📋
Extracted from Consolidated Report

This investigation was originally published as part of a larger consolidated report containing multiple investigations. View the consolidated PDF for the complete document.

San Mateo County Grand Jury • 2020-2021

SAN Mateo County:

Published: June 30, 2022 27 pages
View PDF View Full Original

Findings 13 findings

F1 Page 102
Sea level rise will seriously damage critical San Mateo County infrastructure and assets unless the County and its cities and towns prepare now. Response: The City agrees that sea level rise will damage critical infrastructure and assets in SMC. The State of California Sea-Level Rise Guidance 2018 Update prepared by the Ocean Protection Council (OPC) issued probabilistic projections ranging between 0.9 and 2.7 ft of sea level rise by 2050 and between 2.5 and 10.2 ft. by the end of the century for San Francisco Bay. The City agrees that the threat is countywide and that residents, commuters, and tourists all depend on critical public infrastructure that is vulnerable to sea level rise. While the City has a three-mile levee system, this infrastructure will require improvements for it to continue to protect residents, property owners, and critical assets (e.g., transportation systems, storm water and wastewater facilities, fire stations, medical facilities, utilities, landfills, and schools). As flood protection systems are interconnected, the City’s infrastructure will only provide adequate protection if upgraded following a coordinated approach with neighboring agencies. Due to their complexity and cost, sea level rise projects will require planning, permitting, and funding that will take decades. OneShoreline must therefore work with cities and towns to develop a plan that will protect SMC and the City now.
F2 Page 102
Sea level rise infrastructure projects can take more than a decade to plan, fund and build. Response: The City agrees that due to their large scale and cost, sea level rise infrastructure projects will take decade(s) to plan, fund, and build. In 2001, for example, the City began taking steps to work with residents affected by the Federal Emergency Management Agency’s (FEMA’s) special flood hazard area designation. After more than two decades of planning and working with multiple regulatory stakeholders, the City was able to create an assessment district to fund the necessary flood protection improvements. After obtaining permits from seven agencies (California Department of Fish and Wildlife, Regional Water Quality Control Board, United States Army Corps of Engineers, State Historic Preservation Office, National Marine Fisheries Services, United States Fish and Wildlife Service, and San Francisco Bay Conservation and Development Commission) and coordinating with FEMA, the City is now in construction of the North Shoreview Levee and Pump Station Improvement Project. This effort consists of levee improvements and pump station upgrades that will provide adequate flood protection to the North Shoreview residents and will result in the removal of the affected properties from the flood zone. Sea level rise projects are larger in scale and cost and require coordination with multiple stakeholders, regulatory agencies, and neighboring jurisdictions. With the complex regulatory framework and lack of adequate funding, these projects will take decades of effort. The City’s residents will remain vulnerable if projects cannot be funded and completed in shorter timeframes.
F3 Page 103
Complex federal and state regulations and procedures delay and increase the costs of already expensive sea level rise mitigation projects. They need to be revised. Response: The City agrees that federal and state regulations and procedures are complex, requiring years of coordination to obtain clearance and permitting, often delaying project schedules and increasing costs. The regulatory framework needs reform. As noted above, the City’s North Shoreview Levee and Pump Station Improvement Project required permits from seven agencies and coordination with FEMA. This effort took years of planning, added significant costs, all while the City worked on obtaining property easements and developed a financial strategy to secure project funding. To provide between 0.9 and 2.7 ft of sea level rise protection by 2050 and 2.5 to 10.2 ft. by the end of the century as projected by OPC, flood mitigation projects will have to be expansive. These projects will not only have to assess the impacts of severe weather, wet weather flooding, permanent inundation, but also the effects of groundwater rise. With the existing complex federal and state regulatory framework, these projects will take additional years to permit, extending project timelines and adding costs if there is no reform to the regulatory processes.
F4 Page 103
Delaying sea level rise projects will increase costs. Response: The City agrees that capital infrastructure project costs increase with time. Due to their scale, sea level rise projects will be complex, and delays will ultimately result in increased costs. There are also the costs associated with no action. In 2019, the California Legislative Analyst Office (LAO) published Preparing for Rising Seas which highlighted the cost of no or delayed actions. Planning and investing in efforts to mitigate the impacts of sea level rise have a higher benefit-to-cost ratio compared to the costs associated with disaster relief. LAO referenced a FEMA sponsored study which “found that for every $1 the federal government invested in various types of pre-disaster mitigation activities in recent years, it avoided public and private losses totaling $6.” Planning for pre-disaster mitigations through a coordinated and strategic approach will likely result in lower costs and more effective protection.
F5 Page 103
To remain effective, OneShoreline needs steady, long-term, operational funding. Response: The City agrees that all agencies, including OneShoreline, require steady, long-term, operational funding to remain effective. The City relies primarily on General Fund revenues for the operation of its stormwater systems and implementation of flood control capital projects. The lack of a steady stream has been challenging as regulatory requirements and capital needs continue to increase. For the North Shoreview Levee and Pump Station Improvement Project, the City relied on the development of an assessment district to fund the effort. Earlier this year, the City completed a stormwater funding analysis and is assessing the feasibility of establishing a stormwater utility to fund the operating and capital needs. Governed by Proposition 218, the stormwater fee will require voter approval. Given the increasing funding needs of stormwater management and sea level rise protection, the City believes that coordination on capital improvement projects and funding efforts between OneShoreline and the cities and towns is required to develop an effective strategy for SMC residents.
F6 Page 104
Coordination between neighboring jurisdictions is important to reduce costs and improve the effectiveness of a SLR project. Response: The City agrees that coordination between neighboring jurisdictions is important to reduce costs and improve the effectiveness of SLR projects. As SMC began developing the 2018 Sea Level Rise Vulnerability Assessment report, representatives from cities and towns were invited to participate in Technical and Policy Advisory Committees, which facilitated input on the project. This type of stakeholder engagement was effective and recommended for OneShoreline. Other agencies, such as the City/County Association of Governments of San Mateo County, follow a similar structure, with monthly meetings with advisory groups that facilitate and support coordination and collaboration between the jurisdictions. Sea level rise protection will be highly dependent on a coordinated approach due to the interconnectedness of levee networks. A framework that facilitates coordination will result in a more effective strategy to mitigate the impacts of sea level rise.
F7 Page 104
Competing budget priorities among the entities in a sea level rise project make the projects difficult to fund and manage, leading to risk of delays and missed deadlines. Response: The City agrees that competing budget priorities make sea level rise projects difficult to manage, which can lead to delays. Because sea level rise projects do not have access to a dedicated source of funding, they rely on general funds, grants, loans, and are likely to require the development of assessment districts. Developing a financial strategy and building public support take time. Cities and towns must prioritize projects and balance infrastructure improvements with general fund sources, which alone cannot meet all needs. Due to the setting of priorities and the high cost and complexity of sea level rise projects, these take longer to plan and fund.
F8 Page 104
Numerous hazardous material sites in the County must be protected from sea level rise flooding. Response: The City agrees that hazardous material sites in SMC, such as landfills, contaminated sites, and areas with stored chemicals, must be protected from sea level rise flooding. The City has a closed landfill and an active wastewater treatment plant that are protected by a levee system and are located in the 500-year floodplain as designated by FEMA. Located on Detroit Drive, the wastewater treatment plant is currently undergoing an upgrade and expansion. While the new facility will be protected by the levee system, the City incorporated a secondary means of protection for the new structures. These will be built with an entry floor elevation designed to provide protection from the 100-year base flood and 3.4 ft. of sea level rise. The 3.4 feet value reflects the high end of the “Likely Range”/ High Emission scenario for year 2100 per OPC’s projections. The City’s three-mile levee infrastructure will need to be maintained and improved for it to continue to protect hazardous material sites, residents, property owners, and critical assets (e.g., transportation systems, storm water and wastewater facilities, fire stations, medical facilities, utilities, landfills, and schools). As flood protection systems are interconnected, the City’s infrastructure will only provide adequate protection if upgraded following a coordinated approach with neighboring agencies.
F9 Page 105
Storm surge and sea level rise threaten the County’s wastewater treatment plants affecting everyone in the County – even inland County residents. Response: The City agrees that storm surges and sea level rise threaten SMC’s wastewater treatment plants, affecting many communities including inland residents. The City’s wastewater treatment plant service area includes the City, Foster City, Crystal Springs County Sanitation District, and portions of the Town of Hillsborough, City of Belmont, and unincorporated areas of SMC. Approximately 150,000 are served by the facility, including thousands of inland residents. If the wastewater treatment plant is not adequately protected, it would have an impact on all the 150,000 residents that it serves.
F10 Page 105
OneShoreline is uniquely positioned to augment San Mateo County’s ability to combat sea level rise by its planning, funding, permitting expertise, and guidance. Response: The City agrees and supported the formation of OneShoreline to position it to augment SMC’s ability to address the impacts of sea level rise. In 2018, the City was part of a Staff Advisory Team (SAT) organized by the City/County Association of Government’s Countywide Water Coordination Committee. The SAT was tasked with developing a proposal to form a Countywide agency that would increase coordination amongst the jurisdictions, avoid the duplication of efforts, and create a unified voice to position SMC and its cities to obtain state and federal funding for sea level rise projects. The SAT completed an intensive six-month engagement and collaboration phase, resulting in the development of the proposal for the formation of the Flood and Sea Level Rise Resiliency Agency / OneShoreline. We believe that OneShoreline is positioned to meet its mission.
F11 Page 105
Destruction of low-cost housing on the Bay and coast by flooding and erosion due to sea level rise will further increase inequities in communities such as Belle Haven (Menlo Park), East Palo Alto, Redwood City, and Pacifica. Response: The City agrees that the destruction of low-cost housing on the Bay and coast by sea level rise will further increase inequities in communities such as Belle Haven (Menlo Park), East Palo Alto, Redwood City, and Pacifica.
F12 Page 105
OneShoreline effectively collaborates with the Office of Sustainability and others on public engagement campaigns to educate individuals on how sea level rise will affect San Mateo County. Response: The City cannot agree or disagree on whether OneShoreline, Office of Sustainability, or others have had effective public engagement campaigns.
F13 Page 105
A loan program to provide cities and town funds for the required preliminary engineering necessary to obtain partial state and federal funding for SLR projects would be beneficial. Response: The City partially agrees with this finding. While a loan program for sea level rise projects would be beneficial, the structure of such program requires further analysis.

Recommendations 3