Environmental review staff should spend their time evaluating potential impacts and making informed decisions, not repeating the same screening, reporting, and notification steps for every project.
The updated Environmental Review solution automates repetitive work. It identifies projects awaiting screening, evaluates them against configured environmental datasets, generates a customized PDF report, attaches the report to the project record, and notifies reviewers. This process is accomplished by three connected solution items:
- The Environmental Screening map defines the environmental datasets that will be evaluated.
- The Environmental Screening Reports ArcGIS Pro project defines the output report template.
- The Environmental Screening Notebook automates and executes the workflow.
If you haven’t already deployed the Environmental Review solution, head to the ArcGIS Solutions app to learn more and get started.
Environmental Screening Map: Defining What Matters
Every screening workflow begins with a policy question: What information should be evaluated? Based on the answer, organizations can add their own data layers to the Environmental Screening map. The layers in the map define screening criteria the Environmental Screening Notebook evaluates for each project. If requirements change, the screening layers in the map can be easily updated, instead of buried in Python code. Read more about Configuring the Environmental Screening Map.
Environmental Screening Reports ArcGIS Pro project: Turning Results into Deliverables
Identifying potential impacts is only part of the process. Reviewers also need to summarize and communicate environmental screening results. The Environmental Screening Reports ArcGIS Pro project package provides step-by-step guidance and templates to create reports for screening outputs. The report includes a branded cover page, detailed project map, and supplemental pages to summarize results for each screening layer. Now, instead of manually creating a report for every project, the Environmental Screening Notebook will reference the report template and automatically generate a PDF report for every project in the queue. Read more about Designing the Report Templates.
Environmental Screening Notebook: Automating the Workflow
The map defines the screening criteria. The Pro project defines the report template. The notebook is the piece that brings them together.
When it runs, the notebook builds a queue of submitted projects that have not been screened yet. It references the Environmental Screening map to buffer the project area, identify screening layers, and find intersecting features. It then downloads the Environmental Screening Reports project package, filters the project and screening layers for the current record, and hides report sections without results. Next, it exports the report with the cover page and detailed map page and attaches the PDF report to the corresponding project record. After the PDF is attached, the notebook updates the project status and sends an email to members of the Environmental Review Staff group. Processing failures are summarized and sent to the staff group owner.
Notebook configuration and execution are the last steps because it relies on the previously configured Environmental Screening map and Environmental Screening Reports ArcGIS Pro project.
Configuring the Notebook
The notebook includes default values and inline comments to guide customization. Supported customizations are included in the notebook’s User Configurations cell.
When the solution is deployed, many parameters are pre-configured with the solution’s app, map, group and layer item IDs, and appear in the execution portion of the notebook. Changing these should be avoided except in extenuating circumstances. If you experience issues with the solution, it is recommended to open a tech support case through My Esri before changing values beyond the User Configuration cell.
1. Define the Screening Area
BUFFER_DISTANCE and BUFFER_UNITS define the proximity used when querying each screening layer. The same configuration also supports the buffer shown in report maps. Use the notebook defaults as a starting point, then align the distance and units with the organization’s screening policy.
The remaining buffer parameters control the ring displayed in report maps: its layer name, visibility, fill, outline, width, and transparency. These effect how the buffer is displayed in reports, and should reinforce the report design rather than compete with it.
2. Configure Reviewer Notifications
STAFF_EMAIL_SUBJECT and STAFF_EMAIL_BODY define the message sent after a successful report. Fields from the projects layer can be inserted with braces using the exact field name in the project layer, and {manager_link} is automatically created by the notebook to open the project in the Environmental Review Manager app.
Keep the message short and action-oriented, including enough project context for next steps and direct the reviewer to the attached report and project record. An incorrect field placeholder causes a project’s notification to fail and places the issue in the failure report.
FAILURE_REPORT_SUBJECT controls the run-level error summary. STAFF_NOTIFY_GROUP_OWNER determines whether the group owner also receives normal project notifications; the owner still receives the failure report when processing errors occur. Failure report notifications show errors in a table with details about the error to be corrected.
3. Confirm the Integration Points
These settings are configured by default to the solution’s deployed items. If the map, report, or project layer’s names are changed, these configurations should be amended.
- MAP_NAME must match the map name in ArcGIS Online and the ArcGIS Pro project.
- REPORT_NAME must match the report designed in ArcGIS Pro and published in the Project Package in ArcGIS Online.
- PROJECTS_LAYER_NAME must match the project layer.
- PROJECT_NAME_FIELD supplies the project name for use in file names, logs, and failure reporting.
4. Connect the Report and Supplemental Layouts
ZOOM_LAYOUTS identifies the ArcGIS Pro layouts whose map frames should move to the current project area during export. Add any supplemental layout name that should be focused on the project area. ZOOM_PAD_FACTOR and BUFFER_ZOOM_MARGIN control how much space around the project/buffer area is shown when the report is generated.
The names in ZOOM_LAYOUTS must match layout names in the published ArcGIS Pro project. If a named layout is absent, the notebook can continue, but that layout will not receive the intended pan/zoom. Treat changes in the Pro project and notebook configuration as one coordinated update.
5. Define Which Projects Enter and Leave the Queue
The queue and completion parameters connect automation to the project lifecycle. PROCESSED_FIELD and PROCESSED_YES prevent completed projects from being evaluated again. STATUS_FIELD and STATUS_QUEUED identify projects ready for screening. After a successful report attachment, STATUS_COMPLETE is the next state in the review process.
These values should match the schema and coded values in the Environmental Review Projects layer. A project is marked “Screening” only after its report is attached, allowing interrupted processing or errors to continue without marking an incomplete report as finished.
6. Reserve Troubleshooting Overrides for Exceptions
SKIP_SECTIONS can temporarily exclude report sections whose valid service is failing or hanging during export. SKIP_DRAW_LAYERS can exclude layers from displaying in map frames shown on a report's supplemental pages without removing it from intersection analysis. The names must match the exact report section or layer name in the report. These settings are recovery tools, not substitutes for repairing the ArcGIS Pro project or its data sources.
Leave both lists empty during normal operation. If an override is necessary, document why it was added and remove it after the source or report section is repaired.
7. Test Interactively Before Scheduling
It is recommended to run the notebook interactively with a known project before scheduling the recurring task. Confirm the queue selects the expected record, the correct screening layers are discovered, the PDF exports and attaches, the project fields update, the Manager link opens the intended project, and the expected users receive the notification.
After that end-to-end test succeeds, schedule the notebook at a cadence that matches the review program. The official Environmental Review configuration documentation provides the scheduling steps. The schedule should be the final step, not the first test of the configuration. Read more about Scheduling automated screening.
You can see an example report from the Environmental Review solution here:
Conclusion
By configuring the Environmental Screening map, preparing the Environmental Screening Reports ArcGIS Pro project, and then aligning the notebook’s user parameters with both, organizations can replace a chain of repetitive tasks with a repeatable screening and reporting workflow. Reviewers receive a consistent starting point, administrators retain control over the criteria and presentation, and the program can absorb new projects without recreating the same process each time.
