Will Costal commission regulations apply to Native Americans Sovereign lands ?

Michael A. Khus-zarate
Northern Chumash Bear Clan 5 March, 2020

To Whom It May Concern,
My name is Michael Bear-Walking Khus-zarate, son of Pilulaw Khus of the Northern Chumash Bear Clan (this corresponds roughly to the San Luis Obispo county). I am requesting that on behalf of my clan and the Chumash people that I represent, that I be included in the process for Party Status in Pacific Gas & Electric Company’s (PG&E) Application A18-12-008.

I grew up on the Central Coast where my family has always resided and still do so. I now live in the Fresno area and work as an educator at Clovis Unified School District. However, I maintain close ties with my family and tribal members on the central coast.
The Northern Chumash Bear Clan (NCBC) under the leadership of Pilulaw Khus has long been active in the San Luis Obispo area, conducting ceremony, participating in local events, visiting local schools and protecting Chumash cultural resources. She is the author of Earth Wisdom: A California Chumash Woman (University of Arizona Press).
We have made a special effort to educate the public about Chumash culture by participating in various local events such as Earth Day and by going into classrooms to share songs and stories with the children. The message reflects our cultural values of respect for human rights, world peace and protection of the environment while reminding the non-Indian public of the continued relevance of the Chumash people. We have also been heavily involved in protecting Chumash cultural resources by consulting with city, county, state and federal agencies on projects throughout our traditional territory.
Protecting Chumash cultural resources has been a priority, particularly in spiritually significant sites. One of these places is the Carrizo Plain National Monument in northeastern San Luis Obispo county. I have served on the Monument’s Native American Advisory Council since 1998. This advisory group has been open and inclusive of all interested Native groups, Chumash and Salinan alike. The CPNM Management Plan now includes a robust preservation and mitigation plan for cultural resources thanks to the efforts of the Advisory Council. We have also led Summer Solstice ceremony there every year since 1988 when the site became open to the public.
Another significant site, the so-called “Whales Cave” at Avila Beach near Diablo Canyon suffered from an oil spill and clean-up operation from 1997-98. The US Coast Guard as the lead agency in that operation coordinated with the NCBC to safeguard Chumash cultural resources from further damage during the months long clean-up operation.
NCBC approached Pacific Gas & Electric Company in 1987 for access to the nuclear plant area to conduct the Winter Solstice ceremony and to pray for the remains of over a dozen Chumash people whose burials had been disturbed during the construction of that nuclear plant. We were subject to a rigorous security background check before we were granted access for the overnight vigil and ceremony. Subsequently, the ceremony was successfully conducted every December for four years without incident and with the full support and cooperation of PG&E. Again, our ceremony was open to all Native groups and individuals who wished to participate.
It is not unfair to say, that NCBC and other Native tribal groups have usually been supported in our efforts by the non-Indian public. Numerous city, county and federal officials have met with us and consulted with us over these many years. Broad, county-wide support by the mainstream public for inclusion of Native interests in projects that impact cultural resources is indicated in the record whenever the public has been asked their opinion.
However there are some in the native community itself who have taken the misguided position of “exclusivity”, claiming that only their group should have standing in the Party Status process. These people claim singular and exclusive interest and legitimacy throughout the county and in particular at Diablo Canyon.
This is wrong on at least two counts.
First, the historical and genealogical record does not support this unprecedented, radically narrow interpretation of the background and composition of the Chumash community. Historians and most anthropologists have rejected this interpretation. They note that it is largely based upon incomplete and fragmentary records from the Mission era. Spanish missionaries did not ever complete what we would call a census count of the native population. Their record keeping was focused upon the standard church recordings of births, marriages and deaths that occurred among their native neophytes. These records simply did not include everybody. Nor is there any way to scientifically verify those records, as no other European institutions bothered to record the native populations, such as the Spanish military nor the Mexican authorities that followed.
Later during the early American settlement period of the late nineteenth and the early twentieth centuries, there were a few scholars who attempted to investigate the California native peoples, notably Alfred Kroeber and JP Harrington. Again, there were no real census counts available. They were working with minimal information.
The 1997 Final Reports and Recommendations to the Congress of the United States, compiled by the congressionally appointed Advisory Council on California Indian Policy (ACCIP, of which I belonged as a representative for the un-acknowledged tribes) provides a summary of the historical record of neglect by the federal government (California state government policy was initially one of genocide with death squads and removal of all of the indigenous populations). Demographers estimate that at least 95% of the California indigenous population was wiped out by the turn of the last century.
Thus, it should not be surprising to anybody that many California Indians would look upon government officials and academics with suspicion if not bitter contempt as they struggled to survive in a hostile environment that had once been their secure homelands. So, when such men as linguist J.P. Harrington solicited California native people for their cooperation there were many who refused or kept silent. This sentiment remains in many native communities today. Even when Harrington secured “informants” to aid his linguistic research, his intention was not to record a comprehensive history or ethnology of the Chumash.
The second reason that “exclusive” groups are wrong, is because they have not learned their own tribal values and culture. Depending upon non-Native academics and others for our identity and status as Native people rather than our own Native communities, is a colonial and degrading approach that is no longer aligned with international standards. The UN’s Declaration of the Rights of Indigenous Peoples, adopted by the General Assembly on 13 September, 2007 includes the following:
Article 33 1. Indigenous peoples have the right to determine their own identity or membership in accordance with their customs and traditions. This does not impair the right of indigenous individuals to obtain citizenship of the States in which they live. 2. Indigenous peoples have the right to determine the structures and to select the membership of their institutions in accordance with their own procedures.
Article 18. Indigenous peoples have the right to participate in decision-making in matters which would affect their rights, through representatives chosen by themselves in accordance with their own procedures, as well as to maintain and develop their own indigenous decision-making institutions.
History shows that the decimated and dispersed Chumash and California Indians survived by joining together in mutual support at the local and regional levels. When for instance, the people were sick or pregnant and could not afford mainstream physicians they turned to native midwives and “Indian doctors” and it didn’t matter what clan or tribal group their ancestors derived from. My own great-great grandfather, Pacifico Gallego-Archuleta was known to the Venturno-Chumash of Ventura because he was one of these “Indian doctors” who traveled to the south coast area frequently in his day. The importance of such pan-tribal*, pan-Indian networks cannot be overstated and they have carried forward even to the present day. These social/cultural networks have helped enable the revival of many California tribal groups.
One of the most well-known Elders and spiritual leaders who traveled to the central coast from southern California during the so-called American Indian re-awakening of the 1960-70’s at the invitation of the Chumash community, was Therman McCormick, Sr. (Lusenio). In response to a question about who an Indian is today, he dryly replied: “now, we’re all mongrels”. His message was that what matters most is our respect for one another as the descendants of the few survivors of the indigenous California people, and not the purity of our individual biological lineage. Therman McCormick believed in the inclusive values that were rooted in his traditional spirituality as he had been taught.
Indeed, the ACCIP recommendation to Congress in its Final Report was an expansive one: a singular definition for “California Indian”, that would acknowledge both the original culture of all the tribes and the diverse composition of the Native peoples of California that is a reality today.
Finally, I want to say that the Northern Chumash Tribal Council led by Fred Collins has my endorsement. Their position of inclusion for all interested Native groups is in keeping with the spirit of community, cooperation and mutual support that the NCTC has upheld for decades throughout the San Luis Obispo area. I join with the Council to continue to protect and preserve Diablo Canyon by having it restored to the whole Chumash community.
Sincerely,
Michael Khus-zarate

Former Member, Congressional Advisory Council on California Indian Policy
Former Chair, Native American Advisory Council for the Carrizo Plain National Monument
First Wot, Northern Chumash Bear Clan

* Note: there is no scientific or government consensus on the definition of “tribe”. In California the term is used loosely to describe family-clan groups and multiple family groups.

I am in support of the in-perpetuity conservation of the 12,000 acres of Diablo Canyon Lands. As a local teacher and mother, I care about the world we are leaving for our children. Here we have a chance to preserve one of the last, coastal stretches of natural California for ourselves and future generations.

The county of San Luis Obispo is unique due to its prioritization of land conservation. On any given weekend, the cars of people who are eager to explore nature fill the parking lots of our numerous open spaces. This increases the vitality, health, and well-being of our communities. Support for the conservation of public lands is further reflected in The Dream Initiate of 2000 (passed by nearly 75% of SLO County residents called for the conservation of and public access to the Diablo Canyon Lands once the plant closes.

In addition, as a public park, the land can generate tourism dollars to support the local economy. Protection of the Diablo Canyon Lands not only gives people recreational access to thousands of acres, it also enables a 20 plus mile coastal trail stretching from Avila Beach to Montana de Oro. And, importantly, the Diablo Canyon Lands are truly unique from an ecological perspective – much of Coastal California has been forever lost to run-away, ill-conceived development.

I ask PG&E and County of San Luis Obispo to enact the conservation of and public access to the Diablo Canyon Lands This is what the community has asked for, and it is what the community deserves.

To the Diablo Canyon Decommissioning Engagement Panel:

Over the past 36 years I have been welcomed at many ceremonies led by Michael Khus-zarate and his mother Pilulaw Khus in Diablo Canyon, Painted Rock on the Carrizo Plain, Cayucos Beach, and other places important to the Northern Chumash Bear Clan.

I had planned to attend your 3/11/20 meeting to read a letter from Michael because he could not attend. You should have that letter. I'm writing this to reiterate these points:

1. It is important that you include Michael Bear-Walking Khus-zarate of the Northern Chumash Bear Clan and Fred Collins of the Northern Chumash Tribal Council in the process for PARTY STATUS regarding (PG&E application A18-12-008).

2. The Chumash were a large and varied group united by language and culture, who inhabited the lands from north of Morro Bay to Malibu and from the Channel Islands to the San Gabriel Mountains for thousands of years before the Europeans came. Their descendants are still here, but Native American lineage is complicated because an estimated nine out of ten Native people were killed or died of disease throughout California and the whole United States, mostly during the 1800s, and the remainder dispersed.

3. Today, there is no one group that exclusively represents coastal California Native peoples. Various Chumash groups exist, but all represent the diverse composition of Native Californians that is the reality today.

4. I want to see the lands surrounding Diablo Canyon Nuclear Plant protected and preserved. Its unique and increasingly rare habitats, and the wildlife who live here, must not be subjected to development.

Thank you very much for your work.

Sincerely,
Terre Dunivant
San Luis Obispo
805-544-9676

1801 Ferrell Ave.

These are some of the most pristine lands on the central coast. Do Not sell them off for building Mc mansions and Mega hotels. These lands should be given back to the native americans as this was all theirs to being with.
Also, keep all the conservations provisions that have been discussed by the panel.
It is bad enough the plant lands can never be restored to their original state and will never be decontaminated so keep these lands safe and clean.

The majestic coastal property, known as the Diablo Canyon Lands, if open to more public coastal access than is currently available, should, in my opinion, be managed like the current Point Buchon managed access trail program. People should tread upon this area lightly, saving it for future generations as a research site and a preserve for the rich, diverse intertidal biological resources and the abundant coastal bird rookeries in this area.

I am in particular concerned about human impact to the intertidal areas. As a docent with State Parks and retired biologist, I understand that encountering tide
pool organisms are a unique, hands-on experience with sea life for the public. However, many tide pool visitors often trample or harm organisms during low tide. The loss of algae on rocks from trampling can affect all the living things in the tide pools. The easily accessible tide pools along the Montana de Oro State Park, where harvesting of intertidal organisms is permitted with a fishing license, provide a stark contrast with the relatively pristine condition of the intertidal areas of the Diablo Canyon lands.

Tide pools and the ocean's intertidal zones contain some of the most diverse collections of life on our planet and especially so along this coastline—it is imperative that any future plans for access to the Diablo Canyon lands maintain that diversity.

.

My other concern regarding the management of the Diablo Canyon Lands is the protection of numerous cultural sites, some dating to over 9000 years old, that without a managed access plan would attract collectors who know how to detect these sensitive Native American sites. Cal Poly’s Anthropology department has worked with the Native American community and currently have several study sites along this coastline. Many of these cultural sites are easily accessible along the current Point Buchon trail, but those who may be searching for artifacts are directed by trail attendants to stay on trail. The trail attendants are aware of these cultural site locations and protect them from human disturbance.

I urge you to work with organizations like Land Conservancy of SLO, Wildland’s Conservancy group, or UC Natural Reserve system. I also urge the engagement panel to support the preservation of these lands by developing managed access programs
to keep this majestic coastline as pristine as possible.

Best regards,

Sally Krenn
805-550-0150

Please address how this plan fits within PG&E's ongoing bankruptcy proceedings, and the company's ability to accommodate the great financial liability of decommissioning while facing ongoing disaster-related penalties and mitigation costs.

I have two comments:

1.) All land transfers away from P.G.E. must include conservation easements. That is the desire of the county residents as evidenced by the passage of the Dream Initiative in 2000 and the near one thousand written comments to the engagement panel. The D.C. Engagement Panel further outlined the will of our Community in its' Strategic Vision Document. The conservation easement will insure that the will of the people is protected.

2.) There is significant precedent for the conservation of D.C. Lands through mitigation. The decommissioning project must include mitigation of the rest of the Diablo Lands. This must include public access to and conservation of these lands as the community deserves and has rallied for in numerous ways over the past twenty years.

Thank you.

Thank you for the opportunity to comment.
I was a member of the County Nuclear Waste Management Committee of the 1990s to make recommendations on handling high level nuclear wastes at Diablo Canyon. The consensus of our committee was that that 1) The spent fuel pools should be brought down to their design density as soon as possible 2) That dry cast storage should be redesigned to provide safe long term on site storage for several centuries 3) Then be moved to a permanent consolidated long term storage facility with minimal risk during transport.

Those recommendations are still appropriate and I strongly support them. I am particularly concerned that the dry cast storage site be hardened against terrorist attack. The casks should be shielded from ground attack by berms surrounding the pad. More concerning is the casks extreme vulnerability when being moved from the pools to the storage pads. This slow 10 hour trip with only a water jacket for radiation protection is an inviting target.
I am also concerned that the casts being used for on-site storage are thick walled and loaded at a density that poses no heat dissipation risks.
Please seriously consider these matters before burdening our county with the risk of storing this dangerous high level nuclear waste.
A concerned citizen,
Franklin Frank

Dear Panel,

Coming from a public health perspective, I applaud the decision to close tonight's meeting to the public. Allowing for all comments to be submitted online is a good and wise way to handle the health issue that can potentially affect us all.

What I would caution, though, is a last minute maneuver for folks who either were not informed about the change or don't abide by the rules to show up and ask to have their voices heard anyway. We all know the important impact of a speaker in person, for the face to face ability to connect with another's passions and convictions, as opposed to reading them on paper or online. This would negate the democratic process of having all voices heard fairly.

This might already be planned for, and I apologize if it is already dealt with, but I earnestly ask that there be paper available for those who do show up, so that they are equally represented with the ones that have been informed and are abiding by the rules.

Thank you for all the work you all have been doing and continue to do,

Sincerely,

Wendy Lucas, MPH
Masters Public Health, UC Berkeley
34 year resident of San Luis Obispo

Hi Panel, I have led hikes in the local area for more than 50 years and can clearly see the value of connecting Montana de Oro to Wild Cherry Canyon. It would extend the California Coastal Trail and remove the gap in SLO County that currently exists. This would be a major benefit for visitors and locals, creating recreation possibilities and spurring tourism. I ask you to consider placing a conservation easement on any new trails to ensure public access in perpetuity. Thanks for your consideration,

Please take time to make public comment for the Lands at Diablo Canyon and the Tribal Lands Transfer Policy. https://diablocanyonpanel.org/dcdep-public-comments-table-view/entry/1296/?gvid=2131
https://diablocanyonpanel.org/submit-comment/

Diablo Decommissioning Panel Comments in Lue of public attendance.
Regarding the CPUP Tribal Lands Policy,
Dear Diablo Decommissioning Panel Comments in Lue of public attendance.:
I was born in Avila Beach on land that was held by our family for generations. As a member of the Northern Chumash Tribal Council and the last Chumash person born in Avila, I want to express my objection and frustration about being left out of the Tribal Lands Transfer Policy discussion months ago. Had it not been for the community outreach by panel member Woodruff speaking at the Central Committee meeting, my family and I would have been left out of the discussion. However, due to the nature of the public health concerns I cannot express my frustration with the notification process in person. I wanted to write to you and ask that you table this discussion to be set aside pending the meeting with the CPUC later this month after the tribal lands transfer policy workshop. The CPUC policy draft clearly states “ This proposed Tribal Land Transfer Policy, consistent with Executive Order B-10-11, N-15-19, and the Commission’s Tribal Consultation Policy, is intended to further the Commission’s commitment “to provide meaningful input into the development of legislation, regulations, rules, and policies on matters that may affect tribal communities.” identified Tribal ancestral territory recognized by the Native American Heritage Commission (NAHC).”
That includes us and a bunch of other Chumash people. How can the panel make meaningful decisions without our input? Tribal communities like my family and the other Northern Chumash peoples who are recognized and identified by the Native American Heritage Commission should not be excluded.
Representation of Interested Tribal Groups:
I would never suggest that each panel member has the time or energy to investigate the struggle within and the trauma inflicted upon Indian Communities. But, If you only know one thing we are not all alike, we are not a ‘voting bloc’, we are different on opposite sides of some issues. Sometimes pan-Indian groups like AIM might come together to fight on an issue like the occupation of the Dakota Access Pipeline, "Standing Rock" or the destruction of sacred sites but that is not what this is about. In 1934, Congress passed the Indian Reorganization Act, which reversed assimilation and allotment policies. This act granted "legal sanction to tribal landholdings; returned unsold allotted lands to tribes; made provisions for the purchase of new lands; encouraged tribal constitutions, systems of justice, and business corporations; expanded educational opportunities through new facilities and loans ...; advocated the hiring of Indians by the Office of Indian Affairs extended the Indian Trust Status; and granted Indians Religious Freedom.
The distinction between Chumash groups, that may have shared territories, are akin to differences in religious, political, environmentalism ideologies. These differences have created a crevasse as wide as the Grand Canyon and as deep. Please understand for personal family reasons two Northern Chumash Tribes should not be confused. The Northern Chumash Tribal Council, Inc. was formed under the guidelines of California Senate Bill 18 on April 26, 2006, as a state-recognized mutual benefit corporation (EIN 84-1709436) NCTC was the first to register and use the name Northern Chumash in our Non-Profit organization. NCTC is one of several State Recognized California Native American Tribes in Northern San Luis Obispo County and has been reviewing all projects in San Luis Obispo for the past 30 years previously under the San Luis Obispo Chumash Council and under the direction of elders who have since past. Hence, it has come to my attention that the panel members may not be aware of the distinct divide and separation between the two groups.
Fundamental religious, personal and political ideology divide the groups who are related.
Using the Panel to further YTT agenda:
Scott Lathrop represents his own Tribal affiliation as YTT (yak titʸu titʸu yak tiłhini) formed in October of 2010, on the panel. I was under the impression panel members are selected for their ability to notify and keep updated the sections or special interest groups they are representing on the panel. Scott Lathrop in fact, it appears that he has no intention to share information outside his organization and has no intention of allowing other tribal organizations to participate. I called other related Chumash tribes and they had not been told either. YTT does not represent the other 7 formally recognized by the NHAC Chumash organizations.
CPUC:
If more than one Tribe seeks ownership of available Real Property, and if the Tribes are unable to resolve the dispute themselves, this Policy creates an expectation that the IOU or the Commission will engage in meaningful consultation with the Tribes to attempt to resolve the dispute. As part of the implementation guidelines to be developed under this Policy, the Commission will work with the Tribes, utilities, and other stakeholders to further develop a dispute resolution policy.
I would never presume to speak for another Tribe or deny another tribal organization its respect and due process afforded to them as individuals. NCTC has been working closely with many of the panel members on various issues for the last few decades. Those who know us, know that we show up, we comment, we participate we are engaged with the community when we KNOW about it.
Following the Policy
NCTC is committed to Native American tribal government self-determination and providing Native American tribes with equal standing under the law. NCTC is inclusive of the broader Indigenous communities, allies, and tribes. NCTC acts with coalitions of similarly minded tribes, non-profits, NGO’s to strengthen protections for the land through community preservation projects such as the proposed Chumash Heritage National Marine Sanctuary and the Oceano Dunes Alliance. NCTC is also part of the protection of the Carrizo Plains National Monument; and, has for many years participated at Summer Solstice at Painted Rock, one of the Chumash People’s most sacred site.
Northern Chumash tribal council does not wish to exclude anyone from the proceedings. However, the panel should be aware that there are differences.
NCTC affirms the willingness to work with the community to have open space, public access to Pecho Coast lands around Diablo canyon.
NCTC wants tribal resources, sacred sites protected and deed restrictions to be put on specific culturally sensitive grounds that will be set aside for preservation.
NCTC wants to collaborate with the communities and create a dynamic multi-use seashore that includes the Indigenous peoples, the proposed Chumash Heritage National Marine Sanctuary, The fishing industry and renewable energies, tourism, agriculture, and education.
NCTC is determined to address climate change and wants the Diablo Canyon facility to be conducive to repurposing for scientific research on the climate.
With all due respect please set aside the discussion on the tribal lands until the CPUC can hold meetings and public comments in our community. Please include us in the future direction of the panel. And lastly, I have documented ownership of the lands and oral traditions previous to Spanish occupation of the lands in question dating back to the early 1800’s and we are officially requesting the opportunity to get it back.
Sincerely,
Violet Sage Walker

The Northern Chumash Tribal Council Comments on Tribal Land Transfer Policy, which is Before the Decommissioning Engagement Panel For the Transfer of Tribal Lands under the Stewardship of PG&E At Diablo Canyon to Tribal Peoples

March 3, 2020
The Northern Chumash Tribal Council (NCTC) appreciates the opportunity to comment on the Draft Tribal Land Transfer Policy and NCTC looks forward to working with PG&E the IOU, the California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC) and the local community of San Luis Obispo County, to find solutions and common ground, to finalize and facilitate the Tribal Lands Transfer Policy in the best interest of all Northern Chumash Peoples. This policy is a step in the right direction for the Indigenous Peoples of California.

First NCTC has several concerns this policy. It has been brought to our attention that a member of the Decommissioning Engagement Panel has a conflict of interest, Scott Lathrup is not recognized in the Northern Chumash Community as a Tribal Spokesperson, and it is our opinion he has been supplying the Panel with misleading information and unsubstantiated facts. A Tribal Spokesperson must earn the right to be recognized as such, Mr. Lathrup has not ever appeared at any scoping/EIR meetings, appeared before any local agency and/or spoke to preserve the Chumash Culture or Heritage, It is our opinion that Mr. Lathrup has never been seen at any meetings, nor has he stood up for the Northern Chumash ancestors, not once, this does not make a spokesperson, you have to earn it. It is NCTC opinion that Mr. Lathrup should be removed from the Panel for misleading the Panel. Mr. Lathrup does not speak for the other 12 Tribal Government on the California Native American Heritage Commission list for San Luis Obispo County, but, it is Mr. Lathrup’s duty as a community panelist to supply the Panel with accurate information about the indigenous community, and not self-dealing for his group only, and speak truthfully about the entire Northern Chumash Community, which he has not done, and should be removed and replaced.

The Northern Chumash Tribal Council (NCTC) is a California Native American Chumash Tribal Government, with tribal headquarters located in Los Osos CA. NCTC was formed under the guidelines of California Senate Bill 18 April 26, 2006, as a State Recognized Tribal Government, by the Native American Heritage Commission, organized and dedicated to preservation of the Northern Chumash Culture, Heritage and Sacred Sites. NCTC is dedicated to meaningful consulting with local governments, agencies, consulting with the development community, and supporting tribal community well-being. NCTC is spearheading with local community NGO the Chumash Heritage National Marine Sanctuary, a one of a kind opportunity for all future generations. NCTC was the first Tribal Government in California to negotiate changes to the General Plan, under SB18 guidelines. NCTC was the first Tribal Government in the United States to guide the County Board of Supervisor on August 9, 2011 to be the first County Government to support and indorse the UN Declaration of the Rights of Indigenous Peoples by resolution. NCTC is the first Northern Chumash Tribal Government to place a member on the Cal Poly Presidents Advisory Council. NCTC is the first Tribal Government

2
to have Tomol (Chumash Sacred Canoe) Ceremonies in Avila Beach and Morro Bay. NCTC is the first Tribal Government to support high tech farming producing the first US Patented Native Organic Vertical Farming (NOVA) systems in the world.

Members of NCTC have an ancient history with the land of the Pecho Coast, family members have long been a part of that land, and the last Northern Chumash to be born on these lands is a member of NCTC. NCTC is an agriculture entity, not a casino seeking entity, and NCTC would like to secure a land base on the PG&E property, specifically the farm houses on the northern end of the property. NCTC would like to rise of our bees, fruit, and implement our newly patented thrivable vegetable growing systems, a place to bring our elders, and place to have gathering of our community, all the while sharing this beautiful lands with the broader local community. It also would be a place for education and learning of our tribal life ways, a show place our broader local community can see what NCTC is doing today for the future of our children.

NCTC has always envisioned the PG&E properties as a gem to be seen by all that want to visit our great wonderful lands; open to the public, trails, horse trails, day visitations, Tribal land base, and wholesome community recreations opportunities.

Second, NCTC was not notified by the CPUC, nor were the other 12 San Luis Obispo County Tribal Governments on the Native American Heritage Commission (NAHC) list of contacts for San Luis Obispo County. This process must have transparency, must not be limited, must not be exclusive, and must include the broader indigenous community and the broader local community of San Luis Obispo County, in all land transfer agreements. NCTC and the community of San Luis Obispo County are friends and neighbors, we work together to make it better for all.

In the policy document of the California Public Utilities Commission Investor-Owned Utility Real Property- Land Disposition – First Right of Refusal for Disposition of Real Property Within the Ancestral Territories of California Native American Tribes Document, on page 6 last sentence and page 7 see the following:

Comments: The Commission’s Emerging Trends Committee adopted a draft version of this policy in April 2019, and made the draft version available for public comment on the Commission’s website. The Commission received comments from the Pacific Forest and Watershed Lands Stewardship Council, the Habematolel Pomo of Upper Lake, the Habematolel Pomo of Upper Lake, Pacific Gas & Electric Co., the Ewiiaapaayp Band of Kumeyaay Indians, the Yocha Dehe Wintun Nation, the Native American Land Conservancy, the Agua Caliente Band of Cahuilla Indians, Southern California Edison Co., San Diego Gas & Electric Co., and the Manzanita Band of the Kumeyaay Nation. The Commission also conducted several workshops, both in person and via webinar, and received informal comments there.

Out of all the over almost 200 Tribes in California the commission only received comments from 7 Tribes, this is inadequate attempt at outreach, it is NCTC opinion that NAHC Tribal list for all

3
California Tribes was not conducted in a meaningful manner; no Tribal Government on the NAHC list in San Luis Obispo County made any comments. It is NCTC opinion that the outreach by CPUC and PG& E was inadequate. NCTC did not receive notice of this comment period. There is no hurry; this is an important document and it should be done right, with meaningful consultation with all interested Tribal parties.

Any and all agreement, MOA, MOU letters of intent and contracts based on the above referenced Tribal lands should be void. No agreements should have been made without full disclosure and transparency to all interested parties. Environmental Justice needs to be served.

How would the land be transferred? Is it free? Is it a donation? Is there bidding? What is the clear delineation of the terms for Tribal Lands transfer?

Meaningful consultation means tribal consultation in advance with the decision maker or with intermediaries with clear authority to present tribal views, this should comprise meetings and a series of communications, providing clear and detailed information about the surplus property to tribal decision makers so that the tribe can adequately assess whether historical, cultural, or spiritual resources are impacted by the disposition.

The IOU and CPUC should make every attempt to contact Tribal Governments on the NAHC list at the very least 7 times. Most tribal governments are small, and overburdened with more than 200 notices per month under AB 52, SB 18, NEPA, 106, and other regulations, and these notices usually fall on overburdened hands. An IOU notices must use this understanding, and make sure meaningful contact attempts have been made, before moving forward.

Thank you for the opportunity to comment on this so very important Policy, the Indigenous Peoples have long been forgotten, it is so inspiring to see this great support for the re-acquiring of our lands, our lands that will help us heal from the dark days.

Northern Chumash Tribal Council, Inc.

I am one of thousands of people in this county who invoke you to conserve and protect this 12,000 acres of
Diablo Canyon Lands in perpetuity for the good of the community and the biosphere of the plants and animals that thrive there.
Almost 75% of County voters supported the Dream Initiative to set aside these lands for habitat preservation, agriculture, and public use upon closure of the plant. The DCDEP lists this as top priority.
We don't want 15,000 homes, golf courses, Mar a Lago West, and possible oil drilling to ruin this precious land.
I would like to see a sustainable trail system for controlled public access. Biological and oceanic study could be undertaken as is being done by UCSB on the Rancho Marino Reserve just below Cambria. A conservation easement as has been done on the 82,000 acre Hearst Ranch would be ideal.
If the Chumash Heritage National Marine Sanctuary could be designated off our Coast, this whole area will be a huge benefit to our community and the world. This all could provide educational opportunities for all ages far into the future.
The historic nature of this land once inhabited and protected by native people for thousands of years should be honored. Native tribes should be consulted and included in any decisions affecting the natural resources,
cultural and economic interests of their ancestral lands.
In these times of climate crisis, extinction of species, toxic pollution of air, water and soil and now with decades of radioactive waste.... Let's make a difference here and now. Please let this be a legacy we can be proud of ---- Save the Land!

The Sierra Club, along with the Nature Conservancy, American Land Conservancy, Land Conservancy of San Luis Obispo County, Wildlife Conservation Board, California State Coastal Conservancy, Department of Parks and Recreation, California Coastal Commission, CALTRANS, State Water Board, and the Regional Water Quality Control Board have repeatedly affirmed the high conservation value of the Diablo Canyon Lands.

In 2016, as a party to the case hearing PG&E’s application for approval of the retirement of Diablo Canyon, the Sierra Club noted that the Joint Application was “silent on the fate of the Diablo Lands, over 12,000 acres surrounding Diablo properly described in the Application as ‘a unique and sensitive biome.’” We stated that “PG&E should be held to past commitments supporting permanent conservation of the Diablo Lands and include its conservation as part of the Application’s community benefits.”

In 2018, we pointed out to the PG&E Community Engagement Panel, and reiterate now, that Measure A, the Diablo Resources Advisory Measure, or DREAM Initiative, passed 20 years ago this month with a vote of 75% of the electorate, urged the conservation of the Diablo Lands upon the closure of the plant. The measure was supported by PG&E, the SLO County Board of Supervisors, and numerous public, private, and non-profit entities.

Measure A asked, and the voters overwhelmingly answered in the affirmative, “Shall the County Board of Supervisors recognize the Diablo Canyon Lands as an exceptionally precious coastal resource by adopting policies that promote habitat preservation, sustainable agricultural activities, and public use and enjoyment consistent with public safety and property rights once the lands are no longer needed as an emergency buffer for the Diablo Canyon Nuclear Plant after its remaining operating life?”

This panel has stated: “It is the intent of the DCDEP to promote the conservation of Diablo Canyon Lands consistent with recent public input at workshops and meetings and the passing of the DREAM Initiative.”
Also, as stated on the DCDEP website:

“The request for land ownership by the local Native American community should be acknowledged and considered as a valid claim for historical reasons, while bearing in mind the overwhelming public testimony that the Diablo Canyon Lands be conserved and available to the public for managed use, with protection by conservation easement or other such means that would allow limited development consistent with local zoning and the preservation of environmental and cultural resources in perpetuity.”

In issuing a Tribal Land Transfer policy without notifying or seeking input from the public or state resource agencies, the Public Utilities Commission has potentially compromised these goals, as well as appeared to endorse a narrow and exclusive version of this policy which seeks to predetermine which tribal entities shall be accorded a right of first refusal and which ones shall not. The Sierra Club believes that all Native tribal groups with an interest in and history with the Diablo Canyon Lands are entitled to party status.

Further, in order to realize the goals affirmed by the DCDEP, it is essential that a conservation easement be attached to the Diablo Canyon Lands and that this easement run with the land in perpetuity, held by a non-profit conservation organization or agency, and include terms to restrict future development and provide appropriate public access to ensure the sustainable use of the land.

The easement should be drafted to incorporate the components of this panel’s vision statement, goals, and recommendations pertaining to land transfer and use, including:

• The land should be preserved in perpetuity for the public and future generations, in acknowledgement of its significant resource values
• The public should be ensured access to the Diablo Canyon Lands to the greatest extent possible, while protecting and preserving sensitive habitats, cultural sites and other resources
• The use of Diablo Canyon Lands should be consistent with the safe, secure and monitored storage of spent nuclear fuel, until such time as it is removed from the site
• The use of Diablo Canyon Lands should include activities that are consistent with wildlife and resource protection and visitor enjoyment including multi-use trails for hiking, mountain biking, and equestrian use and managed overnight camping
• The long-term protection of ecological, scenic, and cultural resources and the well-being of local communities should be a primary consideration in determining the appropriate level of public access to the Diablo Canyon Lands
• The establishment of at least two multi-use trail extensions of the California Coastal Trail should be pursued which include both a trail along the coast and an interior trail through Wild Cherry Canyon and other protected Irish Hills properties
• The coastal section of the Diablo Canyon Lands should be protected to a higher degree, as needed to ensure the conservation of the more fragile marine, tidal, and coastal environment
• The interior sections of the Diablo Canyon Lands (including the lands associated with transmission lines) should allow for multiple compatible recreational uses, and connections to the Irish Hills and Montana De Oro trail systems
• The use of Diablo Canyon Lands for camping should be permitted only to the extent it is consistent with the safety of the community and the protection of cultural and environmental resources
• The use of Diablo Canyon Lands for motorized vehicles (other than in parking areas, access roads and for maintenance and management activities) and night-time recreational use (other than camping as may be allowed) should be prohibited as inconsistent with resource protection.

We urge the DCDEP to relay the necessity for a conservation easement to the CPUC prior to the Commission’s drafting of formal implementation guidelines for the Tribal Land Transfer policy.

Finally, pursuant to your panel’s discussion of the permits needed by PG&E to decommission the plant and whether those permit conditions can ensure conservation of and public access to the Diablo Canyon Lands, we point out that the nexus between a requirement for a conservation easement and any agreement pursuant either to the continued operation or closure of the plant is well established. The need for such an easement or a permit condition requiring an easement as mitigation for 30 years of damage from the plant's once-through cooling system has been affirmed by both the Regional Water Board and the California Coastal Commission, which have independently stated that this should be done to mitigate the impacts of once-through cooling on marine habitat and wildlife.

This property should be transitioned to public use with multiple use, non motorized (Including NO electric bicycles) trails, with parking large enough for horse trailers.

As I will be unable to attend the proposed meeting on March 11, I wish to make my wishes known as a local resident of San Luis Obispo. I urge you all to insist and support the repurposing of these lands for public use in a manner that is environmentally sustainable and that respects the historic and sacred traditions of Native Americans.
This property should remain available for the enjoyment of the public and for the continuing flourishing of the environment.

I would further suggest that a major effort be undertaken to plant a great many trees. We all know that in abundance of trees can dramatically mitigate the disastrous effects of the climate change crisis.

Thank you for your consideration of my comments.

See attached document submitted by the Northern Chumash Tribal Council

Very few of the local residents know what will happen in the long run with the 250,000 half life of the spent fuel rods. Can you give us an explanation in the Tribune?

I think it is a great idea to give a good portion of the land back to the Northern Chumash Tribe. The name Diablo (Devil) was given by the Spanish when they tried to bring part of the tribe out but were caught in an earthquake.

As you move forward with the decommissioning of Diablo, please consider creating a project labor agreement to keep as many of the jobs local for this project. Our community will be losing good jobs. it’s imperative for the vitality of SLO County to keep our local community members employed with head of household jobs as long as we can. Please help keep our community and their families thriving.

As an apprenticed in the pipe trades it would be great to see a full building trades agreement or community workforce agreement with all trades.

Getting the decommissioning of Diablo Canyon under a Full Building Trades agreement would be financially beneficial to our community.

I worked out at diablo canyon during maintenance projects and i would like to see a community workforce agreement with all trades represented .

What I would like to see is a community workforce agreement with all trades represented for the decommissioning of diablo canyon.