GNA Spotlight - Washington, July 2025
Submitted by Trevor McConchie, Federal Lands Assistant Division Manager, and John Perry, Federal Lands Environmental Planning Program Manager
The Washington National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) Activities Good Neighbor Authority (GNA) agreement is a full-service agreement covering all necessary activities to complete NEPA work on national forests across Washington State. The GNA agreement is between the Washington Department of Natural Resources (WA DNR) and the USDA Forest Service (Forest Service) Region 6 Office, and is funded through both federal and state appropriated funds.
WA DNR is uniquely positioned to apply state resources to support NEPA activities through its dedicated Federal Lands Environmental Planning Program, which is comprised of environmental planners, multidisciplinary specialists, and program managers. Activities to support NEPA include conducting required field surveys such as cultural resource needs, wildlife surveys completed by state staff, and contracted services in which the state hires third-party contractors to complete work. Additionally, WA DNR can contract out or implement all components of a planning area up to final decision, which remains with the Forest Service.
Current work under the agreement includes supporting environmental planning work on the Gifford Pinchot National Forest (GPNF) to move a forest-wide thinning environmental assessment (EA). This EA is intended to streamline planning efforts on routine thinning and fuels reduction projects. WA DNR stepped in to fill a critical need as the environmental coordinator for the planning process and coordinated the overall planning effort in conjunction with the GPNF and its Interdisciplinary Team (ID Team) members. Additionally, the WA DNR Federal Lands Operations Program’s Southwest District Manager provided expert advice on the silvicultural prescriptions to be used in the project area. This coordinated GNA effort will provide restoration benefits to over 156,000 acres and reduce fuel loading over the next 10 years, which may not have otherwise occurred or been delayed due to gaps in the ID Team.
WA DNR has also undertaken a categorical exclusion (CE) planning process effort in the Martin Gap area of the Mount Baker Snoqualmie National Forest. This is a first-of-its-kind effort for the Federal Lands Section. WA DNR will conduct much of the field and analysis steps for this project and will coordinate with Forest Service staff, the local tribe, industry, and nonprofits throughout the process.
The overall intent of this GNA agreement is to help address NEPA bottlenecks, including time and ID team gaps, that often lead to project delays. The WA DNR Federal Lands Section is focused on addressing any need related to the NEPA process for a planning project/area and using either the state’s staff or state contracting mechanisms to fill those needs as quickly as possible. This, in turn, reduces delays that otherwise may persist for federal partners in their local forests.
To learn more, contact John Perry, Federal Lands Environmental Planning Program Manager.