Soil Importing into Unincorporated Alameda County

ALAMEDA COUNTY STAFF RECOMMENDS SCAC TAKES
TESTIMONY AT March 20, 2019, SCAC Meeting

Staff recommends that the Sunol Citizens’ Advisory Council take testimony for the most recent proposed ordinance modifications dated March 14, 2019, to establish oversight and regulations for Soil Importing, and make recommendations on the draft ordinance language that staff will forward to the Board of Supervisors for their adoption of an ordinance.

The Sunol Citizens’ Advisory Council, March 20, 2019, has an agenda item to hear testimony from the community regarding the Soil Importing Ordinance

CLICK HERE to see the complete staff report to be presented to the 3/20/19 SCAC Meeting regarding the “Soil Import Ordinance.”

Click here for the SCAC Agendas, Minutes, and Audio Tapes from Sunol Citizen’s Advisory Council Meetings

Here are some selected excerpts from the Staff Report to be presented on March 20th, 2019:

SUMMARY

Since the previous Sunol Citizen’s Advisory Council hearing in February of 2019, Staff met with Supervisor Miley’s District 4 Agricultural Advisory Committee. At that D-4 Ag Advisory Committee meeting, the majority of those who voiced their opinions recommended a third tier to the soil importing ordinance on Agriculturally Zoned properties, to result in an Administrative Conditional Use Permit process for soil imported at between 10 and 20 cubic yards per acre per year, up to a maximum of 15,000 cubic yards per property per year.

This would mean for example, that a 100-acre property in an Agricultural zoning district would be allowed up to 2,000 cubic yards of soil import but only if they first get the approval of an Administrative Conditional Use Permit (ACUP). A 1,000-acre property with an approved ACUP would be allowed to import up to 15,000 cubic yards, not the otherwise 20,000 cubic yards that might have been allowed to be imported with the up-to-20 cubic yards per acre per year process.

For Agriculturally Zoned property, soil may be imported according to the following schedule:

1. 0 – 10 cubic yards per acre per year, up to a maximum of 5,000 cubic yards per property (defined as an individually assessed and owned assessor’s parcel number) per year (refer to section 15.36.050 for Grading Permit exemptions) and less than five feet vertically above any existing grade is permitted from any source. The property owner shall be responsible for ensuring that the soil is not contaminated. Subject to audit to require Bill of Lading only.
2. 10 – 20 cubic yards per acre per year, up to a maximum of 15,000 cubic yards per property per year, whichever value is lowest, or any import in any amount resulting in over five feet vertically above any existing grade (refer to section 15.36.050 for Grading Permit exemptions) would need prior approval of an Administrative Conditional Use Permit in addition to any Grading Permit.
3. More than 20 cubic yards per acre per year, or more than 15,000 cubic yards per property per year, whichever value is lowest, would need prior approval of a Conditional Use Permit in addition to any Grading Permit (refer to section 15.36.050 for Grading Permit exemptions).

For property zoned R-1-L, soil may be imported according to the following schedule:

1. Up to 1 cubic yard per acre per year (refer to section 15.36.050 for Grading Permit exemptions):No oversight;
2. 1 – 10 cubic yards per acre per year, up to a maximum of 30 cubic yards per property per year (refer to section 15.36.050 for Grading Permit exemptions):Submit documentation by a licensed Geologist or qualified professional of fill cleanliness to “Tier 1 ESL” levels or as modified by the DTSC or the RWQCB;
3. 10 – 20 cubic yards per year, up to 50 cubic yards per property per year (refer to section 15.36.050 for Grading Permit exemptions):Submit documentation by a licensed Geologist or qualified professional of fill cleanliness to “Tier 1 ESL” levels or as modified by the DTSC or the RWQCB, advise the County the purpose of the soil importation and receive County permission (Administrative Conditional Use Permit);

4. 20 – 50 cubic yards per acre per year, up to a maximum of 80 cubic yards per property per year (refer to section 15.36.050 for Grading Permit exemptions):Submit documentation by a licensed Geologist or qualified professional of fill cleanliness to “Tier 1 ESL” levels or as modified by the DTSC or the RWQCB, receive County permission (Administrative Conditional Use Permit), and notification to neighbors
5. Over 50 cubic yards per acre per year (refer to section 15.36.050 for Grading Permit exemptions):Submit documentation by a licensed Geologist or qualified professional of fill cleanliness to “Tier 1 ESL” levels or as modified by the DTSC or the RWQCB, CUP to include a public hearing, notification to neighbors, and truck traffic plan, and Grading Permit.

Properties above 5 acres shall comply with Agriculture District regulations.

Questions from the public on the Soil Importing Ordinance

There have been some questions raised about the soil already imported on unincorporated properties. There would be a case by case review of any remediation necessary for properties that have already imported soil, depending on site conditions and anticipated further development of the property. What is known is that there are 33 sites that Code Enforcement knows about that have imported soil. There is an estimated 200,000 cubic yard of already-imported soil and an estimated 500,000 cubic yards of soil that people have requested to be allowed to import during the moratorium. However, due to the lack of proper documentation, the cleanliness of that soil has not specifically been determined. There is suspicion, based on the information submitted for some of these properties, that the incorrect cleanliness thresholds were analyzed, so that there is no verification that the already-imported soils are to Tier 1 ESL levels, which is a State standard of clean soil that could be added onto a property for any use.

Currently, there is no proper documentation, although there are suspicions, that most of the soil already imported onto unincorporated properties was not properly analyzed to the higher analysis threshold (the soils were analyzed to determine whether they should be sent to a more restrictive Class I landfill facility such as Kettleman City, or a “common” garbage landfill facility like those at Altamont or Vasco Road.

That analysis of existing imported soil conditions can be done if the Board of Supervisors directs staff, but so far the direction from the Board has been to develop an ordinance that addresses the further importing of soil, not potential remediation of soil already imported. The problems of unregulated soil importing are being addressed with the Soil Importing Ordinance for regulation of soil imports moving forward.

The direction from the Board of Supervisors has been to regulate large amounts of soil being imported to the unincorporated County areas. These soils imports are mostly from construction sites in the urbanized areas. This is what the regulations are aimed toward addressing.

However, so far, there has been no discussion from the Board to increase the budget to add staff to Code Enforcement or other County Department such as Grading or Environmental Health to help with enforcement.

• The Department of Environmental Health has been removed from regulating soil importing in this Ordinance.
• The Board has not yet directed staff to look at charging fees for soil importing. The majority of the people that County staff have heard from are not in support of fees for all amounts of importing. 
• The current Code violation penalties would continue to apply, based on the penalty schedule in Chapter 17.59 of the Zoning Ordinance, and potential for abatement at the cost to the receiving property owner.

Relationship to the Grading OrdinanceThe County’s Grading Ordinance (Chapter 15.36) would continue to apply without modifications.

The Grading Ordinance includes an exemption for fill in any zoning district, as well as an agricultural exemption allowing certain grading activities on A district properties without a Grading Permit if the grading does not endanger any structure or any public or shared access roadway, or cause an impact to any watercourse.

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Excerpt from the February 20, 2019, Sunol Citizen’s Advisory Committee Meeting

A technical issue has been resolved and the full audio file should be available to download from the following link: https://www.acgov.org/agenda_minutes_app/board/com_calendar/ag_min.jsp

Select the Sunol Citizens’ Advisory Council from the drop-down menu to pull up those specific meetings and associated agendas/audio files.

Letter_read_at_Feb_2019_SCAC_by_Council-Member-Beemiller

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Excerpt from East County Board of Zoning Adjustments – Thursday, Oct 26, 2017

“Hey, Rodrigo, it seems to be a problem in the county, seems to be, that every time
you turn around someone’s dumping dirt in a canyon somewhere. Now isn’t that—we’re talkin’ about weeds and fences—that should be a code enforcement violation, right?”

East County Board of Zoning Adjustments Thursday, October 26, 2017