Chapter 7.10
ACTIONS REQUIRED

Sections:

7.10.010    Findings and determinations.

7.10.020    District engineer authority.

7.10.030    Preparation of environmental documents.

7.10.040    Criteria for preliminary finding.

7.10.010 Findings and determinations.

The board shall make all findings and determinations required by this chapter except as hereinafter provided. It shall make all findings, determinations, and reports required by CEQA or the guidelines when the district is determined to be the lead agency. It shall make any required determinations as to whether a project, otherwise exempt, may have a significant effect upon the environment. (Ord. 8 Art. 3 § 1, 1977)

7.10.020 District engineer authority.

The district engineer shall have full authority to prepare or cause to be prepared by contract or otherwise any environmental document. He shall be responsible for implementing procedures for review of environmental documents submitted to the district by other public entities or jurisdictions.

The district engineer shall also have the authority to find and determine that projects executed by the district are exempt under Chapter 7.15 SCSDC. (Ord. 8 Art. 3 §§ 2, 3, 1977)

7.10.030 Preparation of environmental documents.

When the district plans to carry out or to approve or give financial support to a project which is subject to CEQA, which may have a significant effect on the environment, the EIR or negative declaration for the project shall be prepared directly by, or under contract to, the district, except in cases where the district is not the lead agency. The draft EIR or negative declaration which is sent out for public review must reflect the independent judgment of the district. (Ord. 8 Art. 3 § 4, 1977)

7.10.040 Criteria for preliminary finding.

In evaluating projects for exemption, the project must be found to have a significant effect on the environment if the project will result in creating any of the following impacts to a significant degree:

A. The project has the potential to degrade the quality of the environment, substantially reduce the habitat of a fish or wildlife species, cause a fish or wildlife population to drop below self-sustaining levels, threaten to eliminate a plant or animal community, reduce the number or restrict the range of a rare or endangered plant or animal or eliminate important examples of the major periods of California history or prehistory.

B. The project has the potential to achieve short-term environmental goals to the disadvantage of long-term environmental goals.

C. The project has possible environmental effects which are individually limited but cumulatively considerable. As used in the subsection, “cumulatively considerable” means that the incremental effects of an individual project are considerable when viewed in connection with the effects of past projects, the effects of other current projects, and the effects of probable future projects.

D. The environmental effects of a project will cause substantial adverse effects on human beings, either directly or indirectly. (Ord. 8 Art. 3 § 5, 1977)