Draft EIS/EIR for the San Luis Reservoir SRA Resource ...

4. Plan Overview
4 Plan Overview
This chapter is the core of the Plan, setting forth the policies needed to manage all
aspects of the Plan Area. It describes the comprehensive long-range purpose and
vision for the future of the Plan Area. It provides policies in the form of goals and
guidelines to guide future management. This chapter also sets forth management
zones for different geographic areas of the Plan Area, each with their own
resource goals and land uses. It then presents a description of the alternatives that
were developed to implement the Plan.
The Plan will give Plan Area staff guidance for managing visitor uses and
facilities while also protecting natural, cultural, and scenic resources for the next
25 years. The Plan is designed to be in compliance with applicable state and
federal planning initiatives and policies presented in Chapter 3.
This chapter also serves as the project description for the programmatic Draft
EIS/EIR. The Plan is a programmatic policy document and is analyzed
accordingly under NEPA/CEQA requirements in Chapter 5. Future, project-level
analysis will occur as specific components of the preferred alternative are
developed, subsequent to the approval of this Plan.
4.1 Purpose and Vision
This section summarizes the Declaration of Purpose that currently exists for the
Plan Area, and provides updated factors from the Reclamation and CSP that need
to be considered for the future management of the Plan Area. A new, revised
Declaration of Purpose is included here to reflect the past, present, and future
purpose and vision. The Declaration of Purpose, as previously adopted by CSP,
describes the Plan Area’s purpose and is the broadest statement of management
goals designed to fulfill the vision for the Plan Area. A Declaration of Purpose is
consistent with PRC §5002.2(b), which requires “setting forth specific long-range
management objectives for the unit consistent with the unit’s classification.”
4.1.1 Declaration of Purpose
The Declaration of Purpose is the “mission statement” for the Plan Area. It guides
the content of the Plan and therefore the future management of the unit. The CSP
set forth a purpose statement when the facilities were first developed in 1966, as
follows:
To make possible the full utilization of the aquatic and other recreational opportunities
in and about San Luis Reservoir and its forebay, located in western Merced County;
together with consideration for all scientific, scenic and historical resources of the area.
The function of the division of Beaches and Parks at San Luis Reservoir State
Recreation Area is to design, construct, operate and maintain public recreational
San Luis Reservoir SRA 4-1
Draft RMP/GP and Draft EIS/EIR