ARVIN-EDISON WATER STORAGE DISTRICT 20401 BEAR MOUNTAIN BOULEVARD P.O. BOX 175 ARVIN, CA 93203 Sunset Groundwater Recharge Facility Project Draft Initial Study & Mitigated Negative Declaration June 2020 Prepared by: Sunset Groundwater Recharge Facility Project Initial Study/Mitigated Negative Declaration TABLE OF CONTENTS SECTION 1 – INTRODUCTION .............................................................................................................. 3 DOCUMENT FORMAT .................................................................................................................... 3 SECTION 2 – PROJECT DESCRIPTION .............................................................................................. 5 PROJECT LOCATION ..................................................................................................................... 5 PROJECT BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES ......................................................................... 5 ENVIRONMENTAL SETTING ........................................................................................................ 6 PROJECT DESCRIPTION ............................................................................................................ 10 SECTION 3 – INITIAL STUDY CHECKLIST ....................................................................................... 13 AESTHETICS .................................................................................................................................. 15 AGRICULTURE AND FORESTRY RESOURCES ................................................................... 16 AIR QUALITY .................................................................................................................................. 19 BIOLOGICAL RESOURCES ........................................................................................................ 22 CULTURAL RESOURCES ........................................................................................................... 43 ENERGY .......................................................................................................................................... 45 GEOLOGY AND SOILS ................................................................................................................ 46 GREENHOUSE GAS EMISSIONS.............................................................................................. 49 HAZARDS AND HAZARDOUS MATERIALS ............................................................................ 51 HYDROLOGY AND WATER QUALITY ...................................................................................... 53 LAND USE AND PLANNING ........................................................................................................ 56 MINERAL RESOURCES ............................................................................................................... 57 NOISE .............................................................................................................................................. 58 POPULATION AND HOUSING .................................................................................................... 60 PUBLIC SERVICES ....................................................................................................................... 61 RECREATION................................................................................................................................. 63 TRANSPORTATION ...................................................................................................................... 64 TRIBAL CULTURAL RESOURCES ............................................................................................ 65 UTILITIES AND SERVICE SYSTEMS ........................................................................................ 67 WILDFIRE ........................................................................................................................................ 69 MANDATORY FINDINGS OF SIGNIFICANCE ......................................................................... 70 SECTION 4 – MITIGATION MONITORING AND REPORTING PROGRAM ................................. 72 SECTION 5 – REFERENCES ................................................................................................................ 81 SECTION 6 – LIST OF PREPARERS .................................................................................................. 82 LIST OF FIGURES Figure 1 - Project Location Map ................................................................................................. 8 Figure 2 - USGS Topographic Map ............................................................................................ 9 Figure 3 - Site Plan ...................................................................................................................12 Figure 4 - Farmlands Map .........................................................................................................18 Figure 5 - Wetlands Map ...........................................................................................................42 Figure 6 - FEMA Flood Map ......................................................................................................55 Arvin-Edison Water Storage District P a g e | 1 Sunset Groundwater Recharge Facility Project Initial Study/Mitigated Negative Declaration LIST OF TABLES Table 1 - Unmitigated Short-Term Construction-Generated Emissions of Criteria Pollutants ....20 Table 2 - Unmitigated Long-Term Operational Emissions .........................................................20 Table 3 - San Joaquin Valley Air Pollution Control District ........................................................21 Table 4 - List of Special Status Animal Species with Potential to Occur Onsite or in the Vicinity .................................................................................................................................................24 Table 5 - List of Special Status Plant Species with Potential to Occur Onsite or in the Vicinity ..30 Table 6 - Short-Term Construction-Generated GHG Emissions ................................................50 APPENDICES Appendix A - CalEEMod Model Run Outputs for Air Quality and Greenhouse Gas Emissions ..83 Appendix B - Biological Resources Information .......................................................................106 Appendix C - Cultural Resources Information .........................................................................119 Appendix D - NRCS Soils Report ............................................................................................142 Arvin-Edison Water Storage District P a g e | 2 Sunset Groundwater Recharge Facility Project Initial Study/Mitigated Negative Declaration SECTION 1 – INTRODUCTION Arvin-Edison Water Storage District (AEWSD) has prepared this Initial Study/Mitigated Negative Declaration (IS/MND) to address the potential environmental impacts of the proposed Sunset Groundwater Recharge Basin (Project). This document has been prepared in accordance with the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA), Public Resources Code §21000 et seq. AEWSD is the CEQA lead agency for this Project. The proposed Project will be located on jointly owned AEWSD and Kern Delta Water District (KDWD) property and includes the construction of groundwater recharge basins adjacent to KDWD’s Eastside Canal. In addition to construction of recharge basins, the Project will also construction pumping facilities and pipeline to deliver water from the Eastside Canal into the Project site. The proposed Project is described in detail in Chapter 2: Project Description. All of the proposed construction and operational activities associated with the implementation of the proposed Project are analyzed in this IS/MND pursuant to CEQA. DOCUMENT FORMAT This IS/MND contains six sections, with four technical appendices. Section 1, Introduction, provides an overview of the Project and the CEQA environmental documentation process. Section 2, Project Description, provides a detailed description of Project objectives and components. Section 3, Initial Study, presents the CEQA checklist and environmental analysis for all impact areas, mandatory findings of significance, and feasible mitigation measures, if necessary. If the proposed Project does not have the potential to significantly impact a given resource, the relevant section provides a brief discussion of the reasons why no impacts are expected. If the Project could have a potentially significant impact on a given resource, the relevant section provides a description of potential impacts, and appropriate mitigation measures and/or permit requirements that would reduce those impacts to a less than significant level thereby addressing any potential environmental issues. Section 4, Mitigation Monitoring and Reporting Program, provides the list of mitigation measures for the Project. Section 5 References, provides a list of reference materials used during the preparation of the IS/MND. Section 6, List of Preparers, provides a list of key personnel/agencies involved in the preparation of the IS/MND. Appendices A through D respectively provide the output files from the CalEEMod Air Quality and Greenhouse Gas Emissions model run, Biological Resources Information, Cultural Resources Information, and the Natural Resource Conservation Service (NRCS) Soils Report. Environmental impacts are separated into the following categories: Potentially Significant Impact. This