4511. This chapter shall be known as the Z'berg-Nejedly Forest
Practice Act of 1973.
4512. (a) The Legislature hereby finds and declares that the forest
resources and timberlands of the state are among the most valuable
of the natural resources of the state and that there is great concern
throughout the state relating to their utilization, restoration, and
protection.
(b) The Legislature further finds and declares that the forest
resources and timberlands of the state furnish high-quality timber,
recreational opportunities, and aesthetic enjoyment while providing
watershed protection and maintaining fisheries and wildlife.
(c) The Legislature thus declares that it is the policy of this
state to encourage prudent and responsible forest resource management
calculated to serve the public's need for timber and other forest
products, while giving consideration to the public's need for
watershed protection, fisheries and wildlife, sequestration of carbon
dioxide, and recreational opportunities alike in this and future
generations.
(d) It is not the intent of the Legislature by the enactment of
this chapter to take private property for public use without payment
of just compensation in violation of the California and United States
Constitutions.
4512.5. The Legislature finds and declares all of the following:
(a) State forests play a critical and unique role in the state's
carbon balance by sequestering carbon dioxide from the atmosphere and
storing it long term as carbon.
(b) According to the scoping plan adopted by the State Air
Resources Board pursuant to the California Global Warming Solutions
Act of 2006 (Division 25.5 (commencing with Section 38500) of the
Health and Safety Code), the state's forests currently are an annual
net sequester of five million metric tons of carbon dioxide
(5MMTCO2). In fact, the forest sector is the only sector included in
the scoping plan that provides a net sequestration of greenhouse gas
emissions.
(c) The scoping plan proposes to maintain the current 5MMTCO2
annual sequestration rate through 2020 by implementing "sustainable
management practices," which include potential changes to existing
forest practices and land use regulations.
(d) There is increasing evidence that climate change has and will
continue to stress forest ecosystems, which underscores the
importance of proactively managing forests so that they can adapt to
these stressors and remain a net sequester of carbon dioxide.
(e) The board, the department, and the State Air Resources Board
should strive to go beyond the status quo sequestration rate and
ensure that their policies and regulations reflect the unique role
forests play in combating climate change.
4513. It is the intent of the Legislature to create and maintain an
effective and comprehensive system of regulation and use of all
timberlands so as to ensure both of the following:
(a) Where feasible, the productivity of timberlands is restored,
enhanced, and maintained.
(b) The goal of maximum sustained production of high-quality
timber products is achieved while giving consideration to values
relating to sequestration of carbon dioxide, recreation, watershed,
wildlife, range and forage, fisheries, regional economic vitality,
employment, and aesthetic enjoyment.
4514. No provision of this chapter or any ruling, requirement, or
policy of the board is a limitation on any of the following:
(a) On the power of any city or county or city and county to
declare, prohibit, and abate nuisances.
(b) On the power of the Attorney General, at the request of the
board, or upon his own motion, to bring an action in the name of the
people of the State of California to enjoin any pollution or
nuisance.
(c) On the power of any state agency in the enforcement or
administration of any provision of law which it is specifically
authorized or required to enforce or administer.
(d) On the right of any person to maintain at any time any
appropriate action for relief against any private nuisance as defined
in Part 3 (commencing with Section 3479) of Division 4 of the Civil
Code or for any other private relief.
4514.3. (a) Timber operations conducted pursuant to this chapter
are exempt from the waste discharge requirements of Article 4
(commencing with Section 13260) of Chapter 4 of Division 7 of the
Water Code as long as both the federal Environmental Protection
Agency and the State Water Resources Control Board certify after
January 1, 2003, that the provisions of this chapter constitute best
management practices for silviculture pursuant to Section 208 of the
Federal Water Pollution Control Act.
(b) The exemption contained in subdivision (a) does not apply when
any of the following occurs:
(1) The board requests issuance of waste discharge requirements.
(2) There has been a finding by the State Water Resources Control
Board that the board has failed to maintain a water quality
regulatory process consistent with the certification required under
subdivision (a).
(3) After monitoring the water quality impacts from timber
operations conducted in compliance with this chapter, there has been
a finding by the State Water Resources Control Board that compliance
with best management practices would result in less water quality
protection than required in water quality control plans approved
pursuant to Section 13245 of the Water Code.
4514.5. Any person may commence an action on his own behalf against
the board or the department for a writ of mandate pursuant to
Chapter 2 (commencing with Section 1084) of Title 1 of Part 3 of the
Code of Civil Procedure to compel the board or the department to
carry out any duty imposed upon them under the provisions of this
chapter.
4515. The board shall submit to the Legislature on December 1st of
each year a report on the actions taken pursuant to this chapter
during the preceding fiscal year. Such report shall include a
statement of the actions, including legislative recommendations,
which are necessary to more fully carry out the purposes and
requirements of this chapter.
4516. Notwithstanding any provision of this chapter, the California
Tahoe Regional Planning Agency shall have the right, within the
reasonable exercise of its powers, to adopt rules and regulations by
ordinance or resolution which are stricter than those provided under
this chapter and regulations adopted pursuant to this chapter. The
agency's rules and regulations may include, but are not limited to,
matters relating to soil erosion control, protection of stream
character and water quality, flood control, stand density control,
reforestation methods, mass soil movements, submission of timber
harvesting plans, location and grade of roads and skid trails,
excavation and fill requirements, slash and debris disposal, haul
routes and schedules, hours and dates of logging, and performance
bond requirements.
Whenever state funds are not expended for the support of the
California Tahoe Regional Planning Agency, as provided in Section
67131 of the Government Code, the Tahoe Regional Planning Agency
shall have the right to adopt rules and regulations pursuant to this
section.
4516.5. (a) Individual counties may recommend that the board adopt
additional rules and regulations for the content of timber harvesting
plans and the conduct of timber operations to take account of local
needs. For purposes of this section, "timber operations" includes,
but is not limited to, soil erosion control, protection of stream
character and water quality, water distribution systems, flood
control, stand density control, reforestation methods, mass soil
movements, location and grade of roads and skid trails, excavation
and fill requirements, slash and debris disposal, haul routes and
schedules, hours and dates of logging, and performance bond or other
reasonable surety requirements for onsite timber operations and for
protection of publicly and privately owned roads that are part of the
haul route. Where a bond or other surety has been required, the
director shall not issue a work completion report without first
ascertaining whether the county in which the timber operations were
conducted has knowledge of any claims intended to be made on the bond
or surety.
(b) The board shall, in conformance with Chapter 3.5 (commencing
with Section 11340) of Part 1 of Division 3 of Title 2 of the
Government Code and within 180 days after receiving recommended rules
and regulations from a county, adopt rules and regulations for the
content of timber harvesting plans and the conduct of timber
operations consistent with the recommended rules and regulations,
subject to Section 4551.5, if the board finds the recommended rules
and regulations are both of the following:
(1) Consistent with the intent and purposes of this chapter.
(2) Necessary to protect needs and conditions of the county
recommending them.
(c) The rules and regulations, if adopted by the board, shall
apply only to the conduct of timber operations within the
recommending county and shall be enforced and implemented by the
department in the same manner as other rules and regulations adopted
by the board.
(d) Except as provided in subdivision (e), individual counties
shall not otherwise regulate the conduct of timber operations, as
defined by this chapter, or require the issuance of any permit or
license for those operations.
(e) The board may delegate to individual counties its authority to
require performance bonds or other surety for the protection of
roads, in which case, the procedures and forms shall be the same as
those used in similar circumstances in the county. The board may
establish reasonable limits on the amount of performance bonds or
other surety which may be required for any timber operation and
criteria for the requirement, payment, and release of those bonds or
other surety. If the county fails to inform the director of the
claims within 30 days after the completion report has been filed, the
bond or surety shall be released.
(f) This section does not apply to timber operations on any land
area of less than three acres and which is not zoned timberland
production.
4516.6. (a) To provide for adequate public review and comment,
notwithstanding Section 4582.7, the director shall not approve a
timber harvesting plan in any county for which rules and regulations
have been adopted pursuant to Section 4516.5 or 4516.8 until 35 days
from the date of filing of the plan, and timber operations shall not
commence until five days from the date of approval of the plan. The
board may provide, by regulation, for those periods to be waived or
shortened by the department upon a determination, pursuant to
criteria and procedures established by the board, that the proposed
timber operations will cause no significant environmental damage or
threat to public health and safety or to the environment, or that the
timber operations are necessary to reduce that threat. If the
chairperson of the board of supervisors of the county in which the
proposed timber operations are located notifies the director and the
plan submitter that the county intends to appeal the approval of the
plan and that the county meets the requirements for filing an appeal,
no timber operations shall occur until the final determination of
the appeal. If the board of supervisors determines not to appeal the
approval of the plan, it shall immediately notify the director and
the plan submitter in writing of that determination, and timber
operations pursuant to the plan may commence immediately.
(b) (1) The board of supervisors of the county for which rules and
regulations have been adopted pursuant to Section 4516.5 or 4516.8
may, not later than 10 days after approval of the plan by the
director, appeal that approval to the board, if the county has both
participated in the initial inspection of the plan area with the
director and participated in a multidisciplinary review of the plan.
(2) The board may establish procedures for filing the appeal and
may specify findings that the board of supervisors is required to
make in filing the appeal to demonstrate that a substantial issue is
raised with respect to public health and safety or the environment.
(c) The board shall grant to a county that meets the requirements
for filing an appeal an initial hearing to consider the county's
request for an appeal at the next regularly scheduled board meeting
following the receipt of the request.
(d) The board shall grant a public hearing on the appeal if it
determines at an initial hearing pursuant to subdivision (c) that the
appeal raises substantial issues with respect to public health and
safety or the environment.
(e) (1) The board shall hold a public hearing on the appeal
granted pursuant to subdivision (d) within 30 days from the date of
granting the hearing or at the next regularly scheduled board
meeting, whichever occurs first, or within a longer period of time
that is mutually agreed upon by the board, the county, and the plan
submitter. Upon conclusion of the hearing, the board shall approve or
deny the plan. The basis of the board's decision shall be
conformance with this section and the rules and regulations of the
board, including any rules or regulations enacted with respect to the
county pursuant to Section 4516.5 or 4516.8, and this chapter. In
denying a plan, the board may make findings that set forth conditions
under which it believes that the plan would have been approved.
(2) The board may delegate conduct of the hearing and the decision
to a committee of three members to be appointed for that hearing by
the chairperson of the board. The committee shall consist of at least
two general public members of the board. The chairperson of the
board or the chairperson's designee shall conduct the hearing. The
decision of the committee shall have the full force and effect of a
decision of the full board.
(f) This section does not apply to timber operations on any land
area of less than three acres and that is not zoned for timberland
production.
4516.8. In addition to the authority provided in Section 4516.5,
the Counties of Marin, Monterey, San Mateo, Santa Clara, and Santa
Cruz may recommend that the board adopt additional rules and
regulations for the content of timber harvesting plans and the
conduct of timber operations which provide a requirement that each
timber harvesting plan contain a description of all log hauling
routes, a statement of whether an encroachment permit is required by
any public agency, and a requirement that no timber harvesting plan
be approved by the director without the condition that the timber
operator secure all required encroachment permits prior to
commencement of timber operations.
4517. If any provision of this chapter or the application thereof
to any person or circumstance is held invalid, such invalidity shall
not affect other provisions or applications of the chapter which can
be given effect without the invalid provision or application, and to
this end the provisions of this chapter are severable.
4511. This chapter shall be known as the Z'berg-Nejedly Forest
Practice Act of 1973.
4512. (a) The Legislature hereby finds and declares that the forest
resources and timberlands of the state are among the most valuable
of the natural resources of the state and that there is great concern
throughout the state relating to their utilization, restoration, and
protection.
(b) The Legislature further finds and declares that the forest
resources and timberlands of the state furnish high-quality timber,
recreational opportunities, and aesthetic enjoyment while providing
watershed protection and maintaining fisheries and wildlife.
(c) The Legislature thus declares that it is the policy of this
state to encourage prudent and responsible forest resource management
calculated to serve the public's need for timber and other forest
products, while giving consideration to the public's need for
watershed protection, fisheries and wildlife, sequestration of carbon
dioxide, and recreational opportunities alike in this and future
generations.
(d) It is not the intent of the Legislature by the enactment of
this chapter to take private property for public use without payment
of just compensation in violation of the California and United States
Constitutions.
4512.5. The Legislature finds and declares all of the following:
(a) State forests play a critical and unique role in the state's
carbon balance by sequestering carbon dioxide from the atmosphere and
storing it long term as carbon.
(b) According to the scoping plan adopted by the State Air
Resources Board pursuant to the California Global Warming Solutions
Act of 2006 (Division 25.5 (commencing with Section 38500) of the
Health and Safety Code), the state's forests currently are an annual
net sequester of five million metric tons of carbon dioxide
(5MMTCO2). In fact, the forest sector is the only sector included in
the scoping plan that provides a net sequestration of greenhouse gas
emissions.
(c) The scoping plan proposes to maintain the current 5MMTCO2
annual sequestration rate through 2020 by implementing "sustainable
management practices," which include potential changes to existing
forest practices and land use regulations.
(d) There is increasing evidence that climate change has and will
continue to stress forest ecosystems, which underscores the
importance of proactively managing forests so that they can adapt to
these stressors and remain a net sequester of carbon dioxide.
(e) The board, the department, and the State Air Resources Board
should strive to go beyond the status quo sequestration rate and
ensure that their policies and regulations reflect the unique role
forests play in combating climate change.
4513. It is the intent of the Legislature to create and maintain an
effective and comprehensive system of regulation and use of all
timberlands so as to ensure both of the following:
(a) Where feasible, the productivity of timberlands is restored,
enhanced, and maintained.
(b) The goal of maximum sustained production of high-quality
timber products is achieved while giving consideration to values
relating to sequestration of carbon dioxide, recreation, watershed,
wildlife, range and forage, fisheries, regional economic vitality,
employment, and aesthetic enjoyment.
4514. No provision of this chapter or any ruling, requirement, or
policy of the board is a limitation on any of the following:
(a) On the power of any city or county or city and county to
declare, prohibit, and abate nuisances.
(b) On the power of the Attorney General, at the request of the
board, or upon his own motion, to bring an action in the name of the
people of the State of California to enjoin any pollution or
nuisance.
(c) On the power of any state agency in the enforcement or
administration of any provision of law which it is specifically
authorized or required to enforce or administer.
(d) On the right of any person to maintain at any time any
appropriate action for relief against any private nuisance as defined
in Part 3 (commencing with Section 3479) of Division 4 of the Civil
Code or for any other private relief.
4514.3. (a) Timber operations conducted pursuant to this chapter
are exempt from the waste discharge requirements of Article 4
(commencing with Section 13260) of Chapter 4 of Division 7 of the
Water Code as long as both the federal Environmental Protection
Agency and the State Water Resources Control Board certify after
January 1, 2003, that the provisions of this chapter constitute best
management practices for silviculture pursuant to Section 208 of the
Federal Water Pollution Control Act.
(b) The exemption contained in subdivision (a) does not apply when
any of the following occurs:
(1) The board requests issuance of waste discharge requirements.
(2) There has been a finding by the State Water Resources Control
Board that the board has failed to maintain a water quality
regulatory process consistent with the certification required under
subdivision (a).
(3) After monitoring the water quality impacts from timber
operations conducted in compliance with this chapter, there has been
a finding by the State Water Resources Control Board that compliance
with best management practices would result in less water quality
protection than required in water quality control plans approved
pursuant to Section 13245 of the Water Code.
4514.5. Any person may commence an action on his own behalf against
the board or the department for a writ of mandate pursuant to
Chapter 2 (commencing with Section 1084) of Title 1 of Part 3 of the
Code of Civil Procedure to compel the board or the department to
carry out any duty imposed upon them under the provisions of this
chapter.
4515. The board shall submit to the Legislature on December 1st of
each year a report on the actions taken pursuant to this chapter
during the preceding fiscal year. Such report shall include a
statement of the actions, including legislative recommendations,
which are necessary to more fully carry out the purposes and
requirements of this chapter.
4516. Notwithstanding any provision of this chapter, the California
Tahoe Regional Planning Agency shall have the right, within the
reasonable exercise of its powers, to adopt rules and regulations by
ordinance or resolution which are stricter than those provided under
this chapter and regulations adopted pursuant to this chapter. The
agency's rules and regulations may include, but are not limited to,
matters relating to soil erosion control, protection of stream
character and water quality, flood control, stand density control,
reforestation methods, mass soil movements, submission of timber
harvesting plans, location and grade of roads and skid trails,
excavation and fill requirements, slash and debris disposal, haul
routes and schedules, hours and dates of logging, and performance
bond requirements.
Whenever state funds are not expended for the support of the
California Tahoe Regional Planning Agency, as provided in Section
67131 of the Government Code, the Tahoe Regional Planning Agency
shall have the right to adopt rules and regulations pursuant to this
section.
4516.5. (a) Individual counties may recommend that the board adopt
additional rules and regulations for the content of timber harvesting
plans and the conduct of timber operations to take account of local
needs. For purposes of this section, "timber operations" includes,
but is not limited to, soil erosion control, protection of stream
character and water quality, water distribution systems, flood
control, stand density control, reforestation methods, mass soil
movements, location and grade of roads and skid trails, excavation
and fill requirements, slash and debris disposal, haul routes and
schedules, hours and dates of logging, and performance bond or other
reasonable surety requirements for onsite timber operations and for
protection of publicly and privately owned roads that are part of the
haul route. Where a bond or other surety has been required, the
director shall not issue a work completion report without first
ascertaining whether the county in which the timber operations were
conducted has knowledge of any claims intended to be made on the bond
or surety.
(b) The board shall, in conformance with Chapter 3.5 (commencing
with Section 11340) of Part 1 of Division 3 of Title 2 of the
Government Code and within 180 days after receiving recommended rules
and regulations from a county, adopt rules and regulations for the
content of timber harvesting plans and the conduct of timber
operations consistent with the recommended rules and regulations,
subject to Section 4551.5, if the board finds the recommended rules
and regulations are both of the following:
(1) Consistent with the intent and purposes of this chapter.
(2) Necessary to protect needs and conditions of the county
recommending them.
(c) The rules and regulations, if adopted by the board, shall
apply only to the conduct of timber operations within the
recommending county and shall be enforced and implemented by the
department in the same manner as other rules and regulations adopted
by the board.
(d) Except as provided in subdivision (e), individual counties
shall not otherwise regulate the conduct of timber operations, as
defined by this chapter, or require the issuance of any permit or
license for those operations.
(e) The board may delegate to individual counties its authority to
require performance bonds or other surety for the protection of
roads, in which case, the procedures and forms shall be the same as
those used in similar circumstances in the county. The board may
establish reasonable limits on the amount of performance bonds or
other surety which may be required for any timber operation and
criteria for the requirement, payment, and release of those bonds or
other surety. If the county fails to inform the director of the
claims within 30 days after the completion report has been filed, the
bond or surety shall be released.
(f) This section does not apply to timber operations on any land
area of less than three acres and which is not zoned timberland
production.
4516.6. (a) To provide for adequate public review and comment,
notwithstanding Section 4582.7, the director shall not approve a
timber harvesting plan in any county for which rules and regulations
have been adopted pursuant to Section 4516.5 or 4516.8 until 35 days
from the date of filing of the plan, and timber operations shall not
commence until five days from the date of approval of the plan. The
board may provide, by regulation, for those periods to be waived or
shortened by the department upon a determination, pursuant to
criteria and procedures established by the board, that the proposed
timber operations will cause no significant environmental damage or
threat to public health and safety or to the environment, or that the
timber operations are necessary to reduce that threat. If the
chairperson of the board of supervisors of the county in which the
proposed timber operations are located notifies the director and the
plan submitter that the county intends to appeal the approval of the
plan and that the county meets the requirements for filing an appeal,
no timber operations shall occur until the final determination of
the appeal. If the board of supervisors determines not to appeal the
approval of the plan, it shall immediately notify the director and
the plan submitter in writing of that determination, and timber
operations pursuant to the plan may commence immediately.
(b) (1) The board of supervisors of the county for which rules and
regulations have been adopted pursuant to Section 4516.5 or 4516.8
may, not later than 10 days after approval of the plan by the
director, appeal that approval to the board, if the county has both
participated in the initial inspection of the plan area with the
director and participated in a multidisciplinary review of the plan.
(2) The board may establish procedures for filing the appeal and
may specify findings that the board of supervisors is required to
make in filing the appeal to demonstrate that a substantial issue is
raised with respect to public health and safety or the environment.
(c) The board shall grant to a county that meets the requirements
for filing an appeal an initial hearing to consider the county's
request for an appeal at the next regularly scheduled board meeting
following the receipt of the request.
(d) The board shall grant a public hearing on the appeal if it
determines at an initial hearing pursuant to subdivision (c) that the
appeal raises substantial issues with respect to public health and
safety or the environment.
(e) (1) The board shall hold a public hearing on the appeal
granted pursuant to subdivision (d) within 30 days from the date of
granting the hearing or at the next regularly scheduled board
meeting, whichever occurs first, or within a longer period of time
that is mutually agreed upon by the board, the county, and the plan
submitter. Upon conclusion of the hearing, the board shall approve or
deny the plan. The basis of the board's decision shall be
conformance with this section and the rules and regulations of the
board, including any rules or regulations enacted with respect to the
county pursuant to Section 4516.5 or 4516.8, and this chapter. In
denying a plan, the board may make findings that set forth conditions
under which it believes that the plan would have been approved.
(2) The board may delegate conduct of the hearing and the decision
to a committee of three members to be appointed for that hearing by
the chairperson of the board. The committee shall consist of at least
two general public members of the board. The chairperson of the
board or the chairperson's designee shall conduct the hearing. The
decision of the committee shall have the full force and effect of a
decision of the full board.
(f) This section does not apply to timber operations on any land
area of less than three acres and that is not zoned for timberland
production.
4516.8. In addition to the authority provided in Section 4516.5,
the Counties of Marin, Monterey, San Mateo, Santa Clara, and Santa
Cruz may recommend that the board adopt additional rules and
regulations for the content of timber harvesting plans and the
conduct of timber operations which provide a requirement that each
timber harvesting plan contain a description of all log hauling
routes, a statement of whether an encroachment permit is required by
any public agency, and a requirement that no timber harvesting plan
be approved by the director without the condition that the timber
operator secure all required encroachment permits prior to
commencement of timber operations.
4517. If any provision of this chapter or the application thereof
to any person or circumstance is held invalid, such invalidity shall
not affect other provisions or applications of the chapter which can
be given effect without the invalid provision or application, and to
this end the provisions of this chapter are severable.
4511. This chapter shall be known as the Z'berg-Nejedly Forest
Practice Act of 1973.
4512. (a) The Legislature hereby finds and declares that the forest
resources and timberlands of the state are among the most valuable
of the natural resources of the state and that there is great concern
throughout the state relating to their utilization, restoration, and
protection.
(b) The Legislature further finds and declares that the forest
resources and timberlands of the state furnish high-quality timber,
recreational opportunities, and aesthetic enjoyment while providing
watershed protection and maintaining fisheries and wildlife.
(c) The Legislature thus declares that it is the policy of this
state to encourage prudent and responsible forest resource management
calculated to serve the public's need for timber and other forest
products, while giving consideration to the public's need for
watershed protection, fisheries and wildlife, sequestration of carbon
dioxide, and recreational opportunities alike in this and future
generations.
(d) It is not the intent of the Legislature by the enactment of
this chapter to take private property for public use without payment
of just compensation in violation of the California and United States
Constitutions.
4512.5. The Legislature finds and declares all of the following:
(a) State forests play a critical and unique role in the state's
carbon balance by sequestering carbon dioxide from the atmosphere and
storing it long term as carbon.
(b) According to the scoping plan adopted by the State Air
Resources Board pursuant to the California Global Warming Solutions
Act of 2006 (Division 25.5 (commencing with Section 38500) of the
Health and Safety Code), the state's forests currently are an annual
net sequester of five million metric tons of carbon dioxide
(5MMTCO2). In fact, the forest sector is the only sector included in
the scoping plan that provides a net sequestration of greenhouse gas
emissions.
(c) The scoping plan proposes to maintain the current 5MMTCO2
annual sequestration rate through 2020 by implementing "sustainable
management practices," which include potential changes to existing
forest practices and land use regulations.
(d) There is increasing evidence that climate change has and will
continue to stress forest ecosystems, which underscores the
importance of proactively managing forests so that they can adapt to
these stressors and remain a net sequester of carbon dioxide.
(e) The board, the department, and the State Air Resources Board
should strive to go beyond the status quo sequestration rate and
ensure that their policies and regulations reflect the unique role
forests play in combating climate change.
4513. It is the intent of the Legislature to create and maintain an
effective and comprehensive system of regulation and use of all
timberlands so as to ensure both of the following:
(a) Where feasible, the productivity of timberlands is restored,
enhanced, and maintained.
(b) The goal of maximum sustained production of high-quality
timber products is achieved while giving consideration to values
relating to sequestration of carbon dioxide, recreation, watershed,
wildlife, range and forage, fisheries, regional economic vitality,
employment, and aesthetic enjoyment.
4514. No provision of this chapter or any ruling, requirement, or
policy of the board is a limitation on any of the following:
(a) On the power of any city or county or city and county to
declare, prohibit, and abate nuisances.
(b) On the power of the Attorney General, at the request of the
board, or upon his own motion, to bring an action in the name of the
people of the State of California to enjoin any pollution or
nuisance.
(c) On the power of any state agency in the enforcement or
administration of any provision of law which it is specifically
authorized or required to enforce or administer.
(d) On the right of any person to maintain at any time any
appropriate action for relief against any private nuisance as defined
in Part 3 (commencing with Section 3479) of Division 4 of the Civil
Code or for any other private relief.
4514.3. (a) Timber operations conducted pursuant to this chapter
are exempt from the waste discharge requirements of Article 4
(commencing with Section 13260) of Chapter 4 of Division 7 of the
Water Code as long as both the federal Environmental Protection
Agency and the State Water Resources Control Board certify after
January 1, 2003, that the provisions of this chapter constitute best
management practices for silviculture pursuant to Section 208 of the
Federal Water Pollution Control Act.
(b) The exemption contained in subdivision (a) does not apply when
any of the following occurs:
(1) The board requests issuance of waste discharge requirements.
(2) There has been a finding by the State Water Resources Control
Board that the board has failed to maintain a water quality
regulatory process consistent with the certification required under
subdivision (a).
(3) After monitoring the water quality impacts from timber
operations conducted in compliance with this chapter, there has been
a finding by the State Water Resources Control Board that compliance
with best management practices would result in less water quality
protection than required in water quality control plans approved
pursuant to Section 13245 of the Water Code.
4514.5. Any person may commence an action on his own behalf against
the board or the department for a writ of mandate pursuant to
Chapter 2 (commencing with Section 1084) of Title 1 of Part 3 of the
Code of Civil Procedure to compel the board or the department to
carry out any duty imposed upon them under the provisions of this
chapter.
4515. The board shall submit to the Legislature on December 1st of
each year a report on the actions taken pursuant to this chapter
during the preceding fiscal year. Such report shall include a
statement of the actions, including legislative recommendations,
which are necessary to more fully carry out the purposes and
requirements of this chapter.
4516. Notwithstanding any provision of this chapter, the California
Tahoe Regional Planning Agency shall have the right, within the
reasonable exercise of its powers, to adopt rules and regulations by
ordinance or resolution which are stricter than those provided under
this chapter and regulations adopted pursuant to this chapter. The
agency's rules and regulations may include, but are not limited to,
matters relating to soil erosion control, protection of stream
character and water quality, flood control, stand density control,
reforestation methods, mass soil movements, submission of timber
harvesting plans, location and grade of roads and skid trails,
excavation and fill requirements, slash and debris disposal, haul
routes and schedules, hours and dates of logging, and performance
bond requirements.
Whenever state funds are not expended for the support of the
California Tahoe Regional Planning Agency, as provided in Section
67131 of the Government Code, the Tahoe Regional Planning Agency
shall have the right to adopt rules and regulations pursuant to this
section.
4516.5. (a) Individual counties may recommend that the board adopt
additional rules and regulations for the content of timber harvesting
plans and the conduct of timber operations to take account of local
needs. For purposes of this section, "timber operations" includes,
but is not limited to, soil erosion control, protection of stream
character and water quality, water distribution systems, flood
control, stand density control, reforestation methods, mass soil
movements, location and grade of roads and skid trails, excavation
and fill requirements, slash and debris disposal, haul routes and
schedules, hours and dates of logging, and performance bond or other
reasonable surety requirements for onsite timber operations and for
protection of publicly and privately owned roads that are part of the
haul route. Where a bond or other surety has been required, the
director shall not issue a work completion report without first
ascertaining whether the county in which the timber operations were
conducted has knowledge of any claims intended to be made on the bond
or surety.
(b) The board shall, in conformance with Chapter 3.5 (commencing
with Section 11340) of Part 1 of Division 3 of Title 2 of the
Government Code and within 180 days after receiving recommended rules
and regulations from a county, adopt rules and regulations for the
content of timber harvesting plans and the conduct of timber
operations consistent with the recommended rules and regulations,
subject to Section 4551.5, if the board finds the recommended rules
and regulations are both of the following:
(1) Consistent with the intent and purposes of this chapter.
(2) Necessary to protect needs and conditions of the county
recommending them.
(c) The rules and regulations, if adopted by the board, shall
apply only to the conduct of timber operations within the
recommending county and shall be enforced and implemented by the
department in the same manner as other rules and regulations adopted
by the board.
(d) Except as provided in subdivision (e), individual counties
shall not otherwise regulate the conduct of timber operations, as
defined by this chapter, or require the issuance of any permit or
license for those operations.
(e) The board may delegate to individual counties its authority to
require performance bonds or other surety for the protection of
roads, in which case, the procedures and forms shall be the same as
those used in similar circumstances in the county. The board may
establish reasonable limits on the amount of performance bonds or
other surety which may be required for any timber operation and
criteria for the requirement, payment, and release of those bonds or
other surety. If the county fails to inform the director of the
claims within 30 days after the completion report has been filed, the
bond or surety shall be released.
(f) This section does not apply to timber operations on any land
area of less than three acres and which is not zoned timberland
production.
4516.6. (a) To provide for adequate public review and comment,
notwithstanding Section 4582.7, the director shall not approve a
timber harvesting plan in any county for which rules and regulations
have been adopted pursuant to Section 4516.5 or 4516.8 until 35 days
from the date of filing of the plan, and timber operations shall not
commence until five days from the date of approval of the plan. The
board may provide, by regulation, for those periods to be waived or
shortened by the department upon a determination, pursuant to
criteria and procedures established by the board, that the proposed
timber operations will cause no significant environmental damage or
threat to public health and safety or to the environment, or that the
timber operations are necessary to reduce that threat. If the
chairperson of the board of supervisors of the county in which the
proposed timber operations are located notifies the director and the
plan submitter that the county intends to appeal the approval of the
plan and that the county meets the requirements for filing an appeal,
no timber operations shall occur until the final determination of
the appeal. If the board of supervisors determines not to appeal the
approval of the plan, it shall immediately notify the director and
the plan submitter in writing of that determination, and timber
operations pursuant to the plan may commence immediately.
(b) (1) The board of supervisors of the county for which rules and
regulations have been adopted pursuant to Section 4516.5 or 4516.8
may, not later than 10 days after approval of the plan by the
director, appeal that approval to the board, if the county has both
participated in the initial inspection of the plan area with the
director and participated in a multidisciplinary review of the plan.
(2) The board may establish procedures for filing the appeal and
may specify findings that the board of supervisors is required to
make in filing the appeal to demonstrate that a substantial issue is
raised with respect to public health and safety or the environment.
(c) The board shall grant to a county that meets the requirements
for filing an appeal an initial hearing to consider the county's
request for an appeal at the next regularly scheduled board meeting
following the receipt of the request.
(d) The board shall grant a public hearing on the appeal if it
determines at an initial hearing pursuant to subdivision (c) that the
appeal raises substantial issues with respect to public health and
safety or the environment.
(e) (1) The board shall hold a public hearing on the appeal
granted pursuant to subdivision (d) within 30 days from the date of
granting the hearing or at the next regularly scheduled board
meeting, whichever occurs first, or within a longer period of time
that is mutually agreed upon by the board, the county, and the plan
submitter. Upon conclusion of the hearing, the board shall approve or
deny the plan. The basis of the board's decision shall be
conformance with this section and the rules and regulations of the
board, including any rules or regulations enacted with respect to the
county pursuant to Section 4516.5 or 4516.8, and this chapter. In
denying a plan, the board may make findings that set forth conditions
under which it believes that the plan would have been approved.
(2) The board may delegate conduct of the hearing and the decision
to a committee of three members to be appointed for that hearing by
the chairperson of the board. The committee shall consist of at least
two general public members of the board. The chairperson of the
board or the chairperson's designee shall conduct the hearing. The
decision of the committee shall have the full force and effect of a
decision of the full board.
(f) This section does not apply to timber operations on any land
area of less than three acres and that is not zoned for timberland
production.
4516.8. In addition to the authority provided in Section 4516.5,
the Counties of Marin, Monterey, San Mateo, Santa Clara, and Santa
Cruz may recommend that the board adopt additional rules and
regulations for the content of timber harvesting plans and the
conduct of timber operations which provide a requirement that each
timber harvesting plan contain a description of all log hauling
routes, a statement of whether an encroachment permit is required by
any public agency, and a requirement that no timber harvesting plan
be approved by the director without the condition that the timber
operator secure all required encroachment permits prior to
commencement of timber operations.
4517. If any provision of this chapter or the application thereof
to any person or circumstance is held invalid, such invalidity shall
not affect other provisions or applications of the chapter which can
be given effect without the invalid provision or application, and to
this end the provisions of this chapter are severable.
