A Program EIR was prepared and certified for the 1998-2000 RTP (State Clearinghouse # 99032077). The PEIR included descriptions of all the required elements. The California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) Guidelines provide several options for environmental documentation once an EIR has been prepared for a project or program. Where only minor changes occur to the project or program, an addendum to the previously certified PEIR may be prepared. While there have been adjustments made to the projects and programs contained in the 2008 RTP Update, there are very limited financial resources to deliver projects. The programmed projects that have been proposed in previous RTPs would be the candidates for any future limited funding. In addition, projects in the RTP cover the same transportation modes as in previous RTPs. Therefore, an addendum is appropriate to meet the guidelines.
Air Quality
– Greenhouse Gas Emissions
This analysis has been added to the PEIR to respond to recent California legislation. Atmospheric gases that trap heat are called greenhouse gases (GHG). Common GHG include water vapor, carbon dioxide, methane, nitrous oxides, chlorofluorocarbons, hydrofluorocarbons, perfluorocarbons, sulfur hexafluoride, ozone, and aerosols. These gases are emitted by natural processes and human activities. GHG accumulation in the atmosphere regulates the earthÕs temperature. Without the natural heat trapping effect of GHG, the earthÕs surface would be about 34 degrees Centigrade (¡C) cooler. However, it is believed that human activities, such as electricity production and vehicle use, have elevated gas concentrations of these in the atmosphere beyond naturally occurring levels.
CEQA requires that Lead Agencies, in this case HCAOG, inform decision-makers and the public regarding the following: potential significant environmental effects of proposed projects; feasible ways that environmental damage can be avoided or reduced through the use of feasible mitigation measures and/or project alternatives; and disclose the reasons why the Lead Agency approved a project if significant environmental effects are involved (CEQA Guidelines ¤15002). CEQA also requires Lead Agencies to evaluate potential environmental effects based to the fullest extent possible on scientific and factual data (CEQA Guidelines ¤15064[b]). Significance conclusions must be based on substantial evidence, which includes facts, reasonable assumptions predicated upon facts, and expert opinion supported by facts (CEQA Guidelines ¤15064f[5]).
Presently, there are no CEQA thresholds of significance established for GHG. However, California Assembly Bill (AB) 32 passed in September 2006, called for the California Air Resources Board (CARB) to adopt regulations requiring statewide greenhouse gas emissions reporting, and set a year 2020 statewide greenhouse gas emissions limit equivalent to 1990 levels. Ultimately, it can be assumed that local air districts and agencies will be responsible for enacting regulations, in response to CARB mandates.
GHG associated with the implementation of the HCAOG RTP are primarily associated with energy consumption for heating, air conditioning, and lighting and fuel consumption associated with new residential and non-residential development, construction equipment, and motor vehicles traveling to, from, and moving around the county. One of the RTP objectives serves to limit motor vehicle trips in the county. The plan objective is to establish a multi-modal transportation system (i.e., roadways, bike paths, sidewalks) that will provide strong connectivity among neighborhoods and districts, is free of congestion, provides convenient transit opportunities, and greater safety for pedestrians and motorists.
The RTP also contains goals and policies aimed at energy reduction and the use of alternative forms of energy, which are as follows:
Public Transit Service:
Goal: Provide high quality, safe, reliable and cost-effective public transit services to county residents, especially to accommodate student, workforce, elderly and disabled needs.
Policy PT-2: Improve local and interregional transit
service
Objective:
Increase community outreach efforts to demonstrate the importance of
A&MRTS, ETS and RTS to the vitality of the community.
Objective:
Coordinate transportation services with other transportation providers
within the region.
PolicyPT-4: Promote coordination of transit service
route planning with land use policy, community planning and development
efforts.
Objective: Encourage the cities and the county to support
transit-friendly development.
Objective:
Work with the cities and the county to enhance pedestrian access to bus
stops.
Objective:
Encourage new development to provide unimpeded transit access and amenities
for transit riders.
Policy
PT-5: Promote intermodal transit
opportunities.
Objective: Make intermodal transfers as efficient
as possible, through coordinated transit planning and scheduling by public and
private transportation services entities.
Objective: Conduct a feasibility study for the
development of park-and-ride lots near population centers to encourage bus
ridership and carpooling
Bicycles and Pedestrian Facilities:
Goal: Create a transportation system that provides inter-community and intra-community non-motorized pedestrian, bicycle travel throughout the region.
BP-1 Policy: Develop a
cohesive system of regional bikeways that provides access to, and between,
major activity centers, public transportation, recreation, and other destinations,
and eliminate barriers to pedestrian and bicycle travel.
Objective: Construct and maintain contiguous sidewalks and designated bicycle routes within one mile of all public schools, and between transit stops and nearby public facilities (libraries, parks, and community centers).
BP-2 Policy: Encourage an interconnected transportation network.
Objective: Develop bicycle and pedestrian trail facilities in the region, through coordination among Humboldt County (Humboldt County General Plan), Caltrans, cities, non-profits, and other entities with planning responsibilities.
BP-5 Policy: Encourage bicycle-friendly designs for all streets and roadways, through new technologies, Òbest practicesÓ standards, guidelines, and innovative treatments on new roadways and multiuse paths.
Objective: Secure funding augmentations for roadway improvement projects to include bicycle and/or pedestrian facility improvements, such as bridges, roadway shoulder widening, and dedicated facilities for bicycle travel.
BP-9 Policy: HCAOG recognizes the high level of public support for provision of a dedicated bicycle and pedestrian facility between Arcata and Eureka.
Objective: Promote the study of alternatives for a dedicated facility
between Arcata and Eureka.
Objective: Continue to
support the multi-jurisdictional group of stakeholders, currently working to
identify constraints and opportunities to develop a multi-use trail facility in
NCRA corridor between Eureka and Arcata, under a National Park Service
Technical Assistance grant.
As stated above, state law has delegated the task of implementing a strategy to combat GHG emissions to CARB, and the response to that duty may include establishing uniform thresholds of significance for GHG emissions caused by local projects. Currently, there does not appear to be consensus in the scientific community as to when and under what circumstances a projectÕs incremental contribution to the global problem of climate change would be considered Òcumulatively considerable.Ó
Nevertheless, and in light of the emissions reductions goals of AB 32, it can be argued that implementation of this project may result in a cumulatively considerable contribution to the global problem. As discussed below, various mitigation measures have been incorporated into the project to sufficiently reduce any impact the project may have on global warming.
The county is prepared to implement a number of air quality improvement programs and emission reduction programs through the RTP that are designed to minimize operational emissions for the county and the air basin, all of which reduce GHG emissions.
Humboldt County is included in the North Coast Air Basin along with Del Norte, Trinity and Mendocino Counties. These counties operate as a unified special district, also called the North Coast Unified Air Quality Management District (NCUAQMD), which manages air resources in this mountainous, predominantly rural region.
Most major air pollutants in Humboldt County, especially for mobile sources, are well below levels that the state considers harmful. Sources of ozone precursor emissions are low enough that ozone smog does not rise to significant levels, even during periods of minimal air movement. The entirety of the North Coast Air Basin has been designated as "attainment" or "unclassified" for all criteria pollutants (carbon monoxide, ozone, sulfur oxides, and nitrogen dioxide) and is subject to "Prevention of Significant Deterioration" (PSD) permit procedures. Except for Redwood National Park, which is designated Class I (pristine), all of Humboldt County is designated as a Class II area (in attainment of the National Ambient Air Quality Standards).
Long term impacts on regional air quality are projected to increase at a slower rate than in the past, due to conversion to more efficient and lower emission vehicles, RTP plan policies and actions encouraging public transit use and conversion of transit vehicles to alternative fuels, and programs and improvements designed to increase bicycle and pedestrian system use.
Particulate Matter
Humboldt County is currently listed as non-attainment for PM10 by the CARB. This status continues to be impacted by the projected growth in region wide vehicle miles of travel (VMT) and population. PM10 is defined by the EPA as airborne particulate matter composed of multiple substances suspended in air in the form of particles that are less than 10 micrometers in diameter. They include both fine and coarse dust particles and are a health concern because they can pass through the nose and throat and get into the lungs. Potential effects of PM10 include increased asthma rates, increased rates of heart attacks and cardiovascular damage in adults, and decreased lung capacity, especially for children.
Table
EC-1 shows the expected level of increase in VMT and mobile emission levels if
no improvements are made to the existing transportation system.
Table EC-1: Projected
Emissions from Mobile Sources
|
Category |
Existing
Conditions (2005) |
Future
Conditions (2020) |
Percent Change |
|
Pollutant: |
*Tons Per Day |
*Tons Per Day |
|
|
Total Organic
Gasses |
8.706 |
3.915 |
-55% |
|
Carbon Monoxide |
68.253 |
30.293 |
-56% |
|
Oxides of Nitrogen |
15.308 |
7.13 |
-53% |
|
Oxides of Sulfur |
0.347 |
0.303 |
-13% |
|
Particulate Matter
< 10 microns |
0.782 |
0.615 |
-21% |
|
Particulate Matter
< 2.5 microns |
0.662 |
0.493 |
-26% |
|
*Emissions from natural
sources are excluded. |
|||
|
Data Compiled From: Air
Resources Board, 2006. |
|||
There
is currently a federal standard for the Fine Particulate Matter (PM2.5) pollutant, but no state standard for
California. The North Coast
Unified Air Quality Management District has been monitoring for this pollutant
since January 1999. The federal
EPA (http://www.epa.gov/oar/primer/timeline.htm) has provided the following
timeline for implementing the PM2.5 standards:
1998-2000 Monitors
for PM2.5 put in place nationwide.
1998-2000 Collect
monitoring data.
2002 EPA
completes 5-year scientific review of particulate matter standards.
2002-2005 EPA
designates areas.
2005-2008 States
submit plans to EPA outlining how they will meet PM2.5 standards. States needing reductions
begin implementing programs.
2012-2017 Following
designation, states may have up to twelve years under the Clean Air Act to meet
PM2.5 standards.
Based
on the timeline shown above, it is not known what control measures, if any,
will apply to Humboldt County.
However, reduced motor vehicle emissions are expected to reduce
emissions of fine particulate matter, and thereby support attainment and/or
maintenance of the federal PM2.5
standard.
Based
on the analysis of freeways, arterials and collectors, daily regional VMT is
expected to increase 28 percent between 2005 and 2020. This represents an average annual
increase of 1.9 percent on the CountyÕs state highway system. Although VMT is expected to increase
over time, the resulting emissions are predicted to decrease due to cleaner
vehicle emissions on the road by the year 2020.
Transportation
improvements from projects contained in the Action Element of the RTP will
further reduce emissions in the future as well as alleviate congestion in the
peak hours at peak locations.
In 2000, Congress enacted the State Wildlife Grants Program to support state programs that broadly benefit wildlife and habitats but particularly Òspecies of greatest conservation need.Ó As a requirement for receiving funding under this program, state wildlife agencies were to have submitted a Wildlife Action Plan (comprehensive wildlife conservation strategy) to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service in 2005. The California Department of Fish and Game (Fish and Game), working in partnership with the Wildlife Health Center, University of California, Davis, directed the development of this report, California Wildlife: Conservation Challenges, the stateÕs Wildlife Action Plan, and associated Web publications. Species identified in the Plan, for the north coast, are limited to marbled murrelet and coho salmon. Potential impacts to these listed species are considered in environmental documents prepared for transportation projects. The RTP identifies the regionÕs transportation needs and issues, sets forth an action plan of projects and programs to address the needs consistent with the adopted policies, and documents the financial resources needed to implement the plan. The programs and projects to be included in the RTP will be analyzed through development of a Program EIR. A more detailed or project level environmental assessment of the various projects included in the Plan will be conducted before the projects are constructed or implemented.