Claremont Canyon Conservancy v. Regents of the University of California
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To reduce wildfire risk on a large swath of hilly, forested, and fire-prone land on the University’s Hill Campus, the Regents prepared and approved a plan for vegetation removal projects. The Regents prepared and certified an environmental impact report (EIR) describing the projects and analyzing the plan’s environmental impacts under the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA; Pub. Resources Code, 21000). Two conservation organizations filed petitions challenging the adequacy of the EIR’s description of four vegetation removal projects and its discussion of certain environmental impacts. The trial court concluded the project descriptions were “uncertain and ambiguous” because the EIR provided “vague conceptual criteria” but no concrete information on how the “criteria will be implemented.”
The court of appeal reversed. The challenged vegetation removal project descriptions comply with CEQA, and the EIR contains sufficient information to analyze the projects’ environmental impacts. Viewed as an informational document, the EIR includes sufficient detail to enable the public to understand the environmental impacts associated with the plan to remove vegetation in specific locations on the Hill Campus to reduce wildfire risk. It sufficiently identifies and analyzes alternatives to the project. The evidence amply supports the conclusion that it was not reasonably feasible to prepare a tree inventory in connection with the EIR.
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