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SACRAMENTO -- The
pace of urbanization in Sonoma County
from 1998-2000 increased compared to
1996-98, and a significant amount of
land was reclassified from dryland
agricultural uses to vineyards and other
irrigated crops, according to a new map
from the California Department of
Conservation. The map is designed to
help local governments evaluate land-use
planning decisions.
The Farmland Mapping
and Monitoring Program (FMMP), part of
DOC's Division of Land Resource
Protection, maps 44.5 million acres of
California's public and private land to
produce a major study every two years.
In Sonoma County,
4,626 net acres were added to the urban
category during the current mapping
cycle compared to 2,111 acres during the
1996-98 cycle.
There is a net
increase of 3,469 acres in the Important
Farmland categories on the new map. That
continued a trend from the 1996-98
cycle, during which the county gained
1,260 farmland acres. Both the new urban
land and new irrigated agriculture
occurred on what had historically been
grazing and dryland grain areas. For
example, several large vineyard
complexes totaling more than 1,000 acres
were noted in the hills east of the
Alexander Valley, while three new
vineyards totaling about 650 acres were
mapped in the hills north of Sonoma.
Since the 1990
survey, Sonoma County has gained
thousands of new acres of Important
Farmland – bucking the statewide trend –
mainly due to vineyard planting. It has
also gained 10,500 acres of urban land.
The figure for Important Farmland
includes irrigated and non-irrigated
uses, as well as high-quality soils that
are currently being grazed. If only the
irrigated component is considered, the
county has gained more than 18,000 acres
since 1990.
Looking ahead, Sonoma
County reports that 1,071 acres have
been committed to non-agricultural use
in the future. Often, this is land
earmarked for development. In some cases
infrastructure development, such as
sewer installation, may be underway.
The map has been sent
to Sonoma County planning officials.
Interested parties such as the county
Farm Bureau, Local Agency Formation
Commission, planning consultants and the
county resource conservation districts
have received copies.
"We do this mapping
to help counties plan and prepare for
their expected growth in the coming
years," explained Department of
Conservation Director Darryl Young.
“This information is a tool that can
help Sonoma County and other local
governments balance the needs of a
growing population with those of the
agricultural economy."
Of the 1,026,060
acres mapped in Sonoma County, 42
percent was categorized as grazing land,
17 percent as farmland, 32 percent as
“other” land and seven percent as
urbanized land. “Other” land includes
wetlands, low-density "ranchettes" and
brush or timberlands unsuitable for
grazing.
Sonoma County's
agricultural land will continue to face
development pressure in the foreseeable
future. The California Department of
Finance projects the county's population
will grow from its current 450,000 to
570,000 in 2020.
According to the
California Department of Food and
Agriculture, the gross value of Sonoma
County's agricultural production was
more than $585 million in 2000, ranking
it 16th among the state's 58 counties.
Following are
examples of farmland and grazing land
with new or additional urban uses in
Sonoma County:
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Skyhawk and other
housing developments near Fountain
Grove Parkway in Santa Rosa totaling
more than 400 acres.
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Expansion of the
Skyline Business Center near the
Sonoma County Airport.
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Expansion of the
Windsor Club golf resort area.
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The Parkland
Brambles and Estates and other housing
developments totaling about 80 acres
near Healdsburg.
The latest statewide
study by the FMMP, Farmland Conversion
Report 1996-98, was released in the fall
of 2000. About 70,000 acres were
urbanized throughout the state; more
than 43,000 acres of the new urban land,
an area about the size of the city of
Modesto, were developed on agricultural
land. A new statewide report will be
released this fall.
Through the
Department of Conservation, the state
offers programs that provide financial
incentives to keep land in agricultural
use. The California Farmland Conservancy
Program makes grants available to local
governments, land trusts or resource
conservation districts to purchase
permanent agricultural conservation
easements from willing landowners. These
easements prohibit future development.
Farmland Security Zone and Williamson
Act contracts provide potential tax
benefits to landowners who commit to
keeping their land in agricultural use
for periods of 20 or 10 years,
respectively.
In addition to
administering agricultural and
open-space land conservation programs,
the Department of Conservation ensures
the reclamation of land used for mining;
promotes beverage container recycling;
regulates oil, gas and geothermal wells;
and studies and maps earthquakes and
other geologic phenomena.
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