BILL ANALYSIS Ó
SB 455
Page 1
SENATE THIRD READING
SB 455 (Pavley)
As Amended August 13, 2012
Majority vote
SENATE VOTE :21-3
NATURAL RESOURCES 6-3 APPROPRIATIONS 10-5
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|Ayes:|Chesbro, Brownley, |Ayes:|Gatto, Blumenfield, |
| |Dickinson, Huffman, | |Bradford, |
| |Monning, Skinner | |Charles Calderon, Campos, |
| | | |Davis, Hill, Cedillo, |
| | | |Mitchell, Solorio |
| | | | |
|-----+--------------------------+-----+--------------------------|
|Nays:|Knight, Grove, Halderman |Nays:|Harkey, Donnelly, |
| | | |Nielsen, Norby, Wagner |
| | | | |
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SUMMARY : Requires all mitigation associated with timberland
conversion projects, including greenhouse gas (GHG) mitigation,
to be on lands that secure the mitigation with a permanent
conservation easement and include, at a minimum, the
reforestation of a previously forested area. Specifically, this
bill:
1)Prohibits the approval of an application for conversion of
timberlands of three or more acres unless the Department of
Forestry and Fire Protection (CAL FIRE) finds all of the
following:
a) All of the environmental impacts of the conversion,
including impacts on wildlife, habitat values, and forest
type are fully mitigated. This determination must be
approved by the Department of Fish and Game (DFG).
b) The mitigation occurs on California timberlands and
complies with the state's GHG reduction principles, which
generally require that 1) GHG reductions achieved are real,
permanent, quantifiable, verifiable, and enforceable by ARB
and 2) the reduction is in addition to any GHG reduction
otherwise required by law or regulation, and any other GHG
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reduction that otherwise would occur.
c) The mitigation fully mitigates the loss of carbon in
above-ground and below-ground biomass and the loss of
future ongoing carbon sequestration. The reduction of GHG
impacts must occur over the same time period, and be
equivalent to, the GHG emission losses that result from the
conversion.
2)Requires all mitigation associated with conversion projects to
be on lands that secure the mitigation with a permanent
conservation easement and include the reforestation of a
previously forested area at a minimum acreage ratio of
one-to-one. To the extent the reforestation activity does not
fully mitigate the impacts of the conversion project, the
applicant is required to undertake additional actions as
specified.
3)Requires the mitigation to be completed within two years of
the conversion. The permit applicant may undertake the
mitigation directly, through agreements with the state, or
with third parties as specified.
4)Exempts conversions that comply with the Z'berg-Nejedly Forest
Practice Act's (FPA) exemption for conversion involving less
than three acres.
5)Requires CAL FIRE to develop guidelines in consultation with
and approved by State Air Resources Board (ARB) to assist in
compliance with this bill.
6)Authorizes CAL FIRE to collect a fee for conversion permits to
pay for administrative costs.
7)Creates the Timberland Conversion Services Fund for money
received pursuant to mitigation agreements between timberland
converters and the state.
EXISTING LAW , pursuant to the FPA:
1)Requires any person who intends to convert timberlands to
another use to file an application for conversion with the
Board of Forestry and Fire Protection (Board). If the
timberland conversion is proposed in a timberland production
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zone, the application must provide specific information
regarding proposed alternate use. The Board is required to
approve the application for conversion only if it finds that
1) the conversion would be in the public interest; 2) the
conversion would not have a substantial and unmitigated
adverse effect upon the continued timber-growing use or
open-space use of other surrounding lands zoned as timber
production; and, 3) the soils, slopes, and watershed
conditions would be suitable for the uses proposed if the
conversion were approved. The existence of an opportunity for
an alternative use of the land or the uneconomic character of
the existing use shall not alone be sufficient reason for
conditionally approving an application for conversion.
2)Authorizes the Board to exempt a person from the FPA's
conversion requirements whose activities are limited to the
one-time timberland conversion of less than three acres. A
person may not receive more than one exemption in a five-year
period. The Board must determine that the exemption is
consistent with the FPA.
FISCAL EFFECT : According to the Assembly Appropriations
Committee:
1)One-time costs to CAL FIRE and ARB, likely in the hundreds of
thousands of dollars, to develop timberland conversion
guidelines (special funds, reimbursed from revenue in the
Timberland Conversion Services Fund).
2)Annual costs of an unknown amount, but potentially in the
hundreds of thousands of dollars, to CAL FIRE and DFG to
review applications to convert three or more acres of
timberland to nontimber use (special funds). These costs
should be fully covered by the fee authority provided to CAL
FIRE.
3)Annual minor costs, no more than the low tens of thousands of
dollars, to the Natural Resources Agency to administer monies
in the Timberland Conversion Services Fund (Timberland
Conversion Services Fund).
COMMENTS : California's forests provide a significant climate
service to the state, sequestering over 5 million metric tons of
carbon pollution annually. There has been, however, increasing
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pressure for private timberland owners to find economically
attractive uses for their property. Timber management has
become less profitable for a number of reasons and landowners
often see increasing opportunities to develop rural subdivisions
or establish vineyards. As timberlands are converted to other
uses, much of the carbon stored in these forests is emitted to
the atmosphere and the ongoing carbon sequestration benefits, as
well as many other benefits (e.g. water quality protection,
habitat, timber resources) are diminished, if not entirely lost.
From 1997 to 2012, 14,654 acres of timberlands in the state
were converted to alternate uses. Nevada, Placer, Plumas,
Siskiyou, and Mendocino Counties have been affected the most,
with 2,564, 2,309, 2,274, 1,644, and 1,013 acres converted,
respectively.
According to the author, "there is no explicit provision in the
CEQA guidelines for mitigation of carbon emissions or lost
carbon sequestration potential from conversions of timberland to
non-timberland uses?This bill would clarify that the conversion
of projects larger than 3 acres must mitigate all of its
impacts."
Additionally, according to the cosponsors (The Nature
Conservancy and The Pacific Forest Trust), this bill "provides
an incentive to timberland owners to mitigate the impacts of
conversion that does occur by creating a funding stream to pay
landowners to provide mitigation through activities such as
reforestation, changes in management and conservation. These
complementary actions will help California maintain its valuable
timberland, their public benefits and the jobs that depend on
these resources."
SB 466 (Steinberg) of 2007, which was held in the Senate
Appropriations Committee, was introduced to impose, among other
things, a menu of mitigation options on forestland conversions
with the mitigation lands being managed pursuant to the Forestry
Protocols of the Climate Action Registry.
Analysis Prepared by : Mario DeBernardo / NAT. RES. / (916)
319-2092
FN: 0005050
SB 455
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