Environmental Setting. Evaluation — The additional ROW required additional field work, mapping and report preparation for the Wetland Delineation and Biological Studies.
Environmental Setting. This section describes the environmental setting for terrestrial biological resources and fisheries and aquatic habitats present in the service areas of the four Plaintiff Water Contractors: SCWA, Napa, Yuba City, and Butte County. TERRESTRIAL BIOLOGICAL RESOURCES This section describes the environmental setting for terrestrial biological resources present in the service areas of the four Plaintiff Water Contractors. Most of the areas receiving SWP supplies consist of urban land uses, which limits the habitats and conditions to support terrestrial biological resources in these areas. The conditions on Lake Oroville created by surface water fluctuations limit the formation of persistent riparian and wetland vegetation and consequently limit the amount of terrestrial wildlife habitat in the littoral or inundation zones. Although limited, these habitats still provide foraging habitat for numerous birds (raptors, shorebirds, waterfowl, and passerines [i.e., perching and songbirds]); some amphibians and reptiles, primarily frogs and turtles; and mammals. Use by bird species varies seasonally as a function of natural migration into and out of the region and varies depending on the surface water elevation and the extent of human disturbance. For instance, waterfowl are more common during winter, when lake levels are higher and there are fewer disturbances from watercraft. Many passerine species present in spring and summer nest in riparian habitat near or upstream and downstream from the lake or in wetland habitat along shallow and undisturbed shoreline areas. Other species that feed along the shorelines and in open water during parts of the year include species such as osprey, killdeer, loons, grebes, and swallows. The lower portion of the river, below Lake Oroville, twists and turns through agricultural and developed lands, and most of the riparian forest occurs as linear patches separating agricultural or other developed lands. The most substantial patches of riparian woodland and freshwater xxxxx occur near the city of Xxxxxxx and are associated with river bends, floodplains, and oxbows. The exact nature of the woody riparian vegetation along the water’s edge depends on the geomorphic position of the river, the width of the riverbank, and the proximity of the primary levees. Valley oak, cottonwood, and willow trees are the primary tree species, and willow scrub and a variety of native and nonnative riparian shrub and herbaceous species make up the understory....
Environmental Setting. The SWP is a water storage and conveyance project of statewide significance that includes aqueducts, canals, pipelines, and storage and pumping facilities. The California Legislature authorized the SWP in 1959. Passage of the Xxxxx-Xxxxxx Act by the public expressly authorized the State of California to enter into contracts for the sale, delivery, and use of SWP water made available by the operation of the SWP facilities (Water Code, Section 12937[b][4]).
Environmental Setting. The geographic area that would be affected by implementing the Proposed Project extends across six of the 11 geomorphic provinces in California: the Sierra Nevada, the Great Valley, the Coast Ranges, the Transverse Ranges, the Peninsular Ranges, and the Colorado Desert (California Geological Survey 2002). The service areas of the four Plaintiff Water Contractors are located primarily in the Great Valley Geomorphic Province, a valley trough more than 50 miles wide and 400 miles long that includes the Sacramento and the San Xxxxxxx Valleys. The Sacramento Valley is drained by the Sacramento River from the north. The San Xxxxxxx Valley is composed of the San Joaquin River basin, drained by the San Joaquin River from the south, and the Tulare basin, a hydrologically closed basin drained only during extremely wet periods. The confluence of these two major river systems and lesser streams and systems forms the Delta, which is drained through Suisun Bay and the narrow Carquinez Strait to San Pablo and San Xxxxxxxxx Xxxx and eventually into the Pacific Ocean (CALFED 2000:5.5-4). Lake Oroville is located in the Sierra Nevada Geomorphic Province. The Feather River watershed, which lies in the northern portion of this geomorphic province, drains the western slope of the Sierra Nevada and is tributary to the Sacramento River. San Luis Reservoir and portions of the SCWA and Napa water contractor service areas are situated in the 600-mile-long Coast Ranges Geomorphic Province. The western portion of the Napa Valley is drained by the Napa River and its tributaries to San Pablo Bay, and the eastern portion is drained by Putah Creek and its tributaries into Lake Berryessa. The Suisun Valley, composed of portions of Suisun City and Fairfield, is drained by Suisun Creek to Suisun Xxxxx and Suisun Bay. Landslides can occur in a variety of rock and soil types but are more prevalent in areas where a distinct zone of weakness separates the slide material from more stable underlying material. Risk of landslide in reservoirs is increased by rapid drawdown conditions and by the submergence of the slope toe (Xxxxxx and Xxxxxx 2011). Slope instabilities around reservoirs, whether induced or not by stored water, create additional risks, such as damage to the dam and its foundation or partial or complete blockage of storage water intake pumps (Xxxxxx and Pinyol 2011). Landslides are common along the banks of Lake Oroville and are concentrated along the North Fork arm (Xxxxxxx Xxxx area...
Environmental Setting. In May 2012, DWR adopted its Climate Action Plan Phase 1: Greenhouse Gas Emissions Reductions Plan (GGERP), which details DWR’s efforts to reduce its greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions consistent with Executive Order S-3-05 and the Global Warming Solutions Act of 2006 (Assembly Bill 32) (DWR 2012). DWR also adopted an IS/ND prepared for the GGERP in accordance with the CEQA Guidelines review and public process. Both the GGERP and the IS/ND are incorporated herein by reference and are available at xxxx://xxx.xxxxx.xx.xxx/climatechange/CAP.cfm. The GGERP provides estimates of historical (back to 1990), current, and future GHG emissions related to operations, construction, maintenance, and business practices (e.g., building-related energy use). The GGERP specifies aggressive 2020 and 2050 emission reduction goals and identifies a list of GHG emissions reduction measures to achieve these goals. DWR specifically prepared its GGERP as a “Plan for the Reduction of Greenhouse Gas Emissions” for purposes of CEQA Guidelines Section 15183.5. That section provides that such a document, which must meet certain specified requirements, “may be used in the cumulative impacts analysis of later projects.” Because climate change, by its nature, is a global cumulative impact, an individual project’s compliance with a qualifying GHG reduction plan may suffice to mitigate the project’s incremental contribution to that cumulative impact to a level that is not “cumulatively considerable” (CEQA Guidelines, Section 15064[h][3]). More specifically, “[l]ater project-specific environmental documents may tier from and/or incorporate by reference” the “programmatic review” conducted for the GHG emissions reduction plan. “An environmental document that relies on a GHG reduction plan for a cumulative impacts analysis must identify those requirements specified in the plan that apply to the project, and, if those requirements are not otherwise binding and enforceable, incorporate those requirements as mitigation measures applicable to the project” (CEQA Guidelines Section 15183.5[b][2]).
Environmental Setting. The maintenance and operation of SWP facilities, including dams, storage reservoirs, pump stations, and other diversion facilities, require minor amounts of hazardous materials. SWP water used for municipal purposes is disinfected, commonly by using hazardous substances, such as chlorine or hypochlorite, before it is distributed to end users. SWP water supplies provided to SCWA, Napa, and Yuba City are used for municipal use, and SWP water provided to Butte County is used for both municipal and agricultural uses.
Environmental Setting. The CLSP EIR described the agricultural setting of the project site and vicinity as it existed at the time, and which was predominantly used for agriculture. The entire specific plan area, including the project site, has since been converted from agricultural use, and graded and developed with streets and utilities in anticipation of urban development and consistent with the CLSP and the CSLP EIR. This change in circumstances was anticipated in the EIR and does not involve any potential for new or more severe significant effects on agriculture. Environmental Impacts and Mitigation Measures The CLSP EIR addressed each of the agriculture-related environmental issues identified in the above checklist section, detailing the effect of CLSP development on agriculture, including the conversion and cancellation of Xxxxxxxxxx Act contracts on over 1,500 acres of agricultural land, including those parcels subject to the proposed amendments to the DA. Agricultural effects, including impacts relating to the conversion of farmland, conflicts with Xxxxxxxxxx Act Contracts, and potential conflicts between agricultural and nonagricultural uses, were identified in the EIR as potentially significant. Adopted mitigation measures require payment of San Xxxxxxx County Multi-Species Habitation Conservation Plan (SJMSCP) fees (Mitigation Measure 4.13-a), which would be used to purchase easements over agricultural land for habitat enhancement purposes. The project proponents also agreed to pay an additional agricultural mitigation fee that would purchase additional agricultural land easements. Both fees will be payable in conjunction CLSP development. In addition, Mitigation Measure 4.13-b minimizes impacts on agricultural production by requiring the project applicant to continue to allow/promote farming operations as long as possible on portions of the CLSP plan area until an area is to be developed. Mitigation Measure 4.13-c also requires the project applicant to phase development of agricultural lands in the CLSP area in such a way as to avoid the fragmentation of continuing agricultural operations. Although Mitigation Measure 4.13-c reduces potential impacts associated with land use conflicts to a less than significant level, the above measures would only partially mitigate loss of agricultural lands; agricultural land conversion effects and effects related to the cancellation of Xxxxxxxxxx Act contracts; therefore these impacts were identified as significant and unavoidable ...
Environmental Setting. The CLSP EIR described the air quality setting of the project vicinity in detail. Since the certification of the EIR, regional air quality conditions have improved somewhat, per-vehicle emissions have been reduced, and additional air quality protection regulations are in place. These setting changes are incidental and generally encompassed by the EIR analysis, especially mitigation measures as discussed below that tend to reduce the overall air quality effects of the larger CLSP project. There are no known changes in air quality circumstances that would result in new or potentially more severe environmental effects than were identified in the CLSP EIR.
Environmental Setting. The CLSP EIR provided a very detailed inventory of the occurrence and protection status of terrestrial and aquatic biological resources that could be affected by the CLSP. These included general biological resources, special-status plants, special-status wildlife species, special-status fish, sensitive habitats and fish and wildlife movement corridors. The resources of the CLSP area, including the adjacent San Joaquin River were described in detail. The EIR also described the San Xxxxxxx County Multi-Species Habitat Conservation Plan (SJMSCP) and its role in mitigating potential losses of important biological resources. Since certification of the EIR, the project site and surrounding CLSP lands have been converted from agricultural and related land uses to vacant land that has been graded and otherwise developed in preparation for urban use. Consequently, the biological values of the project site and surrounding lands have been substantially reduced or eliminated. The SJMSCP remains in force and will require contributions as development of the CLSP proceeds.
Environmental Setting. The CLSP EIR describes the cultural resources and paleontological setting of the CLSP area, based on searches of applicable archives, field surveys and historic evaluation of structures. Archival searches did not identify any archaeological or historic resources on or near the project site. The project site and other portions of the CLSP area are underlain by sediments of the Modesto Formation, which is considered sensitive for discovery of paleontological resources. Environmental Impacts and Mitigation Measures The CLSP EIR identified potentially significant impacts to one recorded prehistoric archaeological site, CA-SJO-3, as a result of the construction of proposed recycled water storage ponds. The CLSP EIR also determined there were potentially significant impacts to as- yet-undiscovered or unrecorded archaeological sites, and undiscovered or unrecorded human burial sites. The CLSP EIR also found there were no potentially significant impacts to historic resources. There are no historic structures within the CLSP as a whole, or on or near those parcels affected by the proposed amendments to the DA. The EIR identified mitigation measures for these potential effects, including Mitigation Measure 4.16-a, requiring avoidance to the extent feasible of CA-SJO-3, and archeological monitoring, Mitigation Measure 4.16-c, requiring archeological surveys and identifying preservation performance measures in the event a resource is found, and Mitigation Measure 4.16-d, which identifies proper procedures for the identification and protection of human remains. These measures remain in effect and pursuant to the previous EIR, reduce any potentially significant effects of the proposed project to a less than significant level. No additional mitigation is required. The proposed amendments to the DA will not result in additional new or more severe impacts to archeological, paleontological, historic, or tribal cultural resources than were previously identified in the EIR. This is because the amendments do not allow development in areas that were previously not analyzed in the EIR, nor do they increase the density, intensity, or location of the development within the CLSP. All the mitigation measures identified in the previous EIR will continue to apply. As a result, the proposed amendments to the DA would not create a new significant impact or a substantial increase in the severity of previously identified effects to cultural resources. SOURCES
