The Board of Supervisors finds that the unique topography, ecosystems and natural characteristics of the County are fragile, irreplaceable resources that are vital to the general welfare of all residents; that special controls on development must be established for the County's wetlands, floodplains, steep slopes, sensitive biological habitats, and prehistoric and historic sites; and that present methods adopted by the County must be strengthened in order to guarantee the preservation of these sensitive lands. This Chapter will protect sensitive lands and prevent their degradation for certain discretionary projects. This Chapter will also preserve the ability of affected property owners to make reasonable use of their land subject to the conditions established by this Chapter. It is the intent of this Chapter to increase the preservation and protection of the County's unique topography, natural beauty, diversity, and natural resources and a high quality of life for current and future residents of the County of San Diego. Nothing in this Chapter shall be construed to reduce any requirements to protect environmentally sensitive lands contained in any other County plan, ordinance, policy, or regulation. It is not the intent of this Chapter to prohibit all development on steep slopes, but only to limit the amount of disturbance consistent with the encroachment allowances herein.
(Added by Ord. No. 9842 (N.S.), effective 4-20-07; amended by Ord. No. 10705 (N.S.), effective 1-8-21)
For the purposes of this Chapter, the following words and phrases shall have the following meanings. These definitions are to be broadly interpreted and construed to provide maximum protection to the environmentally sensitive lands and resources protected by this Chapter.
(a) "Aquaculture": A form of agriculture devoted to the controlled growing and harvesting of fish, shellfish, and plants in marine, brackish, and fresh water.
(b) "Ecosystem": A system made up of a community of organisms and its interrelated physical and chemical environment.
(c) "Environmentally Sensitive Lands": These lands shall consist of wetlands, floodplains, steep slope lands, sensitive habitat lands, and lands containing significant prehistoric and historic sites as defined by this Section.
(d) "Essential Public Facility or Project": Any structure or improvement necessary for the provision of public services, which must be located in the particular location to serve its purpose and for which no less environmentally damaging location, alignment, or non-structural alternative exists.
(e) "Feasible": Capable of being accomplished in a successful manner within a reasonable period of time, taking into account economic, environmental, and technological factors. Infeasibility must be supported by substantial evidence developed through a good faith effort to investigate alternatives that would result in less adverse impacts. A substantial modification to the configuration of a development, or reduction in density or intensity, would not be considered infeasible unless supported by the above factors.
(f) "Filed": For the purposes of this Chapter, an application is "filed" on the date that a complete and pending application is filed with the County of San Diego and the required fees paid therefore, as follows:
(1) For projects served by public sewer, upon the filing of the application with the agency authorized to grant the ultimate permit or approval; or
(2) For projects not served by public sewers, upon the filing of the application for review by the Department of Health Services; provided, that within 180 days of said filing, an application for the ultimate permit or approval is filed.
(g) "Fill": Any material or substance which is deposited, pushed, dumped, pulled, or otherwise transported or moved to a new location for the purpose of elevating an area above the floodplain. Examples of fill materials include but are not limited to earth, excavated or dredged materials, sand, gravel, rock, asphalt, refuse and concrete rubble.
(h) "Floodplain": The relatively flat area of low lands adjoining and including the channel of a river, stream watercourse, bay, or other body of water which is subject to inundation by the flood waters of the 100 year frequency flood as shown on floodplain maps approved by the Board of Supervisors.
(i) "Floodplain Fringe": The area within the floodplain that is not in the floodway.
(j) "Floodway": All land, as determined by the Director of Public Works, which meets the following criteria:
(1) The floodway shall include all areas necessary to pass the 100 year flood without increasing the water surface elevation more than 1 foot (or, in the case of San Luis Rey River, San Dieguito River, San Diego River, Sweetwater River, and Otay River, upon adoption by the Board of Supervisors of revised floodplain maps which so specify, the increase shall be no more than 2/10ths of 1 foot).
(2) The floodway shall include all land area necessary to convey a ten-year flood without structural improvements.
(3) To avoid creating erosion and the need for channelization, rip-rap or concrete lining, the floodway will not be further reduced in width when the velocity at the floodway boundary is six feet per second or greater.
(4) Floodways are determined by removing equal conveyance (capacity for passing flood flow) from each side unless another criterion controls.
(k) "Mature Riparian Woodland": A grouping of sycamores, cottonwoods, willows and/or oak trees having substantial biological value, where at least ten of the trees have a diameter of six inches or greater.
(l) "Native Vegetation": Vegetation composed of plants which originated, developed, or were produced naturally in the San Diego region and were not introduced directly or indirectly by humans. Native vegetation may be found in but is not limited to marshes, native grasslands, coastal/inland sage scrub, woodlands, and forests.
(m) "Riparian Habitat": An environment associated with the banks and other land adjacent to freshwater bodies, rivers, streams, creeks, estuaries, and other surface-emergent aquifers (such as springs, seeps, and oases). Riparian habitat is characterized by plant and animal communities which require high soil moisture conditions maintained by transported freshwater in excess of that otherwise available through local precipitation.
(n) "Sensitive Habitat Lands": Land which supports unique vegetation communities, or the habitats of rare or endangered species or sub-species of animals or plants as defined by Section 15380 of the State California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) Guidelines (14 Cal. Admin. Code Section 15000 et seq.), including the area which is necessary to support a viable population of any of the above species in perpetuity, or which is critical to the proper functioning of a balanced natural ecosystem or which serves as a functioning wildlife corridor.
"Unique vegetation community" refers to associations of plant species which are rare or substantially depleted. These may contain rare or endangered species, but other species may be included because they are unusual or limited due to a number of factors, for example: (a) they are only found in the San Diego region; (b) they are a local representative of a species or association of species not generally found in San Diego County; or (c) they are outstanding examples of the community type as identified by the California Department of Fish and Wildlife listing of community associations.
(o) "Significant Prehistoric or Historic Sites": Sites that provide information regarding important scientific research questions about prehistoric or historic activities that have scientific, religious, or other ethnic value of local, regional, State, or Federal importance. Such locations shall include, but not be limited to:
(1) Any prehistoric or historic district, site, interrelated collection of features or artifacts, building, structure, or object either:
(aa) Formally determined eligible or listed in the National Register of Historic Places by the Keeper of the National Register; or
(bb) To which the Historic Resource ("H" Designator) Special Area Regulations have been applied; or
(2) One-of-a-kind, locally unique, or regionally unique cultural resources which contain a significant volume and range of data and materials; and
(3) Any location of past or current sacred religious or ceremonial observances which is either:
(aa) Protected under Public Law 95-341, the American Indian Religious Freedom Act or Public Resources Code Section 5097.9, such as burial(s), pictographs, petroglyphs, solstice observatory sites, sacred shrines, religious ground figures, or
(bb) Other formally designated and recognized sites which are of ritual, ceremonial, or sacred value to any prehistoric or historic ethnic group.
(p) "Steep Slope Lands": All lands having a slope with natural gradient of 25% or greater and a minimum rise of 50 feet, unless said land has been substantially disturbed by previous legal grading. The minimum rise shall be measured vertically from the toe of slope to the top of slope within the project boundary.
(q) "Wetland":
(1) Lands having one or more of the following attributes are "wetlands":
(aa) At least periodically, the land supports a predominance of hydrophytes (plants whose habitat is water or very wet places);
(bb) The substratum is predominantly undrained hydric soil; or
(cc) An ephemeral or perennial stream is present, whose substratum is predominately non-soil and such lands contribute substantially to the biological functions or values of wetlands in the drainage system.
(2) Notwithstanding paragraph (1) above, the following shall not be considered "Wetlands":
(aa) Lands which have attribute(s) specified in paragraph (1) solely due to man-made structures (e.g., culverts, ditches, road crossings, or agricultural ponds), provided that the Director of Planning and Development Services determines that they:
(i) Have negligible biological function or value as wetlands;
(ii) Are small and geographically isolated from other wetland systems;
(iii) Are not vernal pools; and,
(iv) Do not have substantial or locally important populations of wetland dependent sensitive species.
(bb) Lands that have been degraded by past legal land disturbance activities, to the point that they meet the following criteria as determined by the Director of Planning and Development Services:
(i) Have negligible biological function or value as wetlands even if restored to the extent feasible; and,
(ii) Do not have substantial or locally important populations of wetland dependent sensitive species.
(Note: Activities on lands not constituting "Wetlands" because of this paragraph (2) may still be subject to mitigation, avoidance and permitting requirements pursuant to the California Environmental Quality Act or other applicable County, state and federal regulations.)
(r) "Wetland Buffer": Lands that provide a buffer area of an appropriate size to protect the environmental and functional habitat values of the wetland, or which are integrally important in supporting the full range of the wetland and adjacent upland biological community. Buffer widths shall be 50 to 200 feet from the edge of the wetland as appropriate based on the above factors. Where oak woodland occurs adjacent to the wetland, the wetland buffer shall include the entirety of the oak habitat (not to exceed 200 feet in width).
(Added by Ord. No. 9842 (N.S.), effective 4-20-07; amended by Ord. No. 10224 (N.S.), effective 10-25-12; amended by Ord. No. 10705 (N.S.), effective 1-8-21)
(a) Application of Regulations. Prior to approval of any of the following types of discretionary applications, the approving authority shall make a finding that the use or development permitted by the application is consistent with the provisions of this Chapter:
Tentative Parcel Maps
Tentative Maps
Revised Tentative Parcel Maps and Revised Tentative Maps
(Review shall exclude areas unaffected by the proposed revisions)
Expired Tentative Parcel Maps and Expired Tentative Maps
Rezones (excluding those applying the Sensitive Resource Area designator and those which have been initiated by the County)
Major Use Permits
Major Use Permit Modifications
(Review shall exclude areas unaffected by the proposed Modifications)
Certificates of Compliance filed pursuant to Sections 81.616.1 or 81.616.2 of this Code (Excluding condominium conversions)
Site Plans (excluding those statutorily or categorically exempt from review under the CEQA and those required by a Sensitive Resource Area Designator)
Administrative Permits (excluding those statutorily or categorically exempt from review under the CEQA and those for clearing)
Vacations of Open Space Easements
This Chapter shall not apply to existing single-family parcels except when an application for one of the above discretionary applications is required, nor to time extensions for any of the above permits.
This Chapter shall apply to any applications filed on or after August 10, 1988 for Tentative Map, Tentative Parcel Map, Revised Tentative Map and Revised Tentative Parcel Map, Rezone, Major Use Permit, Major Use Permit Modification, and Site Plan. In addition, this Chapter shall apply to any application for Vacation of Open Space Easement filed on or after March 24, 1989; and to any application for an Expired Map, Certificate of Compliance, or Administrative Permit filed on or after June 30, 1989.
Where any portion of a parcel contains environmentally sensitive lands, this Chapter shall be applicable to the portions of the parcel containing the sensitive lands, and to the remainder of the parcel only to the extent necessary to achieve the purpose and intent of this Chapter.
(b) Steep Slope Analysis Requirement. In order to determine if a parcel contains steep slopes, a slope analysis shall be prepared. The analysis must be completed by a qualified person such as a registered or licensed architect, landscape architect, engineering geologist, land surveyor, or civil engineer based upon a topographic map using ten foot contour intervals or less. The slope analysis shall show the slope categories for the entire property in acres, as required by the Director of Planning and Development Services. Said categories may include the following depending upon the property's plan designation:
Less than 25% slope
25% and greater up to 50% slope
50% and greater slope
(c) Actions to Protect Environmentally Sensitive Lands. If environmentally sensitive lands are present, one or more of the following actions may be required as a condition of approval for the discretionary permit:
(1) Apply open space easements to portions of the project site that contain sensitive lands;
(2) Rezone the entire project site through the application of a special area designator for sensitive lands; or
(3) Other actions as determined by the decision-making body.
(Added by Ord. No. 9842 (N.S.), effective 4-20-07; amended by Ord. No. 10167 (N.S.), effective 10-14-11; amended by Ord. No. 10224 (N.S.), effective 10-25-12; amended by Ord. No. 10705 (N.S.), effective 1-8-21)
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