§ 26.5 Upgrades and additional environmental information.

Environmental category upgrades.(a) If the WGMA and the Department of the Treasury determine that a project would have a significant impact on the human environment, but that the level of environmental analysis planned by the MDB is insufficient, the Department of the Treasury will instruct the United States Executive Director of the concerned MDB to request that the MDB upgrade the project to an environmental category requiring additional environmental analysis. Members of the public may call the MDB Office to inquire about upgrade requests for specific projects.

Additional environmental information.(b) (1) If the WGMA and the Department of the Treasury determine on the basis of the first WGMA review that:

(i) A MDB project would have a significant impact on the human environment, and

(ii) The MDB appears to have made an appropriate decision that such project merits environmental analysis, but less than a full-fledged environmental impact assessment as defined by that MDB's own procedures, the Department of the Treasury will obtain, through the United States Executive Director of the concerned MDB, such environmental information from the MDB (e.g., environmental chapters from project feasibility studies or environmental data sheets) which contains this environmental analysis. The MDB Office will provide this environmental information to the entities described in § 26.2(a).

(2) If such environmental information is insufficient to provide an adequate basis for analyzing the environmental impact of the proposed project and alternatives to the proposed project, the Department of the Treasury will instruct the United States Executive Director of the concerned MDB not to vote in favor of the project.