Last month the San Francisco Bay Conservation and Development Commission (BCDC) amended the San Francisco Bay Plan to include new findings and policies addressing climate change and sea level rise.

The new climate change and sea level rise policies were the result of more than two years of planning, drafting, and public hearings. The process was contentious at times. Development and business interests, together with other members of the regulated community, initially argued that the proposed policies would discourage development and economic investment in the Bay Area, while environmental groups pressed BCDC to issue a moratorium on new shoreline development. Municipalities also raised concerns about the policies, fearing that they would allow BCDC to intrude into local planning decisions. However, by the time of adoption, key environmental groups, business groups, and others, including Save the Bay, the Bay Planning Coalition, the Bay Area Council, and DMB, the developer of the proposed Saltworks project in Redwood City, had all expressed their support for the policies. Significant new policies in the Bay Plan include the following...