WASHINGTON — The White House has drafted a proposal to scale back environmental requirements in an effort to make it easier to build roads, bridges and pipelines across the country as part of an infrastructure plan that President Trump could release as soon as next week, according to a document obtained by The Washington Post.

The plan would change things such as how officials decide a pipeline route, how a proposed border wall with Mexico would be built and whether the National Park Service could object to a development that would impair tourists’ views from scenic parks such as the Grand Canyon. Administration officials – who have briefed Republican lawmakers, multiple trade associations and other groups – have emphasized they are willing to alter elements of the legislative package to win Senate passage. But they made it clear they seek to make the most sweeping changes in decades to how the federal government approves and oversees infrastructure projects.

Construction crews work on a road in Edinburg, Ill., in 2016. President Trump is proposing to streamline environmental review of infrastructure projects. Associated Press/Seth Perlman

“We have no intention of eroding environmental protections,” said Alex Hergott, associate director of infrastructure at the White House Council on Environmental Quality, when he addressed the Transportation Research Board’s annual conference earlier this month. “However, there is no denying that there is duplication and redundancy in the process that is worth taking a hard look at.”

A White House official on Friday described the document as an earlier “discussion draft.” But individuals familiar with the plan said many of the proposals are still the basis for negotiations with lawmakers.

“Smarter regulation doesn’t mean that we are abandoning our responsibility to the environment,” said the official, who spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss ongoing internal deliberations.

Trump identified an infrastructure bill as a top priority for his first 100 days in office, but it was delayed while he focused on bruising legislative battles over health care and tax cuts. Aides say the president will pitch his plan during Tuesday’s State of the Union address.

Critics said the proposal, would gut key environmental protections enshrined in laws dating back to the 1970s, such as the National Environmental Policy Act, the Clean Air Act and the Clean Water Act.

“The administration’s legislative outline for infrastructure sacrifices clean air, water, the expertise of career agency staff and bedrock environmental laws,” National Parks Conservation Association President and CEO Theresa Pierno said in an email. “In short, the proposal reveals that this administration is not serious about restoring America’s infrastructure.”

Trump has argued that voluminous environmental studies should be pared down to “a few simple pages,” and he has made broad declarations about how easy and productive the world would be without complex regulations.

Now, his allies said, the administration is crafting proposals that will convert the president’s words into actions.

The White House plan identifies many aspects of the current permitting process that lead to delays, including the fact that multiple agencies often weigh in on the same permit and that the federal government lacks resources to assess projects in a timely manner. To address this, it would make major changes in the arcane procedures that lie at the heart of federal oversight.

New limits and deadlines would be imposed on federal agencies reviewing projects, and in some cases agencies – especially the Environmental Protection Agency – could be limited in their ability to weigh in on the permitting process.

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