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SACRAMENTO -- The
pace of urbanization in San Diego County
from 1998-2000 increased notably
compared to 1996-98, according to a new
map from the California Department of
Conservation. The map is designed to
help local governments evaluate land-use
planning decisions.
The Farmland Mapping
and Monitoring Program (FMMP), part of
DOC's Division of Land Resource
Protection, maps 44.5 million acres of
California's public and private land to
produce a major study every two years.
Thanks to the use of
very high-resolution aerial photography
provided by the San Diego Association of
Governments, the new map for the county
portrays land-use boundaries more
accurately than ever before.
In San Diego County,
12,437 net acres were added to the urban
category during the current mapping
cycle. During the 1996-98 cycle, the
amount of urban land increased by 4,322
acres. On average, the county gained
about 7,000 acres of urban land per
update during the ‘90s.
The FMMP survey shows
that San Diego County has 3,762 fewer
farmland acres and 4,717 fewer grazing
land acres than in 1996-98. Since the
1990 survey, San Diego County has lost
12,493 farmland acres and 14,525 grazing
land acres.
Looking ahead, San
Diego County reports that 9,007 acres –
including 3,711 acres of farmland --
have been committed to non-agricultural
use in the future. Often, this is land
earmarked for development. In some cases
infrastructure development, such as
sewer installation, may be underway.
The map has been sent
to San Diego County planning officials.
Interested parties such as the county
Farm Bureau, Local Agency Formation
Commission, city planners, irrigation
districts and the county resource
conservation districts have received
copies.
"We do this mapping
to help counties plan and prepare for
their expected growth in the coming
years," explained Department of
Conservation Director Darryl Young.
“This information is a tool that can
help San Diego County and other local
governments balance the needs of a
growing population with those of the
agricultural economy."
Of the 2,166,691
acres mapped in San Diego County, 69
percent was categorized as “other” land,
15 percent as urbanized land, 9 percent
as farmland and 6.4 percent as grazing
land. “Other” land includes low-density
"ranchettes," wetlands and brush or
timberlands unsuitable for grazing.
San Diego County's
agricultural land will continue to face
development pressure in the foreseeable
future. The California Department of
Finance projects the county's population
will grow by about one million by 2020.
According to the
California Department of Food and
Agriculture, the gross value of San
Diego County's agricultural production
was nearly $1.29 billion in 2001,
ranking it eighth among the state's 58
counties.
Following are
examples of new or additional urban uses
in San Diego County. Construction is
continuing in some of these locations,
so acreages may not represent the actual
extent of buildout. All acreage totals
are approximate:
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The Meadows Del Mar
golf course and surrounding homes
totaling about 800 acres east of the
Del Mar Country Club.
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The Auld Golf
Course Community (475 acres), housing
around the Eastlake Country Club (150
acres) and the Otay Ranch development
(360 acres) in the Chula Vista area.
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The Bridges at
Santa Fe Golf Club and Questhaven (250
acres) near Rancho Santa Fe.
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The Madera Golf
Club and surrounding homes (300 acres)
west of Rancho Bernardo.
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A new hotel/casino
development on 300 acres of the Barona
Indian Reservation.
The latest statewide
study by the FMMP, Farmland Conversion
Report 1996-98, was released in the fall
of 2000. About 70,000 acres were
urbanized throughout the state. More
than 43,000 acres of the new urban land,
an area about the size of the city of
Modesto, were developed on agricultural
land. A new statewide report will be
released this fall.
Through the
Department of Conservation, the state
offers programs that provide financial
incentives to keep land in agricultural
use. The California Farmland Conservancy
Program makes grants available to local
governments, land trusts or resource
conservation districts to purchase
permanent agricultural conservation
easements from willing landowners. These
easements prohibit future development.
Farmland Security Zone and Williamson
Act contracts provide potential tax
benefits to landowners who commit to
keeping their land in agricultural use
for periods of 20 or 10 years,
respectively.
In addition to
administering agricultural and
open-space land conservation programs,
the Department of Conservation ensures
the reclamation of land used for mining;
promotes beverage container recycling;
regulates oil, gas and geothermal wells;
and studies and maps earthquakes and
other geologic phenomena.
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