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Regular-General Government # 22.
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| Board of Supervisors |
County Administrator |
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| Subject |
| Hold public hearing and adopt an ordinance extending the interim ordinance imposing a temporary moratorium on the cultivation of industrial hemp within the unincorporated areas of Yolo County. (No general fund impact) (4/5 vote required) (Nunes/Tengolics) |
| Recommended Action |
- Hold public hearing, introduce, waive the reading and adopt an ordinance that extends for 10 months and 15 days the temporary moratorium previously established on the cultivation of industrial hemp within the unincorporated areas of Yolo County while County staff determines the impacts of such unregulated cultivation and reasonable regulations to mitigate such impacts; and
- Find that the ordinance is exempt from environmental review under the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) for the reasons stated in the ordinance.
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| Strategic Plan Goal(s) |
Sustainable Environment
Flourishing Agriculture |
| Reason for Recommended Action/Background |
On January 15, 2019, the Board adopt an interim ordinance establishing a temporary moratorium on hemp cultivation in the unincorporated areas of Yolo County (Att. A). Per state law, the interim ordinance is only valid for 45 days unless extended. Staff is recommending the Board extend the interim ordinance for an additional 10 months and 15 days given the concerns previously presented, namely the potential for abuse of “Established Agricultural Research Institution” exemption, regulatory concerns due to the physical similarities of hemp and cannabis, the potential for cross-pollination with licensed cannabis crops and potential odor concerns. (Att. B).
As directed by the Board, staff has researched other county hemp policies and has conferred with UC Davis and UC Agriculture and Natural Resources on research and industry perspectives. Both entities stated that any UC-directed hemp research/cultivation would be limited to a greenhouse or laboratory environment, for at least the upcoming year, and that they shared the same cross-pollination concerns given they would be conducting research. Additionally, they confirmed that while they are interested in outdoor cultivation research, they had no contracts in place to do so in Yolo County and would coordinate with the County prior to entering into any such contract in Yolo County. Furthermore, both entities stated that there was no current research supporting what an appropriate cannabis/hemp buffer would be.
Other counties across the state are similarly grappling with this issue and a loose consensus policy is emerging. Counties appear to be adopting a wait and see approach with a moratorium in the interim (similar to Yolo) or requiring hemp to be cultivated in indoor facilities equipped with odor mitigation equipment.
Furthermore, the California State Industrial Hemp Advisory Board has yet to finalize regulations allowing for the cultivation of industrial hemp for commercial purposes. In light of this and the uncertainty of what cannabis/hemp interface would be viable for both industries, staff recommends extending the moratorium by 10 months and 15 days to further research the potential impacts of hemp and develop policy solutions to ensure the congruency of the commercial cannabis and hemp cultivation industries and effective regulation of hemp.
The proposed ordinance is exempt from CEQA review for various reasons, as set forth in the ordinance (see Section 2.Z). If the Board adopts the Ordinance, staff will file a Notice of Exemption citing CEQA Guidelines Sections 15061(b)(3) and 15308 as the legal grounds for an exemption. |
| Collaborations (including Board advisory groups and external partner agencies) |
| County Counsel, Agriculture Department, UC Davis, UC Agriculture and Natural Resources |
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| Fiscal Impact |
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| Source of Funds for this Expenditure |
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