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14 <br /> <br />refined health risk assessment which adequately and accurately evaluates health risk impacts associated <br />with both Project construction and operation. <br />Greenhouse Gas Failure to Implement All Feasible Mitigation <br />The DEIR concludes that the proposed Project would result in 9,861.60 megatons of CO2 equivalents per <br />year (MT CO2e/year), which would exceed the SCAQMD Tier 3 mixed-use screening threshold of 3,000 <br />MT CO2e/year (p. 5.6-22). As a result, the DEIR concludes that the Project’s GHG impact would be <br />potentially significant (p. 5.6-22). <br />In an attempt to mitigate this impact, the DEIR states: <br />“The Project would include sustainable design features and comply with Title 24/CalGreen <br />standards; however, approximately 60 percent of the GHG emissions would be generated by <br />vehicle trips. Neither the Project Applicant nor the Lead Agency (City of Santa Ana) can <br />substantively or materially reduce the vehicular-source GHG emissions” (p. 5.6-22). <br />Despite complying with Title 24 and CalGreen standards, the DEIR states that the Project’s GHG impact <br />would be significant and unavoidable (p. 5.6-22). However, while we agree that the Project’s GHG <br />impact would be significant, the DEIR’s assertion that the Project’s GHG impact would be unavoidable <br />and cannot be mitigated further is incorrect. According to CEQA Guidelines § 15096(g)(2), <br />“When an EIR has been prepared for a project, the Responsible Agency shall not approve the <br />project as proposed if the agency finds any feasible alternative or feasible mitigation measures <br />within its powers that would substantially lessen or avoid any significant effect the project <br />would have on the environment.” <br />As you can see, an impact can only be labeled as significant and unavoidable after all available, feasible <br />mitigation is considered.26 Review of the Project’s proposed mitigation measures, however, <br />demonstrates that the DEIR fails to implement all feasible mitigation. Therefore, the DEIR’s conclusion <br />that impacts are significant and unavoidable is unsubstantiated. As a result, additional mitigation <br />measures should be identified and incorporated in an updated EIR in order to reduce the Project’s air <br />quality impacts to the maximum extent possible. Until all feasible mitigation is reviewed and <br />incorporated into the Project’s design, impacts from GHG emissions should not be considered significant <br />and unavoidable. Feasible Mitigation Measures Available to Reduce Construction Emissions <br />Our analysis demonstrates that, when Project activities are modeled correctly, construction emissions <br />would result in potentially significant impacts. Therefore, additional mitigation measures must be <br />identified and incorporated in a DEIR to reduce these emissions to a less than significant level. <br /> <br />26 “Final Draft Guidance for Assessing and Mitigating Air Quality Impacts.” SVJUAPCD, February 2015, available at: <br />http://www.valleyair.org/transportation/GAMAQI-2015/FINAL-DRAFT-GAMAQI.PDF, p. 115.