Association of Environmental Professionals | San Diego Chapter
WINTER 2018
MESSAGE FROM THE BOARD by KATIE LAYBOURN, DUDEK As I move into my second year as the Student Membership and Outreach Director for San Diego AEP, I can reflect upon the many successes and lessons learned from the student workshop series I helped facilitate during 2017. I hope to build upon my experiences organizing these events to create an even more wide-reaching, varied, and successful workshop series that will continue to educate students and connect them with professional mentors in the environmental fields. The reason I became interested and ultimately ran for this AEP Board Member position was because this student programming provided me with invaluable educational, networking, and professionalism experiences when I was a student at USD. I first learned about CEQA and got great hands-on experience with document writing at the 2014 CEQA Practicum, without which I would have been oblivious to this career path. I attended several AEP Student Resume Workshops where I obtained valuable advice and guidance on how to bolster and tailor my resume to the specific jobs I was applying for. The 2014 Speed Networking workshop is where I met friendly and helpful professionals who then became my mentors, helped me navigate the San Diego environmental job search and interview process after graduation, provided me with the confidence to get job offers, and then became my colleagues and friends two years after first meeting them. I can say without a doubt, that I would not be where I am today with a great career and the amazing network of colleagues, mentors and friends without having attended the AEP Student Workshop events while in college. I hope that I can be an example for students to show them the importance of participating in these workshops and that putting themselves out there at these events can benefit them for the rest of their lives (both professional and personal). For the professionals who have participated in past AEP Student Workshop events, I want to express my gratitude for volunteering your time and providing such valuable advice and mentorship to students and young professionals! I ask you to please continue attending these events and encourage your colleagues who have not yet participated so we can continue inspiring and guiding students into environmental careers.
ENVIRONMENTOR
THE
The San Diego Chapter held elections for all one-year board positions during our online election campaign December 12 through 15. It is with pleasure that I introduce your 2018 SDAEP Board Members: Julia Norris, Chapter Director Corinne Lytle Bonine, Chapter President Thomas Strand, Vice President of Membership Chelsea Ohanesian, Vice President of Programs Lisa Maier, Vice President of Programs Katie Laybourn, Student Outreach Director Han Le, Treasurer Kassandra Nearn, Secretary Erin Murphey, Newsletter Editor We would like to congratulate our very own Laurel Lees who will be serving on the AEP State Board as Director-at-Large. Over the past five years, Laurel has been on the San Diego AEP Board as Newsletter Editor and Vice President of Membership. Thank you Laurel for all your help over the years within our local chapter and your continued dedication to AEP! Do you want to be more involved in Chapter events, but aren't ready for a Board position? No problem! We welcome you to take an active role with SDAEP! Whether it is a one-time commitment to a committee or a more permanent position, there many other ways you can actively participate outside of the Chapter Board: Present a luncheon topic Join the Awards Committee Volunteer at the Holiday Party Contribute an article to the newsletter
2018 BOARD ELECTION RESULTS
THE ENVIRONMENTOR, WINTER 2018| {{page}}
election results, 2018 Chapter Board by Corinne Lytle Bonine, Chambers Group
UPCOMING EVENTS
ADVANCED CEQA WORKSHOP FEBRUARY 22, 2018 FROM 9AM TO 5PM
@ Marina Village Conference Center, Captain's Room 1936 Quivira Way, San Diego, CA 92109 This year's Advanced CEQA Workshop will include topics regarding case law from 2017, housing & CEQA, Alternatives in EIRs, and the CEQA Guidelines Update. Breakfast and lunch will be served. Workshops are approved for AICP and MCLE credits.
STUDENT RESUME & NETWORKING WORKSHOP FEBRUARY 20, 2018 FROM 6 TO 8PM
@ Center for Sustainable Energy, 9325 Sky Park Court, Suite 100, San Diego, CA 92123 The Student Resume & Networking Workshop provides local students with an opportunity to have their resumes reviewed by San Diego environmental professionals and to hear about professionals’ experiences and best practices for resumes, cover letters, networking, and interviews. If you are interested in volunteering to provide advice and insights for students and young professionals, please email Katie Laybourn at sdaepstudentoutreach@gmail.com
ACROSS 2. 1972 court case: CEQA applies to all projects subject to public agency discretionary action; Friends of __________. 3. Statewide land use emissions computer model. 5. In 1997, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service listed _______ checkerspot butterfly as federally endangered throughout its range in southwestern California and northwestern Baja California. 6. New section in the Proposed Updates to the CEQA Guidelines. 7. Has the principal responsibility for carrying out or approving a project that is subject to CEQA. 8. Created a process to change the way that transportation impacts are analyzed under CEQA. 11. Statement of Overriding ___________. 13. File NOD ___ days after project approval. 14. Required alternative. 15. Need not be circulated for public review. DOWN 1. Conditions at time of NOP. 4. California law that provides relief of property tax to owners of farmland and open-space land in exchange for a ten-year agreement that the land will not be developed or otherwise converted to another use. 9. AB 52 provided guidance and requirements for this type of consultation. 10. Public agency for San Diego regional decision-making (abbrev.) 11. First state to develop a "mini-NEPA." 12. Environmental impacts checklist.
THE ENVIRONMENTOR, WINTER 2018 | {{page}}
CEQA CROSSWORD
And the winner is... AECOM! Congrats to AECOM for donating the most canned goods for the second year in a row!
HOLIDAY PARTY RECAP
From the San Diego Food Bank "Your commitment to fighting hunger is evident: your food drive brought in a total of 836 pounds of food that will allow the Food Bank to provide 697 meals to those in need. That is truly an amazing impact! Please extend our gratitude to all those who participated."
On November 2, 2017, AEP Lobbyist Matt Klopfenstein of Gonzalez, Quintana, Hunter & Cruz, LLC gave San Diego Chapter members a general overview of the 2017 legislative session, with a focus on environmental and CEQA-related legislation. Below are descriptions of a few CEQA-related bills and how they fared. SB 80 (Wieckowski): Vetoed by Governor Brown - New notice and filing requirements under CEQA. For all categorical exemptions, notice of determination is required to be filed with each impacted county (AEP lobbied for amendments to limit to just CatEx's - originally would have included everything). Concern was raised about the costs and complications with increased filings. SB 771 (De Leon): Held on the Assembly Floor - Requires continuing CEQA education and would apply to public agencies only. One employee must complete at least 2 hours every 2 years. AB 1404 (Berman): Held on Senate Appropriations Suspense File - Expands the Class 32 categorical exemptions to counties and unincorporated areas. Limited to residential and mixed-use projects. Directs OPR to update the guidelines to reflect the change. AB 246 (Santiago): Signed by Governor Brown - Extends AB 900 program for 2 years (expedited review for Environmental Leadership projects). Increases environmental standards to LEED Gold and requires a 15 percent greater standard for transportation efficiency than for comparable projects. AB 890 (Medina): Vetoed by Governor Brown - Delegates exclusive authority to City Council/County Supervisors to make certain land use decisions. Prevents the use of the initiative process to circumvent environmental review for large developments.
LEGISLATIVE UPDATE RECAP
INDEMNITY CLAUSES
To assist AEP members in identifying risks related to indemnity clauses, William Halligan, Esq. and Mike Coleman prepared prepared an issue paper to provide information on the use of indemnity clauses and basic advice to help reduce risk related to inappropriate indemnification clauses. The following has been summarized from the issue paper. Indemnification clauses are utilized to shift risk from one party to another. Commonly, the contractor is asked to assume liability of the client for claims and expenses rising from the service provider's work undertaken for the client. In concept, this seems reasonable in that the party performing the services should bear the risk related to their negligent performance of the work. However, in practice, some clients seek to shift additional risk that is beyond the control of the environmental professional or that extends beyond basic negligence-based liability. Some problematic language to watch out for includes: "Agents, representatives, subsidiaries, affliated companies, and lenders" - Watch for overly broad "additional parties" terms. Limit indemnified parties to your client, its office, directors, and employees. "Any and All" - The wording "any and all" is too broad and implies application of the indemnification to claims that may not relate to negligence. Lack of Negligence Standard - In order for any indemnification provision to be insurable, it must be tied to the Consultant's negligence. Look out for provisions that fail to include a reference to negligence. Lack of Proportional Liability - The phrase "in whole or in part" should be deleted because it creates a potential uninsured exposure.
Summarized from an issue paper by: William Halligan, Esq., AEP Executive Vice President Mike Coleman, Chapter Director, Monterey Bay Area Chapter
Erin Murphey serves as the Newsletter Editor for the San Diego Chapter. Originally from Tustin, California, Erin attended Cal Poly San Luis Obispo where she graduated with a Bachelor of Science in City and Regional Planning and a minor in Sustainable Environments. Erin interned at the City of San Clemente Planning Department during the Summer of 2013 where she was exposed to planning in the real world, and assisted with updating the City’s Housing Element and Downtown Parking Study. After graduating in 2014, Erin began her career as an environmental planner with AECOM in the Los Angeles office before transferring to the San Diego office in April 2016. At AECOM she writes CEQA documents and assists in environmental compliance. In her free time, Erin enjoys going to the beach, hanging out at breweries, working out at Orangetheory Fitness, and cheering on her favorite sports teams – boo for the Chargers leaving right when she got here! You’ve recently taken a position on the board. What made you want to get more involved and take a leadership position with AEP? When I moved to San Diego, I didn’t know anyone in the field except for my coworkers. AEP presents the opportunity to get to know other San Diego professionals which is invaluable. I also love being involved in planning of luncheons and events and coming up with content for the newsletter. What advice would you give a recent graduate or young professional? Make connections and use the ones you already have. Get involved in AEP, ask questions, and follow up. I have found that most people are willing to offer help or connect you to someone else that can help if you just ask. AEP is a major resource to get exposure to working professionals who were once in your shoes. What do you enjoy most about your work? What I enjoy most about my work is that I get to play a part in helping develop environmentally conscious projects. I also enjoy all the wonderful people I get to work with that have so much knowledge and expertise and are willing to help me learn. Another reason I enjoy what I do is that CEQA is always evolving with court cases and other updates changing how we approach our work, which keeps it exciting.
meet a board member: ERIN MURPHEY, AECOM
Late February or Early March Stay tuned: Details will be emailed out in the coming weeks! 2018 AEP Conference Save the date for AEP 2018: Earth, Wind, Fire & Rain at the Westin Mission Hills Resort & Spa in Rancho Mirage, California, March 25th-28th, 2018 Early registration ends February 9th. For more information visit the State AEP website.
Announcements
UC San Diego Extension’s Environment & Sustainability programs meet the growing demand for skilled professionals who can address the challenges of sustainable development. Our programs provide cutting-edge training in areas of sustainability, environmental management, urban planning, facilities management, behavior change, sustainability science, and energy and waste management. In addition to the CEQA Practice Certificate, UC San Diego Extension's Environment & Sustainability programs offered Spring 2018 include Air Quality Compliance, Introduction to Sustainability, Conservation Psychology, Sustainability Leadership, and Writing Effective CEQA Documents. Enrollment for Spring 2018 courses opens February 2nd. For more information visit the UC San Diego Extension website Los Peñasquitos Canyon Restoration Project Help restore the native habitat of Los Penasquitos Canyon Preserve. Every third Saturday of the month the City of San Diego Parks and Recreation Department organizes volunteers to assist in the removal of non-native plant species to enhance native plant species recruitment, erosion control, and moisture retention within the biotic communities. For more information and to sign up visit the City of San Diego Volunteer website.
California Fish and Game Commission Designates Foothill Yellow-Legged Frog a Candidate Species under California Endangered Species Act (California) June 27: The California Fish and Game Commission (Commission) accepted for consideration a petition from the Center for Biological Diversity (CBD) to list the foothill yellow-legged frog (Rana boylii) as a threatened species under the California Endangered Species Act (CESA). This species occurs in partially shaded, rocky perennial streams and rivers at low to moderate elevations in Pacific Coast drainages as well as the lower western slopes of the Sierra Nevada mountains. The species has disappeared from more than half of their historically occupied locations, and is extirpated from all of southern California south of San Luis Obispo County. By accepting the petition for consideration, the species is now designated as a candidate species under the CESA. The California Department of Fish and Wildlife (CDFW) will have one year to prepare a status review to determine if listing of the species is warranted; the Commission will then consider CDFW’s recommendations to make a final determination regarding the petitioned listing. According to CBD’s petition, primary threats to the species include: habitat alteration and destruction from dams, water development and diversions; logging; marijuana cultivation; mining; roads and urbanization; recreation; off-road vehicles; and impacts from invasive species, disease, climate change, and pollution. The CDFW prepared an evaluation of the petition to list the species, which is available here. Washington Fish and Wildlife Commission Rules on Protective Status for Eight Species (Washington) September 8/9: The Washington Fish and Wildlife Commission considered Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife’s (WDFW) recommendation to list the yellow-billed cuckoo (Coccyzus americanus) as state endangered, to elevate the status for loggerhead sea turtle (Caretta caretta) from threatened to endangered, and to maintain the endangered listing status for the Pacific fisher (Pekania pennanti) and five whale species (blue whale [Balaenoptera musculus], fin whale [B. physalus], sei whale [B. borealis], North Pacific right whale [Eubalaena japonica], and sperm whale [Physeter macrocephalus]). Meetings were held on August 4th and 5th to take public comment on these considerations. During their September 8th/9th meeting, the Washington Fish and Wildlife Commission approved WDFW’s recommendations. Of note, the yellow-billed cuckoo has been considered a candidate for state listing in Washington since 1991. Status reviews for these species prepared by WDFW are available here. U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service Designates Sonoyta Mud Turtle as Endangered (Arizona) September 20: The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) designated the Sonoyta mud turtle (Kinosternon sonoriense longifemorale) as endangered under the federal Endangered Species Act. This subspecies of the Sonoran mud turtle (K. sonoriense) occurs in southern Arizona and northwestern Mexico and depends on aquatic habitat with adjacent terrestrial habitat. In the United States, the species is now known only from a single reservoir (i.e., Quitobaquito Springs) in the Organ Pipe Cactus National Monument. USFWS states the primary threat to the species is continued loss of water that supports aquatic and riparian habitat resulting primarily from groundwater pumping, drought, changes to wastewater infrastructure, consumption by livestock, surface water diversion, and habitat manipulation. USFWS’s final listing rule available here. Mining Project Seeks Eagle Take Permit for Removal of Nesting Locations (Nevada) September 22: The USFWS published a Notice of Intent (NOI) to prepare a joint Environmental Impact Statement with the Bureau of Land Management that will consider potential impacts associated with issuance of an eagle take permit for the Hycroft Mine, located in Pershing and Humboldt Counties, Nevada. The project proponent, Hycroft Resource and Development Inc., has prepared an Eagle Conservation Plan describing their request to remove three inactive golden eagle (Aquila chrysaetos) nests and their request for incidental take authorization for impacts associated with nest removal, mining operations, and expansion of the existing facility. According to USFWS’s NOI, the removal of the nests would likely affect two different golden eagle breeding territories. USFWS’s NOI is available here. California Fish and Game Commission Designates Cascades Frog a Candidate Species (California) October 17: The Commission accepted for consideration a petition from the CBD to list the Cascades frog (Rana cascadae) as an endangered or threatened species under the CESA. This species occurs in lakes, ponds, wet meadows, and streams at moderate to high elevations in the Cascades Range. Cascades frogs are now extirpated from most of their former range in the state. In California, the species currently persists in mountainous areas from the Klamath-Trinity region and the Cascades Mountain axis in the vicinity of Mount Shasta, southward to the headwater tributaries of the Feather River. By accepting the petition for consideration, the species is now designated as a candidate species under the CESA. CDFW will have one year to prepare a status review to determine if listing of the species is warranted; the Commission will then consider CDFW’s recommendations to make a final determination regarding the petitioned listing. According to CBD’s petition, primary threats to the species include: nonnative fish that have been introduced to formerly fishless lakes; pathogens, including a particularly virulent strain of Batrachochytrium dendrobatidis which causes the disease chytridiomycosis in amphibians; pesticides; climate change; fire suppression; habitat loss from vegetation management and timber harvest; livestock grazing, impacts from recreational activities; and reduced viability due to small population sizes. The CDFW prepared an evaluation of the petition to list the species, which is available here. U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service Seeks Comments on 2016 Mitigation Policies (Nationwide) November 6: The USFWS requested public comment related to mitigation planning goals in their existing Mitigation Policy and Endangered Species Act Compensatory Mitigation Policy. Both of these policies were developed in 2016 to comply with directives from the Obama Administration that instructed federal agencies to establish a net benefit goal or, at a minimum, a no net loss goal for mitigation of natural resources. The directives established by the Obama Administration were rescinded in March 2017 by Executive Order 13783 (Promoting Energy Independence and Economic Growth) and Secretary of Interior’s Order 3349 on American Energy Independence. These 2017 directives now instruct the Department of the Interior to reexamine mitigation policies and practices to better balance conservation strategies and policies with job creation. Public comments on the mitigation policies will be accepted until January 5, 2018. USFWS’s notice is available here.
Protected Species Update Volume 3, Issue 3 June 15 – December 31, 2017 by Mark Roll, esa
Protected Species Update (continued)
SDAEPBoard@califaep.org President Corinne Lytle Bonine Chambers Group clytle-bonine@chambersgroupinc.com Co-Vice Presidents of Programs Chelsea Ohanesian AECOM chelsea.ohanesian@aecom.com Lisa Maier ESA LMaier@esassoc.com Vice President of Membership Thomas Strand Chambers Group tstrand@chambersgroupinc.com Treasurer Han Le hanle.729@gmail.com Secretary Kassandra Nearn County of San Diego Kassandra.Nearn@sdcounty.ca.gov Student Membership and Outreach Director Katie Laybourn DUDEK klaybourn@dudek.com Chapter Director Julia Norris Aarcher jnorris@aarcherinc.com Newsletter Editor Erin Murphey AECOM erin.murphey@aecom.com
Text
Contact the Newsletter Editor at: sdaepnews@gmail.com
SOCIAL MEDIA
Chapter Contacts
2018 chapter BOARD
