Puerto Rico San Juan Bay – Questionnaire

[No need to fill this out; it is only a guide for our discussion by phone.]

CBD CONTACT PERSON:

Cynthia Elkins
Center for Biological Diversity
celkins@biologicaldiversity.org

DECLARANT LEGAL NAME:

DECLARANT ADDRESS:

DECLARANT PHONE NUMBER AND/OR EMAIL:

CURRENT OCCUPATION (and previous jobs if relevant to show a professional interest

in the species or environmental impacts):

ANY RELEVANT DEGREES OR EDUCATION (to show scientific interest in the

species or environmental impacts):

SPECIES COVERED BY THIS DECLARANT:

The following explains the nature of the case and how your declaration will be used:

To proceed with litigation, the Center and co-plaintiffs must be able to show they
have members who have an interest in the unlawful approval of the San Juan Bay
Expansion project and the harm to human health, the human environment, and wildlife.
We will make this showing with a declaration from you explaining your interest in the
species and ecosystems impacted. The purpose of this questionnaire is to get information
from you to prepare the declaration.

It is possible—but highly unlikely—that attorneys for the federal government will

wish to take your deposition to ask you questions about your interest in the species. This
would be an interview where your testimony is recorded by a court reporter and
submitted to the court. If this were to occur, an attorney from the Center would
accompany you at the deposition.

This document is considered attorney work product and contains confidential

information relating to anticipated litigation. Please do not share this document with
anyone.

Background Information on the Expansion and Its Impacts:

• Plaintiffs seek to stop or mitigate the negative effects of the San Juan Bay
Expansion for deep draft tankers bringing petroleum and LNG to refineries.
 Specifically, the lawsuit challenges the Army Corps’ Environmental Assessment
that did not adequately discuss all impacts of the project and the Endangered
Species Act consultation that the Army Corps did with the Fish & Wildlife
Service and the National Marine Fisheries Service to ensure that the dredging will
not jeopardize the continued existence of endangered species.

• The fossil fuel imports will have human health and human environment
impacts because of declining air quality. Replacing these powerplants with clean
energy would completely eliminate air pollution.

• The Expansion will harm aesthetic, recreational, wildlife viewing and other
interests of Plaintiffs’ members who use and enjoy the natural areas around San
Juan Bay.

• Corals are particularly vulnerable to human-caused sedimentation from dredge

spoils. The dredging of the navigation channels will degrade water quality in
San Juan Bay, on the dredge spoil transport route, and at the ocean dumping site.

• Birds and corals depend on natural light cycles to cue natural behaviors, such as
feeding or spawning. The dredging operations will increase light pollution,
disrupting coral spawning events and bird behavior.

• Marine animals rely on sound to navigate, locate prey, avoid predators,

communicate, and maintain general environmental awareness. The ocean noise
pollution from the commercial shipping will interfere with the communication
and behavior of fish, manatees, and turtles. Recent research indicates that sea
turtles are most sensitive to low-frequency sounds below 1,000 Hz, such as the
sounds of crashing waves or vessel motors. This is similar to the hearing range of
most species of fish.

• Several manatees have been hit and killed by large vessels in San Juan Bay and
observers for a recent maintenance dredging projects recorded the presence of
manatees in San Juan Bay. The larger ships driving the Expansion will cause
vessel strikes that injure and kill manatees and sea turtles.

When we speak on the phone, please answer the following questions using complete
sentences. Some questions may appear repetitive or irrelevant; please do your best to
fully respond to each one, as it will better facilitate the drafting of your declaration.

1. Please indicate whether you are a member of the Plaintiff group (for example,
CORALations, El Puente, or the Center) and for how long.

2. What is your role as a member of your organization? (Identify ways that you
participate as a member, such as participation in action alerts, reading
membership newsletters, attending sponsored events, etc.).
3. Do you rely in part on the organization to represent your interest in conserving
endangered species and their habitats?

4. In general, what do you think about the approval of construction dredging

designed for larger petroleum and LNG tankers?

5. Why are you concerned about the unlawful approval of the San Juan Bay
Expansion, specifically the 2018 Environmental Assessment and the Endangered
Species Act consultations?

6. Describe your encounters with Puerto Rico’s marine wildlife and their habitat,
especially in the San Juan Bay estuary. Where and when have you observed this
wildlife? Describe attempts to observe the species even if unsuccessful.

7. How often do you travel to the habitat of these species with the goal of observing
native wildlife?

8. Do you live, breathe, or work near San Juan Bay? Or near any LNG or diesel
terminals or refineries?

9. Describe your plans to return to these areas with as much detail as possible.

10. Why are you interested in the Army Corps’ construction dredging project in San
Juan Bay? Is your interest professional, aesthetic, spiritual, recreational,
economic, moral, etc.? Please explore each of these interests separately – see
below.

11. PROFESSIONAL: Does your work involve any of the species or habitat that may
be impacted? In what way and for how long? Please provide relevant degrees,
institutions, and topics of study.

12. AESTHETIC: Explain your aesthetic interest in the protected species and their
habitat. Do you take joy in knowing these species exist, even if you rarely
encounter them? How will the dredging and larger ships it facilitates in San Juan
Bay affect your aesthetic interest? How would the loss or decline of the species
affect your aesthetic interest? Does your concern for their survival detract from
your enjoyment of the species?
13. SPIRITUAL: Please describe your spiritual interest in any of the protected
species found in the area of the project; whether you seek spiritual fulfillment
through encounters with nature; whether you believe in a creator who intends that
humans should act as guardians of the creation; and how the degradation of
habitat and the loss or decline of species would affect your spiritual interest.

14. RECREATIONAL: Describe your recreational interest in any of the protected

species found in Puerto Rico. How does your enjoyment of recreational activities
depend on the presence of the species or their habitat? (Identify activities that you
engage in that might be impacted by the loss or decline of the species or their
habitat).

15. ECONOMIC: Would the loss or decline of any of the protected species found in
Puerto Rico affect your income in any way? Would it cause you to spend or lose
money? How?

16. MORAL: Do you have a moral interest in the preservation of any of the protected
species or protection that may be impacted by dredging? Please describe whether
you believe that biodiversity has inherent value or whether you believe that these
species have a right to live.

17. Were you deprived of information concerning the Expansion Project’s impacts
due to the unlawful Environmental Assessment and Endangered Species Act
consultation, and of the potential to reduce those impacts through alternatives or
mitigation?

18. Are you concerned that any species could go extinct because of the impacts of
dredging and commercial shipping in San Juan Bay? Why?

19. Is there anything else that you want to talk about?