Agmt 2008 California State Coastal Conservancy

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i ~ •• recommendation refers to 22 treatment sites. However, after the June authorization, one of the 22 sites was split into 2 sites for ease of treatment management while another site dropped out bringing the total again to 22 sites (the original treatment sites). On May 24, 2007, the Conservancy authorized a redirection of funds for treatment activities along the Petaluma River (see Exhibit 9, May 24, 2007 Staff Recommendation), thus resulting in 23 treatment sites for 2007. The North San Pablo Bay site has been added as a new treatment site for 2008, increasing the total to 24 treatment sites for 2008. The Conservancy's June 16, 2005 authorization (Exhibit 2) included consideration and review of the site specific plans for each of the 22 original treatment sites for activities through 2007. The May 24, 2007 authorization (Exhibit 3) included consideration and review of the one-year site-specific plan for treatment of the Petaluma River site. Based on this information, staff recommended and the Conservancy found that the environmental effects associated with each of these treatment projects and the required mitigation to reduce those effect to less than significant level had been fully considered under the Conservancy-certified (See Exhibit 1) programmatic "Final Programmatic Environmental Impact Staternent/Environmental Impact Report, San Francisco Estuary Invasive Spartina Project: Spartina Control Program" (FEIS/R) prepared for the ISP Control Program pursuant to the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) and that no new mitigation measures were required. The three-year updated site-specific plans and mitigation matrices for activities through 2010 for all of these 23 sites (original treatment sites plus Petaluma River site) are attached (See Exhibit 8). These plans have not changed substantially in nature, extent, duration or scope since 2005 for the original treatment sites, and since 2007 for the Petaluma River site, with the exception of some additional sub-areas added as new plants were found. Overall, treatment and potential impacts are reduced because of successful treatment in the prior three years. Since the projects, including potential environmental effects and mitigation measures, remain unchanged, the proposed authorization remains consistent with the CEQA finding adopted by the Conservancy in connection with the June 16, 2005 authorization for the 22 original treatment sites and with the May 24 2007 authorization for the Petaluma River site. No further environmental documentation for these treatment activities is .required. The ISP will coordinate one new site-specific treatment and control project, the aforementioned North San Pablo Bay site, for which asite-specific plan and mitigation matrix, identifying the potential impacts and necessary mitigation measures associated with the site-specific activities, have been prepared (Exhibits 6 and 7). This project likewise falls under the FEIS/R. The FEIS/R was adopted by the Conservancy through its September 25, 2003 resolution certifying the EIR (Exhibit 1) and is available for review at the offices of the Conservancy and at http://www.spartina.org/project.htm. The FEIS/R is a programmatic Environmental Impact Report (Section 15168 of the CEQA Guidelines, 14 Cal. Code of Regulations, Sections 15000 et seq., hereafter "Guidelines") in that it analyzes the potential effects of implementing treatment methods for a regional program rather than the impacts of a single individual project. This program-level EIS/R identifies mitigation measures that will be applied to reduce or ~~~~~~