Farmland Protection | Food Systems

The county’s development regulations address farmland protection. The code establishes requirements for agricultural mitigation (Chapter 9-1080), with the intent that all seven cities within the county adopt agricultural preservation policies and ordinances, including agricultural mitigation ordinances. The ordinance lists findings in support of the chapter, which requires agricultural mitigation for general plan amendments and zoning reclassifications that change use designations or permitted uses from agriculture to non-agricultural use. Mitigation must be at a 1:1 ratio and use farmland conservation easements or other conservation mechanisms. Applicants may either provide agricultural mitigation lands directly or pay an in-lieu fee; both options must cover administrative costs. The ordinance describes qualifying requirements for mitigation lands and requirements for legal instruments for farmland preservation. The ordinance creates an Agricultural Technical Advisory Committee to administer the program and develop a mitigation strategy to guide the acquisition of agricultural mitigation lands.