SECTIONS 29810-29812

29810.  (a) The Legislature finds and declares all of the following: (1) The California citrus industry is in the process of adaptingto a more competitive marketplace and to consumer tastes thatcontinue to change. In the past five years, an estimated 40,000 acresof citrus have been removed from production and replaced with newvarieties of citrus, a majority of which is mandarin fruit commonlycalled Clementines or W. Murcotts, which are intended to be seedless. (2) According to the 2005 California Citrus Acreage Report, thesevarieties have increased substantially. In 2004, more than 10,000acres of these varieties were bearing fruit. Another 2,000 acresbegan bearing fruit in 2005. The same report states that anadditional 12,000 acres of these varieties have been planted but haveyet to bear fruit. This production will come into maturity withinthe next three years, and more is being planted. (3) Due to the production of other agricultural products inproximity to new seedless varieties of citrus, the production ofthese varieties may be in jeopardy. According to a University ofCalifornia at Riverside study published in June of 2005, seedlessmandarins command three to four times as much revenue as seededmandarins. Other citrus-producing nations around the world haveadopted citrus protection areas to limit damage created bycross-pollination. (4) Honeybees are an essential component of agriculture as theypollinate approximately $6 billion worth of crops in California.Historically, honeybee colonies are placed in the citrus belt ofKern, Tulare, Fresno, and Madera Counties to support existingagricultural practices, including the pollination of severalcommodities and the production of honey. Colony Collapse Disorder hasreduced the nation's bee population by 25 percent in the past threeyears, which in turn has created pressure on other agriculturalsectors that rely on a healthy bee population for pollination oftheir crops. (b) Any regulation or best management practice adopted pursuant tothis chapter shall not affect the actual pollination process ofother commodities during their blooming cycle, nor shall it beimplemented when almonds, avocados, peaches, plums, nectarines, seedcrops, or other commodities require pollination. (c) Any regulation or best management practice adopted pursuant tothis chapter shall not affect the ability of property owners locatedwithin the area impacted by the regulation or best managementpractice to farm any commercial crop, including, but not limited to,honey, citrus, and other commodities recognized by the Department ofFood and Agriculture.29811.  (a) Not later than 15 days after enactment of this chapter,the secretary shall designate a Seedless Mandarin and HoneybeeCoexistence Working Group from recommendations received by interestedstakeholders. The Seedless Mandarin and Honeybee Coexistence WorkingGroup shall be established pursuant to the procedures set forth insubdivision (b) of Section 588. For purposes of this chapter,"grower," as used in subdivision (b) of Section 588, includes abeekeeper. (b) The Seedless Mandarin and Honeybee Coexistence Working Groupshall meet on a regular and consistent basis in an effort to developbest management practices that address the coexistence issues relatedto production of seedless mandarin varieties located in Fresno,Kern, Madera, and Tulare Counties, while providing for the reasonableaccess to citrus for the California bee industry.29812.  The secretary shall give the Seedless Mandarin and HoneybeeCoexistence Working Group reasonable time to develop best managementpractices described in Section 29810. (a) If the Seedless Mandarin and Honeybee Coexistence WorkingGroup reaches consensus of best management practices prior to June 1,2008, the secretary may adopt regulations if, in the secretary'sjudgment, this action is necessary to implement and enforce the bestmanagement practices. (b) If the Seedless Mandarin and Honeybee Coexistence WorkingGroup fails to reach consensus on best management practices by June1, 2008, the secretary shall adopt regulations no later than February1, 2009. Regulations adopted pursuant to this section shall belimited to Fresno, Kern, Madera, and Tulare Counties, address thecoexistence issues related to production of seedless mandarinvarieties, and allow seedless mandarin producers to meet retailstandards for seedless fruit, while providing reasonable access tocitrus for the California bee industry. The regulations adopted mayinclude the establishment of fees, not to exceed the cost of theprogram, to be paid by seedless mandarin growers, subject to thischapter.