Vast Majority of Coastal Estuaries Washed Away, Paved Over
Using a first-of-its-kind mapping technology, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) found that 85 percent of coastal estuaries along the West Coast have been destroyed by development. The NOAA study, the most detailed coastal estuary research ever conducted, combined efforts from eight government and environmental science labs and compared results with historic digital water elevation models. The resulting data found that nearly 750,000 acres along the coasts of Washington, Oregon, and California have been diked, drained, or cut off from the sea. Notably, the data showed that the largest losses have occurred in California. For example, along the Sacramento-San Joaquin River delta, 96.8 percent of the more than 380,000 acres of vegetated wetlands is gone. Researchers also found that only 15 percent of the historic San Francisco Bay marshland habitat remains. The most pristine estuary remaining in California is Drakes Estero in Marin County, which has lost only 2.7 percent of historical tidal habitat. Scientists hope that this data will open new avenues for restoration, as well as identify low-lying areas most at risk of flooding from seas. “Given how valuable estuaries are to so many different species, it’s important to understand how much they have changed and what that means for fish and wildlife that depend on them,” Laura Brophy, director of the estuary technical group at the Oregon Institute for Applied Ecology and the lead author of the study, told the San Francisco Chronicle.
Insurers Flee from Homes in Fire-Prone Areas
Nearly 350,000 Californian homeowners have been dropped by their insurance providers in the wake of two deadly fire seasons, according to new data released by Insurance Commissioner Ricardo Lara’s staff. The data showed that the number of Californians dropped by insurance has increased by 6 percent in the last year alone, and by an average of 10 percent in the areas affected by 2018 fires. Remarkably, in the high-risk Nevada County, insurance providers dropped 38 percent of homeowners from their plans. And the staff anticipates that these numbers will grow: many insurance providers will likely wait until homeowner’s insurance is due to expire before discontinuing coverage. The commissioner’s staff also found that changing insurance providers will be costly: new premiums from non-traditional providers or the California FAIR plan will likely double or triple insurance costs. Lara told the Sacramento Bee that he is working with lawmakers on a proposal to require insurers to guarantee renewals if homeowners reduce risk in their homes. He also plans to fight for state insurance subsidies for low-income rural Californians. “We need to take proactive steps to protect our consumers,” he said, according to the Sacramento Bee.
Environmental Groups Sue to Support Endangered Species Act
In the first legal response to the Trump Administration’s recent rollback of protections under the Endangered Species Act, seven environmental and animal protection groups filed a federal lawsuit in the U.S. District Court. The suit, filed by the nonprofit Earthjustice on behalf of several groups, argues that the administration violated the National Environmental Policy Act by failing to analyze the effects of the new rules. They also claim that the administration unreasonably changed requirements that might have prevented changes to protect listed species. Under the administration’s changes, officials will have to publicly attach a cost to saving an animal or plant and blanket protections for newly listed species will be removed. A spokesperson for the U.S. Department of Interior criticized the lawsuit, claiming that the groups “seek to weaponize the Endangered Species Act”. But advocates of the Act claim that the lawsuit is a necessary bid to maintain crucial protections. “In the midst of an unprecedented extinction crisis, the Trump Administration is eviscerating our most effective wildlife protection law,” Rebecca Riley, Legal Director of the nature program at the Natural Resources Defense Council, told the Los Angeles Times.
PPIC: Support for Environment Slips Slightly but Still Strong
The Public Policy Institute of California (PPIC) released its latest “Californians and the Environment” report, revealing strong – yet slightly declining – statewide support for major environmental policy proposals. For instance, survey results show that an overwhelming majority of Californians (75 percent of adults, 76 percent of likely voters) favor requiring all automakers to reduce the emissions of greenhouse gases from new cars. This comes just after last months’ agreement between California lawmakers and four major automakers to adopt more-stringent carbon emission reduction goals that contradict federal standards. Still, this majority has declined somewhat since the question was first asked in 2002, when responses revealed 81 percent adults, 79 percent. Similarly, support for changing land use and transportation planning so people can drive less remains high (74 percent, 68 percent), but this number has also dropped in the past 10 years: when the question was first asked in 2008, 81 percent of adults and 79 percent of likely voters favored this policy. In both cases, this change may come down to stronger partisan polarization: for instance, Democrats (87 percent) are nearly twice as likely today to support changing land use and transportation planning as Republicans (45 percent). PPIC’s surveys also found majority support for specific policies like SB 32 (67 percent, 63 percent) and for SB 50 (62 percent, 53 percent).
United Nations Recommends Addressing Climate Change via Land Use
Land use planning will be central to combatting global warming, according to the most recent United Nations’ Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) Report. The report examines how land and its uses can either exacerbate or mitigate the major effects of global warming. The report notes the abundant opportunity for the land to reduce the effects of greenhouse gas emissions, because forests can reabsorb the carbon dioxide that human activities emit. Additionally, the report outlines opportunity to develop new agricultural approaches to both feed a growing population and and minimize the use of natural resources. The report cites a 2017 study, which concluded that land-based climate solutions could deliver a third of the greenhouse gas reductions needed by 2030 to keep the world on track to the meet the goals of the Paris accord. The report notes that forests are already absorbing 22 percent of carbon from human emissions – and future land use planning has the “We’re currently getting a free subsidy from nature on our economic activities,” said Louis Verchot, a forester at the International Center for Tropical Agriculture in Palmira, Colombia, who helped write the report. “[The report] tells us that the land is already doing a lot of service for us, but also that we can do a lot with land."
Quick Hits & Updates
In the latest in a growing statewide trend toward rent control measures, the Culver City City Council approved a temporary rent control measure to boost tenant protections. In a 4-1 vote, the Council capped increases to three percent in buildings built on or before February 5, 1995. Tenants in these properties will also have just-cause rights, meaning that they can’t be evicted without reasonable conditions. This measure is a temporary, year-long stay while the council debates a more permanent measure.
Backers of a 2020 ballot measure to reform Proposition 13 opted to support a new tax plan that they believe has a better chance of passing. Proposition 13, a 1978 measure that places limits on property taxes statewide, has faced criticism for starving local municipalities of much-needed tax revenue. However, instead of moving to dramatically change the measure by removing limits on all properties, backers have opted to support a bill that eliminates limits on taxation for most high-dollar commercial and industrial businesses and land.
Following a growing number of cities to adopt rent caps, the Sacramento City Council approved a temporary rent control and tenant protection measure. In homes built before February 1, 1995, the Sacramento Tenant Protection and Relief Act will cap rent increases at six percent per year, prohibit landlords from evicting tenants without just cause, and create a process for reporting any undue evictions. To stave off potentially hasty evictions, the council also moved the effective date for the act from October 12 to September 12.
A coalition of 21 states led by California Governor Gavin Newson sued the Trump Administration for easing restrictions on coal-fired power plants. In June, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency eliminated the agency’s Clean Power Plan and replaced it with a new plan with looser restrictions for deciding upgrades for such power plants. The coalition’s lawsuit, filed in the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit, argues that the new rule violates the federal Clean Air Act because it doesn’t meaningfully replace power plants’ greenhouse gas emissions.
Long commutes in California can be explained by high land use and housing costs, according to a recent analysis published by the Journal of Transport Geography. Researchers used the 2012 California Household Travel Survey to examine “long commutes”, or commutes over 50 miles one way. Their analysis finds that the probability of a household decreases with an increase in the job-housing ratio, and with the median home value of the area where the household resides. In other words, people commute long distances because they can’t afford to live in higher-cost, job-rich areas. The report highlights the importance of providing affordable housing and mixed development options to mitigate the environmental impacts of long-distance commuting.
The California Department of Housing and Community Development announced its first Planning Grants Program awards, totaling more than $2.3 million to local governments that are working to streamline housing approvals and accelerate housing production. Awardees include nine cities: Shasta Lake, Woodland, Long Beach, Monterey, Gonzales, San Jacinto, Banning, Redlands, and Folsom. The Planning Grants Program was created in 2018 under Senate Bill 2, which provides funding to plan for housing, implement plans, and create processes to accelerate approvals and production.
The Department of Housing and Community Development approved Claremont’s Housing Element, the seventh city to gain state approval of its Housing Element since Governor Gavin Newsom met with mayors of noncompliant cities in February. To reach compliance, Claremont rezoned eight areas for multifamily development, opening the potential for 200 affordable apartments. The city also adopted a homeless services plan. Under state law, 41 cities remain noncompliant with housing plan standards.
Twenty-four Sacramento transportation projects received nearly $56 million after the Sacramento Area Council of Governments board unanimously approved the 2019 funding round. The award will cover transportation projects at various stages of implementation: from repairing existing infrastructure, to bringing funds to already-approved projects, to supporting ongoing planning and project development. Projects include street repair, transit repair, and light rail modernization projects in cities across the region.
A U.S. District judge dropped four of five south Orange County cities from a lawsuit filed on behalf of homeless people and three local advocacy groups. The original lawsuit, filed by advocacy groups in February against San Clemente, Aliso Viejo, Dana Point, Irvine, and San Juan Capistrano, argues that those cities have not done enough to provide homeless services, and have violated constitutional rights by criminalizing homelessness. However, the judge ruled that multiple claims against separate municipalities cannot be filed together, and kept only San Clemente as a defendant in the current suit.
In the largest employee ethics fine in Los Angeles city history, former L.A. Department of City Planning Director Michael LoGrande is facing a $281,250 fine for lobbying elected officials. In the ongoing investigation into his leadership of the department, LoGrande admitted to violating the city’s “revolving door law” by lobbying fellow planning department officials for clients of his former land use consulting firm LoGrande & Co. LoGrande resigned in 2016 after five years in charge of the department. The fine, which LoGrande has agreed to pay, still has to be approved by the city’s Ethics Commission.
The Department of Housing and Community Development announced the SB 2 Planning Grants Technical Assistance Accelerating Housing Production webpage. On this page, cities and counties will find resources, tools, and California's first-ever, statewide peer-to-peer sharing map. The new page is designed to help cities and counties accelerate housing production and streamline housing approvals.
After an in-depth review of the tricolored blackbird, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service determined that the species does not warrant listing under the Endangered Species Act (ESA). In recent years, advocates of the species, found throughout much of California and parts of Oregon, Washington and Nevada, have raised concerns about its long-term conservation. However, after an extensive review, the Service determined that the Tricolored blackbird does not warrant conservation efforts, partnerships, and public and private land management activities. The Service will continue its work with partners to help the species remain resilient.
California has the fifth-most homes at risk from sea-level rise and 10-year floods by 2100, according to a nationwide analysis combing housing and sea level rise data from Zillow and Climate Central. The study finds that increased flood risk will affect 143,217 homes – following only Florida, New Jersey, Virginia, and Louisiana for most homes affected. The study identifies the number of homes in low-lying coastal areas, projecting future exposure to ocean flooding.
Some of the state’s biggest development projects – including mega expansions from Sutter Health and Kaiser Foundation hospitals and Stanford University – won’t be subject to property taxes. Under California law, these nonprofits can apply for tax exemptions for providing public benefits that offset lost tax revenues. However, local officials are raising questions about whether these tax-exempt projects are wise investments. Most prominently, Santa Clara County has pushed back against Stanford University’s campus expansions, and have held them accountable to build more affordable housing.
Facing fines and a lawsuit from the state for its rejection of a 425-unit multi-use project, the San Bruno City Council is reconsidering the proposed development. In July, the Council rejected the Mills Park project after three years of negotiations and $3 million spend on the approval process. In response, the Department of Housing and Community Development (HCD) recently sent the city a letter claiming the rejection was unlawful, because the project met San Bruno’s general plan, zoning and design review standards. Furthermore, the letter threatened action should San Bruno fall out of compliance with state housing production goals – which will happen if the Mills Park project is not approved.
A new San Diego housing organization, self-dubbed “Yes In God’s Backyard,” (YIGBY) is proposing new affordable housing development in major religious centers. The movement, founded by advocates from San Diego’s Regional Task Force on the Homeless, aims to take advantage of underutilized land at churches and other places of worship. Because these centers already own the land, it eliminates land costs and speeds up the construction time usually spent securing funding. The group is seeking to secure five major projects by the end of the year.
