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<br />7A - ATTACHMENT NO.2 <br />Page 3 <br /> <br />The permitting authority of agencies other than the City is generally established by <br />statute. In exercising that discretion, each agency must operate within the confines of the <br />jurisdiction provided to it by enabling legislation or policies. Some of this legislation <br />provides the agencies with discretion to consider a range of issues <br /> <br />The following agencies have particularly noteworthy permitting authority over the <br />Saltworks proposal: <br /> <br />· US Army Corps of Engineers ("US ACE") - permit under Clean Water Act <br />section 404 and under Rivers and Harbors Act section 10 to dredge, fill or <br />obstruct waters of the United States. <br /> <br />This permit is noteworthy because of uncertainty regarding the extent of <br />US ACE jurisdiction over the site. DMB has proposed to US ACE an approach <br />that would, solely for purposes of the permitting process under Section 404 of <br />the Clean Water Act and Section 10 of the Rivers and Harbors Act, presume <br />that jurisdiction extends over the whole of the site, including over salt <br />production facilities interior to the site. Under this approach, the focus would <br />shift from determining the extent of USACE jurisdiction, to determining the <br />values and functions of jurisdictional features on the site, and developing <br />appropriate mitigation to compensate for impacts to such values and functions. <br />Other important agencies involved in the permit process include the United <br />States Environmental Protection Agency ("USEP A") and the San Francisco <br />Bay Regional Water Quality Control Board ("RWQCB"). <br /> <br />· San Francisco Bay Conservation and Development Commission ("BCDC") _ <br />major development permit under San Francisco Bay Plan. <br /> <br />Policies set forth in BCDC's enabling legislation, and in BCDC's adopted "San <br />Francisco Bay Plan," provide BCDC with discretion regarding whether, and on <br />what terms, to issue a permit to the Saltworks project. These policies also <br />provide BCDC with discretion regarding the process that must be followed in <br />connection with a proposal to convert salt ponds to other uses, as DMB <br />proposes. If the City decides to move forward with the environmental review <br />process, we recommend collaborating with BCDC to ensure that its policies are <br />addressed and that the City's planning process meets BCDC's expectations. <br /> <br />Given the size, location, history, and unique character of the site, the permitting <br />process may be challenging. Nonetheless, we have not identified any permits that appear <br />to be facially unattainable. <br /> <br />3 <br />