State and Regional Efforts To Address Environmental Impacts Of Warehouses and Distribution Uses

Efforts to regulate warehouses and distribution uses are not isolated to the local development moratoria and zoning code updates. At the state and regional level, the State Attorney General’s Office and regulatory agencies, such as the South Coast Air Quality Management District (SCAQMD) have taken a keen interest in the impacts of industrial uses.

STATEWIDE PROGRAMS

At the State level, the Attorney General’s Office has issued policy documents and strong recommendations on characteristics and features that cities and counties should consider when permitting warehouses, logistics facilities, and distribution centers. Commonly referred to as “good neighbor policies,” these policies address topics that frequently arise during the preparation of an initial study or an Environment Impact Report (EIR) pursuant to the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) and include siting and design considerations, air quality and greenhouse gas emissions analysis and mitigation, noise, and traffic among others.

The Attorney General has also taken a more active role at the local level, issuing comments, and engaging local municipalities in an effort to drive local regulation of these uses. This state-level guidance and support has been a driving force behind newly imposed land use restrictions and regulations on warehouses and distribution uses throughout Southern California.

Another State agency that is changing the industrial landscape is the California Air Resource Board (CARB), which over the last few years has adopted numerous regulations and policy documents to reduce or eliminate emissions from heavy trucks and other sources. Some of the more notable CARB actions include the adoption of the Advanced Clean Truck Regulations, which aims to phase out the sale of new diesel or gas heavy trucks; and CARB’s 2022 Scoping Plan, which sets forth CARB’s plan for achieving Carbon Neutrality.

REGIONAL PROGRAMS

At the regional level, SCAQMD — the regulatory agency responsible for controlling air pollution in the South Coast Air Basin, which encompasses all of Orange County and the urban portions of Los Angeles, Riverside, and San Bernardino counties — has also taken several recent actions to limit and reduce emissions from vehicles associated with warehouses and distribution centers. Notably, in 2021 it adopted Proposed Rule 2305 known as the Warehouse Indirect Source Rule, which garnered significant national attention for its targeting of impacts resulting from trucks traveling to and from warehouses.

More recently, SCAQMD released its proposed concept for new guidelines on how local agencies should analyze cumulative impacts for Toxic Air Contaminants (TAC). While the proposed concept is still in its infancy, there is little doubt that this proposed approach will have significant implications for industrial projects within SCAQMD’s jurisdiction. In its own analysis, SCAQMD found that 40% of the industrial projects that were approved over the last few years with a mitigated negative declaration would have required an EIR if these guidelines were in place. For developers, this means a lengthened entitlements process and additional costs.