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Infrastructure Turned a 500-Page Document into an Award-Winning Report. Here’s How

Allison Chan, environmental planner at the SFPUC, received the award alongside our partners, Julie Moore from SF Planning and Karen Lancelle Divita and Eli Davidian from consultancy Environmental Science Associates.
  • Lydia Chan

We all know the cliché of “too many cooks in the kitchen.” When the San Francisco Public Utilities Commission's (SFPUC) Infrastructure team behind the Ocean Beach Climate Change Adaptation Project needed to coordinate with more than 20 government agencies and community groups on an environmental impact report (EIR), it could have easily been a recipe for disaster. The team, however, embraced the challenge and took collaboration and community input to a new level to deliver an exceptional EIR. Their work was recently recognized by the Association of Environmental Professionals (AEP) with an award of merit for outstanding environmental analysis document.

“In my 35 years of working in environmental planning, this report for Ocean Beach stands out for its complexity – both for the number of stakeholders involved and for the many impacts analyzed,” said Karen Frye, manager of Infrastructure’s Environmental Management Group.

The Ocean Beach Climate Change Adaptation Project is the first major climate change adaptation initiative in San Francisco. It will create over a mile of seaside trail; improve coastal access, recreation, and natural habitats; and protect wastewater and recycled water infrastructure. As part of the design and planning process, an EIR was developed to comply with state regulations. It analyzes and discloses the project’s potential effects on the natural and human environment and identifies mitigation measures.

Engaging with Stakeholders from Day One

A project at this scale involves multiple agencies and community groups, often with competing interests. Here’s a sampling of the organizations that the SFPUC engaged with:

  • Federal: Environmental Protection Agency, National Park Service (NPS), U.S. Geological Survey (USGS), U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service
  • State: California Coastal Commission, Department of Transportation, Department of Fish & Wildlife (CDFW), Regional Water Quality Control Board
  • San Francisco: Recreation and Parks, Planning Department, Public Works, Municipal Transportation Agency
  • Tribes: Indian Canyon Band Native American tribe
  • Nonprofits and community groups: SPUR, San Francisco Zoo, Surfrider Foundation

The SFPUC’s Ocean Beach project team reached out early and often to address public and regulatory agency concerns. They met regularly with the Coastal Commission, NPS and City departments; held several public meetings; and provided early drafts of the report to NPS.

In addition, the project team coordinated with NPS on biological analysis of a small migratory bird called the bank swallow, after receiving public comments on the draft EIR. These studies and input from NPS and other stakeholders informed the SFPUC’s mitigation measures and will minimize impacts to this important species. The team also relied on data from the NPS, USGS, and CDFW in their analysis. “We usually use standard sources for the EIR, but we knew that to get this report right, we needed to turn to experts with their own unique datasets,” said Karen.

Award-Winning Report Allows Ocean Beach Project to Move Forward

Drafting the EIR took three years and the final report was 500 pages long. In addition to the AEP award, San Francisco Planning Commissioner Sue Diamond shared, “I’ve been reading CEQA documents for over 40 years and I wanted to say that this was one of the most interesting and helpful documents I’ve read during those four decades.”

“I’d like to thank Julie Moore, JT Mates-Muchin, and Allison Chan for their hard work on the EIR,” said Karen. “Because of their dedication, the report has now been certified by the Planning Department, and the project approved by the SFPUC Commission. Thanks to this collaboration and successful EIR, the project is continuing to the final design and implementation phase.”