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Regular-Community Services   # 24.
Board of Supervisors
Community Development
Meeting Date:
09/26/2023
Brief Title
Temporary Agricultural Well Moratorium
From:
Leslie Lindbo, Director, Department of Community Services
Staff Contact:
Elisa Sabatini, Manager of Natural Resources, Department of Community Services, x5773
Supervisorial District Impact:
Countywide

Subject

Introduce and adopt without further reading an interim urgency ordinance entitled, "An Interim Urgency Ordinance of the Yolo County Board of Supervisors Establishing a Temporary 45-Day Moratorium on the Approval of New Agricultural Water Well Permits in the Central Yolo, Dunnigan Hills, and North Yolo Groundwater Management Areas within the Yolo Subbasin, with specified exemptions, Pending the County and the Yolo Sustainable Groundwater Agency's Study, Identification, and Consideration of Areas of Special Concern," and adopt a Notice of Exemption pursuant to the California Environmental Quality Act based on CEQA Guidelines, Sections 15060(c)(2), 15307, 15308, and 15061(b)(3). (Lindbo/Sabatini/Hood) (4/5 vote required) (No general fund impact) (Est. Time: 5 min)

Recommended Action

Staff recommends that the Board:
  1. Introduce and waive further reading of an interim urgency ordinance entitled, "An Interim Urgency Ordinance of the Yolo County Board of Supervisors Establishing a Temporary 45-Day Moratorium on the Approval of New Agricultural Water Well Permits in the Central Yolo, Dunnigan Hills, and North Yolo Groundwater Management Areas within the Yolo Subbasin, with specified exemptions, Pending the County and the Yolo Sustainable Groundwater Agency's Study, Identification, and Consideration of Areas of Special Concern" (Attachment A);
     
  2. Receive public comment;
     
  3. Adopt a Notice of Exemption pursuant to the California Environmental Quality Act based on CEQA Guidelines, Sections 15060(c)(2), 15307, 15308, and 15061(b)(3); and
     
  4. Adopt the proposed urgency ordinance.

Strategic Plan Goal(s)

Safe Communities
Infrastructure
Sustainable Environment
Quality and Quantity of Water
Flourishing Agriculture
Agricultural Preservation

Reason for Recommended Action/Background

Background
At the July 11, 2023, Yolo County Board of Supervisors (Board) meeting, the Board directed staff to return to the Board by September 12, 2023, to provide options related to a temporary pause of new agricultural well permits in areas of special concern (Item #33). Staff presented three (3) options to the Board at the September 12, 20223, Board meeting (Item #35). After careful deliberation, the Board selected Option "C", a temporary ordinance prohibiting issuance of certain new agricultural wells permits within the Central Yolo, Dunnigan Hills, and North Yolo Groundwater Management Areas. Per the Board's direction, the temporary ordinance (Attachment A): 
  • Excludes replacement agricultural wells, domestic wells, and de minimis users
  • Excludes the Clarksburg, South Yolo, and Capay Valley Management Areas
  • Will be temporary and in place for just 45 days until Yolo Subbasin Groundwater Agency (YSGA) process related to Areas of Special Concern is updated.
If the temporary ordinance is approved, staff will return to the Board on November 7, 2023, with a recommendation to either (a) let the interim urgency ordinance expire on November 10, 2023, or (b) extend the temporary ordinance for a specific (to be determined) amount of time with potential modifications depending on the results of the YSGA's study and identification of Areas of Special Concern. 
 
Proposed Ordinance - Temporary Moratorium
The findings and intent of the proposed 45-day moratorium are more fully set forth in the ordinance (Attachment A), but include the following:
  • The Yolo Subbasin, which covers nearly all of Yolo County, is classified as a high priority basin, and includes six groundwater management areas based upon administrative boundaries and hydrogeologic properties: Central Yolo, Dunnigan Hills, North Yolo, Capay Valley, South Yolo, and Clarksburg.  
  • The YSGA, of which the County is a member, is responsible for the sustainability of the Yolo Subbasin; the County's Environmental Health Department (YCEH) is the local enforcement agency responsible for issuing permits for groundwater wells in the County.
  • The 2021/2022 drought emergency resulted in the issuance of various Executive Orders by Governor Newsom, including Executive Order N-7-22 ("EO") on March 8, 2022, which recognized that “coordination between local entities that approve permits for new groundwater wells and local groundwater sustainability agencies is important to achieving sustainable levels of groundwater, and included a provision (paragraph 9) requiring additional review and analysis of applications for groundwater well permits in medium and high priority groundwater basins. As a high priority basin, wells in the Yolo Subbasin, and thus throughout the County are subject to the EO. 
  • The EO requires the County to obtain a written verification from YSGA that the proposed well is not inconsistent with any sustainable groundwater management program established in the applicable Groundwater Sustainability Plan adopted by YSGA and will not decrease the likelihood of achieving a sustainability goal for the Yolo Subbasin. 
  • The EO further requires the County to determine that the proposed agricultural well is:
    • not likely to interfere with the production and functioning of existing nearby wells, and
    • not likely to cause subsidence that would adversely impact or damage nearby infrastructure.
  • The Yolo Groundwater Sustainability Plan adopted by the YSGA in January 2022 identifies certain "Areas of Special Concern" and significant concerns have been raised by residents in these Areas of Special Concern as well as other areas in the County within the Central Yolo, Dunnigan Hills and North Yolo groundwater management areas, including Plainfield Ridge and Zamora, where data gaps exist and further analysis of new agricultural wells in these areas may require further analysis to determine whether the YSGA and the County can make the requisite EO findings to approve such new wells. 
  • The YSGA has not yet completed its analysis to define these Areas of Special Concern or the additional analysis that may be necessary for wells in these areas, but expects to have this analysis completed within 45 days.
The intent and purpose of the proposed interim ordinance is to temporarily halt the issuance of new agricultural water well permits in the denoted groundwater management areas within the Yolo Subbasin (Central Yolo, Dunnigan Hills, and North Yolo Management Areas), which will maintain the status quo for a brief 45-day period to enable the County and the YSGA to study and develop policies and regulations and implement other recommended actions for well permits within defined Areas of Special Concern. Absent this ordinance, applicants could continue to obtain agricultural water well permits that might exacerbate conditions in Areas of Special Concern without the appropriate analysis regarding the potential impacts of such additional wells. The intent is not to preclude approval of agricultural wells in the denoted groundwater management areas, but to temporarily pause approval to allow for more clear definition of the boundaries of the Areas of Special Concern along with implementation of any additional analysis necessary to make the findings required by the EO to protect the health, safety and environment.

CEQA
Adoption of the interim urgency ordinance pausing issuance of certain agricultural well permits for 45-days is exempt from the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) pursuant to CEQA Guidelines Sections 15060(c)(2) [not a project as ordinance will not result in a direct or reasonably foreseeable indirect physical change in the environment], 15307 (Class 7 categorical exemption - protection of natural resources], 15308 (Class 8 categorical exemption - protection of the environment], and 15061(b)(3) [common sense exemption].

Collaborations (including Board advisory groups and external partner agencies)

Staff has collaborated with the Yolo Subbasin Groundwater Agency, the Office of County Counsel, and the County Administrator's Office. 

Fiscal Impact

Fiscal Impact (Expenditure)

Total cost of recommended action:
$    0
Amount budgeted for expenditure:
$    0
Additional expenditure authority needed:
$    0
One-time commitment:
Yes

Source of Funds for this Expenditure

General Fund
$0

Attachments

Form Review

Inbox Reviewed By Date
Kimberly Hood Kimberly Hood 09/19/2023 12:49 PM
County Counsel Hope Welton 09/19/2023 03:45 PM
Berenice Espitia Berenice Espitia 09/19/2023 04:40 PM
Kimberly Hood Kimberly Hood 09/20/2023 03:48 PM
Kimberly Hood Kimberly Hood 09/20/2023 03:48 PM
Form Started By:
esabatini
Started On:
09/12/2023 09:00 PM
Final Approval Date:
09/20/2023