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AB 972 (Calderon) became effective October 13, 2001. This bill changed the Preliminary Endangerment Assessment (PEA) public review and approval process. These changes are not yet reflected on this website. Please contact the SFPD representative assigned to your county, or the DTSC, for more information on the effects of AB 972. This website is being updated to reflect the changes made by AB 972 and AB 1367 (Wiggins). AB 1367 takes effect on January 1, 2002.
The following agencies are commonly involved in the CEQA review process:
The DOTP Intergovernmental Review/CEQA branch determines whether:
- Your proposal is likely to have an impact on the State transportation system, any of its facilities, or local traffic, or pedestrian circulation.
- Construction or other activity will affect Caltrans rights of way or utility easements.
- The proposal is consistent with the division's transportation plans for your region.
- There is potential for noise impacts from existing transportation systems.
Your district should consult with the DOTP regarding major local arterials and public transit within five miles of the proposed school, and freeways, highways, and rail transit service within ten miles.
Local CHP field commands will respond when they identify issues raised by construction or expansion of a school facility. When the CHP identifies significant issues, the CHP staff will work with your district to resolve potential concerns.
Local and regional air districts are responsible for reviewing environmental impact documents. Air districts regulate emissions from stationary sources such as boilers, steam generators, and diesel-fueled engines through a system of permits, inspections, monitoring, and related compliance activities. Each air district determines which emission sources and levels must be regulated to ensure attainment and maintenance of health-based State and Federal ambient air quality standards. For more information, please contact the ARB.
The OEHHA advises and assists regulatory agencies in assessing health risks that may exist at potential school sites. Current OEHHA activates include:
- Developing guidelines for the protection of children from air pollution and air toxics, as required by recent legislation. Many of these toxic chemicals may be found on school sites.
- Developing long-term guidelines for health-risk assessments that focus specifically on school children.
- Assisting in an upcoming study of environmental conditions in portable classrooms to be conducted by the Air Resources Board (ARB) and the Department of Health Services (DHS).
During CEQA consideration of a potential school site, the OEHHA assists in evaluating health risks posed to children at the site from one or more of the following:
- Nearby industrial facilities that emit toxic air contaminants
- Pesticide drift from neighboring agricultural areas
- Hazardous substances in the soil and/or groundwater
- Naturally occurring hazards such as asbestos or radon in the soil
Your school district can hire an environmental assessor registered with the OEHHA to conduct the required environmental reviews of your district's proposed school construction site. You can find additional information on the Registered Environmental Assessor (REA) Program on its website at http://www.dtsc.ca.gov/REA/.
The SMMC acquires land for open space, park, recreation, and conservation purposes within the greater Los Angeles-Ventura Counties metropolitan area (including the Santa Monica Mountains, Santa Susana Mountains, Verdugo Mountains, San Rafael Hills, the Rim of the Valley Trail Corridor, and the Los Angeles River Parkway and tributaries). The SMMC also implements and maintains the Santa Monica Mountains Comprehensive Plan.
The SMMC could interact with a public school project in three ways:
- Commenting in the CEQA process or otherwise regarding the impacts of a school siting or construction decision
- Pursuing, as a conservation site, a site desired for a school
- Assisting in co-locating park, recreation, or outdoor education programs at a school site
If asked to do so, the OHP may comment on a public school construction project because the project:
- Raises concerns about potential historical resources
- May affect an historical resource of regional or statewide significance
- May raise issues about historical resources that the OHP could help to clarify
The Department of Parks and Recreation and the OHP encourage school districts to contact local organizations with an interest in historical resources (including buildings and archeological properties), as early in the CEQA process as possible. In addition, school districts should consult with the OHP whenever issues arise pertaining to the consideration of historical resources.
Because schools are usually built in or adjacent to urbanized areas, school construction most often does not affect species listed as endangered or protected. If the final construction design might affect any State-listed endangered or threatened species of plant or animal, your school district must apply for an Incidental Take Permit under the Fish and Game Code. This permit allows the project to proceed, as well as to avoid or fully mitigate any impact to the listed species. If school construction potentially could affect a lake or stream, your school district must apply for a Streambed Alteration Agreement. The DFG will work with your district to help locate construction to avoid impacts on protected species and their habitats.
You can obtain locations of threatened and endangered species from the Natural Diversity Database by calling 916.322.2493 or 916.324.3812.
The DOGGR:
- Regulates, inspects, and issues permits for the drilling, maintenance, production, and plugging of oil, gas, and geothermal wells
- Reviews building plans to determine if wells in construction areas (including those plugged previously) are plugged according to modern standards
The DOGGR interacts with school districts during the planning, design, and construction phases of a school construction project. The DOGGR will:
- Perform a site review of the potential school site.
- Research well records for the site.
- Issue an opinion when the review is complete.
The DOGGR also offers technical information and publications on meeting well safety requirements, as well as the location of abandoned wells and recommendations for re-abandonment or avoidance.
At sites where geologic or earthquake hazards are a consideration, the DMG provides recommendations and information for safe school sites and building design. In some cases, the DMG has found a school district's environmental document inadequate because it complete misses the presence of serious, sometimes well-known, seismic hazards. The DMG corrected these oversights and provided the school districts with seismic design parameters and general literature for designing safe public schools.
The DMG also serves under contract as an advisor to the Division of the State Architect (DSA) in geology and seismology. The DMG reviews only those consulting, engineering, geology, and geotechnical reports forwarded by the DSA during DSA plan review.
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