3A Public Hearing 2010 0503 - Laserfiche WebLink

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Construction -Period Air Quality In December of 2009, the BAAQMD issued its most recent draft update to its CEQA Guidelines and Thresholds of Significance. Although these Draft CEQA Thresholds and Guidelines are not yet approved, it is anticipated they will be adopted in the near future. Thus, the DEIR includes a comparative review against these newly proposed (but not yet adopted) thresholds for air quality. Construction activities associated with the proposed project would cause emissions of dust or contaminants from equipment exhaust that could contribute to existing air quality violations or expose sensitive receptors to pollutant concentrations. This would be a temporary but potentially significant impact. Mitigation: To reduce particulate matter emissions during the project's demolition and construction phases, the project sponsors shall require the construction contractors to comply with a set of feasible dust control and diesel -powered equipment emission control measures for all construction activities to minimize dust and equipment exhaust emissions. (MMAQ-1) Implementation of these mitigation measures would reduce the impacts from construction dust and equipment exhaust, but construction emissions would still exceed the Draft BAAQMD thresholds. Therefore, this impact would remain significant and unavoidable. Operational Air Emissions The proposed project would create new sources of air pollutants, primarily mobile source emissions from vehicle trips that would contribute substantially to regional air quality pollution. Mitigation: To address this impact the EIR requires Kaiser to implement a Transportation Demand Management (TDM) program with the objective of reducing the number of drive -alone automobile trips to the Kaiser Medical Center and to the Mixed -Use Retail Development. The Kaiser Medical Center TDM program requires a reduction in vehicle trips associated with the Kaiser Medical Center by approximately 10 to 15 percent. (MMA Q-2) This TDM program would result in trip reductions, but would not be sufficient to reduce the project's air emissions to a less -than -significant level. Despite these measures, pollutant emissions would remain significant and unavoidable. Greenhouse Gas (GHG) Emission The proposed project would emit greenhouse gases during construction and operation that would exceed the Draft BAAQMD thresholds. As such, the proposed project would have a significant impact on the environment. • Mitigation: Both the Kaiser Medical Center and the Mixed -Use Retail Development would implement several green building practices that would reduce GHG emissions (MM CC -1). Some of the construction -oriented green building features derived from the Green Guide for Healthcare standards that Kaiser may implement, where feasible and practical, include conducting enhanced energy commissioning activities during Planning Commission Staff Report April 22, 2010 Kaiser Permanente San Leandro Medical Center and Mixed Use Retail Development Project Page 6 of 28