2026 Critical Areas Ordinance (CAO) Update

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San Juan County is updating its critical areas protections with the support of a consultant team from Facet LLC. The County is required to protect five different kinds of critical areas and, because the protection regulations are adopted as ordinances, they are known by the generic singular ‘CAO’ or plural term, ‘CAOs’.

All counties, cities, and towns in Washington State planning under the Growth Management Act (GMA) are required to periodically review and update the CAO regulations. San Juan County’s CAO was adopted most recently in 2013 and implemented in 2014. The County needs to update its CAO to be compliant with GMA standards and be more eligible for some grant funding. The County's goal is to adopt an updated CAO by May of 2026.

The CAO update process includes:

San Juan County is updating its critical areas protections with the support of a consultant team from Facet LLC. The County is required to protect five different kinds of critical areas and, because the protection regulations are adopted as ordinances, they are known by the generic singular ‘CAO’ or plural term, ‘CAOs’.

All counties, cities, and towns in Washington State planning under the Growth Management Act (GMA) are required to periodically review and update the CAO regulations. San Juan County’s CAO was adopted most recently in 2013 and implemented in 2014. The County needs to update its CAO to be compliant with GMA standards and be more eligible for some grant funding. The County's goal is to adopt an updated CAO by May of 2026.

The CAO update process includes:

Provide Comments

The public has the opportunity to review and ask questions about the best available science, read the proposed changes, and provide comments on the proposed amendments.

You can also direct questions and comments to Colin Maycock, Planner IV, at colinm@sanjuancountywa.gov.

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  • Share Under the draft 18.35.115 Fish and wildlife habitat conservation areas – Types of fish and wildlife habitat conservation areas (FWHCAs), I do not see Coho Salmon (Oncorhynchus kisutch) or Coastal Cutthroat Trout (O. Clarkii Clarkii) listed as priority species. They, however, are both noted in the 2022 Salmon Recovery Chapter Update & Multi-species Conservation Plan (see Reference 1 below, page 7). I previously submitted a county docket in 2018, and again in 2020, to designate Coastal Cutthroat Trout as species of local importance based on earlier salmon recovery discussions and known protection problems (see Reference 2 below, page 2). The 2020 docket 20-0006 was approved by DCD with recommendations to "consider during the critical area code update following the plan update" (see References 3 & 4 below). Council approved DCD’s recommendations and only questioned the timing for final completion (see Reference 5 below, starts ~ 0:39:00). I would like to know if these species will be included in the 2026 CAO update? Not including them would go against previous Council Council’s recommendations, Best Available Science, and ultimately, fail to protect these vulnerable salmonid species within San Juan County. REFERENCES: 1. https://www.sanjuancountywa.gov/DocumentCenter/View/25143/Salmon-Recovery-Plan-Update-February-2022_Final 2.https://salishsearestoration.org/w/images/a/aa/Rot_et_al_2019_san_juan_islands_salmonid_limiting_factors.pdf "The Technical Team asks San Juan County for a designation of salmonids and other native fish as Species of Local Importance to highlight their existence and critical stewardship need by private landowners and discourage stocking of non-native fish in priority watersheds." (pg. 2) 3. https://www.sanjuancountywa.gov/DocumentCenter/View/20761/2020-07_02_2020_Annual-_Docket_PC_Public_Hearing_Presentation 4. https://www.sanjuancountywa.gov/DocumentCenter/View/20898/2020-07-28_DCD_Docket_transmittal_Cassam_CC_08-25-2020 5. https://media.avcaptureall.cloud/meeting/c48f8ee5-85c2-4418-9b8f-f50942c483af DCD and Council's recommendations for Docket 20-006 on 8-25-20 (~0:39:00). on Facebook Share Under the draft 18.35.115 Fish and wildlife habitat conservation areas – Types of fish and wildlife habitat conservation areas (FWHCAs), I do not see Coho Salmon (Oncorhynchus kisutch) or Coastal Cutthroat Trout (O. Clarkii Clarkii) listed as priority species. They, however, are both noted in the 2022 Salmon Recovery Chapter Update & Multi-species Conservation Plan (see Reference 1 below, page 7). I previously submitted a county docket in 2018, and again in 2020, to designate Coastal Cutthroat Trout as species of local importance based on earlier salmon recovery discussions and known protection problems (see Reference 2 below, page 2). The 2020 docket 20-0006 was approved by DCD with recommendations to "consider during the critical area code update following the plan update" (see References 3 & 4 below). Council approved DCD’s recommendations and only questioned the timing for final completion (see Reference 5 below, starts ~ 0:39:00). I would like to know if these species will be included in the 2026 CAO update? Not including them would go against previous Council Council’s recommendations, Best Available Science, and ultimately, fail to protect these vulnerable salmonid species within San Juan County. REFERENCES: 1. https://www.sanjuancountywa.gov/DocumentCenter/View/25143/Salmon-Recovery-Plan-Update-February-2022_Final 2.https://salishsearestoration.org/w/images/a/aa/Rot_et_al_2019_san_juan_islands_salmonid_limiting_factors.pdf "The Technical Team asks San Juan County for a designation of salmonids and other native fish as Species of Local Importance to highlight their existence and critical stewardship need by private landowners and discourage stocking of non-native fish in priority watersheds." (pg. 2) 3. https://www.sanjuancountywa.gov/DocumentCenter/View/20761/2020-07_02_2020_Annual-_Docket_PC_Public_Hearing_Presentation 4. https://www.sanjuancountywa.gov/DocumentCenter/View/20898/2020-07-28_DCD_Docket_transmittal_Cassam_CC_08-25-2020 5. https://media.avcaptureall.cloud/meeting/c48f8ee5-85c2-4418-9b8f-f50942c483af DCD and Council's recommendations for Docket 20-006 on 8-25-20 (~0:39:00). on Twitter Share Under the draft 18.35.115 Fish and wildlife habitat conservation areas – Types of fish and wildlife habitat conservation areas (FWHCAs), I do not see Coho Salmon (Oncorhynchus kisutch) or Coastal Cutthroat Trout (O. Clarkii Clarkii) listed as priority species. They, however, are both noted in the 2022 Salmon Recovery Chapter Update & Multi-species Conservation Plan (see Reference 1 below, page 7). I previously submitted a county docket in 2018, and again in 2020, to designate Coastal Cutthroat Trout as species of local importance based on earlier salmon recovery discussions and known protection problems (see Reference 2 below, page 2). The 2020 docket 20-0006 was approved by DCD with recommendations to "consider during the critical area code update following the plan update" (see References 3 & 4 below). Council approved DCD’s recommendations and only questioned the timing for final completion (see Reference 5 below, starts ~ 0:39:00). I would like to know if these species will be included in the 2026 CAO update? Not including them would go against previous Council Council’s recommendations, Best Available Science, and ultimately, fail to protect these vulnerable salmonid species within San Juan County. REFERENCES: 1. https://www.sanjuancountywa.gov/DocumentCenter/View/25143/Salmon-Recovery-Plan-Update-February-2022_Final 2.https://salishsearestoration.org/w/images/a/aa/Rot_et_al_2019_san_juan_islands_salmonid_limiting_factors.pdf "The Technical Team asks San Juan County for a designation of salmonids and other native fish as Species of Local Importance to highlight their existence and critical stewardship need by private landowners and discourage stocking of non-native fish in priority watersheds." (pg. 2) 3. https://www.sanjuancountywa.gov/DocumentCenter/View/20761/2020-07_02_2020_Annual-_Docket_PC_Public_Hearing_Presentation 4. https://www.sanjuancountywa.gov/DocumentCenter/View/20898/2020-07-28_DCD_Docket_transmittal_Cassam_CC_08-25-2020 5. https://media.avcaptureall.cloud/meeting/c48f8ee5-85c2-4418-9b8f-f50942c483af DCD and Council's recommendations for Docket 20-006 on 8-25-20 (~0:39:00). on Linkedin Email Under the draft 18.35.115 Fish and wildlife habitat conservation areas – Types of fish and wildlife habitat conservation areas (FWHCAs), I do not see Coho Salmon (Oncorhynchus kisutch) or Coastal Cutthroat Trout (O. Clarkii Clarkii) listed as priority species. They, however, are both noted in the 2022 Salmon Recovery Chapter Update & Multi-species Conservation Plan (see Reference 1 below, page 7). I previously submitted a county docket in 2018, and again in 2020, to designate Coastal Cutthroat Trout as species of local importance based on earlier salmon recovery discussions and known protection problems (see Reference 2 below, page 2). The 2020 docket 20-0006 was approved by DCD with recommendations to "consider during the critical area code update following the plan update" (see References 3 & 4 below). Council approved DCD’s recommendations and only questioned the timing for final completion (see Reference 5 below, starts ~ 0:39:00). I would like to know if these species will be included in the 2026 CAO update? Not including them would go against previous Council Council’s recommendations, Best Available Science, and ultimately, fail to protect these vulnerable salmonid species within San Juan County. REFERENCES: 1. https://www.sanjuancountywa.gov/DocumentCenter/View/25143/Salmon-Recovery-Plan-Update-February-2022_Final 2.https://salishsearestoration.org/w/images/a/aa/Rot_et_al_2019_san_juan_islands_salmonid_limiting_factors.pdf "The Technical Team asks San Juan County for a designation of salmonids and other native fish as Species of Local Importance to highlight their existence and critical stewardship need by private landowners and discourage stocking of non-native fish in priority watersheds." (pg. 2) 3. https://www.sanjuancountywa.gov/DocumentCenter/View/20761/2020-07_02_2020_Annual-_Docket_PC_Public_Hearing_Presentation 4. https://www.sanjuancountywa.gov/DocumentCenter/View/20898/2020-07-28_DCD_Docket_transmittal_Cassam_CC_08-25-2020 5. https://media.avcaptureall.cloud/meeting/c48f8ee5-85c2-4418-9b8f-f50942c483af DCD and Council's recommendations for Docket 20-006 on 8-25-20 (~0:39:00). link

    Under the draft 18.35.115 Fish and wildlife habitat conservation areas – Types of fish and wildlife habitat conservation areas (FWHCAs), I do not see Coho Salmon (Oncorhynchus kisutch) or Coastal Cutthroat Trout (O. Clarkii Clarkii) listed as priority species. They, however, are both noted in the 2022 Salmon Recovery Chapter Update & Multi-species Conservation Plan (see Reference 1 below, page 7). I previously submitted a county docket in 2018, and again in 2020, to designate Coastal Cutthroat Trout as species of local importance based on earlier salmon recovery discussions and known protection problems (see Reference 2 below, page 2). The 2020 docket 20-0006 was approved by DCD with recommendations to "consider during the critical area code update following the plan update" (see References 3 & 4 below). Council approved DCD’s recommendations and only questioned the timing for final completion (see Reference 5 below, starts ~ 0:39:00). I would like to know if these species will be included in the 2026 CAO update? Not including them would go against previous Council Council’s recommendations, Best Available Science, and ultimately, fail to protect these vulnerable salmonid species within San Juan County. REFERENCES: 1. https://www.sanjuancountywa.gov/DocumentCenter/View/25143/Salmon-Recovery-Plan-Update-February-2022_Final 2.https://salishsearestoration.org/w/images/a/aa/Rot_et_al_2019_san_juan_islands_salmonid_limiting_factors.pdf "The Technical Team asks San Juan County for a designation of salmonids and other native fish as Species of Local Importance to highlight their existence and critical stewardship need by private landowners and discourage stocking of non-native fish in priority watersheds." (pg. 2) 3. https://www.sanjuancountywa.gov/DocumentCenter/View/20761/2020-07_02_2020_Annual-_Docket_PC_Public_Hearing_Presentation 4. https://www.sanjuancountywa.gov/DocumentCenter/View/20898/2020-07-28_DCD_Docket_transmittal_Cassam_CC_08-25-2020 5. https://media.avcaptureall.cloud/meeting/c48f8ee5-85c2-4418-9b8f-f50942c483af DCD and Council's recommendations for Docket 20-006 on 8-25-20 (~0:39:00).

    Jenny deGroot asked 21 days ago

    Hello Ms. DeGroot, 

    Thank you for taking the time to write. 

    On page 32 of the published 'clean' draft regulations under SJCC 18.35.115(J) Species of local importance #s 18 and 19 are Coastal Cutthroat Trout and Coho Salmon. 

    Respectfully,

    Colin