Sanger Municipal Code § 94-4 Agricultural operations not a nuisance

This chapter shall be known and may be cited as the "City of Sanger Right to Farm Ordinance" or the "right to farm ordinance."

(Ord. No. 2021-07, § 3, 8-19-21)

The purpose of this chapter is to:

(1) Protect and preserve agricultural land uses and designations identified on the general plan and zoning map from conflicts with nonagricultural land uses that may result in financial hardship to agricultural operators or the termination of their operation; and

(2) Promote a good neighbor policy between agriculturalists and residents by advising purchasers and residents of property adjacent to or near agricultural operations of the inherent potential inconveniences associated with such purchase or residence including, but not limited to, the sounds, odors, dust and chemicals that may accompany agricultural operations, so that such purchasers and residents will understand, and be prepared to accept, such inconveniences.

(Ord. No. 2021-07, § 3, 8-19-21)

The following words, terms and phrases, when used in this chapter, shall have the meanings ascribed to them in this section, except where the context clearly indicates a different meaning:

Agricultural land means

(1) Those land areas of Fresno County specifically zoned as agricultural uses (such as AE (exclusive agriculture), AL (limited agriculture), TPZ (timberland preserve) or RC (resource conservation) zone district;

(2) Those land areas of the within the city with zoned districts for agricultural uses; and

(3) Any land within either Fresno County or the city which is being used for agricultural uses in a legally nonconforming manner.

Agricultural pursuit or agricultural activity means:

(1) Commercial agricultural activities as defined by California Civil Code § 3482.5(e), including those agricultural activities, operations, or facilities, or appurtenances thereto, including but not limited to cultivation and tillage of the soil, dairying, the production, irrigation, frost protection, cultivation, growing, harvesting, on-farm marketing, and processing of any agricultural commodity, including viticulture, horticulture, mushrooms, timber or agriculture, the raising of livestock, bearing animals, fish or poultry, and any practices performed by a farmer or on a farm as incident to or in conjunction with those farming operations, including preparation for market, delivery to storage or to market, or to carriers for transportation to market.

(2) Commercial agricultural processing activities as defined by California Civil Code § 3482.6(e)(1), including agricultural processing activities, operations, facilities or appurtenances thereof, including, but not limited to, the canning or freezing of agricultural products, the processing of dairy products, the production and bottling of wine, the processing of meat and egg products, the drying of fruits and grains, the packing and cooling of fruits and vegetables, and the storage of warehousing of any agricultural products, and shall include processing for wholesale or retail markets of agricultural products.

Nuisance shall mean all activities which are deemed to be public or private nuisances according to state law. Agricultural operations shall not be considered a nuisance under this code unless such operations are deemed to be a nuisance under California Civil Code §§ 3482.5 and 3482.6. Agricultural pursuits or activities shall comply with all state, federal and local laws and regulations applicable to the operations.

(Ord. No. 2021-07, § 3, 8-19-21)

No agricultural pursuit, activity, operation, or facility that is consistent with the city's general plan and the city's zoning ordinance, including legal nonconforming uses, and is conducted or maintained for commercial purposes in a manner consistent with proper and accepted customs and standards as established and followed by similar agricultural operations in Fresno County, shall be or become a nuisance, private or public, due to any changed condition in the vicinity of that agricultural pursuit, activity, operation, or facility, after it has been in operation for more than three years if it was not a nuisance at the time it began, provided that, this section shall not apply if the agricultural pursuit, activity, operation, or facility, obstructs the free passage or use, in the customary manner, of any navigable lake, river, bay, stream, canal, or basin, or any public park, square, street, or highway.

(Ord. No. 2021-07, § 3, 8-19-21)

As a condition of approval of a discretionary development permit, including but not limited to subdivisions of land (including both tentative and parcel maps), use permits, rezoning, and other land use entitlements, for property within 300 feet of agricultural land, the property owner, as part of the application for the development approval, shall execute a right to farm covenant, acceptable as to legal form by the city attorney, which shall be recorded.

(Ord. No. 2021-07, § 3, 8-19-21)