Narragansett Indian Tribal Historic Preservation Office says FERC violated National Historic Preservation Act
Rhode Island — The Narragansett Indian Tribal Historic Preservation Office filed a request for rehearing with the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission Tuesday, accusing the agency of violating the National Historic Preservation Act by delaying the study of ceremonial stone landscapes until a year after it issued its environmental assessment of the project and by failing to consult with NITHPO to resolve adverse impacts to over 20 religious and cultural features, which is a breach of FERC’s fiduciary duty to the Indian tribe.
FERC authorized Tennessee Gas Pipeline Company LLC to proceed with construction on the Connecticut Expansion Project on April 12, 2017. FERC’s order stated that all environment conditions had been met and federal authorizations received. NITHPO’s request for rehearing shows that procedures required under Section 106 of the NHPA were not followed.
“Instead of consulting, FERC just told us what TGP was going to do,” said Doug Harris, deputy tribal historic preservation officer for the Narragansett Indian Tribe.
TGP’s treatment plan calls for destruction and reconstruction of one third of the 73 ceremonial stone landscapes and Harris characterizes the plan as an act of desecration.
“These are ‘prayers in stone,’ ” he said. “If you take them apart and reconfigure them, then what you have is an artistic replica of something that was spiritual. Once you remove the stones, the spiritual content is broken.”
FERC not only failed to engage in meaningful consultations with NITHPO, it also delayed studying the cultural resources until it was too late to protect them.
“The NHPA requires federal agencies to study cultural resources before they issue a license so that adverse impacts can be avoided,” said Anne Marie Garti, attorney for NITHPO. “FERC admitted that, by the time the survey of ceremonial stone landscapes was performed, it was too late to pick an alternative. That means FERC broke the law.”
In addition to its statutory requirements, FERC is obligated to hold government-to-government consultations with Indian tribes. It is not authorized to delegate this duty to TGP or to any other project proponent. Federal agencies are also required to treat tribal resources like assets in a trust. By waiting until it was too late to avoid the cultural resources, FERC breached its fiduciary duty to NITHPO.
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Acupuncture Day at State House
Boston — The Acupuncture Society of Massachusetts and the Massachusetts Society of Chinese Medicine will hold an Acupuncture Day event at the State House on Monday, May 15, from noon to 2 p.m. to help elected officials, staff and the public understand more about East Asian medicine and acupuncture and its ability to help patients deal with chronic pain, substance abuse issues, posttraumatic stress and other conditions.
Acupuncturists in Massachusetts are licensed by the Board of Registration in Medicine and acupuncture treatment plays a crucial role in clinical settings at Dana Farber Cancer Institute, Baystate Medical Center, Massachusetts General Hospital and other healthcare facilities. Legislation currently pending in the State House would increase patients’ access to safe, effective treatment without having to rely on potentially addictive pharmaceuticals.
For more information, contact Dan Delaney at (617) 251-6774 or ddelaney@delaneypolicygroup.com or Naomi Alson at (413) 243-0654.
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MassDOT provides update on all-electronic tolling project
Boston — The Massachusetts Department of Transportation Monday provided a six-month update to its board of directors on notable accomplishments and achievements in the areas of tolling operations, customer service and roadway reconstruction after successfully implementing all-electronic tolling along I-90/the Massachusetts Turnpike on Oct. 28, 2016.
Notable accomplishments and achievements made in the past six months include:
- MassDOT’s AET system is designed to be greater than 99 percent accurate and data shows the accuracy rate has been greater than 99 percent.
- MassDOT is serving 4.3 million accounts under the current AET program, including 1.9 million E-ZPassMA accounts and 2.4 million Pay By Plate accounts.
- As of May 1, 2017, there were approximately 3.2 million E-ZPassMA transponders in circulation. As a result of public outreach, the number of E-ZPassMA transponders in circulation increased from April 30, 2016, to April 30, 2017, by a 22.3 percent increase of 587,000.
- MassDOT consistently maintains an 86 percent rate of transactions paid with an E-ZPass transponder, one of the highest levels of toll transponder use of any U.S. state.
- During the month of February, drivers heading into Boston along I-90 eastbound from the intersection of I-90/I-95 during the morning commute experienced up to seven minutes of time savings compared to travel along the same route in February 2016.
- MassDOT has opened three new walk-in customer service centers over the last year in Lee, Ludlow and an improved location in East Boston. MassDOT’s customer service vendor has also more than doubled the number of call center employees from 156 in October 2016 to 348 in April 2017.
- The EZDriveMA customer service phone center receives an average of approximately 200,000 calls per week and, over the last three to five months, MassDOT has experienced a 90 percent decrease in the average wait time from December compared with the first week of May.
- This past weekend, MassDOT demolished eight tollbooths and removed plaza infrastructure at the Sumner Tunnel in Boston and, due to progress made during the operations, the Phase One work at the Sumner Tunnel entrance was completed ahead of schedule.
- Toll demolition and road reconstruction activities are continuing on or ahead of schedule at all 23 work zones on I-90 and construction activities are scheduled to be completed by the end of 2017.
- Revenue collections are at or above forecast through March, meaning MassDOT is on target for its estimates.
