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Vantage to Pomona Heights Chapter 3 230 kV Transmission Line Project FEIS Affected Environment PAGE 3-238 • Exacerbate existing disproportionate impacts on minority, low-income, or indigenous populations. • Present opportunities to address existing disproportionate impacts on minority, low income, or indigenous populations that are addressable through the action under development. • “... it is important to assess whether minority, low-income, or indigenous populations are experiencing existing disproportionate impacts that you can address through your action” (USEPA 2010). 3.10.2 Methodology According to CEQ (1997) and USEPA (2010) guidelines established to assist federal and state agencies for developing strategies to examine EJ impacts, the first step in conducting an EJ analysis is to define minority and low-income populations. Based on these guidelines, a minority population is present in a project study area if: (a) the minority population of the affected area exceeds 50 percent; or (b) the minority population percentage of the affected area is meaningfully greater than the minority population percentage in the general population or other appropriate unit of geographic analysis. The second step of an EJ analysis requires a finding of a high and adverse impact. The CEQ guidance indicates that when determining whether the effects are high and adverse, agencies are to consider whether the risks or rates of impact “are significant (as employed by NEPA) or above generally accepted norms.” The final step requires a finding that the impact on the minority or low-income population be disproportionately high and adverse. Although none of the published guidelines define the term “disproportionately high and adverse,” CEQ states that an effect is disproportionate if it appreciably exceeds the risk or rate to the general population. For a minority population, the specific thresholds recommended by the CEQ (1997) are as follows: 50 percent minority population (absolute threshold); the national average minority population – 25 percent (absolute threshold); and the state average plus 20 percent (i.e., state average times 1.2; relative threshold). These are guidelines rather than requirements. The CEQ recommended threshold for determining a low-income population is based on “very low- income” and/or “low-income” characteristics. The very low-income characteristic is defined as persons in households below the U.S. Census Bureau’s poverty threshold. The low-income characteristic is defined as below two times the poverty threshold (CEQ 1997). The poverty thresholds are designated by the Census Bureau for the nation. The 2010 Census poverty data are not yet available for Census Block Groups. Thus, the Census 2000 data, which reflect incomes for 1999, were used in this analysis. The EJ Project study area is an approximately three-mile radius surrounding the transmission centerline for each of the Action Alternatives. All census block groups, whole or in part, within this three-mile radius were included in the analysis. The reason for the choice of a three-mile radius was that the effects of transmission lines (construction noise and dust, potential electromagnetic field impacts, potential land value impacts, and visual impacts) that could be relevant for EJ analysis are likely to occur within approximately a two-mile distance; a three-mile distance was used to ensure geographic comprehensiveness.