Section 5002.2.

(a) Following classification or reclassification of a unit by the State Park and Recreation Commission, and prior to the development of any new facilities in any previously classified unit, the department shall prepare a general plan or revise any existing plan, as the case may be, for the unit.

The general plan shall consist of elements that will evaluate and define the proposed land uses, facilities, concessions, operation of the unit, any environmental impacts, and the management of resources, and shall serve as a guide for the future development, management, and operation of the unit.

The general plan constitutes a report on a project for the purposes of Section 21100. The general plan for a unit shall be submitted by the department to the State Park and Recreation Commission for approval.

(b) The resource element of the general plan shall evaluate the unit as a constituent of an ecological region and as a distinct ecological entity, based upon historical and ecological research of plant-animal and soil-geological relationships and shall contain a declaration of purpose, setting forth specific long-range management objectives for the unit consistent with the unit's classification pursuant to Article 1.7 (commencing with Section 5019.50), and a declaration of resource management policy, setting forth the precise actions and limitations required for the achievement of the objectives established in the declaration of purpose.

(c) Notwithstanding the requirements of subdivision (a), the department is not required to prepare a general plan for a unit that has no general plan or to revise an existing plan, as the case may be, if the only development contemplated by the department consists of the repair, replacement, or rehabilitation of an existing facility; the construction of a temporary facility, so long as such construction does not result in the permanent commitment of a resource of the unit; any undertaking necessary for the protection of public health or safety; or any emergency measure necessary for the immediate protection of natural or cultural resources; or any combination thereof at a single unit. Any development is subject to the requirements of the California Environmental Quality Act (Division 13 (commencing with Section 21000)).

(d) Any general plan approved prior to July 1, 1972, may be used as the basis for development if the director finds that there has been no significant change in the resources of the unit since approval of the plan and that the plan is compatible with current policies governing development of the unit and the classification of the unit.

(e) Consistent with good planning and sound resource management, the department shall, in discharging its responsibilities under this section, attempt to make units of the state park system accessible and usable by the general public at the earliest opportunity.

(f) The department may prepare a general plan which includes more than one unit of the state park system for units which are in close proximity to one another and which have similar resources and recreational opportunities if that action will facilitate the protection of public resources and public access to units of the state park system.

(Amended by Stats. 1990, Ch. 342, Sec. 1.)