Tag Archives: CEQA and NEPA

Best Practices You Need to Know for Effective CEQA Public Noticing

Noticing is sometimes seen as the easy part of CEQA, but the CEQA public noticing process is an alphabet soup of categories and acronyms that isn’t clearly laid out in a single resource. In addition, it’s helpful to be familiar with case law that provides guidance on legally defensible notification, as well as with other

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2018 CEQA Guidelines Update

The 2018 California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) Guidelines Update has been finalized and are found in the California Code of Regulations Section 15000 et seq. In the Final Statement of Reasons, the Natural Resources Agency organized the changes into three categories: Efficiency Substantive Improvements Technical Improvements Efficiency Using Regulatory Standards in the CEQA Process The

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AB 73 Effects on the CEQA Process for Housing Projects

California passed 15 bills designed to address the state’s housing problems, including solutions to streamline housing approvals, enact inclusionary housing requirements for residential rental projects, and generate funds for affordable housing projects. Three bills–-SB 35, SB 540, and AB 73–-have the greatest effect on the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) process for housing projects. This

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SB 540 Effects on the CEQA Process for Housing Projects

In 2017, California passed 15 bills designed to address the state’s housing problems, including solutions to streamline housing approvals, enact inclusionary housing requirements for residential rental projects, and generate funds for affordable housing projects. Three bills–SB 35, SB 540, and AB 73–have the greatest effect on the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) process for housing

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SB 35 Effects on the CEQA Process for Housing Projects

In 2017, California passed 15 bills designed to address the state’s housing problems, including solutions to streamline housing approvals, enact inclusionary housing requirements for residential rental projects, and generate funds for affordable housing projects. Three bills—SB 35, SB 540, and AB 73—have the greatest effect on the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) process for housing

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4 Keys to Managing CEQA for California’s First LEED Platinum-Certified Hospital

Kaiser Permanente’s ambitious goal for a new 450-bed hospital included LEED Platinum Certification and becoming a valued neighborhood resource. The new medical campus was recently named the Best Healthcare Project in California in 2017 by Engineering News Record. “When you’re building a hospital, it’s like building a mini-city,” said Shawn Shamlou, AICP, Dudek’s CEQA Principal

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Comprehensive Document Management Facilitates Efficient Environmental Review

Even if scientifically sound and technically accurate, an unclear or disorganized environmental document can slow or halt a project’s success. A publications team that integrates editors, word processors, and graphic designers can provide comprehensive review and document management to help craft a well-written, accessible document that facilitates efficient, cost-effective environmental review and reflects well on

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Collaborative Approach Yields Success for Complex EIR/EIS

The U.S. Forest Service (USFS) and California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC) recently completed a complex, nearly 4-year process to craft an EIR/EIS that addresses the combined issuance of 70 separate permits for SDG&E’s electric facilities located in the 800-square-mile Cleveland National Forest (CNF) within San Diego and Orange Counties. The document also analyzes the combined

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Proposed CDFW Bird Nest Regulations Carry CEQA Analysis Implications

California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) analyses could become more involved under the California Department of Fish and Wildlife’s (CDFW) proposed changes to its existing regulations protecting the nests of birds of prey and California native birds. Changes to the California Fish and Game Code (FGC) regulations would formalize the interpretations that the CDFW has traditionally

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