The Legislature hereby finds and declares that the Ventura-Los Angeles Mountain and Coastal Zone, defined in Section 22012, as the last large undeveloped area contiguous to the shoreline within the greater Los Angeles Metropolitan Region, comprised of Los Angeles and Ventura Counties, represents a unique and irreplaceable natural resource to the people of the state, that uses of the zone include recreation, conservation, open space, and utilization and enjoyment of the sea and the mountains, that the zone functions as an integral component of the physical and biological systems of the entire region, and to a significant, although not as yet precisely determined degree, impacts upon these essential life-support systems, that there are pressures of population growth and economic development in the zone, and that if conservation and development practices are permitted to continue in their present unplanned, uncoordinated, and haphazard manner, irreversible deterioration of the zone as a precious natural resource for the people of the entire state may ensue.
Chapter 1Findings and Declarations of Policy
Section § 22000
This law states that the Ventura-Los Angeles Mountain and Coastal Zone is a crucial natural area in Southern California, vital for recreation, conservation, and maintaining local ecological systems. It warns that without better planning and coordination, the zone could suffer irreversible damage from unplanned growth and development.
Ventura-Los Angeles Mountain Zone Coastal Zone natural resource recreation conservation open space sea enjoyment mountain enjoyment population growth economic development ecological impact unplanned development environmental conservation regional planning Los Angeles Metropolitan Region
Section § 22001
This section highlights that current land use practices might not align with what's best for both current and future generations. It points out a few main issues: there's not enough understanding of how these practices affect the long term; public and private planning efforts are scattered and not well-coordinated; there isn't a comprehensive plan to guide conservation and development effectively; and there are no existing systems to evaluate how individual projects impact the whole area.
The Legislature further finds and declares that current conservation and development practices may conflict with the public interest of present and future generations due to:
(a)CA Public Resources Code § 22001(a) An insufficient understanding of the long-range implications of land use practices as they affect the zone and the region.
(b)CA Public Resources Code § 22001(b) The uncoordinated and fragmented nature of public and private planning of development and conservation activities within the zone.
(c)CA Public Resources Code § 22001(c) The lack of a comprehensive plan and program to provide for conservation and development of the zone in the best public interest.
(d)CA Public Resources Code § 22001(d) The fact that no governmental mechanism exists for studying and evaluating individual projects as to their effect on the entire zone and region.
land use practices long-range implications public interest future generations uncoordinated planning fragmented development comprehensive plan conservation activities development activities zone evaluation regional impact governmental mechanism project evaluation conservation and development
Section § 22002
This law states that a special commission called the Ventura-Los Angeles Mountain and Coastal Study Commission needs to be created. The purpose of this commission is to study the area to find balanced ways to conserve and develop it. The goal is to figure out what's necessary for the present and future needs of this region, set up policies and priorities based on their findings, and suggest any additional laws needed to put these plans into action.
The Legislature further finds and declares that in order to protect and advance the interests of the present and future generations in the zone and region, there is need to create a Ventura-Los Angeles Mountain and Coastal Study Commission to study the entire zone as well as the relationship of the zone to the region, to ascertain what is needed for balanced conservation and development, to determine a set of policies and priorities based on such studies, and to propose further legislative action to provide for implementation of these policies.
Ventura-Los Angeles Mountain and Coastal Study Commission balanced conservation development future generations zone and region set of policies legislative action implementation environmental study regional planning natural resource management sustainable development policy priorities regional impact
