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Initial Studies and Mitigated Negative Declarations - ISMNDs - Part 2

Initial Studies cite, source, and incorporate complex, scientific studies of many topics and these summaries are included within Section 4 of an ISMND. These topics, outlined below with representative questions from the California Environmenntal Quality Act, include the environmental analysis which must address a standardized set of environmental topics, each with specific questions to determine whether a project may cause significant impacts. These topics and questions are primarily defined in Appendix G of the CEQA Guidelines (1,2,4,6).


How to Read the Environmental Determinations of ISMNDs

Below is a consolidated table listing the main environmental topics and the key questions that must be answered for each, based on Appendix G and supported by the search results:

Environmental Topic

Key Questions to Determine Significance

Aesthetics

- Would the project have a substantial adverse effect on a scenic vista?


- Substantially damage scenic resources, including trees, rock outcroppings, and historic buildings within a state scenic highway?


- Substantially degrade the existing visual character or quality of the site and its surroundings?


- Create a new source of substantial light or glare which would adversely affect day or nighttime views?(1,2,4,6)

Agriculture and Forestry

- Convert Prime Farmland, Unique Farmland, or Farmland of Statewide Importance to non-agricultural use?


- Conflict with existing zoning for agricultural use or a Williamson Act contract?


- Conflict with existing zoning for, or cause rezoning of, forest land or timberland?


- Result in loss or conversion of forest land to non-forest use?(1,2,4)

Air Quality

- Conflict with or obstruct implementation of air quality plans?


- Violate air quality standards?


- Result in a cumulatively considerable net increase of any criteria pollutant?


- Expose sensitive receptors to substantial pollutant concentrations?


- Result in other emissions (e.g., odors) affecting a substantial number of people?(1,2,4,5)

Biological Resources

- Have a substantial adverse effect on special status species, habitats, or riparian habitat?


- Interfere substantially with movement of native resident or migratory fish or wildlife species?


- Conflict with local policies or ordinances protecting biological resources?


- Conflict with provisions of an adopted Habitat Conservation Plan?(1,2,4,6)

Cultural Resources

- Cause a substantial adverse change in the significance of a historical or archaeological resource?


- Directly or indirectly destroy a unique paleontological resource or site?


- Disturb human remains, including those interred outside of formal cemeteries?(1,2,4,6)

Energy

- Result in potentially significant environmental impact due to wasteful, inefficient, or unnecessary consumption of energy?


- Conflict with or obstruct a state/local plan for renewable energy or energy efficiency?(1,2,4,5)

Geology and Soils

- Expose people or structures to potential substantial adverse effects from earthquakes, landslides, or soil instability?


- Result in substantial soil erosion or the loss of topsoil?


- Be located on expansive soil creating substantial risks?


- Have soils incapable of supporting septic tanks (if applicable)?(1,2,4,6)

Greenhouse Gas Emissions

- Generate greenhouse gas emissions that may have a significant impact on the environment?


- Conflict with an applicable plan, policy, or regulation adopted for reducing GHG emissions?(1,2,4,5)

Hazards and Hazardous Materials

- Create a significant hazard through routine transport, use, or disposal of hazardous materials?


- Create a hazard through reasonably foreseeable upset and accident conditions?


- Emit hazardous emissions within 0.25 mile of a school?


- Be located on a hazardous materials site?


- Impair emergency response or evacuation plans?


- Expose people or structures to wildland fire risks?(1,2,4,6)

Hydrology and Water Quality

- Violate water quality standards or waste discharge requirements?


- Substantially alter drainage patterns, resulting in erosion or flooding?


- Create or contribute runoff water exceeding stormwater drainage capacity?


- Otherwise substantially degrade water quality?


- Place housing or structures in a flood hazard, tsunami, or seiche zone?(1,2,4,6)

Land Use and Planning

- Physically divide an established community?


- Conflict with land use plan, policy, or regulation?


- Conflict with a habitat conservation plan or natural community conservation plan?(1,2,4)

Mineral Resources

- Result in loss of availability of a known mineral resource of value to the region or state?


- Result in loss of locally important mineral resource recovery site?(1,2,4)

Noise

- Result in generation of noise levels in excess of standards?


- Result in substantial temporary or periodic increase in ambient noise?


- Be located within an airport land use plan or within two miles of a public airport, exposing people to excessive noise?(1,2,4,6)

Population and Housing

- Induce substantial unplanned population growth?


- Displace substantial numbers of existing housing or people, necessitating construction of replacement housing?(1,2,4)

Public Services

- Result in substantial adverse physical impacts associated with the provision of new or physically altered governmental facilities needed to maintain acceptable service ratios, response times, or other performance objectives for fire protection, police, schools, parks, or other public services?(1,2,4)

Recreation

- Increase the use of existing neighborhood and regional parks or other recreational facilities such that substantial physical deterioration would occur?


- Include recreational facilities or require the construction or expansion of such facilities with significant environmental impacts?(1,2,4)

Transportation

- Conflict with a program, plan, ordinance, or policy addressing the circulation system, including transit, roadway, bicycle, and pedestrian facilities?


- Conflict or be inconsistent with CEQA Guidelines section 15064.3, subdivision (b) (related to vehicle miles traveled)?


- Substantially increase hazards due to geometric design or incompatible uses?


- Result in inadequate emergency access?(1,2,4,6)

Tribal Cultural Resources

- Cause a substantial adverse change in the significance of a tribal cultural resource as defined in Public Resources Code section 21074?(1,2,4)

Utilities and Service Systems

- Require or result in the relocation or construction of new or expanded water, wastewater, stormwater, or solid waste facilities?


- Have sufficient water supplies available?


- Result in inadequate wastewater treatment capacity?


- Generate solid waste in excess of permitted capacity?


- Comply with solid waste regulations?(1,2,4,6)

Wildfire

- Substantially impair an adopted emergency response or evacuation plan?


- Exacerbate wildfire risks due to slope, prevailing winds, or other factors?


- Require the installation or maintenance of infrastructure that may exacerbate fire risk?


- Expose people or structures to significant risks from post-fire hazards?(1,2,4)

Mandatory Findings of Significance

- Substantially degrade the environment, reduce habitat for fish or wildlife, cause fish or wildlife population decline, threaten to eliminate a plant or animal community, or reduce the number or restrict the range of a rare or endangered species?


- Have impacts that are individually limited but cumulatively considerable?


- Cause substantial adverse effects on human beings, either directly or indirectly?(1,2,4)

When composing these documents, formatting is critical and attention to detail is a very important aspect of the job. Things like capitalizing "Proposed Project" or ensuring that the conclusions specifically identify the words "No Impact", "Less than Significant Impact", or "Less than Significant with Mitigation Incorporated". Otherwise, the document gets kicked up a notch when "Significant and Unavoidable Impacts" are identified. These usually trigger a more intensive investigation regarding that specific topic at minimum.


Construction Equipment - Photo by Anamul Rezwan: https://www.pexels.com/photo/orange-excavator-on-brown-hill-1116035/
Construction Equipment - Photo by Anamul Rezwan: https://www.pexels.com/photo/orange-excavator-on-brown-hill-1116035/

Barriers to Development and Housing Construction

Sometimes, developers are in a hurry to get to the ground-breaking stage where they really get to the meat of their operations - the grading and building. Specific sections of an ISMND make the ground break stage complex and challenging, and often cause major delays in constructing adequate housing or redeveloping commercial sectors of the city and state. Air Quality regulations often require engines that are constructed with carbon emissions reductions strategies, or require that the property incorporates dust mitigations to prevent particulates from becoming unnecessarily dense in the air. Biological considerations ensure wildlife won't be unnecessarily displaced or killed off - like birds during nesting season, or endangered species that traverse the property; and Cultural Resources research makes sure that identifiable and important historic records are reviewed prior to disturbing the property. Each topic covered in an ISMND is critical and important for equal representation of the public and to ensure that stakeholders can gather evidence to support their fight against the developer. after all, for as many people need places to live, there are as many people as possible who say "NIMBY!" (Not in My Back Yard)


These sections and topics are intentionally complex and diverse to cover as many stakeholders as possible. The process involves mailing tribal council members to ensure that tribal cultural resources aren't in harm's way. It includes public comment period where cities offer members of the community an opportunity to discuss their concerns. The utilities sections ensure that providers of public services like fire, police, water, sewer, and electricity can property and effectively service the property. Many of these concerns are viable and very critical, often for public health, but there is much room for improvement in these topics.


Note: The exact wording of questions may be updated periodically in CEQA Guidelines; this table summarizes the core issues addressed for each topic as of the most recent guidelines and supported by the search results. Each IS/MND must answer these questions, providing evidence and analysis to determine if impacts are potentially significant, less than significant with mitigation, or less than significant(1,2,4,6).


Next Time, I will be discussing the California Emissions Estimator Model (CalEEMod) which is a key piece of software used by the Air Quality professionals in the industry that helps them to identify what the most significant pollutants are in a development project.


By incorporating specific mitigations, like watering while grading, or climate models to estimate the heat index, or transportation zones to identify gallons of fuel consumed or required for these projects, these models can be applied to aspects of the construction project to ensure that waste is not detrimental to the public health or the community at large.



Thanks for Reading!

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