Midterm 1

Question 1

What is CEQA?

Answer 1

California Environmental Quality Act

Question 2

What is NEPA?

Answer 2

• 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

Question 3

What is the intent of CEQA?

Answer 3

• 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

Question 4

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

Answer 4

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

Question 5

What is a lead agency?

Answer 5

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

Question 6

How is the lead agency chosen for public projects?

Answer 6

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

Question 7

How is the lead agency chosen for private projects?

Answer 7

• 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

Question 8

Can there be more than one lead agency?

Answer 8

not prohibited, but lead agency is typically considered single entity

Question 9

What is a responsible agency?

Answer 9

agency other than lead agency w/ discretionary authority over project

Question 10

What is a Trustee Agency?

Answer 10

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

Question 11

Can the public participate in the CEQA process?

Answer 11

Yes

Question 12

What is scoping?

Answer 12

Determining scope, focus, and content of EIR

Question 13

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

Answer 13

o Statutory
o Categorical
o General

Question 14

What is an Initial Study?

Answer 14

document prepared to study project for potential significant effects

Question 15

What is the NEPA equivalent to an IS?

Answer 15

Environmental Assessment

Question 16

What are Mandatory Findings of Significance?

Answer 16

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

Question 17

Indirect effects?

Answer 17

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

Question 18

Direct effects?

Answer 18

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

Question 19

Cumulatively considerable effects?

Answer 19

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

Question 20

Can an IS be avoided?

Answer 20

If lead agency is not required

Question 21

What are the required components of an IS?

Answer 21

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

Question 22

What is a NOP

Answer 22

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

Question 23

What are the required components of Draft EIR

Answer 23

• 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

Question 24

What must be included in a project description?

Answer 24

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

Question 25

What must be included in the environmental setting?

Answer 25

Description of setting for every resource discussed

Question 26

What are thresholds of significance?

Answer 26

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

Question 27

What are mitigation measures?

Answer 27

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

Question 28

What are alternatives?

Answer 28

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

Question 29

Statutory exemption

Answer 29

legislative exclusion from preparation of CEQA documents

Question 30

ND

Answer 30

- negative declaration | – document prepared when there are no potential significant impacts

Question 31

MND

Answer 31

- Mitigated negative declaration | – document prepared when there are no potential significant impacts after application of mitigation

Question 32

EIR

Answer 32

- Environmental impact report | – document prepared when there are potential significant impacts

Question 33

NOD

Answer 33

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.

Question 34

Ministerial vs discretionary

Answer 34

- Ministerial has no judgement and CEQA does not apply to the project. - Discretionary has judgement and CEQA does apply to this project.

Question 35

State Clearinghouse

Answer 35

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.

Question 36

significant effect

Answer 36

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

Question 37

Fair Argument Standard

Answer 37

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.

Question 38

Substantial Evidence

Answer 38

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.

Question 39

Naked Checklist

Answer 39

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

Question 40

Preliminary review

Answer 40

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