The originally proposed Stream Setback Ordinance would have prohibited any earth disturbing activity in so-called "setbacks" ranging in width from 25 feet to 150 feet on each side of any stream. Some reductions in the width of these setbacks would have been allowed in exchange for stream and riparian corridor restoration work. Prohibited earth disturbing activity included grading, excavation, construction of buildings, driveways, tennis courts, swimming pools, fences, wells, septic systems, walking paths, flower and vegetable gardens, removal of trees or brush, or the planting of orchards or vineyards. The definition of stream included any path (except man made ditches) along which water ever flows with sufficient velocity to transport sediment, including seasonal gullies, dry washes, and minor erosion courses. The ordinance would therefore have created a vast network of 50 foot wide to 300 foot wide conservation easements extending from the bay to the ridge tops along approximately 3,200 miles of "streams" within Napa County, and passing through approximately 9000 privately owned rural parcels.
- Measure P (SSO) Q&A
- Wilson and Lowe Meeting
- Recap of Meeting with Tom Gamble
- Recap of Jan 16 Town Hall Meeting
- Recap of Jan 28 Public Hearing
- Recap of Mar 11 Public Hearing
- Recap of April 8 Public Hearing
- Residential Exemption Explained
- Text of the Stream Setback Ordinance - Measure P
- Setback for setbacks: O, P lose (Napa Register)
- Measures O, P crushed by voters (Napa Register)
- The Original Postcard
- Why won't NVLSA compromise?
- Why did NVLSA Sponsor the Referendum?
In March, a so-called "residential exemption" was proposed, and on April 8, the Stream Setback Ordinance was passed, including the "residential exemption". However, the "residential exemption" does not exempt residential projects from setbacks. Instead, it adopts for residential projects a different set of setbacks, taken the 1991 Hillside Ordinance. On this basis, the County claims that residential setbacks have not been changed by the SSO. But the truth is that under the Stream Setback Ordinance those setbacks apply to all newly defined Class 1 and Class 2 streams, while under the 1991 Ordinance, they applied only to blue line streams and other streams over four feet deep from top of bank. This means that the Stream Setback Ordinance newly impacts property along very many streams (perhaps thousands of miles of streams!) even for residential projects.
Furthermore, even though the ordinance supposedly establishes a zero foot residential setback for all Class 3 streams, County planning staff has said that it lacks the resources to classify every stream, so it will claim that all streams are either class 1 or class 2, and place the burden on the property owner to prove that he has a class 3. Although the ordinance technically establishes a zero foot setback for class 3 streams, it may be impractical, prohibitively expensive, or even impossible to qualify for this designation. For a more detailed explanation of why this is so, and why the "residential exemption" is really a "residential deception", see "Residential Exemption explained" elsewhere on this site.
Good background information on the history of the Stream Setback Ordinance and some of the people on both sides of this issue can be found in James Conaway's book, "The Far Side of Eden". This book is reasonably current, very revealing, interesting and readable, and deals directly with the people and events leading up to the Stream Setback Ordinance.
Conaway's book lends some credence to the view that this ordinance was conceived first, and the scientific/environmental justification for it was dredged up later, and that the Stream Setback Ordinance is at its heart a political issue rather than a scientific one. See Town Hall Meeting and Meeting with Tom Gamble elsewhere on this site for further corroboration of this viewpoint.
The text of the Stream Setback Ordinance (Measure P) can be found here in .html format. Napa County's website at http://www.co.napa.ca.us/ also has a .PDF version of the ordinance, as well as supporting information. At the Napa County site, click on "Government" at the top, then click on "Departments and Districts" on the left, then "Conservation, Development and Planning" at the center, then "Erosion and Stream Setback" on the left, then "Stream Setback" on the right. Scroll down toward the bottom of the page to find the links to the .pdf documents. Select "Adopted Revision Ordinance".
Even though The Regional Water Quality Control Board/Stillwater Sciences "Napa River Basin Limiting Factors Analysis", also referred to locally as the Phase 1 TMDL Study, is touted by proponents as justification for the ordinance, people opposed to the ordinance read it quite differently. In fact it establishes that the Napa River and its tributaries are really quite healthy. Sediment and turbidity were not found to be a limiting factor for migratory fish populations. The most significant limiting factors it identifies are the lack of water to support fish and the physical obstructions of fish migration by our municipal dams. The study specifically states that it establishes no connection between human activity and condition of the river, and it specifically excludes any study of impacts of urban development on fish populations or on the health of the river. This document can be found at http://www.swrcb.ca.gov/rwqcb2/ under Available Documents, and the Executive Summary is definitely worth reading.
Still more encouraging information can be found at http://water.usgs.gov/owq/cleanwater/success/, especially under Publications/Watershed Success Stories/Napa River, where the Napa River is held up as a shining example of successful watershed management. It is difficult to reconcile these accolades with the claim that our river is "impaired".
Superficial press accounts of the Stream Setback debate can be found in the online archives of the Napa Valley Register at http://www.napavalleyregister.com and of the St. Helena Star at http://www.sthelenastar.com/. This debate has also been a popular topic in editorials and letters to the editor printed in both of these papers.
Questions about the Stream Setback Ordinance can be directed to the Napa County Department of Conservation, Development, and Planning at 1195 Third Street, Room 210, Napa, CA 94559, Phone: 707-253-4416. Be aware, however, that some planning staff members have adopted an advocacy attitude and tend to downplay the adverse impacts of this ordinance.