VII. Environmental Matters

Silagi Trust will obtain all permits and approvals required by the appropriate governmental agencies having jurisdiction for the development of a parking lot and office facility on the Site. In accordance with Article 6.2(h) of the Agreement, Silagi Trust will procure an deliver to SCE, evidence of compliance with all then applicable codes, ordinances, regulations, and requirements for permits and approvals, including but not restricted to grading permits, building permits, zoning and planning requirements, and approvals from various governmental agencies and bodies having jurisdictions.

Under the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA), the Commission is obligated to consider the environmental consequences of a project that is subject to the Commission's discretionary approval. (Pub. Res. Code § 21080.) A project is an activity that "may cause either a direct physical change in the environment, or a reasonably foreseeable indirect physical change in the environment" and either (a) is directly undertaken by any public agency, (b) is supported by contracts, grants, subsidies, loans, or other forms of assistance from one or more public agencies, or (c) involves the issuance of a lease, permit, license, certificate, or other entitlement for use by one or more public agencies. (Pub. Res. Code § 21065.)

Development of the property by The Silagi Trust is subject to all applicable laws and discretionary approvals from the City of Agoura Hills. The City's discretionary approval process will trigger application of CEQA to this project. Consequently, no CEQA review by the Commission is required at this time. The Commission should defer to the appropriate state and local authorities having jurisdiction over any proposed change in the use of the Site. These authorities are generally in a superior position to evaluate local environmental impacts and develop appropriate mitigation strategies. The Commission has followed this course of action before in similar applications. (See D.99-02-036 and D.99-04-066.)

Such deference is appropriate under the circumstances in this Application and will not result in any regulatory gap. CEQA specifically applies to discretionary projects such as issuance of conditional use permits and approval of tentative subdivision maps. (See, Pub. Res. Code § 21080; see also Myers, supra, 58 Cal. App. 3d at 424.) Accordingly, if and when there is a more developed proposal to change the use of the Site, the appropriate state and local authorities having authority over such proposed uses must conduct environmental review under CEQA.

Furthermore, in lieu of conducting CEQA review at this time, the Commission may condition its approval of the proposed lease on lessee's compliance with all applicable environmental regulations. Such conditional approval is commonly imposed and is consistent with Commission precedent under CEQA. (See Sundstrom v. County of Mendocino, 202 Cal. App. 3d 292, 308 (1988), citing Perley v. Board of Supervisors, 137 Cal. App. 3d 424, 429 (1982); See also In Re: SpectraNet SGV, D.97-06-020, Cal PUC LEXIS 367 at *37 (1997).)

Should environmental claims be made on SCE subsequent to the sale, SCE shall not seek recovery of any cost of the claims or defense of the claims from its ratepayers.