SITE INFORMATION AND CORRESPONDENCE

Home Browse Search

adverse effect on a scenic vista?"),a determination must first be made of whether a scenic vista exists within the viewshed of the various aspects of the project,and then a determination must be made of whether the project would have a substantial adverse effect on that vista. To help make these determinations,visual resource professionals often answer a series of questions developed to help focus the analysis, and examine various ways that the project could create an impact to scenic vistas. In conducting this analysis,a list is used that was developed by the CEC's Visual Resources staff for each of the four CEQA guideline questions, drawing upon published methodologies and academic resources (Smardon et al., 1986), as well as on past experience with other power plant siting cases. Questions the CEC staff developed to help determine whether the project would significantly affect a scenic vista include: 1. Is the project located in the scenic view of a local/state/federal-designated scenic vista? 2. Is there compelling evidence to show that the view is designated/valued by the local community? 3. Will the project eliminate or block views of valuable visual resources? 4. Would the project create a water vapor plume that could have an adverse effect on a state/federal/local-designated scenic vista? To help answer the second CEQA checklist question"(Would the project substantially damage scenic resources,including,but not limited to,trees,rock outcroppings,and historic buildings within a State Scenic Highway?"), CEC staff developed the following questions: 1. Is the project located in the scenic view from a local/state/federal-designated scenic highway? 2. Does the project site or its immediate vicinity contain scenic resources, such as trees, rock outcroppings,or historic structures that could be damaged by the project? 3. Would the project create a water vapor plume that could have an adverse effect on the view from a local/state/federal-designated scenic highway? To answer the third question ("Would the project substantially degrade the existing visual character or quality of the site and its surroundings?"), CEC staff identifies a set of issues to be assessed to determine the existing visual character and quality of the project area and then how the project would affect the character and quality of the project viewshed. To assess whether the project has the potential to substantially degrade the present visual character or quality,personal observation and such tools as visual simulations are used to determine if an impact is significant and mitigation is required to reduce the impact to a less-than-significant level. To make that determination,many factors are examined, such as: how many viewers can see a particular view and for how long,collectively called"viewer exposure"; and to what degree the project would change the aspects of a given view, such as whether the project's components would block a particular view. To help determine how the community rates and values the visual character and quality of a given site, and whether the project would substantially alter the present visual character or quality, CEC staff developed the following questions: