EAS

An Environmental Assessment Statement is environmental review's screening instrument: a structured assessment of a proposed action against the review's technical categories, supporting either a determination that no significant impacts are expected — ending the review — or a determination that a full Environmental Impact Statement is required. Most reviewed actions end at the EAS.

Though lighter than an EIS, an EAS is a real document with real content: existing-conditions data, impact screening, and the analytical assumptions — including any development projections — that support its conclusion. For a lot near a past action, the EAS is often the only assembled study of the area's conditions, and its findings remain citable long after the action closed.