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Department of AintlhiropolloqV <br />3151 Social Science Plaza <br />Irvine, CA 92691-5100 <br />(949) 824-1207 <br />httl2s://www.anthrol2olog3:.uci.edu <br />December 7, 2021 <br />Re: Environmental Justice in Santa Ana's General Plan Update <br />Dear Mayor Sarmiento and Santa Ana City Council, <br />Thank you for the opportunity to comment on the City of Santa Ana's Draft General Plan <br />Update. I am a PhD Candidate at the University of California Irvine specializing in <br />environmental justice policy issues in Southern California, and my dissertation research focuses <br />on SB 1000 implementation in Santa Ana. I have had the pleasure of working closely as a <br />research collaborator with community organizations in Santa Ana since 2014, most recently with <br />MPNA-GREEN's community air monitoring initiative. <br />I am writing to express my serious concerns with the Draft General Plan Update and to urge the <br />City Council not to adopt the GPU at today's City Council meeting. As a blueprint for the next <br />several years of the City's development, this document should ensure inclusiveness, <br />transparency, and accountability. <br />1. It is antithetical to the environmental justice principles to approve the General Plan <br />Update in a meeting that is not accessible to all Santa Ana residents. Robust, <br />inclusive, and equitable community engagement is the cornerstone of environmental <br />justice. While the City has made important strides in improving community outreach <br />about EJ in the General Plan since last fall, when the state Department of Justice <br />endorsed a delay in the planning process, the current General Plan falls short of reflecting <br />the voices and interests of the city's 17 disadvantaged communities. For one immediate <br />and crucial example, remote participation in city meetings by Zoom and phone is no <br />longer available to residents, despite ample evidence throughout the pandemic that these <br />options are both feasible and essential for community engagement. <br />2. The General Plan Update should establish procedures and expectations for <br />transparency and accountability regarding historical, ongoing, and future <br />environmental hazards impacting Santa Ana's disadvantaged communities. In the <br />course of my work with MPNA-GREEN and UCI researchers, we have encountered a <br />serious lack of transparency about industrial permits and permit violations. <br />MPNA-GREEN and numerous community leaders have recommended several measures <br />to ensure transparency and accountability, including: <br />a. Collection and publication of baseline data on emitters, emissions, and <br />concentrations for each disadvantaged community, <br />b. Specific, goal -oriented remediation plans for each disadvantaged community <br />