Loading...
HomeMy WebLinkAboutORD 1387ORDINANCE NO. 1387 AN ORDINANCE OF THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF PALM DESERT, CALIFORNIA, AMENDING CHAPTER 24.04.060 (INVASIVE PLANT SPECIES) AS RELATED TO PROHIBITED LANDSCAPE MATERIALS FOR DEVELOPMENT DESIGN AND INSTALLATION WHEREAS, in 2022 and 2013, the City Council approved Ordinance No. 1374 §1, and Ord. 1258 §1, respectively, (Chapter 24.04.060 of the Municipal Code) which prohibited invasive plants invasive noxious weeds from landscape design; and WHEREAS, the Code references the California Invasive Plant Inventory and USDA invasive noxious weeds database; and WHEREAS, staff have determined that additional local plants are invasive, noxious, or otherwise detrimental to the maintenance of landscaped areas of the City. Amending the Ordinances would prohibit THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF PALM DESERT DOES HEREBY ORDAIN AS FOLLOWS: SECTION 1. Recitals. The City Council finds that the above recitals are true and correct and, accordingly, are incorporated as a material part of this Ordinance. SECTION 2. CEQA. The City Council finds that this Ordinance is not subject to the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) pursuant to Section 15060(c)(2) (the activity will not result in a direct or reasonably foreseeable indirect physical change in th e environment) because this ordinance is merely clarifying existing law and making minor changes to the City’s existing Municipal Code and pursuant to 15060(c)(3) (the activity is not a project as defined in Section 15378) of the CEQA Guidelines, Californi a Code of Regulations, Title 14, Chapter 3, because these clarifications and minor modifications to the City’s Municipal Code have no potential for resulting in physical change to the environment, directly or indirectly. SECTION 3. Amendment to Municipal Code. Chapter 24.04.060 of the City of Palm Desert, California, Municipal Code shall be amended and restated to read as follows: 24.04.060 Invasive, noxious, and nuisance plant species. A. Purpose and Intent. The purpose of this Section 24.04.060 is to; (1) preserve the public health and safety, (2) protect public and private property from the damaging spread of invasive, noxious and nuisance plants and; (3) to protect indigenous plants and wildlife. Ordinance No. 1387 Page 2 B. Definitions: As used in this Section, the following terms shall have the meanings indicated: Invasive Plant Species – An “invasive plant species” is any plant species that is: (1) non-native to the ecosystem under consideration; and (2) whose introduction may cause or causes economic or environmental harm or harm to human health. For the purposes of this Chapter, Invasive Plant Species include any plant species listed on the California Invasive Plant Inventory and/or the U.S. Department of Agriculture Invasive and Noxious Plant Database, regardless of rating (watch, limited, moderate or high). Noxious Plant Species – A “noxious plant species” is any plant species that is injurious to agricultural crops, natural habitats/ecosystems, and/or humans and livestock. For the purposes of this Chapter, Noxious Plant Species include any plant species designated by the weed control regulations in the federal Noxious Weed Control and Eradication Act of 2004 and identified on a regional district noxious plant species control list. Nuisance Plant Species – A “nuisance plant species” is any plant species that is either: (1) not designated as “noxious” or “invasive” in this Section 24.04.060, but may cause or causes a threat to public health and safety or (2) is designated as “noxious” or “invasive” but requires special attention to avoid potential threats to public health and safety. Nuisance Plant Species include, but are not limited to, the following species: Washingtonia robusta, Dalbergia sissoo and Euphorbia tirucalli. C. Prohibitions. All plant species categorized as “invasive”, “noxious”, and “nuisance” are hereby prohibited within the City’s jurisdiction. This prohibition includes, but is not limited to, the following: (1) Plant species categorized as “invasive”, “noxious”, or “nuisance” are prohibited from use in landscape design plans as outlined in Section 24.04.050 of Title 24 of the Palm Desert Municipal Code. (2) Plant species categorized as “invasive”, “noxious”, or “nuisance” shall not be installed on City property, including parks, parkway areas, and rights of way. (3) Plant species categorized as “invasive”, “noxious”, or “nuisance” shall not be installed on private property. D. Violations and Penalties. Any new development that plants or replants a species categorized as “invasive”, “noxious”, or “nuisance” within the City’s jurisdiction shall be in violation of this Section 24.04.060 and shall be subject to the enforcement and penalties set forth in Section 24.04.140 of Title 24 of the Palm Desert Municipal Code. Ordinance No. 1387 Page 3 SECTION 4. Severability. If any section, subsection, clause or phrase of this Ordinance or any part thereof is for any reason held to be invalid, unconstitutional, or unenforceable by the decision of any court of competent jurisdiction, such decision shall not affect the validity of the remaining portion of the Ordinance. The City Council declares that it would have passed each section, subsection, paragraph, sentence, clause, or phrase thereof, irrespective of the fact that any one or more section, subsection, sentence, clause or phrase would be declared invalid, unconstitutional or unenforceable. SECTION 5. Publication. The City Clerk of the City of Palm Desert, California, is hereby directed to publish this Ordinance in the Desert Sun, a newspaper of general circulation, published and circulated in the City of Palm Desert, California, and shall be in full force and effective thirty (30) days after its adoption. ADOPTED ON October 13, 2022. ________________________________ JAN C. HARNIK MAYOR ATTEST: _________________________________ ANTHONY J. MEJIA CITY CLERK Anthony Mejia (Oct 25, 2022 10:56 PDT) Ordinance No. 1387 Page 4 I, Anthony J. Mejia, City Clerk of the City of Palm Desert, California, do hereby certify that Ordinance No. 1387 is a full, true, and correct copy, and was introduced at a regular meeting of the Palm Desert City Council on September 29, 2022, and adopted at a regular meeting of the City Council held on October 13, 2022, by the following vote: AYES: JONATHAN, KELLY, NESTANDE, AND HARNIK NOES: NONE ABSENT: QUINTANILLA ABSTAIN: NONE RECUSED: NONE IN WITNESS WHEREOF, I have hereunto set my hand and affixed the official seal of the City of Palm Desert, California, on _____________ ____. ANTHONY J. MEJIA CITY CLERK Anthony Mejia (Oct 25, 2022 10:56 PDT) Oct 25, 2022