§ 5.46.040 — Scope

5.46.040 - Scope.

Except as provided in this chapter, no person shall conduct surface mining operations unless a conditional use permit, reclamation plan, and financial assurances for reclamation have first been approved by the City. Any applicable exemption from this requirement does not automatically exempt a project or activity form the application of other regulations, ordinances or policies of the City, including but not limited to, the application of CEQA, the requirement of site approvals or other permits, the payment of development impact fees, or the imposition of other dedications and excavations as may be permitted under the law. The provisions of this chapter shall apply to all lands within the City, public and private. This chapter shall not apply to the following activities, subject to the above-referenced exceptions: A. Excavations or grading conducted for farming or on-site construction or for the purpose of restoring land following a flood or natural disaster. B. Onsite excavation and onsite earthmoving activities which are an integral and necessary part of a construction project that are undertaken to prepare a site for construction of structures, landscaping, or other land improvements, including the related excavation, grading, compaction, or the creation of fills, road cuts, and embankments, whether or not surplus materials are exported from the site, subject to all of the following conditions: 1. All required permits for the construction, landscaping, or related land improvements have been approved by a public agency in accordance with applicable provisions of state law and locally adopted plans and ordinances, including, but not limited to, the California Environmental Quality Act ("CEQA", Public Resources Code, Division 13, §21000 et seq.), and the City's CEQA Resolution. 2. The City's approval of the construction project included consideration of the onsite excavation and onsite earthmoving activities pursuant to CEQA. 3. The approved construction project is consistent with the general plan or zoning of the site. 4. Surplus materials shall not be exported from the site unless and until actual construction work has commenced and shall cease if it is determined that construction activities have terminated, have been definitely suspended, or are no longer being actively pursued. C. Operation of a plant site used for mineral processing, including associated onsite structures, equipment, machines, tools, or other materials, including the onsite stockpiling and onsite recovery of mined materials, subject to all of the following conditions: 1. The plant site is located on lands designed for industrial or commercial uses in the City's general plan. 2. The plant site is located on lands zoned industrial or commercial, or are contained within a zoning category intended exclusively for industrial activities by the City. 3. None of the minerals being processed are being extracted onsite. 4. All reclamation work has been completed pursuant to the approved reclamation plan for any mineral extraction activities that occurred onsite after January 1, 1976. D. Prospecting for, or the extraction of, minerals for commercial purposes and the removal of overburden in total amounts of less than 1,000 cubic yards in any one location of one acre or less. E. Surface mining operations that are required by federal law in order to protect a mining claim, if those operations are conducted solely for that purpose. F. Any other surface mining operations that the State Mining and Geology Board determines to be of an infrequent nature and which involve only minor surface disturbances. G. The solar evaporation of sea water or bay water for the production of salt and related minerals. H. Emergency excavations or grading conducted by the Department of Water Resources or the Reclamation Board for the purpose of averting, alleviating, repairing, or restoring damage to property due to imminent or recent floods, disasters, or other emergencies. I. Road construction and maintenance for timber or forest operations if the land is owned by the same person or entity, and if the excavation is conducted adjacent to timber or forest operation roads. This exemption is only available if slope stability and erosion are controlled in accordance with Board regulations and, upon closure of the site, the person closing the site implements, where necessary, revegetation measures and postclosure uses in consultation with the Department of Forestry and Fire Protection. The exemption does not apply to onsite acclamation or grading that occurs within 100 feet of a Class One watercourse or 75 feet of a Class Two watercourse, or to excavations for materials that are, or have been, sold for commercial purposes.

(Ord. 7341 §4, 2016; Ord. 6476 §1, 1999; Ord. 4953 § 3, 1981)