Malibu Municipal Code § 3.3 Constraints

Constraints which effect environmental resource management include ecological, governmental, and economic factors. The area's finite resources and their interrelationship with other aspects of the regional ecosystem determine their suitability for management and use. City regulations may have unforeseen side effects on the preservation and prudent use of these resources. Economic constraints and pressures are often felt by private land owners in planning the use or development of their land. These economic constraints are also experienced by public agencies when they attempt to preserve open space and develop parks and recreation facilities. These constraints and others that may affect environmental resource management in Malibu are discussed in greater detail below.

Development associated with human settlement results in physical changes to the environment. These changes typically involve reduced availability or quality of soil and water resources that are important for human use and the needs of other biological resources. These changes also often result in a reduction of habitat value and function - for many species of plants and wildlife. This reduction in value and function is generally associated with a reduction in the areal distribution of vegetation communities and other natural features which provide essential habitat, but can also involve unnatural competition and predation from introduced, non-native species of plants and wildlife; disruption of the normal fire cycle of local vegetation; reduced recruitment of young native oaks; fragmentation of existing habitat; noise; unnatural lighting; creation of barriers to dispersal or migration; and the introduction of environmental contaminants which affect species viability.

Development can also affect the way we perceive our environment. Changes to scenic resources or visual viewsheds are often associated with a negative change in the environment. Many people experience a "crowding" effect when areas that were previously open space are developed. This effect increases in direct proportion to the magnitude of the physical change in the area or viewshed.

A significant obstacle to the preservation of many of the Malibu area's natural resources is the lack of comprehensive surveys to identify areas supporting sensitive resources. The coastal areas of the MCZ are relatively well-described, but many portions of the upper watersheds have not received as much attention.

The City of Malibu and the MCZ are largely undeveloped and have not been surveyed extensively for the presence of archaeological, paleontological, and historic resources. These resources have received some attention from academic institutions, but most recorded resources are associated with studies conducted to comply with CEQA. These studies are rarely comprehensive.

Biological studies which identify important migration and travel corridors also appear to be lacking. A focus on sensitive vegetation communities and drainages does nothing to ensure that individual watersheds do not become biologically isolated. Many areas of habitat, not considered to be sensitive, are contiguous with more sensitive resources and provide the continuity required to avoid biological and genetic isolation of populations. Preservations of defined areas of suitable habitat is not always sufficient to ensure that populations will not become locally extirpated. This approach is especially true of species which require large areas of habitat or which occur in very dispersed populations.

Continuing development pressure provides mechanisms (i.e. CEQA and NEPA processes) by which investigation of these resources can occur, but this approach typically results in a piecemeal approach to preservation of resources. Regional planning for the continued viability of natural resources is much more effective, but often requires inter-jurisdictional agreements between jurisdictions which do not always agree on the implementation necessary to maintain the resources. Regional planning is also more costly and the costs are often not born by development interests.

Water is a fundamental requirement of all living things. Water is especially important to humans due to our water-intensive lifestyle. We use water for domestic consumption, to reshape our environment (i.e. lawns and ornamental plantings), industrially, and to dispose of domestic wastes. These uses however have the potential to affect the availability and quality of water resources, not only for human uses, but for use by other biological resources.

Much of Malibu has been developed using individual septic systems for each residence rather than a public sewer system. This strategy has been strongly supported in the community as a means to reduce the rate and intensity of growth. Because many areas within the MCZ have shallow soils, soils that are impermeable or slowly permeable, perched water tables, and are subject to flooding, there is some potential to negatively affect both ground and surface water quality from continued development and use of on-site septic systems, if such systems are not properly designed and maintained. In recent years, residents have actively worked to ensure that septic systems are properly designed and maintained. As long as a high level of supervision of design and maintenance of these systems is maintained, septic systems are not expected to significantly impact the quality of the groundwater resource (Warshall & Williams, 1992).

Another important non-point source of contamination is the Malibu stormwater drainage conveyance system. This source of contamination provides some aseasonal flows to drainages, but more importantly conveys a variety of urban contaminants which affect biological resources in the drainages, Malibu Lagoon, and Santa Monica Bay. Each of these resources would benefit from a stormwater drainage management plan which establishes seasonal water quality standards for these receiving waters. These resources would also benefit from restoration of freshwater wetlands which can provide some level of biological treatment of contaminants as well as development of other measures which trap potential urban pollutants.

Lastly, urban runoff from communities located to the north of Malibu, such as Calabasas, Agoura Hills, and Westlake, also provide a non-point source of contamination. This source of runoff is also typically aseasonal and contains various urban pollutants which affect aquatic and marine resources within the MCZ. To address this issue, Malibu should strive to develop inter-agency management agreements which establish water quality standards for the various receiving waters.

Point sources of pollution affecting the MCZ have been almost nonexistent with the exception of the Tapia Water Reclamation Facility (TWRF). The TWRF has been a significant source of aseasonal water flows and nutrient loading in Malibu Creek and especially Malibu Lagoon. This source of contamination has had major impacts on the Malibu Creek/Malibu Lagoon system and will continue to reduce the quality of the resources provided by this drainage if seasonal water quality standards for these receiving waters are not established.

Malibu's location between the Pacific Ocean and the Santa Monica Mountains provides residents and visitors with a diversity and abundance of recreational opportunities. These opportunities were officially recognized when the U.S. Congress established the Santa Monica Mountains National Recreation Area in 1978. The canyons, hillsides, beaches, and rocky coast support a variety of natural vegetation communities and their associated flora and fauna. Many of these resources are located within County, State, and Federal parklands or are accessible by local trails. While these resources present a tremendous opportunity for recreational pursuits, intensive and irresponsible recreational uses of these lands can result in degradation of the resources. While it is important to manage open space areas for multi-use, it is important to recognize that some uses are not always compatible in all areas. The physical, visual, and biological resources which attract many users to areas of open space can be degraded simply by the presence of more people.

Marine resources along the coast have been significantly degraded due to the magnitude of recreational use and associated human disturbance. As examples, California sea lions which historically hauled out along Point Dume have moved offshore due to continuing disturbance and the estuaries located at the mouths of Zuma Creek and Malibu Creek have become polluted not only by urban runoff, but by litter and other wastes introduced by recreational users.

In order to preserve the quality of the resources which people have come to expect from the Malibu area, it may be necessary to establish people at one time (PAOT) criteria for some areas of open space which have been severely effected. It may also be necessary to prohibit access to certain areas until they can be restored. Lastly, there should be continuing education programs for the residents of and visitors to Malibu that address the human impacts which affect local resources. Only through the use of mechanisms such as these can the Malibu area's resources and the recreational opportunities which they provide be preserved in perpetuity.

The limited financial resources of the City can restrict the City's ability to purchase fee title to land for open space and natural resource protection. However, a variety of other mechanisms can be utilized to provide for open space acquisition. These mechanisms include purchase of conservation easements, donations of land or conservation easements, transfer of development rights, impact mitigation fees, formation of local open space districts, inter-governmental agreements, and funding from state and federal agencies.

These mechanisms should be explored to the extent possible, especially given that the City may have a more immediate need to allocate funding to public services. Although private development should not bear the cost of all open space acquisition, this source of funding can generally provide the most immediate source of funds for needs of this type.

The preservation of open space and natural resources is also constrained by rising property values and strong development pressures that result in increased development. From 1980 to 1990 residential development increased (i.e. individual dwelling units) in Malibu by 10.6%. Development has occurred along the coast, in the canyons, and on the hillsides of Malibu. Along the coast there is a finite amount of land which can be developed. A significant amount of the land which is suitable for development has already been developed. The north side of Pacific Coast Highway appears to provide much of the existing opportunities for development in Malibu. However, environmental constraints indicated in the Land Use Element present obstacles to development in many of these areas. Due to demand for suitable land, land prices continue to rise, and in the absence of strong environmental regulation, development may begin encroaching on areas not subject to engineering-related environmental hazards, but which support sensitive natural resources. As an example, in 1992 two large residential developments in Trancas Canyon were approved. These areas both supported significant terrestrial and marine resources. As land prices continue to rise, difficult land use decisions involving sensitive or important natural resources are expected to increase.

The unrestricted loss of significant natural resources and open space would be expected to ultimately create diminished financial and aesthetic values for owners of developed property as well as for visitors to the City.