facilities renewal master plan - National Zoo - Smithsonian Institution

FACILITIES MASTER PLAN ENVIRONMENTAL ASSESSMENT
Congestion and safety issues along North Road would be mitigated through a
comprehensive and parking management strategy including two traffic circles and an
intermittent turn lane. Zoo shuttles and Metro shuttles would use the traffic circles for
flexible passenger handling and for accommodating vehicles that need to turn around.
If implemented, the strategies outlined under Alternative C would have long-term
beneficial impacts to traffic, transportation, and parking because of infrastructure and
program improvements that would provide additional parking, ease circulation, and
reduce visitor/service conflicts.
Mitigation for the Preferred Alternative
In order to minimize temporary impacts to transportation, construction routes will be
designed to minimize conflicts with vehicular traffic, and arrivals/departures will be
scheduled around normal visitor hours. Traffic will be redirected when construction
activities occur in areas currently dedicated to vehicular travel and parking. Additional
and more detailed mitigation for transportation impacts will be identified as conceptual
design for individual project is initiated.
D. Cumulative Effects
CEQ regulations, which implement the NEPA, require assessment of cumulative effects
in the decision-making process for projects that are federally funded or require a federal
action. Cumulative impacts are defined as “the impact on the environment which results
from the incremental impact of the action when added to other past, present, and
reasonably foreseeable future actions regardless of what agency (federal or non-federal)
or person undertakes such other actions” (40 CFR 1508.7). Cumulative effects can result
from individually minor, but collectively moderate or major actions taking place over a
period of time. Cumulative effects are considered for all alternatives and are summarized
in this section.
Cumulative effects were determined by combining the impacts of the alternatives with
other past, present, and reasonably foreseeable future actions. Therefore, it was necessary
to identify other past, ongoing, or foreseeable future projects within the National Zoo
and, if necessary, the surrounding region. Cumulative effects are evaluated in a regional
context, which varies for each impact topic. Impacts associated with the National Zoo
are generally limited to the Rock Creek site property (such as soils and topography), its
abutting properties in the case of traffic and noise impacts and the Rock Creek watershed
for water quality. Impact topics that would have no or negligible impacts have been
dismissed from this discussion (such as noise, air quality, geology, socio-economic,
infrastructure, community facilities, etc.) because the incremental impact associated with
the impact would be so small or short-term that when added to other past, present, or
reasonably foreseeable actions, it would have no affect on the resource.
Past, present and future projects that have been identified in the vicinity or within the
National Zoo considered in the cumulative effects scenario include the Elephant Trails
project, Asia Trail, and nearby road projects such as Klingle Road, reconstruction of the
nearby bridge on Connecticut Avenue and 18 th Street/Adam Morgan’s transportation
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