cannot be avoided if the project is undertaken, the measures proposed to minimize the impact of the project, any alternatives to the proposed construction, and any irreversible environmental changes which would be involved in the project.