Environmental Regulation

Environment

Environmental Regulation

Reasonable environmental protections are important for sustaining Riverside County’s high quality of life. However, conflicting and costly regulations jeopardize the business climate, which supports and finances the essential services contributing to the quality of life enjoyed by our citizens. We need to protect our environment without sacrificing economic prosperity or regional competitiveness.

Excessive, conflicting, and overlapping requirements among local, State, and federal jurisdictions can create inefficiencies that stifle job creation and divert business dollars away from developing products, investing for growth, and adding value to customers and shareholders.

Policy makers must coordinate their oversight and take into consideration market-oriented approaches and incentives that offer maximum compliance flexibility and achieve cost-effective outcomes.

Positions

ER-1: Support environmental regulations based upon sound science (e.g., realistic risk assessments, accurate pollutant inventories, and credible environmental and economic models) that produce achievable, cost effective, and measurable benefits to public health and the environment.

ER-2: Support improved methods and techniques for modeling and measuring health risks, securing accurate pollutant inventories, assessing environmental impacts, and measuring the effectiveness of control measures.

ER-3: Support consistency and coordination in CEQA and other environmental review processes among governmental agencies to streamline environmental reviews, expand participation by project proponents, and ensure fairness in environmental review fees.

ER-4: Support efficient environmental analysis through integration of environmental and planning laws and the elimination of CEQA duplication.

ER-5: Utilize CEQA litigation for compliance issues rather than delay to reduce frivolous, excessive, and costly lawsuits.

ER-6: Support local access to and accountability from regulators within regional and statewide frameworks that promote statewide consistency.

ER-7: Support innovative, market-oriented approaches for meeting environmental standards such as emission reduction credit banking and trading, habitat conservation plans, carbon labeling of goods sold within the state, and incentives for voluntary impact reductions.

ER-8: Encourage participatory and inclusive processes between the regulated community, regulators, and other stakeholders leading to consensus-based rule making and the correction of deficiencies.

ER-9: Seek the prevention of pollution through education; cost-effective regional and watershed-based solutions and treatment options; and public infrastructure improvements.

ER-10: Seek reforms in California’s Electronics Recycling Program to clarify requirements to better facilitate compliance by both manufacturers and consumers.

ER=11: Support State and Federal funding to resolve the deteriorating condition of the Salton Sea. Encourage elected leaders to take action and avoid a never-ending cycle of “studies”.

ER-12: Support environmental regulations that also enable the State to meet housing objectives.

ER-13: Support environmental policy that will have a positive impact on the Coachella Valley tourism industry, protecting critical areas that drive visitor traffic to our valley.