Mettler County Water District Well 4 TCP and Nitrate Mitigation Project Draft Initial Study/ Mitigated Negative Declaration December 2020 Prepared for: Mettler County Water District Prepared by: Provost & Pritchard Consulting Group 286 W. Cromwell Avenue, Fresno, California 93711 COPYRIGHT 2020 by PROVOST & PRITCHARD CONSULTING GROUP ALL RIGHTS RESERVED Provost & Pritchard Consulting Group expressly reserves its common law copyright and other applicable property rights to this document. 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Report Prepared on behalf of: Mettler County Water District Mettler County Water District 1822 Stevens Drive Bakersfield, CA 93313 Contact: Regina Houchin Report Prepared by: Provost & Pritchard Consulting Group Briza Sholars, Environmental Project Manager, QA/QC Brandon Stipe, Engineer Amy Wilson, Associate Planner, Research/Writing Jackie Lancaster, Project Administrator, Research/Writing Mary Beth Bourne, Biologist Contact: Briza Sholars (559) 449-2700 Mettler County Water District Well No. 4 TCP and Nitrate Mitigation Project Table of Contents Chapter 1 Introduction ................................................................................................................................................... 1-1 1.1 Regulatory Information .............................................................................................................................. 1-1 1.2 Document Format ...................................................................................................................................... 1-1 Chapter 2 Project Description ....................................................................................................................................... 2-1 2.1 Project Background and Objectives ......................................................................................................... 2-1 2.1.1 Project Title ................................................................................................................................... 2-1 2.1.2 Lead Agency Name and Address ............................................................................................... 2-1 2.1.3 Contact Person and Phone Number ......................................................................................... 2-1 2.1.4 Project Location ........................................................................................................................... 2-1 2.1.5 Latitude and Longitude ............................................................................................................... 2-1 2.1.6 General Plan Designation ........................................................................................................... 2-1 2.1.7 Zoning ............................................................................................................................................ 2-2 2.1.8 Description of Project ................................................................................................................. 2-2 2.1.9 Surrounding Land Uses and Setting .......................................................................................... 2-4 2.1.10 Other Public Agencies Whose Approval May Be Required .................................................. 2-4 2.1.11 Consultation with California Native American Tribes ........................................................... 2-4 Environmental Factors Potentially Affected...................................................................................................... 2-9 Chapter 3 Impact Analysis .......................................................................................................................................... 3-10 3.1 Aesthetics ................................................................................................................................................... 3-10 3.1.1 Environmental Setting .............................................................................................................. 3-10 3.1.2 Impact Assessment ................................................................................................................... 3-10 3.2 Agriculture and Forestry Resources ...................................................................................................... 3-12 3.2.1 Environmental Setting .............................................................................................................. 3-12 3.2.2 Impact Assessment ................................................................................................................... 3-13 3.3 Air Quality ................................................................................................................................................. 3-15 3.3.1 Environmental Setting .............................................................................................................. 3-15 3.3.2 Methodology of Determining the Significance of Air Quality Impacts ........................... 3-18 3.3.3 Screening Thresholds for Determining Impacts to Sensitive Receptors ......................... 3-19 3.3.4 Impact Assessment ................................................................................................................... 3-21 3.4 Biological Resources ................................................................................................................................ 3-23 3.4.1 Environmental Setting .............................................................................................................. 3-23 3.4.2 Methodology .............................................................................................................................. 3-24 Provost & Pritchard Consulting Group • December 2020 i Mettler County Water District Well No. 4 TCP and Nitrate Mitigation Project 3.4.3 Impact Assessment ................................................................................................................... 3-34 3.5 Cultural Resources ................................................................................................................................... 3-37 3.5.1 Environmental Setting .............................................................................................................. 3-37 3.5.2 Methodology .............................................................................................................................. 3-37 3.5.3 Impact Assessment ................................................................................................................... 3-39 3.6 Energy ........................................................................................................................................................ 3-40 3.6.1 Environmental Setting .............................................................................................................. 3-40 3.7 Geology and Soils ..................................................................................................................................... 3-41 3.7.1 Environmental Setting .............................................................................................................. 3-41 3.7.2 Impact Assessment ................................................................................................................... 3-43 3.8 Greenhouse Gas Emissions ................................................................................................................... 3-45 3.8.1 Environmental Setting .............................................................................................................. 3-45 3.8.2 Methodology .............................................................................................................................. 3-46 3.8.3 Impact Assessment ................................................................................................................... 3-47 3.9 Hazards and Hazardous Materials ......................................................................................................... 3-49 3.9.1 Environmental Setting .............................................................................................................. 3-49 3.9.2 Impact Assessment ................................................................................................................... 3-50 3.10 Hydrology and Water Quality ................................................................................................................ 3-52 3.10.1 Environmental Setting .............................................................................................................. 3-52 3.10.2 Impact Assessment ................................................................................................................... 3-53 3.11 Land Use and Planning ........................................................................................................................... 3-57 3.11.1 Environmental Setting .............................................................................................................