Final Report for NCHRP Research Results Digest 317: Prototype Software for an Environmental Information Management and Decision Support System (2007)

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1-1 1.0 Introduction 1.1 RESEARCH OBJECTIVES The National Cooperative Highway Research Program (NCHRP) 25-23 research initiative is designed to develop and provide important tools to assist transportation and planning agencies in meeting the environmental challenges of today and those to come. This report details the work performed for Phase 2 of the 25-23 initiative. The objective of the project was to design, test, and demonstrate a prototype software program for an environmental information management and decision support system (EIM&DSS). As described in NCHRP Report 481, an EIM&DSS is: “…any system that strives to provide decision makers involved in planning, programming, project development, operations and maintenance for any mode of transportation with the right information and analysis, in the right format, and at the right time to make specific decisions and to continually improve the outcomes of the agency’s activities, operations, products, and services when measured in terms of transportation, environmental, social, cultural, and economic factors.” (1, p. S-1) The EIM&DSS, also referred to in this report as the Environmental Information Management System (EIMS), is intended to serve as one component of an agency’s broader environmental management system (EMS). An EMS incorporates software systems and other elements, such as agency policy, process and practices. The International Standards Organization (ISO) Standard 14001 provides a specification for an EMS, defining the concept as follows: “the part of the overall management system that includes organizational structure, planning activities, responsibilities, practices, procedures, processes and resources for developing, implementing, achieving, reviewing and maintaining the environmental policy” (2, p. 2) The prototype EIMS developed for this project is a software system that supports environmental management for transportation and planning agencies. This software is designed to support agencies in environmental decision-making throughout the transportation process, from long-range planning through project development, construction, operations, and maintenance. The EIMS is intended to serve as one component of an agency’s broader EMS. 1.2 OVERVIEW OF THE RESEARCH APPROACH The research effort consisted of the following 11 tasks: • Task 1 – Existing Practice Summary;

1-2 • Task 2 – Design Prototype Software; • Task 3 – Test and Demonstration Plan; • Task 4 – Interim Report 1; • Task 5 – Develop Prototype Software; • Task 6 – Testing and Demonstration Setup; • Task 7 – Test Prototype Software; • Task 8 – Interim Report 2; • Task 9 – Final Changes to Software; • Task 10 – Transition Plan; and • Task 11 – Final Report and Software. Tasks 1 to 3 were performed in 2004, and the results of these tasks were documented in Interim Report 1, prepared as part of Task 4 (3). Following Panel review of Interim Report 1, the research team proceeded with development of the EIMS, and identification of agency testers. The research team developed the EIMS in 2005. The beta version was released in October 2005. Two agencies, MoDOT and NCDOT, tested the beta version. Interim Report 2 (4), prepared as part of Task 8, summarizes the results of Task 5 to 7, including the development and testing of the EIMS. Following Panel review of Interim Report 2, the research team made final changes to the software, prepared the transition plan for the EIMS, and wrote this report. 1.3 CONTENTS OF REPORT This report is the deliverable for Task 11. It documents the results of all tasks of the research effort, and is organized in the following sections: Section 2 describes the review of existing practice and systems in environmental management (Task 1). Section 3 provides an overview of the system, including the changes made to the system since completion of Interim Report 2 (Tasks 2, 5 and 9). Section 4 presents the test process and results. This section describes the test cases, process, and the results from the test agencies (Tasks 3, 6 and 7). Section 5 presents recommendations for transition of the prototype EIMS into a production system, and includes recommendations for stewardship of the EIMS (Task 10). Appendix A provides additional information on representative environmental management initiatives at U.S. transportation agencies. Appendix B provides the user manual for the EIMS.