HomeMy WebLinkAboutord2013-037 WHATCOM COUNTY COUNCIL AGENDA BILL NO. 2012- 40 C
CLEARANCES Date Date Received in Council Office Agenda Date Assigned To
Orig. Dept.: 12/4/2012 Introduction
Division Head: 1/15/2013 Public Hearing
Dept. Head: It4-4:1 /, r C .'3 6/18/2013 Introduction
Prosecutor: 7/09/2013 Public Hearing
Budget:
"Executive:
SUBJECT:
Ordinance imposing an interim moratorium on apps. in the Lk. Whatcom Watershed
ATTACHMENTS
SUMMARY STATEMENT:
Related County Contract#: Should the Clerk schedule a hearing?(Y/N) Requested Date: 1/15/2012
Ordinance imposing an interim moratorium on the acceptance of new applications for divisions of land resulting in lots smaller
than five acres within the Lake Whatcom Watershed
RECOMMENDED MOTION(for final action):
COUNCIL ACTION TAKEN
12/4/2012:Introduced
1/15/2013:No vote taken on this item
6/18/2013: Introduced
7/09/2013: Council Adopted Substitute 7-0
Ord. 2013-037
Related File Numbers: Ordinance or Resolution Number (this item only):
AB2012-040 Ord. 2013-037
AB2012-040A
AB2012-040B
1 SPONSORED BY: Council
2 PROPOSED BY:Council
3 INTRODUCTION DATE: JUNE 18, 2013
4
5 ORDINANCE # 2013-037
6
7 IMPOSING AN INTERIM MORATORIUM ON THE ACCEPTANCE OF NEW
8 APPLICATIONS FOR DIVISIONS OF LAND RESULTING IN LOTS SMALLER THAN
9 FIVE ACRES WITHIN THE LAKE WHATCOM WATERSHED
10
11 WHEREAS, oxygen levels in Lake Whatcom are declining to lower levels and
12 declining faster than in the past; and
13
14 WHEREAS, lower oxygen levels and more rapid decline in oxygen in Lake Whatcom
15 are related to increased rates of sediment and phosphorus loading into the lake; and
16
17 WHEREAS, increased availability of phosphorus has limited the nitrogen availability
18 in the lake, making the lake more susceptible to blue-green algae blooms; and
19
20 WHEREAS, longer durations of very low oxygen levels increase the rate of
21 methylization of mercury and other anaerobic compounds; and
22
23 WHEREAS, increased productivity in the upper waters of the lake lead to increased
24 disinfection byproducts such as total trihalomethanes (TTHMs); and
25
26 WHEREAS, longer durations of very low oxygen levels release phosphorus bound in
27 the lake sediments resulting in increased availability of phosphorus and further increasing
28 biological production in the lake;
29
30 WHEREAS, Washington State Department of Ecology has listed Lake Whatcom as an
31 impaired water body and placed Lake Whatcom on the federal Clean Water Act 303(d) list
32 because of low oxygen levels; and
33
34 WHEREAS, the 303(d) listing requires the establishment of a Total Maximum Daily
35 Load (TMDL) that designates loading capacity of the lake such that there will be no
36 measurable change in oxygen levels from natural lake conditions; and
37
38 WHEREAS, a TMDL requires meeting Water Quality Standards and, for lakes, the
39 dissolved oxygen criterion requires no decline from natural conditions;
40
41 WHEREAS, other pollutants identified and monitored within the Lake Whatcom
42 watershed have the highest concentrations in the most developed areas of the watershed;
43 and
44
45 WHEREAS, meeting the TMDL goals and improving oxygen levels in Lake Whatcom
46 will require variety of comprehensive planning, pollution prevention, pollution reduction and
47 technical approaches; and
48
49 WHEREAS, continued development while the TMDL goals are established and while
50 approaches for meeting those goals are developed will increase the size of the reductions
51 and will increase the costs that will be necessary to meet the TMDL goals; and
52
53 WHEREAS, Lake Whatcom County Code 20.71 establishes the Lake Whatcom
54 Watershed as a Water Resource Protection Overlay District; and
55
1
56 WHEREAS, Lake Whatcom is the drinking water source for approximately half the
57 residents of Whatcom County; and
58
59 WHEREAS, the preservation and protection of drinking water is a high priority for
60 Whatcom County; and
61
62 WHEREAS, the Whatcom County Comprehensive Plan, adopted on May 20, 1997,
63 establishes the Lake Whatcom watershed as a Special Study Area; and
64
65 WHEREAS, Lake Whatcom is a valuable recreation lake for swimming, boating and
66 fishing, and enhances the property values in the area as long as the lake maintains high
67 water quality; and
68
69 WHEREAS, declining oxygen levels poses a risk to the water quality of Lake
70 Whatcom that could harm drinking water quality, recreational opportunities, and lake
71 property values; and
72
73 WHEREAS, actions required under the 303(d) listing and TMDL goals as well as
74 declining water quality will cause a hardship to tax payers, local property owners in the
75 watershed and water consumers and those hardships may be limited by effective planning,
76 prevention and remediation programs established prior to the establishment of the TMDL
77 goals; and
78
79 WHEREAS, the Whatcom County Council is considering new stormwater regulations
80 in the Lake Whatcom Watershed Overlay District that would replicate the runoff of a natural
81 vegetated conditions from new development sites in the Lake Whatcom Watershed; and
82
83 WHEREAS, the Whatcom County SEPA Official issued a Determination of Non-
84 significance on January 24, 2005; and
85
86 WHEREAS, the Council makes the following findings of fact to justify its actions as
87 required by RCW 36.70.795:
88
89 1. This interim moratorium on the acceptance of applications for division of land
90 into lots of smaller than five (5) acres is necessary to avoid future
91 degradation of the Lake Whatcom watershed and the associated threat to the
92 drinking water supply of approximately half of the citizens of Whatcom County
93 as well as recreational and lake property values.
94
95 2. Without a moratorium additional development lots may be created within the
96 Lake Whatcom Watershed that could lead to negative hydrologic and storm
97 water impacts that may cause irreversible harm to Lake Whatcom and
98 therefore cause harm to the health and welfare of the public.
99
100 3. The Whatcom County Council desires the opportunity to evaluate the impacts
101 of future development in relation to reducing phosphorus loads to Lake
102 Whatcom and meeting the TMDL goal of reversing the declining oxygen trends
103 in Lake Whatcom. This evaluation may include but are not limited to the
104 following:
105 N Storm water management plans, implementation and maintenance.
106 N Storm water funding in the watershed.
107 N Review existing zoning densities outside the Bellingham Urban Growth
108 Areas within county jurisdiction.
109 N Storm water management in areas that cross City of Bellingham and
110 Whatcom County jurisdictions.
111 N Transfer of development rights programs.
2
112 N Land acquisition.
113 Reviewing the proposed TMDL from the Department of Ecology and its
114 implications for additional county land use regulations.
115 N Reviewing the ongoing monitoring studies on the Lake and its
116 tributaries to understand the extent to which new data further informs
117 our understanding of the relationships between development and other
118 land use activities and Lake Whatcom water quality.
119
120 4. The proposed Lake Whatcom Watershed Overlay District stormwater
121 regulations would mitigate the hydrologic and water quality this moratorium
122 seeks to prevent.
123
124 NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT ORDAINED by the Whatcom County Council that a
125 moratorium is hereby imposed on the acceptance of new applications for divisions of land
126 into lots smaller than five (5) acres in the Lake Whatcom watershed, as identified on the
127 map attached as Exhibit A.
128
129 BE IT FURTHER ORDAINED that divisions resulting in lots all of which are five (5)
130 acres or larger shall be exempt from this division moratorium.
131
132 BE IT FURTHER ORDAINED that divisions and boundary line adjustments utilizing
133 clustering which result in lots less than five (5) acres with no overall lot density increase shall
134 be exempt from this division moratorium. So long as all such development on lots created
135 through such divisions and lot line adjustments provide a stormwater plan, to be approved by
136 County Planning and Development Services Department (PDS), that shows such development
137 will provide no increase in runoff of phosphorus beyond what would be expected from a
138 naturally forested condition. This exemption shall apply to the R5A and RR-5A zones only in
139 areas without public water availability.
140
141 BE‘pq± UtipRDAINED by the Whatcom County Council that, pursuant to RCW
142 36.70.7A4116 ■0; , ira� may be renewed for one or more six-month periods if
143 subs�q�aet i�ariiicis' a held and findings of fact are made prior to each renewal.
144 .9 O, •
145 CIp4PM 1 is 9. 7tlay of _July , 2013.
146 O. * �
147 = WHATCOM COUNTY COUNCIL
148 ':� A , WHATCOM COUNTY, WASHINGTON
149 •,�a���
150 w`� '�►'!i. _
151 Dana B ca �C n-Dais„ 6r .+ the Council thy Kershner, Council Chair
152 ����r�i�i i i►►������
153 APPRO ED •S TO FO' .
154
155 •a. - - - ■ •.ter.
156 ivi' Deputy Prosecutor Jack Lou s, xe ive
157
158 XApproved ( ) Denied
159
160 Date: -7 /I i /i 3
3
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