Here is a quotation from the Weekly E-News published by the Central Coast Ag Task Force:

When it comes to sustainable agriculture (or any type of agriculture for that matter), land is pretty darn important. Access to land, especially affordable land, is one of the biggest obstacles that young and beginning farmers face when trying to start a viable farm. … Unfortunately, much of the very best farmland has been eaten up by things other than farms, like suburbs, shopping centers, highways, other forms of sprawl ... and although the disappearance of farmland goes hand in hand [with] a whole host of environmental and other issues, we shouldn't lose heart just yet. The creativity, ingenuity, and persistence of committed farmers and farm advocates make for some very promising solutions to reclaiming land for sustainable agriculture. … Environmentally responsible investment, land conservation trusts, government support and promotion, [and] the enthusiasm and vigor of grassroots urban agriculture … are integral to saving farmland for sustainable agriculture. [We need to] invest [and] push for land-conscious legislation [to] help save land for sustainable food and the future.

My comment: that’s well said!

More Information:

Central Coast Ag Task Force Website
http://www.ccatf.org/index.php?/main/program

Gary Patton writes a daily blog, “Two Worlds / 365”
http://www.gapatton.net

Today, the Santa Cruz City Council will be meeting in a “closed” session at 1:00 o’clock, to discuss a wharf license agreement, labor negotiations, real property negotiations, liability claims, and land use related litigation, including a lawsuit about the University’s application to the Local Agency Formation Commission, or LAFCO, seeking LAFCO approval for the City to provide what is pretty much the City’s last available “surplus” water to fuel new growth on currently undeveloped portions of the UCSC campus.

The state’s open meeting law says that all deliberations of public agencies must be done in public, with a few exceptions. The examples I just listed are all exceptions provided for in the Brown Act. What Council Members think about the UCSC water issue will only be known behind closed doors (at least today).

If you are interested in the issue, however, you should mark your calendar for a City Council hearing announced for Tuesday, August 3rd, at 7:00 p.m. The Council has said that it will review the Final EIR on the proposed use of City water for UCSC expansion at that time. This is an important issue for City residents, and for residents in Live Oak, Pasatiempo, and parts of the City of Capitola, who get their water from the City’s system. There is more information on the KUSP website.

More Information:

City of Santa Cruz Website
http://www.cityofsantacruz.com/

Agenda, July 13, 2010 City Council Meeting
http://64.175.136.240/sirepub/cache/2/d0m3wp
550wgj2jyrdjl5xh34/232062907102010082703436.PDF

Final EIR on UCSC and City LAFCO Applications
http://www.cityofsantacruz.com/index.aspx?page
=36&recordid=302&returnURL=%2findex.aspx

Community Water Coalition Facebook Group
http://www.facebook.com/gapatton?v=wall&story_fbid=
1486771085286#!/group.php?gid=118590886798&ref=ts

Gary Patton writes a daily blog, “Two Worlds / 365”
http://www.gapatton.net

AB 32, The Global Warming Solutions Act, represents California’s commitment to do something significant about global warming. As you may remember, a challenge to AB 32 will appear on the ballot in November. Texas oil companies have sponsored an initiative that asks the public to “suspend” the CO2 reduction targets found in AB 32. And in this context, “suspend” really means to “eliminate.” I will definitely keep you posted, as we get closer to the November election.

Today, I want to pass on a comment about the implementation of Senate Bill 375, which followed up on The Global Warming Solutions Act by providing some voluntary mechanisms to encourage “smart growth.” “Smart growth” land use policies will indeed, if actually implemented, help prevent new carbon emissions that are built-in to our current sprawling land use patterns. SB 375 is founded on emission reduction targets to be set by the Air Resources Board, or ARB, for each geographic region in the state. According to Michael Chiacos, Energy Program Transportation Specialist for the Community Environmental Council, based in Santa Barbara, the draft targets being discussed by the ARB are “weak,” and represent “business as usual.” This is not good news for those concerned about global warming, or better land use policy.

More Information:

Text of Senate Bill 375
http://www.leginfo.ca.gov/pub/07-08/bill/sen/
sb_0351-0400/sb_375_bill_20080930_chaptered.pdf

Gary Patton writes a daily blog, “Two Worlds / 365”
http://www.gapatton.net

Have you heard about the “Monterey Bay Sustainable Tourism Action Group?” I hadn’t either, until recently, but I am reliably informed that there is such a group, and that it is working to facilitate a mechanism for public and private representatives of communities in the Monterey Bay Area to manage “the promotion and preservation of our outstanding natural and cultural heritage,” as part of the tourism business that is so important to our local economy. Congress Member Sam Farr, among others, is working on this effort. If you have a particular interest in the topic, I’d suggest that you contact Sam’s office, to see how you might get involved. I have put contact information in the transcript of today’s Land Use Report.

A draft vision statement being considered by the group notes that the California Central Coast is a “renowned and thriving tourism destination” partly because of its “iconic natural and cultural heritage, and the communities’ state of the art sustainable practices.” Properly managed, businesses that promote “sustainable tourism” can offer “viable economic opportunities while ensuring the integrity of the environment.”

I think that the Monterey Bay Sustainable Tourism Action Group is on to something. My only thought (and caution) is that protecting the “iconic natural heritage” of the Central Coast needs to take first place.

More Information:

Contact Congress Member Sam Farr through District Director Alec Arago: alec.arago@mail.house.gov

Gary Patton writes a daily blog, “Two Worlds / 365”
http://www.gapatton.net

The Land Use Report promotes meetings at which important land use related issues are discussed, and I have a good one for you, tonight. The meeting will be held at 7:30 this evening, at the Quaker Meetinghouse, located at 225 Rooney Street in Santa Cruz. It will focus on “alternatives” to the widening of Highway One. David Foster, a City of Santa Cruz Planning Commissioner, and a declared candidate for the Santa Cruz City Council, will lead the meeting tonight. That indicates to me that there is likely to be lots of healthy debate about this important topic in the upcoming election cycle in the City of Santa Cruz. Foster says that he favors non-widening alternatives, and that the history of highway widening has shown that the congestion relief provided is only temporary.

The Campaign for Sensible Transportation will also be represented tonight. The Campaign is engaged in a lawsuit with Caltrans over their highway-widening proposal. In 2004, 65% of the voters in Santa Cruz County rejected a measure intended to widen Highway One from Santa Cruz to Aptos. According to the Campaign, the one-mile segment that Caltrans is currently proposing must be seen as part of that larger highway-widening project. The California Environmental Quality Act is very clear that it is not legal to avoid environmental review by breaking down a large project into smaller segments, and that is what the lawsuit is about.

More Information

Gary Patton writes a daily blog, “Two Worlds / 365”
http://www.gapatton.net