|
Then on, you know, Item Number 9, you see the, you know, like you hear and read the comments
<br />that come up, you know, relating to this project, and when I’ve read through almost all of those
<br />comments, they seem to have like a common thread, you know, the thread being like what’s the
<br />impact to the anchialine ponds, what’s the impact on public parking, what’s the impact on coastal
<br />access, the marine life and, you know, resources, such as the green sea turtle, and what about the
<br />archaeological, cultural resources. So from that standpoint on the anchialine pond, you know,
<br />that’s the Item 9, you know, the Fish and Wildlife Service is, they’re one entity like how we rely
<br />on SHPD on archaeological end, from the Fish and Wildlife Service, you know, there’s a lot of
<br />reliance on what, you know, they have the technical knowledge, so we rely on whatever they have
<br />to say in addition to our own consultant, in this case here Dr. Brock and Dr. Steve Dollar. But the
<br />Fish and Wildlife Service, specifically as it relates to the anchialine pond and the damselflies, says
<br />like you know the plan that you guys have prepared by Dr. Brock, that’s the best you can do. And
<br />that’s, that’s, that’s their statement on Page 8, and I kind of highlighted it for you; it says, “In
<br />addition to the measures listed below,” all of which the applicant had agreed to accept, it says, “we
<br />strongly recommend that you implement the management plan” prepared, you know, in Exhibit B,
<br />Exhibit Delta, rather, that’s the plan prepared by Dr. Richard Brock. And it goes on to say the
<br />Fish and Wildlife Service supports SHPD’s recommendation to monitor the two anchialine ponds
<br />and the ephemeral pond. And that’s going to happen.
<br />
<br />I’d like to also kind of, you know, like the staff pointed out to the email that’s also found in the
<br />same section towards the end, you know, from Eldridge Naboa, you know, with the Fish and
<br />Wildlife Service – he went on the field inspection and I accompanied them and, you know, I
<br />learned a lot from the inspection as well – but, you know, his recommendation, you know, was to
<br />say that on the large anchialine pond, for example, not the five-foot buffer that Dr. Brock had
<br />recommended in his management plan but a 40-foot buffer. But that’s why they accommodated,
<br />as you can see, you know, the 40-foot buffer is like, you know, you see the big pond and there is
<br />no, no dwellings between that pond and the proposed parking lot area. And then talk about
<br />placing signage, sure, you know, that’s all going to happen. So in addition to whatever was
<br />written in the Fish and Wildlife Service’s letter, these additional recommendations by Fish and
<br />Wildlife staff, the owner has said, the applicant has said we’ll accept. There was also the other
<br />issue about, you know, the green sea turtle – and, again, please feel free to ask the question of
<br />Dr. Dollar, you know, and Dr. Brock, you know, those kind of question because they’ll be here to
<br />testify as well – but on the issue of the green sea turtle, again, the Fish and Wildlife Service, they
<br />are kind of like I would consider the agency guru, you know, on this kind of area as well, and if
<br />you look at Page Number, Page 6 of their letter, which I’ve enclosed, it specifically talks about
<br />green sea turtles. This is like Item Number 10, and then the second page of that letter from Fish
<br />and Wildlife Service, and basically it says the, on the green sea turtle, the Fish and Wildlife
<br />Service consults on sea turtles, and then they go on to suggest what needs to be done, you know,
<br />to minimize the impact. And I think Ms. Jackson had read some of their mitigations then and also
<br />how you address the green sea turtle issue. And all of those recommended mitigation by,
<br />suggested by the Fish and Wildlife Service is acceptable to the applicant, and should the
<br />Commission in its wisdom decide to approve the SMA Permit and make that as a condition, it’s
<br />not going to come with any objection on the part of the applicant.
<br />
<br />On Item Number 11, you know, really deals like with the lateral coastal access. The staff talked
<br />about like there have been some concerns about like, you know, whether there is some restriction
<br />14
<br />EXHIBIT B
<br />
<br />
|