Malibu Municipal Code § 4.6.3 Fencing

New development adjacent to the following habitats shall provide native vegetation buffer areas to serve as transitional habitat and provide distance and physical barriers to human intrusion. Buffers shall be of a sufficient size to ensure the biological integrity and preservation of the habitat they are designed to protect. Vegetation removal, vegetation thinning, or planting of non-native or invasive vegetation shall not be permitted within buffers except as provided in Section 4.6.1 (E) or (F) of the Malibu LIP. The following buffer standards shall apply:

A. Stream/Riparian. New development shall provide a buffer of no less than 100 feet in width from the outer edge of the canopy of riparian vegetation. Where riparian vegetation is not present, the buffer shall be measured from the outer edge of the bank of the subject stream.

However, in the Point Dume area, new development shall be designed to avoid encroachment on slopes of 25 percent grade or steeper.

B. Wetlands. New development shall provide a buffer of no less than 100 feet in width from the upland limit of the wetland.

C. Woodland ESHA. New development shall provide a buffer of no less than 100 feet in width from the outer edge of the tree canopy for oak or other native woodland

D. Coastal Bluff ESHA. New development shall provide a buffer of no less than 100 feet from the bluff edge.

E. Coastal Sage Scrub ESHA. New development shall provide a buffer of sufficient width to ensure that no required fuel modification area (Zones A, B, and C, if required) will extend into the ESHA and that no structures will be within 100 feet of the outer edge of the plants that comprise the coastal sage scrub plant community.

F. Chaparral ESHA. New development shall provide a buffer of sufficient width to ensure that no required fuel modification area (Zones A, B, and C, if required) will extend into the ESHA and that no structures will be within 100 feet of the outer edge of the plants that comprise the chaparral plant community.

G. Other ESHA. For other ESHA areas not listed above, the buffer recommended by the Environmental Review Board or City biologist, in consultation with the California Department of Fish and Game, as necessary to avoid adverse impacts to the ESHA shall be required.

Exterior lighting (except traffic lights, navigational lights, and other similar safety lighting) shall be minimized, restricted to low intensity features, shielded, and directed away from ESHA to minimize impacts on wildlife. Night lighting for sports courts, sports fields, or other private recreational facilities in ESHA, ESHA buffer, or where night lighting would increase illumination in ESHA shall be prohibited. Permitted lighting shall conform to the following standards:

A. The minimum necessary to light walkways used for entry and exit to the structures, including parking areas, on the site. This lighting shall be limited to fixtures that do not exceed two feet in height, are directed downward, and use bulbs that do not exceed 60 watts, or the equivalent, unless a higher wattage is authorized by the Planning Manager.

B. Security lighting attached to the residence that is controlled by motion detectors and is limited to 60 watts, or the equivalent.

C. The minimum lighting necessary for safe vehicular use of the driveway. The lighting shall be limited to 60 watts, or the equivalent.

D. A light, not to exceed 60 watts or the equivalent, at the entrance to the (identify non-residential accessory structures).

E. No lighting around the perimeter of the site, no lighting for sports courts or other private recreational facilities, and no lighting for aesthetic purposes is allowed.

F. Prior to issuance of Coastal Development Permit, the applicant shall be required to execute and record a deed restriction reflecting the above restrictions.

G. Lighting of the main sports field at Malibu High School may only be permitted if it complies with the following standards:

1. Lighting shall be minimized, directed downward, and shielded using the best available visor technology and pole height and design that minimizes light spill, sky glow, and glare impacts to public views and wildlife to the maximum extent feasible.

2. Lighting may only occur for a maximum of three days in any calendar week and must be limited to the following time restrictions:

a. During Pacific Standard Time (defined as of 2011 to be the first Sunday in November to the second Sunday in March), the lights may be illuminated no later than 7:30 p.m. except as indicated below.

b. From each September 1st through May 31st period, inclusive, the lights may only be illuminated after 7:30 p.m. up to 18 times, and then (i) only until 10:30 p.m., (ii) never on consecutive nights, and (iii) on no more than two nights in any given calendar week.

c. The lights may not be illuminated at any time between June 1st and August 31st, inclusive, of any year.

3. For lighting that is to be allowed during bird migration periods (fall migration: September through first week in November, and spring migration: last week of March through May), an avian monitoring plan, that is prepared by a qualified ornithologist/ecologist and reviewed and approved by the City Biologist and the Executive Director of the Coastal Commission, shall be required prior to issuance of the coastal development permit, and the permit shall be consistent with and require compliance with that plan. The plan shall, at a minimum, include the following elements:

a. Monitoring shall be conducted by a qualified ornithologist/ecologist to assess potential adverse impacts to migratory and resident bird species.

b. The monitoring design and schedule shall include a paired monitoring design (i.e., a night with lights immediately preceded or followed by a night without lights), and a monitoring frequency of once per week during any week when lights are operated during fall and spring migration periods for at least one year. If the monitoring results indicate that the one-year monitoring period was a typical bird migration year with a typical range of atmospheric conditions and the main sports field lights have resulted in no adverse impacts upon birds, no additional monitoring may be required. If the monitoring results indicate otherwise, monitoring shall continue for an additional year(s) until a year of monitoring under typical conditions occurs and the consulting ornithologist obtains enough data to assess potential adverse impacts to migratory and resident bird species.

c. The description of observational monitoring activities shall include tallying species and numbers of birds observed within a 200-foot sphere of the light standards and noting atmospheric conditions, bird behavior, and changes in bird behavior.

d. The monitoring plan shall specify a threshold for determining significant adverse impacts to migratory and resident bird species from field lights.

e. Seasonal migration reports (fall and spring) of monitoring results shall be submitted to the City Biologist. However, the consulting ornithologist shall immediately notify the City should an adverse bird event related to the approved field lights occur at any time during the course of monitoring. The monitoring plan shall also include a provision for submission of a final monitoring report to the City Biologist and the Executive Director of the Coastal Commission at the end of the monitoring period.

4. The applicant shall be required to submit a written statement agreeing to the above restrictions.

A. Fencing or walls shall be prohibited within ESHA, except where necessary for public safety or habitat protection or restoration. Fencing or walls that do not permit the free passage of wildlife shall be prohibited in any wildlife corridor.

B. Development adjacent to, but not within ESHA, may include fencing, if necessary for security, that is limited to the area around the clustered development area.

A. Variances that modify buffers or ESHA protection standards shall not be granted except where there is no other feasible alternative for siting the development and it does not exceed the limits on allowable development area set forth in Section 4.7 of the Malibu LIP.

B. Modifications to required development standards that are not related to ESHA protection (street setbacks, height limits, etc.) shall be permitted where necessary to avoid or minimize impacts to ESHA.

C. Protection of ESHA and public access shall take priority over other development standards and where there is any conflict between general development standards and ESHA and/or public access protection, the standards that are most protective of ESHA and public access shall take precedence.