Title
Body
MEMORANDUM
TO: Lake County Air Quality Management District Board of Directors
FROM: Douglas Gearhart, APCO
DATE: June 11, 2019
SUBJECT: Discussion and Consideration of Cannabis Permitting and Fees
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY:
The Lake County Air Quality Management District (District) maintains an active and effective air quality management program to protect the health and welfare of the populace of the Lake County Air Basin. This is a shared mission with State and Federal agencies. The District has primary responsibility for stationary air pollution sources in conformance with all District regulations and State and Federal laws. As a designated Air Basin, the District participates in several Local, State and Federal programs by law.
With the legalization of cannabis in California, the Lake County Air Quality Management District staff has been assisting the County of Lake address environmental concerns related to odor impacts from cultivation activities. Currently the State of California does not define cannabis as an agricultural crop, and thus cultivation is not exempt from odor regulation.
Starting in the Fall of 2017, the County of Lake included the requirement for cannabis operations to obtain a District Authority to Construct permit as the best method to deal with the odor issues. The ordinance does not change or affect the District's authority to regulate the industry, however it does provide a clear statement that odor is an important issue.
In response to this Board's request, we are bringing this topic forward to have a more thorough discussion of the laws that affect our operations and permitting process as well as options for this Board to consider moving forward with this industry.
The District was created by mandate of the State of California and is the primary entity responsible for the control of air pollution from all sources per California Health and Safety Code (H&SC), other than emissions from motor vehicles. Odor is defined in H&SC...
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