It has been said that “everything that's old is new again,” and in this commentary we examine environmental sustainability with an eye on history. Not surprisingly, many of today's global environmental issues are the same problems that have dogged society for thousands of years and, remarkably, many of the proposed solutions are the same tired, unimaginative standbys, too. For example, society started using water to dispose of sanitary waste more than 2,000 years ago, and today we continue to use our waters to convey sanitary waste, only now we spend energy and resources to clean the water because we are running out. First, it was oxygen demand, then pathogens, then nutrients, and now drugs, hormones, and personal care products. What if these pollutants never reached our waters to start? What if the low-flow toilet was the no-flow toilet?

After several successful thematic issues of Environmental Practice devoted to brownfields, sustainability, and the 40th anniversary of the passage of National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA), this issue is “themeless,” consisting of an eclectic mixture of policy and science research articles, perspectives, and dialogue.

Last month, for the fourth consecutive year, I was privileged to stand in front of a fifth-grade class as a volunteer in the I LOVE Science program in Northwest Florida. My purpose was to initiate the class into this excellent program of bringing scientists into the classroom. We were set that day to discuss and demonstrate, through experiments and demonstrations, how to remove pollutants from water. For kids in Northwest Florida, thoughts of water usually mean a beautiful emerald sea, pure white sand, and an idyllic day at the beach or fishing. Northwest Florida elicits beautiful memories of water for all of us residents.

When I arrived at DePaul University as an assistant professor in the Environmental Science Program in 1992, I was asked to teach our senior capstone course: “Environmental Impact Analysis.” The capstone gives our students an overview of environmental law and policy, but with particular focus on the history and evolution of the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA). Students read the NEPA statute in its entirety, as well as several types of environmental documents, including environmental assessments (EAs), environmental impact statements (EISs), records of decision (RODs), and findings of no significant impact (FONSIs). They learned about the environmental impact assessment (EIA) process and the steps for preparing these environmental documents. So what did I know about NEPA and EISs? Absolutely nothing. But I was undeterred by this challenge, and so I dived right into learning all that I could about NEPA. Years later I came across a wonderful text: The NEPA Book: A Step-by-Step Guide on How to Comply with the National Environmental Policy Act (Solano Press, 2001), by Ronald Bass, Albert Herson, and Kenneth Bogdan. This became the required text for the course. Ironically, at that time I did not make the connection between the authors' affiliation with the National Association of Environmental Professionals (NAEP) and their prolific scholarship on NEPA! (Sorry guys!)

On a sunny Tuesday morning in September 1983, I literally walked out of a cattle barn where I had been doing morning chores on my father's centennial farm in central Illinois, walked back to the farmhouse, dressed in a suit, then drove 25 miles to the Central Office of the Illinois Department of Transportation (IDOT) in Springfield, the State's capitol, to interview for a position on a new Special Studies team. This team's mission was to focus exclusively on engineering and environmental studies to support the preparation of environmental impact statements under the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA).

On a recent early Saturday morning this past summer, my wife Mary Nolan and I were taking a long walk through the lush and colorful grounds of the Chicago Botanic Garden (the Garden). It is what we do most every weekend to experience our “splash of happiness.” For those of you who have not been there, the lakes, gardens and forested areas of the Garden are extraordinary and each visit opens opportunities to see garden and water vistas that change with the seasons and with each hour of daylight. Of the 385 acres that comprise the Garden, over 75 acres are water and water is its most central and distinctive feature, present in the form of lakes, fountains and waterfalls throughout the Garden's nine “islands” as you walk along the scenic pathways.

In this article, techniques of deliberative democracy are described and their applications to problems of natural resource management are discussed. It is argued that deliberative approaches to resource management achieve a higher level of both ecological rationality and political sustainability than do either elite decision making or interest-group bargaining.

Environmental Practice 12:195–201 (2010)

Funded by the United States (US) Department of State's Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs, the US Institute on the Environment organized by the East-West Center hosted 20 undergraduate and graduate students for a six-week program in May–June 2009. Through involvement in the institute, participants gained an understanding of the environmental movement in the US by engaging advocacy, market, policy, cultural, and scientific approaches to environmental issues and seeing how these approaches are intertwined in the quest for developing sustainable pathways to environmental stewardship. The institute interacted with a diverse range of stakeholders, from government policy and management representatives, activists, educators, and for-profits involved in the broadly defined environmental movement. The curriculum was designed to maximize experiential learning through a variety of exercises and activities that demonstrated the dynamic complexity of environmental stewardship. Education for Sustainable Development provided a framework to design a program with proposed outcomes that include public diplomacy. The take-home lessons of each participant and the long-term cumulative impacts they will have in their respective fields of study and places of residence will ultimately measure the success of this public diplomacy initiative.

Environmental Practice 12:8–17 (2010)

The National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA), an ISO (International Organization for Standardization) environmental management system (EMS), and the goal of sustainable development provide three separate and independent approaches for protecting the environmental. NEPA provides a scientifically based process for rigorously and objectively evaluating alternatives to a proposal or plan. In contrast, an EMS provides an ideal system for implementing and monitoring a federal agency's NEPA plan and final decision. A detail assessment of these two processes demonstrates that both systems share many common features and that the weaknesses of one process frequently tend to be counterbalanced by the strengths of the other. Properly combined, an integrated NEPA/EMS provides an efficient mechanism for evaluating and implementing federal agency actions. The goal of sustainable development is gaining international attention, yet it lacks a general-purpose system for identifying, evaluating, and implementing a sustainable development plan. This article further expands upon an earlier concept of an integrated NEPA/EMS. Specifically, this article describes a fourth-generation system that uses an integrated NEPA/EMS procedure to develop and implement a sustainable plan or program. The advantage of this consolidated process is that it draws from the synergistic strengths of an integrated NEPA/EMS to identify, plan, evaluate, and implement sustainable measures for proposed plans, projects, or programs. The following section explains the role that the NAEP has played in developing an integrated NEPA/EMS.

Environmental Practice 12:18–34 (2010)

In light of the potential need for disinfection and nutrient removal at the Metropolitan Water Reclamation District of Greater Chicago's water reclamation plants (WRPs), the inhibitory effects of ferric chloride (FeCl3) on ultraviolet (UV) radiation disinfection was examined. Results of a 2007 preliminary study indicated that a 2-log reduction in fecal coliform (FC) concentrations for each WRP secondary effluent was achieved with a UV dose of 10 mJ/cm2 except for the John E. Egan (Egan) WRP, where FeCl3 addition in the aeration basin for phosphorus removal was being employed. A subsequent study examined the effect of Egan unfiltered (secondary) and filtered (final) effluent on UV disinfection in 2008 during FeCl3 application and 2009 upon cessation of FeCl3 application: FeCl3 addition and filtration had little effect on UV transmittance (UVT). However, with FeCl3 addition, secondary and final effluent had higher total iron and lower total phosphorus relative to the respective secondary and final effluent without FeCl3 addition. Final effluent with and without FeCl3 addition showed lower total suspended solids concentrations relative to secondary effluent. Collimated beam test results indicated that a higher UV dose was needed to achieve the desired log reductions with FeCl3 addition and secondary effluent. Therefore, filtration of the effluent may be required if FeCl3 addition for nutrient removal is used at WRPs that employ UV disinfection.

Environmental Practice 12:275–284 (2010)

This article evaluates fishermen's knowledge about the value of mangrove to fish stock and discusses possible management practices to help restore fish stock within the Fosu Lagoon, Ghana. The lagoon was recently added to the list of water bodies with dead zones, raising concern for the people who depend on it for both sustenance and livelihood. The methodology includes in-depth interviews and surveys. Feedback was collected from 120 fishermen representing the different communities that fish the lagoon. Findings did include that fishermen indicated they have some knowledge about mangroves in general and specifically their value to fishing. However, they lack knowledge about the scientific information to manage these mangroves properly to derive the complete benefits that mangroves provide. With its importance to the livelihood of the fishermen and the traditional heritage of the Cape Coast (Ghana) community as a whole, Fosu Lagoon should be the object of more in-depth studies to help restore the fishery resources. This article provides baseline information for developing educational programs to educate the people about the economic, ecological value, and functions of mangroves. The report analyzes one of the obstacles—depletion of mangroves—leading to decline in fish resources in the lagoon. Based on the knowledge of the fishermen, the article provides some recommendations for better management of the lagoon to help reverse fish decline. This work is original, as no such analysis has been carried out before for this region.

Environmental Practice 12:202–213 (2010)

The United States courts are increasingly requiring federal decision-makers to assess greenhouse gas emissions of proposed actions in National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) analyses. With respect to NEPA, the cumulative effect of a proposal must be assessed in reaching a determination regarding the significance of its environmental impact. Analysis of cumulative impacts is one of NEPA's most challenging requirements. The problem of assessing cumulative greenhouse gas emission (GHG) impacts under NEPA is one of the thorniest in American environmental law and poses perhaps the most significant challenge to NEPA's regulatory framework in decades. A strict regulatory interpretation of “significance” can also lead to a paradox (Eccleston's Cumulative Impact Paradox), when one considers how the environment appeared before the intervention of human activities. A Finding of No Significant Impact (FONSI), by its very definition, states that an action will not have a significant effect, including a cumulatively significant effect. Because the global GHG concentration is generally considered to have already breached a cumulatively significant level (i.e., cumulatively significant impact), the assessment of proposals that emit even innocuous levels of GHGs can become a paradoxical effort. Specifically, a logical paradox arises in which many, if not most, federal activities should require preparation of an environmental impact statement (EIS) because they are technically ineligible for a FONSI. A strict interpretation of “significance” leads to such a conclusion, even in cases where the direct and indirect impacts of a relatively ‘small’ proposed activity may be finite but essentially innocuous. As described in this article, NEPA practitioners and decision-makers are beginning to appreciate the implications of this Cumulative Impact Paradox. This paradox must be resolved, if the analysis of cumulative GHG emissions is to contribute in a meaningful way to federal decision making.

Environmental Practice 12:105–115 (2010)

Greenhouse gas (GHG) inventories are becoming a common measure of environmental impact and sustainability for institutions. The University of Illinois in Chicago (UIC) prepared a GHG inventory for fiscal years 2004–2008. UIC conducted a commuter survey to obtain data regarding the commuting habits of its faculty, staff, and students. In fiscal year 2008, UIC's carbon footprint was not significantly higher than the 2004 emissions (275,000 vs. 273,000 metric tons of carbon dioxide equivalents, respectively). For 2008, the largest source of emissions was buildings (83%), followed by commuting (16%) and waste (1%). When compared to 85 other doctorate-granting universities, UIC's gross emissions per square foot (21.4%) are lower than average. The variation in the emissions over the five years studied is largely influenced by the amount of electricity purchased and the mix of sources of that electricity (i.e., nuclear vs. coal). Conducting a baseline GHG inventory can serve as a measure of progress toward more sustainable practices within an institution and as a tool for developing goals, strategies and policies to reduce emissions.

Environmental Practice 12:35–47 (2010)

Social capital concepts may help to explain implementation gaps and to make water demand management policies more effective. However, the research is limited along these lines of inquiry. We collected data through multiple semistructured interviews, participant observation, surveys, and literature review to assess the evidence of social capital's influence on municipal water policy. The research approach represents an alternative because it challenges the dominance of a technical conceptualization of water management.

Environmental Practice 12:214–226 (2010)

This article outlines the current literature regarding anthropogenic inputs of nutrients and microorganisms into the coastal oceans. The concern about nutrients and microorganisms in coastal marine waters is that they may cause a shift in local populations of organisms and encourage invasive algae and coral diseases. The lack of baseline data on marine populations makes it difficult to determine the source of marine population shifts. This report focuses on the question of whether there is sufficient data to implicate coastal ocean outfall discharges of secondary treated wastewater effluent in southeast Florida as a causative agent in impacts to coastal communities. The literature does not appear to support evidence of population shifts from any particular source.

Environmental Practice 12:285–303 (2010)

The USDA Forest Service is sued more often than any other federal agency under the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969 (NEPA). This analysis examines Forest Service land management cases initiated from 1989 to 2008 to understand how the agency fared in NEPA cases. Of the 1,064 completed cases, 671 (63.1%) involved a NEPA challenge. The agency won the final outcome of 343 cases (51.1%), lost 176 (26.2%), and settled 152 (22.7%). Case characteristic analyses indicate that case decisions peaked at the end of the 1990s, occurred mostly in the Ninth Circuit, and predominately involved vegetative management, forest planning, roads, recreation, and wildlife management activities. In addition to these general case outcomes, we conducted an in-depth analysis of the 411 cases where a judge or panel of judges specifically ruled on a NEPA challenge. The agency won the NEPA claim in 69.3% of these cases. The Forest Service was most successful litigating supplemental environmental impact statement cases and least successful in categorical exclusion cases. Most challenges to Forest Service NEPA implementation were based on environmental assessments (EAs) and environmental impact statements (EISs). The agency was more likely to win a direct and indirect effects EA challenge and a range of alternatives EIS challenge. Since the Forest Service accounts for a large portion of all NEPA litigation, this research enhances understanding of legal challenges to NEPA's implementation.

Environmental Practice 12:116–126 (2010)

Groundwater and surface water are hydraulically connected in some regions of the world. This type of aquifer system is called a tributary aquifer and can affect flows of adjacent streams. These accretions occur when slowly moving groundwater enters the bottom or side slopes of a stream, providing base flow. In this situation, groundwater becomes surface water. Groundwater that is hydraulically connected to surface water in this manner is called tributary groundwater. Colorado state law requires all water users—of both surface and tributary groundwater—to follow a strict water-right priority system of “first in time, first in right.” This Doctrine of Prior Appropriation, adopted in Colorado in 1876, is rigidly followed today. Since 2003, thousands of tributary groundwater irrigation wells have been curtailed from pumping (legally shut off) due to pumping depletions that reduce stream flow. The impacts to these groundwater users have been serious. Approximately 2,000 wells have been curtailed and will never pump again, and tens of thousands of acres of productive agricultural lands have been reverted to dryland crops or weeds. Surface and tributary groundwater use conflicts are inevitable in locations where rigid water-allocation systems are followed. Nobel Prize winner Eleanor Ostrom points out that common-pool resource management requires collective-choice arrangements if resource users—in this case, surface water and groundwater users—are to develop a stable management plan. This article will show that the Colorado Constitution prohibits such an arrangement and is the reason thousands of tributary groundwater wells have been permanently shut off in the state. By contrast, other states and regions of the world may be able to avoid drastic well curtailments if state or federal laws allow for common-pool resource management.

Environmental Practice 12:304–315 (2010)

As evidence of the earth's limited capacity to sustain human life mounts, institutions of higher education are being looked to for leadership in the effort to educate students about environmental concerns and support the development of sustainable innovations. Colleges and universities are responding to this call for leadership by starting and/or expanding environmental research programs, integrating sustainability issues throughout the curriculum, adopting sustainable operations, and building green facilities. Reflecting upon the sustainability efforts of these institutions, this research study explores the following questions:

• What factors are essential for initiating and leading a successful change effort to foster sustainability in higher education?

• What processes guide higher education institutions in efforts to deeply and comprehensively implement sustainable changes?

A sequential mixed-methods research design was used to gather data from questionnaires administered to 86 colleges and universities in the United States implementing sustainability programs and from interviews with 20 individuals who are guiding the change processes at ten different institutions. After the data had been analyzed to identify common themes, factors, and change-process strategies, the results of the analyses were examined in relationship to existing models of change in higher education. Significant correlations were found between the change strategies used and the support systems provided by these institutions and the level of progress achieved on the sustainability initiatives.

Environmental Practice 12:48–58 (2010)

When the National Environmental Policy Act was passed in 1969, it presupposed that there were clear ways to identify and then address environmental impacts from federal actions. Since then, it has become evident that environmental issues are grounded in complex systems, which are often difficult to “see” in traditional venues for gathering public input and informing decision makers. To address this, practitioners have been exploring collaborative modeling using system dynamics as a method for promoting systems thinking in a variety of decision venues. Historically applied in the business world, system dynamics has expanded into other arenas, including natural resource management. Cooperative modeling combines principles of collaboration with system dynamics to link relevant physical and social systems. In this approach, a multidisciplinary team convenes to engage in dialogue, to identify key variables for a particular issue, to identify relevant data, and to construct a systems-based computer model that helps team members “see” the complexity inherent in the system. Results from these experiences suggest that participants develop a deeper level of understanding about the policy issue, increase their agreement about root problems, and generate sound information about the issue being addressed. This article suggests that cooperative modeling can be an effective tool to meet both the letter and the spirit of the National Environmental Policy Act.

Environmental Practice 12:127–133 (2010)

The environmental review process and the required federal and state permits for wetlands and endangered species impacts have been blamed for delays in the development of critical infrastructure projects. Many of the delays are a result of negotiations surrounding the compensatory mitigation that is included as a part of the environmental review and included in the subsequent regulatory permits. Various programs around the nation are using proactive planning and advance compensatory mitigation to reduce delays and increase the environmental benefits associated with mitigation for infrastructure development. In this article, we provide case studies of four programs that illustrate how various agencies are incorporating advance mitigation into their infrastructure planning and implementation, and provide a critical examination of the attributes and status of these programs, along with the opportunities and challenges associated with advance mitigation. We have chosen these case studies to reflect a range of advance compensatory mitigation approaches toward endangered species and wetlands at various scales from four different regions of the nation. We contend that advanced mitigation offers a more effective and efficient approach. However, challenges exist in the need for up-front capital investment, the current lack of regulatory certainty, and lack of incentives to go beyond project-level mitigation. These challenges are significant, but are being addressed in some progressive ways across the nation. We believe that advance mitigation is the most cost-effective method for streamlining regional unavoidable impacts and should be explored and in any future federal surface transportation reauthorization.

Environmental Practice 12:227–236 (2010)