In the face of increased efforts to convert large areas of agricultural land to wildlife habitat, several counties are exploring ways to reassert their control over such conversions.  Colusa, Glenn and Butte Counties are looking toward the possibility of requiring a General Plan amendment and rezoning before ag land can be converted to habitat.

Colusa County has had such a policy on the books for more than a decade but it has not been consistently applied. Sutter County adopted a similar policy five years ago.

The new emphasis on local control is sparked by a growing number of massive conversion plans, including the Sacramento River Conservation Area Forum (SRCAF), the Comprehensive Study of the Sacramento and San Joaquin River Basins (Comp Study), and now the Flood Protection Corridor Program (FPCP).

The SRCAF envisions the conversion to habitat of 30,000 acres along the Sacramento River in a 100-mile stretch from Red Bluff to Colusa. Much of the acreage is ag land.

The Comp Study advocates extensive habitat restoration within expanded floodways along both rivers. These wider flood channels would be achieved by pushing levees further apart, consuming ag land now outside the levees. The Flood Protection Corridor Program provides funds to acquire easements or property in floodplains. The projects provide for ag land preservation, wildlife habitat protection, setback levees and implementation of non-structural flood damage reduction projects.

County governments are beginning to realize the potential for harmful impacts if those plans are carried out. The counties also are concerned about other programs which seek to convert vast acres of farm land to habitat throughout their boundaries, not just along the rivers.

The harmful impacts foreseen include loss of tax revenue when the land passes to government ownership, losses in ag production and farm employment, and economic losses to businesses that rely on farming activities.  The county governments also are sensitive to impacts that would be likely to occur on properties adjacent to newly created habitat. These include crop depredation by migrating wildlife, forced modification of farming practices because endangered species are introduced to the area and exposure to prosecution if one of the species is accidentally harmed during normal farming operations.

Research by Steve Hackney, Colusa County Planning Director, and County Counsel Don Stanton have developed a draft position paper, soon to be presented to the Board of Supervisors, which includes these points:

• The General Plan designation of "Agricultural-General" (A-G) does not include habitat conversion as a permitted use.

• The Zoning Ordinance designation of "Exclusive-Agriculture" (E-A) similarly does not include habitat conversion as a permitted use.

• Therefore, the conversion of ag land with these designations to habitat requires a General Plan amendment and a zoning change.

• The appropriate General Plan designation for habitat is "Resource Conservation." The appropriate zoning is "Open Space."

• The conversion of ag land to wildlife habitat constitutes a significant change in land use and requires analysis under the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA).

• Some State agencies have inappropriately claimed exemption from CEQA, maintaining that the law does not apply to habitat conversion.

• The County contends, however, that the claimed exemption (Section 15313) applies only to preserving existing habitat not to newly created habitat.

• "Wetland/wildlife habitat environments are conducive to and encouraging to the West Nile virus-carrying mosquitoes, if left unchecked," the analysis says.

The new emphasis on local control is expected to lead to public review of proposals for conversion of ag land to habitat, include notice to adjacent landowners and an opportunity for their input.

The Family Water Alliance (FWA) and the Colusa County Farm Bureau have been working with county officials to help develop guidelines for reassertion of county control. At the request of FWA, Butte and Glenn supervisors have agreed to consider an approach similar to that of Colusa County.