The document discusses preserving South County's iconic agricultural landscapes from development pressures. It notes the importance of South County's agricultural heritage and discusses using tools like CEQA to address issues from a proposed development in the Southeast Quadrant of Morgan Hill, including farmland conversion, urban sprawl, greenhouse gas emissions, and traffic congestion. It provides an overview of CEQA and the EIR process, and how comments can advocate for addressing impacts to agriculture, transportation, air quality and other environmental factors.

1. PRESERVING
SOUTH COUNTY’S
ICONIC LANDSCAPES
Greenbelt Alliance

2. WHAT’S AT STAKE?

4. Importance of our agricultural inheritance

5. Importance of our agricultural inheritance

6. Importance of our agricultural inheritance

7. Importance of our agricultural inheritance

8. Importance of our agricultural inheritance

9. Importance of our agricultural inheritance

10. Importance of our agricultural inheritance

11. Importance of our agricultural inheritance

12. Importance of our agricultural inheritance

13. Importance of our agricultural inheritance

21. Tonight’s Case Example: THE SEQ

24. Tonight’s Case Example: The SEQ

25. Issue Areas
¨ Farmland Conversion
¨ Extending Urban Services
¨ Urban Sprawl
¨ Viable, Local Food Production
¨ Greenhouse Gas Emissions
¨ Additional Traffic Congestion
¨ High Speed Rail Alignment
¨ Alternatives to Proposed Development
What are people’s biggest concerns?

26. CALIFORNIA’S
ENVIRONMENTAL PLANNING
TOOLS AND REGULATIONS

27. CEQA Presentation Overview
¨ Brief History
¨ Project Review and Timeline under the
California Environmental Quality Act
¨ Types of Environmental Impacts
¨ Many Ways of Measuring the Impacts
¨ Writing Effective Comment Letters
¨ Major Issue Areas in South Santa Clara County
¤ Farmland Conversion ¤ Greenhouse Gas Emissions
¤ Extending Urban Services ¤ Additional Traffic Congestion
¤ Urban Sprawl ¤ High Speed Rail Alignment
¤ Viable, Local Food Production

28. HOW CAN WE AVOID
IMPACTING THE
ENVIRONMENT AND
STILL THRIVE?

29. Background and History of CEQA
¨ Passed by Governor Reagan in 1970
¨ Requires environmental protection from the
local to state decision-making process
¨ No CEQA police, enforced by citizen or
agency lawsuits
¨ CEQA purpose
¤ Disclose environmental impacts
¤ Identify ways to avoid damage
¤ Prevent significant unavoidable damage
¤ Provide reasons for a project’s approval despite
significant environmental impacts
¤ Encourage interagency cooperation
¤ Enhance public participation in planning process

30. Background and History of CEQA

31. CEQA Timeline

32. So which agency is Do we have to worry
leading this about any impacts
project anyway? from the project?
Can we design the project or will there be a significant
to avoid causing an impact effect if the project goes
on the environment, forward as planned?
Let’s include any Following an initial study of the
other agencies that project, we’re giving notice of
have jurisdiction our preparation of the project’s
over the project area. environmental impact report.

33. Hire a consultant to draft an EIR.
Notify the public there will be a
draft EIR released on a certain
date for a given amount of time. PUBLIC
REVIEW
Incorporate public comments PERIOD
on project into a final EIR
including our agency response
to each question asked.
Consider mitigations to significant
impacts produced from the project.
Make a final decision
on the project.

34. How to use CEQA
¨ Awareness of planning activity or projects in your area
¨ Write a form letter to the lead agency to receive future notices
on the project
¨ Review the environmental determination (ND/MND, EIR) the
agency makes on the project
¨ Familiarize yourself with the key findings of the document and
look for discrepancies in the project’s environmental review
¨ Strategize how you can use your resources to send your
informed analysis on the project
¨ Write a comment letter to the lead agency regarding your
concerns on the impacts of the project and potential mitigations

35. Environmental Impact Categories
¨ Aesthetics ¨ In what way are you an
¨ Air Quality every day expert?
¨ Hydrology/Water Quality ¨ Whose expertise could you
¨ Land Use/Planning rely upon for support?
¨ Noise
¨ Population/Housing
¨ Public Services
¨ Recreation
¨ Transportation/Traffic
¨ Utilities/Service Systems

36. Measuring the Environmental Impact
¨ Global Warming Impacts
¨ Environmental Setting, or Baseline Conditions
¨ Significant Effect on the Environment
¨ Compare Anticipated Impacts to Baseline Conditions
¨ Direct vs. Reasonable Foreseeable Indirect Effects
¨ Mandatory Findings of Significance
¨ Thresholds of Significance
¨ Significant Irreversible Changes
¨ Growth-Inducing Impacts
¨ Cumulative Impacts
¨ Mitigation Measures

37. EIRs: How to Comment Effectively
¨ Decide on your concerns/goals and read relevant
sections first; think through questions as you analyze
¨ Emphasize your local expertise but base comments on
data, not emotion
¨ Be specific, succinct and professional
¨ Use standard intro, body and conclusion format
¨ Cite section directly, focus on facts and quote relevant
professionals
¨ Make sure your take home message is clear

38. Reviewing and Commenting on an
Enivironmental Impact Report
Comment Letter Due Date: 3/1/2013
Comment Period
30-day 45-day Date
(days until comment letter
is due)
55 70 12/21/2012 Review Campaign Goals
53 68 12/23/2012 Consider additional secondary goals
50 65 12/26/2012 Review and familiarize yourself with mitigation measures
that address these goals
40 55 1/5/2013 Review the relevant Elements of the Plan
35 50 1/10/2013 Determine what allies should be contacted to support
particular sections, or specialties
30 45 1/15/2013 Begin to review the Plan's EIR
25 35 1/25/2013 Following your review, compile resources to begin
drafting EIR comments based on your analysis
20 25 2/4/2013 Make bullet points of the main findings from your review
15 15 2/14/2013 Draft a letter with your main findings from the Plan's EIR
analysis
12 12 2/17/2013 Send draft letter to colleagues for review
8 8 2/21/2013 Edit and update EIR comment letter
4 4 2/25/2013 Submit EIR comment letter
0 0 3/1/2013 Comment Letters Due

39. Resources
¨ California Attorney General’s Office – CEQA
¤ http://oag.ca.gov/environment/ceqa
¨ Planning and Conservation League – CEQA
¤ http://www.pclfoundation.org/publications/ceqaresources.html
¨ Receive CEQA Notices for Particular Project
¤ Write a request letter to the lead agency
¨ Greenbelt Alliance
¤ Sign in to receive email with handouts
¨ Southeast Quadrant – Morgan Hill Planning Department
¤ http://www.morgan-hill.ca.gov/index.aspx?nid=670

40. ASSESSING MORGAN HILL’S
PROPOSED DEVELOPMENT
THROUGH CEQA & THE EIR

41. Ag Policy in South County
¨ South County Joint Area Plan – 1988
¨ Gilroy adopted agricultural mitigation policies – 2004
¨ Local Agency Formation Commission (LAFCO) adopted
agricultural mitigation policies – 2007
¨ Morgan Hill published “Public Review Draft” of “Agricultural
Policies and Implementation Program” - 2011

42. South East Quadrant

43. SEQ – How to use CEQA…today
¨ Awareness of current planning activity around the SEQ
¨ Write a form letter to the lead agency to receive future notices
on the project
¨ Review the online resources describing the project
¨ Anticipate the key findings of the document and potential
shortcomings in the project’s environmental review
¨ Strategize how you can use your resources to send an informed
analysis on the project
¨ Draft an outline of a comment letter to the lead agency
regarding your concerns on the impacts of the project and
recommended mitigations

44. IMPACTS
&
MITIGATIONS

45. SEQ - Impact Categories
¨ Aesthetics ¨ In what way are you an
¨ Air Quality every day expert?
¨ Hydrology/Water Quality ¨ Whose expertise could you
¨ Land Use/Planning rely upon for support?
¨ Noise
¨ Population/Housing
¨ Public Services
¨ Recreation
¨ Transportation/Traffic
¨ Utilities/Service Systems

46. SEQ – Impacts from Urbemis
¨ Air Quality
75,000 tons of CO2
emitted per year
47,000 trips and
¨ Transportation/Traffic 354,000 vehicles miles
travelled each day

47. SEQ – Alternative Analysis

48. Agricultural Mitigations
¨ GOAL : NO NET FARMLAND LOST
¨ Best practices – Agricultural Land Bank
¤ 1:1 Ratio of converted farmland to protected farmland
n The developer to find the farmland to protect.
¤ CEQA Nexus of In-Lieu Fees (maybe acceptable in MH condition)
n The city is in charge of find the farmland to protect.

49. Farmland in Morgan Hill

50. Break Out Groups
¨ Farmland Conversion ¨ What are you looking for?
¨ Extending Urban Services ¨ What are your goals?
¨ Urban Sprawl ¨ How would you comment?
¨ Viable, Local Food Production
¨ Greenhouse Gas Emissions
¨ Additional Traffic Congestion
¨ High Speed Rail Alignment
¨ Alternative Scenarios for
Planned Development
¨ Other?