In addition to general plan policies that support the protection of agricultural land, Yolo County also has adopted an Agricultural Mitigation Ordinance. Similar to many other agricultural mitigation requirements, the ordinance mandates that all projects that result in a permanent loss of either farmland and/or habitat are required to mitigate an equal amount of land.
A unique component to Yolo County's ordinance is that it also requires agricultural conservation easements be located within two miles of the development that is being mitigated. The purpose of this is to give first priority protection to lands close to urban areas as they are seen as more at risk of conversion.
Another potentially unique component to Yolo County's mitigation requirement is in the county's draft general plan, which includes an action to verify that easements used for mitigation require the landowner to maintain adequate water rights to support agricultural productivity on the land.
For more information, contact Kacey Lizon at (916) 340-6265 or klizon@sacog.org.