Air Pollution Control District Meeting of Wednesday, March 28, 2012 (Scheduled) 9:00 AM, 1055 Monterey St. (County Building)
Item C-2: Consideration of Proposed Greenhouse Gas Thresholds. This is a serious and destructive proposal, which if adopted, would require that the County and each of the cities incorporate certain greenhouse gas thresholds into their CEQA review process. If these jurisdictions do not accept the APCD version, they will have to include similar measurable and enforceable standards in their climate action plans.
By Way of review: The California Environmental Quality Act is a State law requiring cities and counties to assess the environmental impact of projects, consider alternatives, and require mitigations and/or abandonment of the project depending on the severity of the impacts. This proposal would add greenhouse gas thresholds to the list of 50 issues (such as water, sewer, garbage disposal, public safety, road adequacy, cultural resources, noise, etc.) that must be evaluated under CEQA.
Although CEQA does not specify standards, it requires that cities and counties must make a finding of “overriding consideration” if they approve a project that contains the most severe impacts (called Class One Impacts). Such findings must be based on solid facts. Thus, if the APCD promulgates standards (in this case greenhouse gas thresholds), the reviewing jurisdictions are trapped.
Proposed Standards: Projects that are projected to generate more than 1050 metric tons of CO2 (carbon dioxide) per year (each year for the life of the project) or more than 4.9 metric tons of CO2 per year per resident or employee would be subject to reduction, modification, or denial. In some cases the projects could buy their way out of noncompliance by means of mitigations. Projects that restrict cars, that are dense, and that are within urban centers, in effect, get bonus points.
A Phony Issue: This entire effort is designed to remove about 13,788 metric tons per year of CO2 from the environment by 2020. (This is the share of the overall reduction from all sectors attributed to new construction). The APCD estimates that if reductions are not achieved in all sectors (transportation, electric generation, residential fuel use, agriculture, etc., the total CO2 generation in Dan Luis Obispo County will be 2,506,982.99 by 2020, up from 2,304,333.03 in 2008. It should be noted that all this only achieves .55 of 1% of the overall reduction that the APCD says is necessary by 2020. All these figures are based on deductive “analyses” of larger statewide estimates, and some very convoluted and arcane reliance on derivative numbers. (See the analysis below, prepared by the Home Builders Association of the Central Coast (HBACC), which absolutely demolishes the credibility of the APCD).
APCD Has Fully Digested The Kool-Aid: The APCD report attempts to justify its recommendation on the basis of State mandates and international science and protocols. Thus it cites the California Global Warming Solutions Act (AB 32) and its companion legislation, SB 375 and AB 97. They also cite international sources as justification, including the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change, 2011-Essential Background>Basic Facts and Figures and United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change .2009. Article 2 of the UNFCCC.
Unbelievably, the APCD is governed by a Board composed of the five County supervisors and a representative city councilmember of each city. How could they let their staff run rampant? Instead, they should be defending us against this enviro-socialist attack on private property and freedom.
