Sub-Committee work before the next OLC meeting?

[Jim]

Following the discussion of the Land Clinic report at the OLC meeting
last evening, it would appear that the County Coordination Sub-
Committee should: 1) review the growth policy in regards to its
statement on Agriculture including the definition used and then 2)
review and possibly recommend specific mitigation procedures and 3)
try to find additional incentives which would further protection. The
results of this research should then be used as a basis for further
discussion at the July OLC meeting. Our input at that time is
anticipated.

I have asked Karen if there is an on-line copy of the Growth Policy
for our review to get us started.

Carolyn suggested that we also find a time in the near future when we
can meet face to face.

Sound like a plan??

[John DiBari]

Yup.

[Karen]

Hi everyone!

 

The Missoula County Growth Policy can be found at the following link ftp://www.co.missoula.mt.us/opgftp/Documents/LRCounty/GrowthPolicy/CurrentGP/CoGPWholeDoc.pdf.  I think we had an intern work on an assessment of County agriculture policy in the past.  It has been awhile since I've seen it and I can't remember what the state of it was when she was done.  We are looking for it and it appears that it is something useful we will be sure to pass it along.

 

Let me know when you plan on meeting.  I will be out of the office July 13-25, but I can probably arrange to have someone else from RI attend and Laurie can help with reserving our conference room if you want to meet here.

 

Karen

[Karen]

Hello!

 

I've heard the link I posted may not be working.  You should link directly to the County Growth Policy.  However, if this hasn't been working for you, I'd suggest going to the documents page on the OPG website(http://www.co.missoula.mt.us/opgweb/Documents.htm) then scroll down to the Missoula County Growth Policy (2005 Update) link.  Hopefully that will work, but let me know if it doesn't.

 

Karen

[Jim]

After some most useful assistance from Karen and others, I was finally
able to download and review both the Missoula County Growth Policy and
the Missoula County Subdivision Regulations. I then prepared two
separate summaries of both documents in which I excerpted the parts
dealing with agricultural issues. I will include each of these under
two different discussion headings: Growth Policy and Subdivision
Regulations. It may be useful to analyze both of these and determine
if our present county documents contain the suggestions for each
document as recommended by the Land Use Clinic and described in
Michelle's informative report from our last OLC general meeting. If
our subcommittee is in agreement, perhaps these two excerpts could be
sent to the entire OLC membership to review as a means to facilitate
our ongoing discussion ofd agriculture at our July meeting. What do
you think??

[Carolyn]

Thanks for staying on top of this Jim. I am buried this summer and it
is really taking a toll on the time I can provide to this sub-
committee. I think you should be leading this effort, as you have
mostly been doing so already. I was not at the last OLC meeting and
I'm still not sure that I will be at the meeting Thursday, so would
probably be best if you plan to lead the discussion. Having said
that, I have a few comments related to the information you have
summarized so far -

Definition - I wonder if the definition needs to be slightly reworked
to be friendlier to the more recent trend for leasing small plots of
ag land for personal use. Also, "ag co-ops" are becoming more popular
where someone purchases a "share". Do we feel like the definition is
flexible enough to cover some of these new trends? I also found a
definition (follows) that is broader than the one provided in the
subdivision regulations and that is interesting to consider in the
context of Missoula County.

The National Research Council (1988) defines “agriculture” broadly as
to:
…encompass the production of agricultural commodities, including food,
fiber, wood products, horticultural crops, and other plant and animals
products. The terms also include the financing, processing,
marketing, and distribution of agricultural products; farm production
supply and service industries; health, nutrition, and food
consumption; the use and conservation of land and water resources;
development and maintenance of recreational resources; and related
economic, sociological, political, environmental, and cultural
characteristics of the food and fiber system.

I also noted the reference to mitigating impacts in the growth policy
but then there is no reference to mitigation relative to agric or
suggestion of what mitigation might consist of, in the subdivision
regulations. Yet, they describe mitigation relative to floodplains
and drainage in other sections. Karen, perhaps I missed something -
if so, let me know. Seems like an opportunity for improvement though.

I'm glad to see the interest by OLC in developing possible mitigation
programs for agricultural impacts, though I will push to see these
developed in tandom with mitigation for native plant community impacts
as well, to avoid unintended consequences - can't miss an opportunity
to sound like a broken record :).

Just a few thoughts for now, I'll try to send more tomorrow in case I
can't be at the meeting on Thursday.

Carolyn

P.S. Karen the links were not working in the minutes to access the
Land Use Clinic report and presentation - could you email a copy of
those products to me. Thanks.

[Jim]

Thank you,Carolyn, for your thoughtful comments. Your are absolutely
correct in noting the reference to mitigation in the Growth Policy
which also occurs as a mere mention in the Sub-Division Review
Regulations as well. And since the actual policies for mitigation have
not been spelled out, it appears that this is exactly what BCC is
requesting of OLC: some suggestions for possible specific mitigation
standards. Many examples of such policies were presented in the Land
Use Clinic report. Hopefully when the full OLC committee reviews these
two excerpts, it will come to the same conclusion and proceed to draft
an appropriate suggestion to be forwarded to BCC.