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ENVT Impact > Midterm 1 > Flashcards

Midterm 1 Flashcards

1
Q

What is CEQA?

A

California Environmental Quality Act

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2
Q

What is NEPA?

A
  • National Environmental Policy Act
  • federal law that provided model for CEQA and requires federal agencies to prepare Environmental Impact Statements (EIS) for federal actions significantly affecting human environment
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3
Q

What is the intent of CEQA?

A
  • Disclose to decision makers and public the significant environmental effects of proposed activities
  • identify ways to avoid or reduce environmental damage
  • prevent environmental damage by requiring implementation of feasible alternatives or mitigation measures
  • disclose to the public reasons for agency approval of projects w/ significant environmental effects
  • foster interagency coordination in review of projects
  • enhance public participation in planning process
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4
Q

What criteria are used to determine if an activity is a project?

A

discretionary action w/ potential physical effects on environment; activity undertaken by public agency

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5
Q

What is a lead agency?

A

agency w/ responsibility for CEQA compliance when preparing initial study, negative declaration, mitigated negative declaration, or EIR

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6
Q

How is the lead agency chosen for public projects?

A

a public agency is the lead agency for its own projects, even if the project will be located within the jurisdiction of another agency

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7
Q

How is the lead agency chosen for private projects?

A
  • agency w/ general governmental powers (e.g. city or county) prevails over agency w/ single or limited purpose
  • city prezoning area before annexation will be lead agency rather than Local Agency Formation Commission (LAFCO)
  • when criteria are equal, agency that acts first becomes lead agency
  • agencies may designate lead agency by mutual agreement
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8
Q

Can there be more than one lead agency?

A

not prohibited, but lead agency is typically considered single entity

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9
Q

What is a responsible agency?

A

agency other than lead agency w/ discretionary authority over project

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10
Q

What is a Trustee Agency?

A

have jurisdiction over certain resources held in trust for people of California but do not have legal authority over approving or carrying out project

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11
Q

Can the public participate in the CEQA process?

A

Yes

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12
Q

What is scoping?

A

Determining scope, focus, and content of EIR

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13
Q

What are the three major types of exemptions available under CEQA?

A

o Statutory
o Categorical
o General

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14
Q

What is an Initial Study?

A

document prepared to study project for potential significant effects

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15
Q

What is the NEPA equivalent to an IS?

A

Environmental Assessment

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16
Q

What are Mandatory Findings of Significance?

A

If project has potential to:

  • Degrade environment
  • Reduce fish/wildlife habitat
  • Cause fish/wildlife habitat to drop below self-sustaining environment
  • Threaten to eliminate plant/animal community
  • Substantially reduce numbers or range of species
  • Eliminate major periods of CA history or prehistory
  • Achieve short-term goals to disadvantage of long-term goals
  • Environmental effects are individually limited but cumulatively considerable, when viewed in connection w/ past, current and future projects
  • environmental effects will directly or indirectly cause substantial adverse effects on human beings
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17
Q

Indirect effects?

A
  • caused by project and occur later in time or at some distance from project; however they are still reasonably foreseeable
  • also called secondary effects
18
Q

Direct effects?

A

primary environmental effects that are caused by project and occur at same time and place

19
Q

Cumulatively considerable effects?

A

Incremental effects of individual project are considerable when viewed in connection w/ effects of past, current, and probable future projects

20
Q

Can an IS be avoided?

A

If lead agency is not required

21
Q

What are the required components of an IS?

A
  • Project description
  • Environmental setting
  • Potential environmental impacts
  • Mitigation measures for any significant effect
  • Consistency w/ plans and policies
  • Names of preparers
22
Q

What is a NOP

A

Notice of Preparation – brief notice sent by Lead Agency notifying Responsible, Trustee, and involved federal agencies that it plans to prepare EIR for project

23
Q

What are the required components of Draft EIR

A
  • table of contents or index
  • summary of discussion contained in draft EIR
  • project description
  • environmental setting
  • presentation of significant environmental effects of project
  • areas of known controversy
  • alternatives to proposed project
  • mitigation measures
  • growth-inducing impacts
  • expected significant irreversible changes due to proposed project
24
Q

What must be included in a project description?

A 
o	Project objectives
o	Project location
o	Project characteristics should include the following when applicable
	Project concept
	Proposed buildings
	Construction activities
	Supporting public services
	Operational timeline
o	Reasonably foreseeable future phases
o	A list of agencies that will use DEIR
o	A list of approvals that the DEIR will be used to obtain
25
Q

What must be included in the environmental setting?

A

Description of setting for every resource discussed

26
Q

What are thresholds of significance?

A

Identifiable quantitative, qualitative, or performance levels of particular environmental effects

27
Q

What are mitigation measures?

A

changes in project designed to avoid, minimize, rectify, reduce or compensate for significant environmental impact

28
Q

What are alternatives?

A

Developing another project that has less environmental effects than the original project.

29
Q

Statutory exemption

A

legislative exclusion from preparation of CEQA documents

30
Q

ND

A
  • negative declaration

– document prepared when there are no potential significant impacts

31
Q

MND

A
  • Mitigated negative declaration

– document prepared when there are no potential significant impacts after application of mitigation

32
Q

EIR

A
  • Environmental impact report

– document prepared when there are potential significant impacts

33
Q

NOD

A

Notice of Determination
summarizes the lead agency’s findings about the project’s environmental effects. This notice must be filed within five working days after determining to approve the project.

34
Q

Ministerial vs discretionary

A
  • Ministerial has no judgement and CEQA does not apply to the project.
  • Discretionary has judgement and CEQA does apply to this project.
35
Q

State Clearinghouse

A

A part of Office of Planning and Research and responsible for distributing environmental documents to state agencies, departments, boards, and
commissions for review and comment.

36
Q

significant effect

A

substantial or potentially substantial adverse change in any physical conditions within area affected by project

37
Q

Fair Argument Standard

A

the requirement in CEQA to prepare an Environmental Impact Report when it can be fairly argued, based on substantial evidence in the whole record before the agency, that a project may have a significant effect on the environment.

38
Q

Substantial Evidence

A

relevant information and reasonable inferences from that information to make a “fair argument” that a project may have a significant effect on the environment. Substantial evidence can be facts, reasonable assumptions based on facts and expert opinion supported by facts. Substantial evidence is not argument, speculation, unsubstantiated opinion, erroneous or inaccurate information or social or economic impacts not caused by physical impacts.

39
Q

Naked Checklist

A

when a determination is made as to the significance of a particular impact listed on the checklist without sufficient explanation.

40
Q

Preliminary review

A

determining whether an action is a “project” as defined by CEQA and reviews for exemptions.

ENVT Impact (2 decks)

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