Environmental Justice and Social Equity Bay Plan Amendment

Environmental Justice and Social Equity Amendment Fact Sheet

Chair Wasserman’s Statement of the Historic Approval of BCDC’s Environmental Justice and Social Equity Bay Plan Amendment

Resource Media Press Release on the Adoption on BPA 2-17

Bay Plan Amendment No. 2-17 regarding Environmental Justice and Social Equity Approved by the Office of Administrative Law

NOAA Office for Coastal Management Decision Letter on BPA No. 2-17

On July 20, 2017, BCDC unanimously initiated a process to amend the San Francisco Bay Plan to address environmental justice and social equity issues. On October 17, 2019, the Commission unanimously voted to adopt the final staff recommendation for the Environmental Justice and Social Equity Bay Plan Amendment. BCDC staff are now working on creating implementation materials for the new policies. These materials will be posted here as they are developed.

• Staff Report and Final Recommendation for Proposed Bay Plan Amendment No. 2-17 Concerning Environmental Justice and Social Equity – October 4, 2019

  Public Comment Letters

• Toward Equitable Shorelines: Environmental Justice and Social Equity at the San Francisco Bay Background Report in Support of Bay Plan Amendment No. 2-17 - June 7, 2019
• Staff Report and Preliminary Recommendation for Proposed Bay Plan Amendment No. 2-17 Concerning the Social Equity and Environmental Justice - May 31, 2019

  Public Comment Letters - Received after May 31, 2019

  Public Comment Letters - Prior to May 31, 2019

• Notice of Revised Date of Public Hearing to July 18, 2019- November 2, 2018
• Notice of Revised Date of Public Hearing to November 15th, 2018 – March 30, 2018

Working Group, Public Hearings, and Public Workshops Materials

On October 17, 2019, the Commission voted to adopt the Environmental Justice and Social Equity Bay Plan Amendment – Commission meeting minutes
From April 2018 until October 2018, the Environmental Justice Commissioner Working Group met monthly to discuss the amendment – meeting materials and minutes
On July 18, 2019, BCDC held a public hearing on the preliminary recommendation for Bay Plan Amendment No. 2-17 to address Environmental Justice and Social Equity – Commission meeting minutes
On January 17, 2019, BCDC held a Commission Workshop on Bay Plan Amendment No. 2-17 Addressing Environmental Justice and Social Equity

• Staff Presentation
• Notes
• Staff Report

Contact

Shannon Fiala
San Francisco Bay Conservation and Development Commission
375 Beale Street, Suite 510
San Francisco, CA 94105
Phone: 415-352-3665
E-mail: shannon.fiala@bcdc.ca.gov

Environmental Justice Working Group Meeting

Commission Meetings

Commission Workshop on Bay Plan Amendment No. 2-17 Addressing Environmental Justice and Social Equity

• Staff Presentation
• Notes

Background Information

Policies for a Rising Bay

Developed from March 2015 to June 2016 to evaluate the Commission’s laws and policies in light of novel threats to the Bay presented by sea level rise and to determine whether changes are needed to help the region’s advancement of appropriate resilience and adaptation actions. The Commission staff organized a steering committee composed of over 30 stakeholders representing public, private, and non-governmental organizations to ensure a broad and collaborative review of the Commission’s laws, policies, and regulations. Working together with steering committee members and other interested parties, the Commission staff analyzed BCDC’s existing laws and policies through one-on-one interviews, case studies, and a series of meetings and discussions. This process resulted in the identification of four overarching policy issues, where BCDC’s policies were found to be inadequate regarding risks associated with rising sea level:

1. Fill for Resilience and Adaptation - Habitat Restoration and Protection
2. Fill for Resilience and Adaptation - Innovative Shoreline Solutions
3. Environmental Justice and Social Equity
4. Adaptive Management

See the report for the full policy analysis and list of policy options suggested.

Public Workshops on Rising Sea Level

Beginning on January 21, 2016, BCDC conducted a series of Commission workshops on lessons learned from the San Francisco Bay Plan’s Climate Change amendments, BCDC’s role in regional planning, and making recommendations as the Bay Area adapts to rising sea level. These workshops identified potential changes to the Commission’s laws, policies, regulations and practices, and culminated in the Commission’s unanimous initiation of two Bay Plan amendments addressing Bay Fill for habitat projects and addressing social equity and environmental justice.