How Will Timberlands Fare In GPU?

The General Plan provides long-term direction for the growth and development of the unincorporated areas of the county, and state law requires that it be reviewed and revised about every 20 years.

The current General Plan Update will shape the future of Humboldt County for years to come. Three different options are currently under consideration:

Alternative A is identified as the “environmentally superior” option, and its consideration is required by the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA).  This option emphasizes resource land protections by meeting housing needs through infill development in existing communities.

Alternative B is the county’s current preferred alternative and, among other things, is designed to allow some residential development through focused development in currently served areas and some urbanization expansion.

Alternative C would allow residential expansion in resource lands and would recognize existing large lot entitlements.
For more detailed information, visit http://co.humboldt.ca.us/gpu/overview.aspx
 

Maples and leather fern in the riparian area of Ryan Creek on the McKay Tract. The tract has been suggested for designation as Community Forest if the Community Management and Acquisition Program is adopted under the GPU’s Option A.     Submitted Photo.

The Forest Resources section of the Humboldt County General Plan Update (GPU) will shape the future of local timberlands, underscoring the importance of a town hall meeting slated for June 11 at College of the Redwoods.

 This is the largest timber-producing county in the state, and though the industry is currently in decline, the jobs that depend on timberlands have historically formed the cornerstone of our economy.  
Due to the current state of the housing and lumber markets, as well as the rate of harvest in recent decades, the “highest and best use” of these forests for timber production and ecosystem values is now threatened by rural residential development.

Current zoning laws and tax structures were intended to prevent these lands from being valued for residential use. This is because such use drives prices too high for economically viable long-term timber production.

The question now is how to enable small landowners to continue to live on the land while preventing the fragmentation of large timberland holdings that has become the pattern across the country?

Under the current rules, for example, Maxxam’s plan to sell off 160 acre “kingdoms” is still legal, and would remain so under the County’s Preferred Alternative B.

Timberlands provide fish and wildlife habitat, help protect water and air quality, and are an important feature of the rural quality of life here on the North Coast. Despite objections to some forest practices, conversion to non-timber uses, such as residential and agricultural uses, threatens to further degrade water quality and salmonid populations. Fragmentation of large timberland holdings threatens the County’s long-term economic base.

To address the issue of protecting timberlands, the following policies are under consideration for the June 11 Planning Commission town hall meeting:

Industrial vs. Non-Industrial TPZ: Currently, the minimum parcel size for lands zoned TPZ (Timber Production Zone) is 40 acres, though under state law the minimum is 160 acres. Alternative A would include two tiers of land use classifications for timber. Non-Industrial Timberlands would allow one house per 40 to 160 acres. Industrial Timberlands would allow one house per 600 acres and a minimum parcel size of 160 acres.

For lands that are industrially managed for timber production (typically more than 5,000 acres), an option for clustering development on a small portion of a parcel would be allowed if 90 percent of the timberland is protected from further development. Separating industrial from non-industrial timber zoning would allow small landowners to live on the land they manage, while protecting large landholdings from fragmentation. This policy is opposed by large timberland landowners, as well as developer and realtor lobbying groups.

Rollout of TPZ for Smaller Parcels: All alternatives propose that “substandard” (generally meaning less than 160 acre) parcels would be taken out of Timber Production Zone if the primary use of the land is for a residence. Currently a 4/5ths vote of the Board of Supervisors is required to roll out of TPZ into another zoning category. The GPU proposes to make this easier for the smaller parcels that are not likely to remain in timber production.

Forestland-Residential Interface: The County would identify areas that would require buffer zones between residential and timber production zones, where residents would be required to acknowledge the “Right to Harvest” timber. This would limit conflicts by minimizing residents’ ability to block timber management activities that they consider a nuisance, including controlled burning. Maps of proposed Forestland-Residential Interfaces are currently being developed.

Community Forest Acquisition and Management Program: If adopted, this Alternative A policy would enable the County to establish a Community Forest Acquisition and Management Program. Though the draft GPU does not propose specific sites for community forests, the Keep Eureka Beautiful Committee suggested years ago that the McKay Tract would be an ideal community forest for Eureka residents.

Community forests can provide recreational opportunities, protection for fish and wildlife habitat, and income from sustainable timber harvest, and they can establish a buffer zone between residential areas and industrial timber production zones. This policy would also set the stage for a Transfer of Development Rights Program and a Carbon Sequestration Program to be established by the county.

Restoration Zoning: Not included in the plan alternatives, Richard Gienger’s proposal for a new zoning category would value restoration activities that restore and promote forest ecosystem values and long-term forest management.

It would provide incentives (such as continued TPZ-style tax status) for landowners in watersheds dominated by non-industrial timberlands, and would reward such activities as reduction of erosion and sedimentation, reduction of fuel hazards, increase of the commercial and wildlife values of forestland, watershed/fisheries restoration and other related activities.

Jennifer Kalt is a member of the Healthy Humboldt Coalition Steering  Committee and Conservation Chair for the California Native Plant  Society.