SECTIONS 29700-29716 - California Statutes

PUBLIC RESOURCES CODE

SECTION 29700-29716

29700. This division shall be known, and may be cited, as the
Johnston-Baker-Andal-Boatwright Delta Protection Act of 1992.

29701. The Legislature finds and declares that the Sacramento-San
Joaquin Delta is a natural resource of statewide, national, and
international significance, containing irreplaceable resources, and
it is the policy of the state to recognize, preserve, and protect
those resources of the delta for the use and enjoyment of current and
future generations.

29702. The Legislature further finds and declares that the basic
goals of the state for the Delta are the following:
(a) Achieve the two coequal goals of providing a more reliable
water supply for California and protecting, restoring, and enhancing
the Delta ecosystem. The coequal goals shall be achieved in a manner
that protects and enhances the unique cultural, recreational, natural
resource, and agricultural values of the Delta as an evolving place.
(b) Protect, maintain, and, where possible, enhance and restore
the overall quality of the Delta environment, including, but not
limited to, agriculture, wildlife habitat, and recreational
activities.
(c) Ensure orderly, balanced conservation and development of Delta
land resources.
(d) Improve flood protection by structural and nonstructural means
to ensure an increased level of public health and safety.

29703. The Legislature further finds and declares as follows:
(a) The delta is an agricultural region of great value to the
state and nation and the retention and continued cultivation and
production of fertile peatlands and prime soils are of significant
value.
(b) The agricultural land of the delta, while adding greatly to
the economy of the state, also provides a significant value as open
space and habitat for water fowl using the Pacific Flyway, as well as
other wildlife, and the continued dedication and retention of that
delta land in agricultural production contributes to the preservation
and enhancement of open space and habitat values.
(c) Agricultural lands located within the primary zone should be
protected from the intrusion of nonagricultural uses.

29703.5. The Legislature further finds and declares both of the
following:
(a) The Delta Protection Commission created pursuant to Section
29735 provides an existing forum for Delta residents to engage in
decisions regarding actions to recognize and enhance the unique
cultural, recreational, and agricultural resources of the Delta. As
such, the commission is the appropriate agency to identify and
provide recommendations to the Delta Stewardship Council on methods
of preserving the Delta as an evolving place as the Delta Stewardship
Council develops and implements the Delta Plan.
(b) There is a need for the five Delta counties to establish and
implement a resources management plan for the Delta and for the Delta
Stewardship Council to consider that plan and recommendations of the
commission in the adoption of the Delta Plan.

29704. The Legislature further finds and declares that the leveed
islands and tracts of the delta and portions of its uplands are
floodprone areas of critical statewide significance due to the public
safety risks and the costs of public emergency responses to floods,
and that improvement and ongoing maintenance of the levee system is a
matter of continuing urgency to protect farmlands, population
centers, the state's water quality, and significant natural resource
and habitat areas of the delta. The Legislature further finds that
improvements and continuing maintenance of the levee system will not
resolve all flood risks and that the delta is inherently a floodprone
area wherein the most appropriate land uses are agriculture,
wildlife habitat, and, where specifically provided, recreational
activities, and that most of the existing levee systems are degraded
and in need of restoration, improvement, and continuing management.

29705. The Legislature further finds and declares that the delta's
wildlife and wildlife habitats, including waterways, vegetated
unleveed channel islands, wetlands, and riparian forests and
vegetation corridors, are highly valuable, providing critical
wintering habitat for waterfowl and other migratory birds using the
Pacific Flyway, as well as certain plant species, various rare and
endangered wildlife species of birds, mammals, and fish, and numerous
amphibians, reptiles, and invertebrates, that these wildlife species
and their habitat are valuable, unique, and irreplaceable resources
of critical statewide significance, and that it is the policy of the
state to preserve and protect these resources and their diversity for
the enjoyment of current and future generations.

29706. The Legislature further finds and declares that the resource
values of the delta have deteriorated, and that further
deterioration threatens the maintenance and sustainability of the
delta's ecology, fish and wildlife populations, recreational
opportunities, and economic productivity.

29707. The Legislature further finds and declares that there is no
process by which state and national interests and values can be
protected and enhanced for the delta, and that, to protect the
regional, state, and national interests for the long-term
agricultural productivity, economic vitality, and ecological health
of the delta resources, it is necessary to provide and implement
delta land use planning and management by local governments.

29708. The Legislature further finds and declares that the cities,
towns, and settlements within the delta are of significant
historical, cultural, and economic value and that their continued
protection is important to the economic and cultural vitality of the
region.

29709. The Legislature further finds and declares as follows:
(a) Regulation of land use and related activities that threaten
the integrity of the delta's resources can best be advanced through
comprehensive regional land use planning implemented through reliance
on local government in its local land use planning procedures and
enforcement.
(b) In order to protect regional, state, and national interests in
the long-term agricultural productivity, economic vitality, and
ecological health of delta resources, it is important that there be a
coordination and integration of activities by the various agencies
whose land use activities and decisions cumulatively impact the
delta.

29710. The Legislature further finds and declares that
agricultural, recreational, and other uses of the delta can best be
protected by implementing projects that protect wildlife habitat
before conflicts arise.

29711. The Legislature further finds and declares that the inland
ports of Sacramento and Stockton constitute economic and water
dependent resources of statewide significance, fulfill essential
functions in the maritime industry, and have long been dedicated to
transportation, agricultural, commercial, industrial, manufacturing,
and navigation uses consistent with federal, state, and local
regulations, and that those uses should be maintained and enhanced.

29712. The Legislature further finds and declares as follows:
(a) The delta's waterways and marinas offer recreational
opportunities of statewide and local significance and are a source of
economic benefit to the region, and, due to increased demand and
usage, there are public safety problems associated with that usage
requiring increased coordination by all levels of government.
(b) Recreational boating within the delta is of statewide and
local significance and is a source of economic benefit to the region,
and to the extent of any conflict or inconsistency between this
division and any provisions of the Harbors and Navigation Code,
regarding regulating the operation or use of boating in the delta,
the provisions of the Harbors and Navigation Code shall prevail.

29713. The Legislature further finds and declares that the
voluntary acquisition of wildlife and agricultural conservation
easements in the delta promotes and enhances the traditional delta
values of agriculture, habitat, and recreation.

29714. The Legislature further finds and declares that, in enacting
this division, it is not the intent of the Legislature to authorize
any governmental agency acting pursuant to this division to exercise
their power in a manner which will take or damage private property
for public use, without the payment of just compensation therefor.
This section is not intended to increase or decrease the rights of
any owner of property under the California Constitution or the United
States Constitution.

29715. To the extent of any conflict or inconsistency between this
division and any provision of the Water Code, the provisions of the
Water Code shall prevail.

29716. Nothing in this division authorizes the commission to
exercise any jurisdiction over matters within the jurisdiction of, or
to carry out its powers and duties in conflict with the powers and
duties of, any other state agency.