Hello,
Thanks for taking a moment to read our October Newsletter. As always, we have lots of great news to share with you, as well as exciting upcoming events to look forward to!
UPCOMING EVENT:
BPC’s Final Workshop in the 2013 Series-
Dredging and Wetland Restoration: Who Pays for Beneficial Reuse?
Friday, November 15, 2013 8:30 am-12:30 pm URS: 1333 Broadway, 8th Floor Oakland, California
v\:* {behavior:url(#default#VML);} o\:* {behavior:url(#default#VML);} b\:* {behavior:url(#default#VML);} .shape {behavior:url(#default#VML);} To promote greater trade opportunities and more quality jobs, dredging is critical to the ability to move goods into and out of our ports and onto our highways and rail lines. The beneficial reuse of dredged sediment for purposes such as wetland creation and restoration, levee enhancement, flood protection, upland placement for agricultural development, and more, is obviously a desirable option. The South Bay Salt Ponds Restoration Project is a prime example of an opportunity to use dredged sediment in an environmentally beneficial manner. However, as always, economic and logistical challenges exist.
- In order to best benefit the economy and the environment, how should we pay for the placement of this beneficially reused material?
- Now that the 12 year review of the LTMS has been published, what have we learned and what are we going to do differently in the next 12 years?
- What are the challenges and opportunities?
- How will it be funded?
- How do we both increase the ability for essential dredging to occur and also increase beneficial reuse of dredged sediment?
- What innovative solutions are being proposed to move and place sediment in cost-effective ways?
Panelists and speakers will include:
- Larry Goldzband, Executive Director, San Francisco Bay Conservation and Development Commission
- Lieutenant Colonel John Baker, District Commander, US Army Corps of Engineers San Francisco District
- Bruce Wolfe, Executive Director, San Francisco Regional Water Quality Control Board
- Jason Brush, Supervisor – Wetlands Office, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Region 9
- John Bourgeois, Executive Project Manager, South Bay Salt Ponds Restoration Project
- Ellen Joslin Johnck, Consultant, Ellen Johnck Consulting
- Dilip Trivedi, Engineer, Mofatt & Nichol
- …among others
We hope you can join us for education and dialogue around these important issues, which have a direct impact on the economy and ecology of the greater Bay Area!
UPCOMING EVENT:
A BPC Expert Briefing-
CEQA Update: Legislative Reform and Recent Case Law
Thursday, October 31
11:00am – 1:00pm
Port of Oakland Board Room
530 Water Street, Oakland, CA
David Ivester, Partner, Briscoe Ivester & Bazel,
and
Art Coon, Attorney and Shareholder, Miller Starr Regalia,
will be presenting detailed information on the status and content of the latest legislative efforts toward California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) reform, and will examine specific CEQA-related case law from recent years. Attendees will be better equipped to comply with CEQA and represent clients with CEQA concerns through this examination of legal decisions and trends.
1.75 hours of Minimum Continuing Legal Education credit is available to attorneys attending this event.
BPC Briefings are designed to be affordable and easily attended over a long lunch break. They are excellent educational and networking opportunities.
We’ll provide lunch: you bring the questions!
Bay Planning Coalition’s Welcome Luncheon for Brigadier General C. David Turner, Commander of the South Pacific Division, US Army Corps of Engineers
On September 25th, BPC members gathered at Sinbad’s Restaurant on Pier 2 in San Francisco to welcome the new Commander of the South Pacific Division of the US Army Corps of Engineers (USACE), Brigadier General C. David Turner.
Thank you to the USACE for your participation, and to BG Turner for his thoughtful remarks. BPC looks forward to our continued close partnership.
Attendees at the luncheon also got the unexpected treat of watching the victorious Oracle Team USA America’s Cup boat sail by immediately after their final win!
Member Spotlight
Every month, BPC highlights one of its member companies, to help spread the word about the exciting work and diverse interests of our membership base.
This month:
Sungevity®, Inc., a recognized leader in the global solar market, is based in Oakland and currently services nine U.S. states including Arizona, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, Maryland, Massachusetts, New Jersey and New York. The company also recently entered the District of Columbia market. In addition to its US operations, Sungevity also has a presence in Europe through Netherlands-based, Zonline, and in Australia through a joint venture called Sungevity Australia.
Founded in 2007, Sungevity introduced its proprietary iQuote process in 2008 as an easy, efficient means to residential solar adoption. Leveraging web-based solar analytics, satellite, and aerial imagery, Sungevity can provide homeowners with a firm, same day quote (an iQuote) without a home visit and provide savings on their electricity bills. In addition, the company partners with local installers and subcontractors, creating local employment, in each of the states that it operates in. This affordability and ease of use, combined with Sungevity’s solar social network strategy, is all part of Sungevity’s mission to accelerate solar into the mainstream.
Sungevity is the exclusive residential solar partner for Lowe’s, the world’s second-largest home improvement retailer. This partnership with Lowe’s allows Sungevity to take its money-saving value proposition nationwide. True to its vision of Solar For Universal Need (SFUN), Sungevity was also recently recognized by B Corp as one of the “Best for the World” companies for using the power of business to solve social and environmental problems.
To help spur the next wave of innovation and entrepreneurs within the solar industry, Sungevity is also proud to have helped launch the SfunCube, the world’s only incubator/accelerator program specifically for solar. The SfunCube nurtures solar startups that are crafting solutions to economic, institutional, and technical barriers blocking widespread access to solar energy. Another goal of the SfunCube is to create a leading solar technology cluster in Oakland, with startups spinning out and scaling in Jack London Square and downtown Oakland.
For more information, visit www.sungevity.com.
 Sungevity CEO Andrew Birch, kayaking to work on the Oakland Waterfront
Other News:
PG&E Statement of Support
BPC published a statement of support for Pacific Gas and Electric Company (PG&E), reminding the California Public Utilities Commission of PG&E’s importance to the economy and community.
Read the statement here.
BPC’s website is a great resource!
On Bay Planning Coalition’s website, under the “Library” tab on the main menu, you will find hundreds of historical documents related to BPC member interests in the bay throughout the past 30 years. Categories include Dredging and Navigation, Fisheries and Wildlife, BCDC, Water and Wetlands, Ports and Airports, and more! Check it out!
Letter of Support for Petition to Review the California Building Industry Association v Bay Area Air Management District, S213478 decision.
Bay Planning Coalition joined an Amicus Curiae Letter in Support of a Petition to Review the above case, sent to the California State Supreme Court by the Center for Creative Land Use Recycling. Other cosigners included the Bay Area Council, The Building Industry Legal Defense Foundation, and the San Mateo County Economic Development Association.
Read the Letter and Petition Here
Upcoming Calendar: 2013 and Beyond! Mark your calendar now:
December 13, 2013 – Annual Membership Meeting & Luncheon
12:00pm – 2:00pm, Saint Francis Yacht Club, San Francisco
January 23, 2014 – Expert Briefing on Abandoned Vessels
11:00 am – 1:00 pm, URS, Oakland
February 12, 2014 – Workshop: Ocean Planning
8:30 am – 12:30 pm, Aquarium of the Bay, Pier 39, San Francisco
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