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4 Environmental Analysis <br /> 4.11 Land Use and Planning <br /> 4.11 LAND USE AND PLANNING <br /> This section identifies and evaluates issues related to land use and planning in the context of the <br /> Griffith Energy Storage Project(Project). It includes the physical and regulatory setting, the criteria <br /> used to evaluate the significance of potential impacts, the methods used in evaluating these <br /> impacts, and the results of the impact assessment. San Joaquin County (County) received no <br /> scoping comments regarding land use and planning. <br /> 4.11.1 Existing Conditions <br /> The Project site consists of three parcels of private land: one in San Joaquin County that totals <br /> approximately 106 acres and is currently operated as a cattle ranch; and two parcels in Alameda <br /> County for the access road and gen-tie line, which are also currently operated as a cattle ranch <br /> with other existing transmission infrastructure. To avoid environmental constraints, approximately <br /> 32 acres of the 106-acre parcel in San Joaquin County would be used for the Project. The Project <br /> site is primarily surrounded by agricultural and undeveloped lands, with limited rural residential to <br /> the north, west, and southwest, the Pacific Gas and Electric(PG&E)Tesla Substation to the west, <br /> and agricultural land and undeveloped land to the south and east. Agricultural and undeveloped <br /> lands also exist to the west and north beyond the PG&E Tesla Substation and rural residences. <br /> West Patterson Pass Road runs along the northern boundary of the Project site. <br /> The gen-tie line would run from the southwestern corner of the Project site to the point south of <br /> the Tesla Substation, as shown on Figure 2-1 of Chapter 2, Project Description. The gen-tie line <br /> corridor is assumed to be up to 100 feet in width. <br /> The nearest community to the Project site is the City of Tracy, located approximately 5 miles <br /> northeast of the Project site. However, a few residences are located approximately 400 feet north <br /> of the Project site, within the jurisdiction of San Joaquin County. Additional rural residences exist <br /> west and southwest of the Project site, within the jurisdiction of Alameda County, including two to <br /> three residences abutting the western Project site boundary. The battery energy storage system <br /> (BESS) portion of the Project site lies within San Joaquin County's jurisdiction and land uses are <br /> governed by the San Joaquin County General Plan and Zoning Ordinance. The proposed gen-tie <br /> and tie-in to the PG&E Tesla Substation, however, are located within Alameda County and would <br /> be under Alameda County's jurisdiction. <br /> 4.11.2 Regulatory Setting <br /> 4.11.2.1 Federal <br /> No federal regulations pertain to the Project. <br /> 4.11.2.2 State <br /> Williamson Act <br /> The Williamson Act (Government Code §51200 et seq.) prevents converting farmland to other <br /> uses by offering owners of agricultural land a property tax incentive to maintain their land in <br /> agricultural use. It is a state program implemented at the county level that allows agricultural <br /> landowners to voluntarily and contractually agree to retain land included in an agricultural <br /> Griffith Battery Energy Storage Project 4.11-1 Tetra Tech/SCH 2022120675 <br /> Draft Environmental Impact Report August 2023 <br />