Bob Delp Presented at CalCIMA 2013 Conference

October 25th, 2013

Bob Delp, Project Director at Benchmark Resources, recently presented at the California Construction and Industrial Materials Association (CalCIMA) 2013 Education Conference in Napa, California on November 12. Delp’s presentation addressed finding the fair in fair share funding. During the environmental review and permitting process, unreasonably high estimates of project-related trips can result in roadway improvement fair-share funding obligations that exceed a project’s true potential to impact a roadway system. These high estimates can also overstate off-site vehicle emissions and noise impacts. Mining and aggregate processing projects generate a substantial number of off-site vehicle trips. Assumptions regarding the number (annual, daily, and peak-hour) and distribution (origin/destination and routes in between) of vehicle trips are used for several aspects of the environmental review and analysis. These include traffic studies, air pollutant and greenhouse gas emissions analyses, and noise impact studies. Vehicle trip projections need to be sufficiently conservative for CEQA litigation defensibility. This, however, can subject an applicant/operator to larger fair-share funding obligations than would otherwise be required.