(07) 2035 LQ GP - CERTIFIED EIR - Section VI (2013)Terra Nova/La Quinta General Plan EIR
Section VI. Short-Term Use Versus Long-Term Productivity
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LA QUINTA GENERAL PLAN
ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT REPORT
VI. SHORT-TERM USE VERSUS LONG-TERM PRODUCTIVITY
Introduction
This section of the EIR weighs the proposed short-term uses of the environment relative to the
maintenance and enhancement of long-term productivity and justifies adoption and
implementation of the La Quinta General Plan Update. The focus is on areas of impact that
ultimately limit the range of beneficial uses of the environment, pose long-term health and safety
risks, or result in long-term impacts to nonrenewable resources. Areas of concern include
agricultural resources, biological resources, air and water resources, geophysical conditions, and
visual resources.
Agricultural Resources
Land use designations within the City do not provide for agricultural activities. The adoption of
the General Plan Update will have no immediate effect on agricultural resources. Implementation
of the General Plan Update will, however, result in the long term removal of agricultural
resources from the Planning Area. The General Plan Update allows for the increased urban
development through the intensification of residential and commercial development, and to a
lesser degree, industrial development within the Sphere of Influence.
Undeveloped portions the Sphere are located in areas designated as Prime Farmland, Farmland
of Statewide Importance, Unique Farmland or Lands of Statewide Importance, according to the
Riverside County Important Farmland Map of 2008. In 2008, there were approximately 1,700
acres of important agricultural land located in the City, and 7,391 acres in the Sphere of
Influence, for a total of 9,091 acres. The lands within the City have been designated for urban
uses for many years, and are not in agriculture currently. Some of the 7,391 acres in the Sphere
are currently being farmed, and some are vacant desert, or have been developed for residential
uses.
There are currently over 545,000 acres of important farmland in Riverside County1. The 7,391
acres of land designated as important farmland represents 1.3% of the total important farmland in
the County. The eventual loss of these lands will not significantly impact agriculture in the
region.
1 California Department of Conservation, Division of Land Resource Protection. 2008-2010 Land Use Conversion
inventory.
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Biological Resources
Implementation of the La Quinta General Plan Update will facilitate growth and development
throughout the Planning Area, which will affect biological resources in the short term and
degrade the long-term productivity of natural communities. Construction activities, including
grubbing, clearing, grading, paving, and building development, as well as increased operational
use, will result in the degradation and loss of natural habitat, thereby impacting natural
communities. Furthermore, the introduction of non-native and invasive species associated with
development and urbanization could substantially alter the desert environment.
As discussed in Section III, the General Plan Update has the potential to impact state or federal
listed threatened or endangered species, or special status species including two plant species,
Glandular Ditaxis and California Ditaxis (Ditaxis serrata var. californica), the Coachella Valley
Fringe-Toed Lizard, Desert tortoise, Le Conte’s Thrasher, Burrowing Owl, and Peninsular
Bighorn Sheep. That being said, the General Plan Update does include a natural open space land
use designation that will preserve undisturbed lands within the Planning Area. Furthermore, the
General Plan Update is consistent with the regional habitat conservation plan.
The Coachella Valley Multiple Species Habitat Conservation Plan (MSHCP) sets forth the
preservation of lands for long term management and monitoring. The MSHCP allows for the
incidental take of listed species for specific covered activities and assures protection of important
habitat. The MSHCP identifies critical habitat throughout the Coachella Valley, including the
Santa Rosa and San Jacinto Mountains Conservation Area.
The General Plan Update includes goals, policies and programs that are consistent with the
MSHCP and assures protection the Santa Rosa and San Jacinto Mountains Conservation Area.
Increased development and urbanization within the Planning Area will contribute to the
reduction of natural habitat and associated biological resources. The La Quinta General Plan
Update provides designated open space lands that will be preserved in perpetuity, and limits
densities and allowable land uses in proximity to Conservation Areas. The General Plan Update
is consistent with the MSHCP and will facilitate the protection of sensitive species in areas
designated as critical and sensitive habitat. Although the General Plan Update will result in short
term impacts in the form of incidental take, habitat degradation, and land conversion, the long-
term goals of habitat preservation, species protection, and connectivity are achieved by
complying with the MSHCP.
Air Quality
Air quality is a regional concern caused by increased urban development, industry, and vehicular
traffic. The Planning Area is located within the Salton Sea Air Basin (SSAB) and is managed by
the South Coast Air Quality Management District (SCAQMD). As development within the
SSAB continues, new sources of air quality emissions will result from a variety of activities
including grading and construction, increased vehicle emissions from traffic, and increased usage
of natural gas and electricity for operation of buildings and facilities, and other anthropogenic
sources. Air emissions from outside the SSAB, including the neighboring South Coast Air Basin
to the west, also continue to contribute to air quality conditions within the SSAB.
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The General Plan Update will facilitate urban development throughout the Planning Area,
thereby contributing to increased air quality emissions throughout the SSAB. Existing vacant and
agricultural land, particularly within the Sphere of Influence, will transition to urban uses,
thereby increasing emissions from construction activities, energy use, and traffic. Construction
activities will result in elevated levels of NOx and ROG’s from off-road equipment, and will
increase the amount of particulate matter during grading and site disturbance. Increased
vehicular traffic will also result in elevated levels of carbon monoxide, NOx, ROG’s, and
particulate matter from ongoing operation. In the short-term, emissions levels and impacts to air
quality will continue to rise until new transportation methods, development standards, and
combustion technology develop.
The General Plan Update provides goals, policies, and programs to reduce and mitigate against
criteria pollutants and greenhouse gas emissions. In addition, the City has prepared a GHG
Reduction Plan to reduce GHG emissions to levels that are consistent with Assembly Bill 32.
Long term productivity of air quality resources are expected to be preserved through successful
implementation of the GHG Reduction Plan.
Water Resources
As discussed in Section III of this EIR, the Coachella Valley Water District (CVWD) provides
water services in to the La Quinta Planning Area. Domestic water supplies are produced from
groundwater extracted from the Whitewater River Subbasin. Implementation of the General Plan
Update is expected to increase water demand by approximately 22,000 acre-feet per year at build
out. CVWD’s service area, including the La Quinta Planning Area, is expected to continue to
generate a growing demand for water. Through conjunctive use management, conservation, and
other strategies CVWD expects to have sufficient water supplies to serve the General Plan
Update Planning Area and surrounding region through 2035 and beyond, including during
normal, single, and multiple dry year conditions.
The proposed General Plan Updates includes policies and programs intended to promote and
support the conservative use of water resources including requiring water efficient appliances,
advanced irrigation control for outdoor landscaping, and the use of drought tolerant planting
materials. In addition, CVWD is expanding recycled water supplies and provides large scale
irrigator, such as golf courses with reclaimed water in lieu of groundwater for irrigation
purposes. Although these and other water resources programs conserve water and reduce
groundwater extraction in the short term, factors, such as periodic drought conditions in
California, and the potential for reduced Colorado River imports, continue to affect the
availability of domestic water resources for future development. As such, continued growth in
the Valley, including implementation of the General Plan update in combination with drought
years, could potentially impact water resources and compromise the long term productivity of
groundwater supplies.
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