Environmental Impact Report (EIR)

The Environmental Impact Report (EIR) is a study of all the impacts that a project would make on the environment in the area, including population, traffic, schools, fire protection, wildlife and plant communities, water quality and availability, and other impacts. The state of California requires an EIR be submitted to local governments - in this case, the County of Los Angeles - before the development can be approved.

The initial steps in the EIR process for Centennial got underway in March 2004 when the County of Los Angeles distributed a Notice of Preparation (NOP). An NOP is essentially a letter to various government agencies and the public at-large to solicit their input on the environmental review process.

Once an NOP has been distributed, information-gathering sessions called scoping meetings are scheduled. These meetings, which were held in late March 2004, allow public officials and members of the community to comment about issues they believe should be researched during the EIR process. These comments are then sent to a team of planning experts and consultants who write the actual EIR.

Comprehensive scientific studies are conducted by experts to analyze the impacts of a development on the environment and area. These include studies on air quality, geology, water, traffic, noise, biology and community services including schools, parks, library, fire and police.

Once the scientific studies have been completed and analyzed, a draft EIR will be circulated to the community. Typically, a draft EIR is hundreds of pages long and it provides detailed reports, analyses and recommended actions. The community will have an opportunity to comment on the document, and information obtained through these comments will be addressed in the final EIR along with recommended action steps that address possible environmental impacts of the project.

Upon completion, the final EIR will be submitted to the Los Angeles Department of Planning for review by the Regional Planning Commission, a five-member commission that serves as the planning and land use advisory body to the Board of Supervisors. The Planning Commission will hold several public hearings before approving the project for consideration by the Los Angeles Board of Supervisors, who will consider the project, hold several hearings and make a final decision for approval.

We encourage you to sign up to learn more about Centennial and receive timely information about the Centennial planning process and upcoming meetings.