The 90-day review period for the Draft Environmental Impact Report (DEIR) for Golden State Natural Resources’ (GSNR) proposed forest resiliency demonstration project has officially ended. At this time, the submitted comments are being reviewed and will be responded to, as appropriate, as part of the development of the final EIR, which will be presented to the Golden State Finance Authority (GSFA) Board for final certification later in 2025.
BACKGROUND
GSNR’s proposed project is currently in the environmental review process under the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) to ensure any and all potential impacts are identified, comprehensively evaluated, and mitigated to the fullest extent feasible. A significant step in this process is the public review and comment upon the DEIR.
The DEIR was released on October 22, 2024 for an original 60-day review period. Following public input Golden State Finance Authority (GSFA), the lead agency for the project, approved an additional extension of the review period to January 20, 2025, beyond the usual CEQA maximum, to allow more time for public review and comment.
Please view the original
Notice of Availability (NOA) for full details regarding the DEIR release and the public review and comment period. Please note the 60-day public review period displayed in the NOA was extended to a 90-day review period ending January 20, 2025.
NEXT STEPS
At this time, the submitted comments are being reviewed and will be responded to, as appropriate, as part of the development of the final EIR. GSNR anticipates that the final EIR will be presented to the GSFA Board later in 2025 for their review and potential certification.
While the public review period for submitting public comments on the DEIR has ended, there will be additional opportunities for providing public input. This includes the ability to address the GSFA Board directly when the EIR is presented for final certification, as well as the opportunity to provide public input on the project when the associated permits are considered by responsible and resources agencies.
DEIR DOCUMENTS
PUBLIC MEETINGS
Golden State Finance Authority held three public meetings on the DEIR. While not required by CEQA, these meetings offered an important opportunity to introduce the public to the report and receive initial public comment. The meetings occurred early in the 90-day review period to provide the public with key information on how to review the document and the various avenues for submitting public comment. The dates and locations of these meetings occurred as follows:
- Lassen County Area Meeting: October 28, 2024 at 6:00 pm
Bieber Veterans Memorial Building
657-575 Bridge St., Bieber, CA 96009
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- Stockton Area Meeting: October 30, 2024 at 6:30 pm
KIPP Stockton Elementary School
742 Dallas Ave, Stockton, CA 95206
A virtual participation option was available for this meeting. Spanish and Tagalog translation was also available for those attending on-site.
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- Tuolumne County Area Meeting: November 4, 2024 at 6:00 pm
Chicken Ranch Casino, Event Hall
16929 Chicken Ranch Rd., Jamestown, CA 95327
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OTHER DOCUMENTS AND RESOURCES
CEQA EIR PROCESS TIMELINE
- Release of Initial Notice of Preparation – November 18, 2022
- Release of Revised Notice of Preparation – June 1, 2023
- Publication of DEIR – October 22, 2024
- Public Review of DEIR – Began October 22, 2024 and ended January 20, 2025
- Public Meetings on DEIR – October 28th, October 30th, and November 4th
- Final EIR Publication – Projected for 2025
- Review & Decision by Golden State Finance Authority Board of Directors – Projected for 2025
PROPOSED FOREST RESILIENCY PROJECT
GSNR is a California nonprofit public benefit corporation, established by rural counties in California through Golden State Finance Authority, to address the urgent issue of catastrophic fires from overgrown and under-managed forests.
GSNR’s proposed project would improve the resiliency of California’s forestlands by sustainably gathering and processing excess biomass into wood pellets for use in renewable energy generation, often as a replacement for fossil fuels such as coal. The proposed project would include the development of two wood pellet processing facilities, one in the foothills of the Central Sierra Nevada Mountain range, in Tuolumne County, and one in the Modoc Plateau of Northern California, in Lassen County. The finished pellets would then be transported by rail to the Port of Stockton for international shipping.
For additional information on GSNR’s proposed project, visit our
Projects Page.
