Calaveras County Municipal Code Ch. 5.08 Bee Industry

Footnotes:

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State Law reference— For statutory provisions on bee management, see Food and Agriculture Code § 29001 et seq.

A. For the purpose of this chapter, the following definitions shall apply:

"Apiary" means and includes bees, comb, hives, appliances or colonies, wherever they are kept, located or found.

"Beekeeper" means any person, firm, association or corporation owning or controlling one or more colonies of honeybees for pollination or the production of honey, beeswax or byproducts either for personal or commercial use.

"Bees" means honey-producing insects of the genus Apis. It includes all life stages of such insects.

"Colony" means one hive and its contents, including bees, comb and appliances.

"Hive" means any object or container made or prepared for bees or inhabited by bees.

"Location" means any premises upon which an apiary is located.

"Out-of-county beekeeper" means any beekeeper that is not a legal resident of Calaveras County.

B. Any word or phrase hereinafter used and not herein defined shall be given the meaning established for such word or phrase by the California Food and Agricultural Code as it is now or hereafter amended.

(Ord. 1627 (part), 1984: Ord. 298 § 1, 1964).

This chapter shall in all respects be construed to supplement and harmonize with the provisions of law of the state of California pertaining to bees and the beekeeping industry.

(Ord. 1627 (part), 1984).

No apiary shall be located or kept upon the land of another or on a public right-of-way without first obtaining the permission of the landowner, person entitled to possession of the land or the public agency having or administering such public right-of-way to place said apiary thereon.

(Ord. 1627 (part), 1984: Ord. 298 § 6, 1964).

All apiaries kept or maintained in the county near schoolyards, parks or other such places where people congregate shall be located and maintained behind barriers, natural or otherwise, so as to cause the bees to fly at least ten feet over such schoolyards, parks or other such places where people congregate.

(Ord. 1627 (part), 1984).

No apiary shall be kept or located at such a distance from dwellings or other occupied buildings as to prevent the person or persons occupying such dwellings or buildings from pursuing their normal activities. When it is determined by the county agricultural commissioner that such a condition exists, he shall cause the owner of said apiary to relocate the apiary within seventy-two hours.

(Ord. 1627 (part), 1984: Ord. 298 § 4, 1964).

No apiary shall be kept or located at such a distance from a public road as to constitute a nuisance.

(Ord. 1627 (part), 1984: Ord. 298 § 3, 1964).

When an apiary is so located that bees are likely to become a nuisance to nearby persons or animals when foraging for water, every beekeeper shall provide and maintain an adequate supply of fresh water from the time the apiary is established until it is removed.

(Ord. 1627 (part), 1984).

Any person who maintains an apiary at any location other than that of his residence shall have the apiary identified by a sign displayed on the entrance side of the apiary stating the name of the owner or person in possession of the apiary, his address, zip code and telephone number, including the area code. Such information shall be clearly visible and legible. The required identification may be posted on one or more hives on the entrance side of the apiary.

(Ord. 1627 (part), 1984: Ord. 298 § 2, 1964).

Hives of bees being transported on public roads or highways at a time when the bees are flying shall have the bees substantially confined by screens, or other means, to the vehicle by which the bees are being transported.

(Ord. 1627 (part), 1984: Ord. 298 § 5, 1964).

The board of supervisors finds that acarine mite is not known to occur in Calaveras County and if established, would negatively affect the apiary industry of the county. To prevent the entry of the acarine mite into Calaveras County the following regulations are enacted:

A. The agricultural commissioner shall be immediately notified of the arrival in this county of any shipment of honey bees, which shall be held for inspection by the commissioner. The commissioner may sample the shipment, using the procedure set forth in subsection C2 of this section, and if the shipment is found to be infested with acarine mite, the shipment shall be removed from the county within forty-eight hours of written notice to the owner or shipper at his/her expense, or be destroyed under the supervision of the commissioner.

B. Except as provided in subsection C of this section, shipments of bees from counties in California are prohibited entry into Calaveras County.

C. Shipments of bees from counties in California may enter Calaveras County provided they are accompanied by a certificate, issued by the origin-county agricultural commissioner, verifying that:

1. The origin county conducts an annual survey for acarine mite at the level of the 1985-1986 California survey for acarine mite, and that based on the latest survey results, acarine mite is not known to occur in the origin county; or

2. The shipment, within thirty days prior to movement into Calaveras County, was sampled and found free of acarine mite, by collecting, dissecting and examining at least seventy-five bees from each one hundred colonies. If the shipment consists of less than one hundred colonies, at least seventy-five bees shall have been so examined.

D. This section shall remain in effect only until July 1, 1988, and as of that date it is repealed, unless a later enacted ordinance, which is enacted before June 30, 1988 deletes or extends that date.

(Ord. 1845 § 1, 1986).

The board of supervisors may by resolution adopt inspection fees to be collected by the agricultural commissioner for apiary inspections and related activities as authorized by the California Food and Agricultural Code.

(Ord. 1627 (part), 1984).

Any person maintaining an apiary who violates any of the provisions of this chapter may be served with a written and dated notice of the violation and correction order by any peace or public officer of the county. The notice may be served upon the person in possession or owning such apiary or apiaries personally or by mail, or if the address of such person is not known, by posting said notice in a conspicuous place on the apiary.

(Ord. 1627 (part), 1984: Ord. 298 § 7, 1964).

The agricultural commissioner is authorized to seize and impound any apiary or portion thereof in order to abate a nuisance or violation of this chapter. Any beekeepers whose bees have been impounded by the agricultural commissioner shall pay all costs incurred including, but not limited to, rental of equipment, transportation, labor and other associated costs. In addition, there shall be an impoundment fee of one dollar per colony per day. All fees shall be paid before said colonies are released to the beekeeper.

(Ord. 1627 (part), 1984).

Any person who violates any provision of this chapter and who has been served with written notice of such violation, as described in Section 5.08.110, and who fails to correct said violation within the time specified in the notice, is punishable as follows:

A. First occurrence, an infraction punishable by a fine of not more than twenty-five dollars per colony in violation;

B. Second occurrence, an infraction punishable by a fine of not more than fifty dollars per colony in violation;

C. Third and subsequent occurrences, a misdemeanor punishable by a fine of not more than five hundred dollars or by imprisonment for a period of not more than six months in the county jail, or both such fine and imprisonment per colony in violation.

(Ord. 1627 (part), 1984: Ord. 298 § 8, 1964).