Anchor ads are not supported on this page.

4S Ranch Allied Gardens Alpine Baja Balboa Park Bankers Hill Barrio Logan Bay Ho Bay Park Black Mountain Ranch Blossom Valley Bonita Bonsall Borrego Springs Boulevard Campo Cardiff-by-the-Sea Carlsbad Carmel Mountain Carmel Valley Chollas View Chula Vista City College City Heights Clairemont College Area Coronado CSU San Marcos Cuyamaca College Del Cerro Del Mar Descanso Downtown San Diego Eastlake East Village El Cajon Emerald Hills Encanto Encinitas Escondido Fallbrook Fletcher Hills Golden Hill Grant Hill Grantville Grossmont College Guatay Harbor Island Hillcrest Imperial Beach Imperial Valley Jacumba Jamacha-Lomita Jamul Julian Kearny Mesa Kensington La Jolla Lakeside La Mesa Lemon Grove Leucadia Liberty Station Lincoln Acres Lincoln Park Linda Vista Little Italy Logan Heights Mesa College Midway District MiraCosta College Miramar Miramar College Mira Mesa Mission Beach Mission Hills Mission Valley Mountain View Mount Hope Mount Laguna National City Nestor Normal Heights North Park Oak Park Ocean Beach Oceanside Old Town Otay Mesa Pacific Beach Pala Palomar College Palomar Mountain Paradise Hills Pauma Valley Pine Valley Point Loma Point Loma Nazarene Potrero Poway Rainbow Ramona Rancho Bernardo Rancho Penasquitos Rancho San Diego Rancho Santa Fe Rolando San Carlos San Marcos San Onofre Santa Ysabel Santee San Ysidro Scripps Ranch SDSU Serra Mesa Shelltown Shelter Island Sherman Heights Skyline Solana Beach Sorrento Valley Southcrest South Park Southwestern College Spring Valley Stockton Talmadge Temecula Tierrasanta Tijuana UCSD University City University Heights USD Valencia Park Valley Center Vista Warner Springs

Owners of Be Wise Farm and their customers file legal complaint against the County over Eye Gnat Ordinances

The groups say ordinances violate CEQA and other state and local laws.

Consumers of organic produce and the farms they buy from are ticked off at San Diego County's Department of Environmental Health for the implementation of Eye Gnat Ordinances which could force farmers to spray pesticides on their crop.

Now looking to block the law, the Friends of San Diego Organic Produce and the Be Wise Ranch filed a legal complaint against the County over the eye gnat ordinances.

"Members of [Friends of San Diego Organic Produce] have been injured as a result of the San Diego County Board of Supervisor's actions," states the complaint.

"The County's actions adversely affect the interests of [Friends of San Diego Organic Produce] members because the ordinances could force the closure of organic farms in San Diego County by requiring pesticides to be sprayed on organic farms to control eye gnat infestations. Members of [Friends of San Diego Organic Produce] purchase and consume organic produce grown in San Diego County, and have an interest in protecting and promoting organic produce in San Diego County. If members...cannot purchase organic produce locally, they will be forced to either drive farther to purchase local organic produce, or purchase organic produce that has been imported."

In recent years the ranch has been at the center of the eye gnat debate. In 2010 the County hired farm consultant Jim Bethke of the University of California Cooperative Extension to look into the problem after the County received complaints from nearby residents. He found, according to a letter from former Supervisor Pam Slater-Price to Jan Goldsmith, "ample evidence pointing to Be Wise Ranch as the source of a public nuisance."

Shortly after the report, Be Wise Ranch farmer Bill Brammer accused Slater-Price and her colleague Dianne Jacob of kowtowing to local residents and targeting his farm. The complaint claims that the farm worked with the County in good faith. The farm "implemented the Voluntary Eye Gnat Prevention Plan on Be Wise Ranch, placed traps, cloth barriers, and offered free traps to residents. In October, 2012 eye gnats on Be Wise Ranch had been reduced by 98% since 2010, and resident complaints were reduced by 85%."

But despite the progress, County Supervisors moved ahead.

Now, more than a month after they signed the eye gnat ordinances into law, Brammer and the Friends of San Diego Organic Produce have struck back. According to the complaint, the groups plan to file a petition against the County for violating the California Environmental Quality Act.

Their complaint claims the ordinances not only violate environmental laws, they also go against the State's Health and Safety Code.

"The interests of Petitioners have been and will continue to be adversely affected by the County's unlawful actions in violation of San Diego County land use regulations, CEQA, the Health and Safety Code, and the Code of Civil Procedure ("CCP"). The relief sought in this Petition would redress Petitioners and their injuries."

Here's something you might be interested in.
Submit a free classified
or view all

Previous article

Woodpeckers are stocking away acorns, Amorous tarantulas

Stunning sycamores, Mars rising

Consumers of organic produce and the farms they buy from are ticked off at San Diego County's Department of Environmental Health for the implementation of Eye Gnat Ordinances which could force farmers to spray pesticides on their crop.

Now looking to block the law, the Friends of San Diego Organic Produce and the Be Wise Ranch filed a legal complaint against the County over the eye gnat ordinances.

"Members of [Friends of San Diego Organic Produce] have been injured as a result of the San Diego County Board of Supervisor's actions," states the complaint.

"The County's actions adversely affect the interests of [Friends of San Diego Organic Produce] members because the ordinances could force the closure of organic farms in San Diego County by requiring pesticides to be sprayed on organic farms to control eye gnat infestations. Members of [Friends of San Diego Organic Produce] purchase and consume organic produce grown in San Diego County, and have an interest in protecting and promoting organic produce in San Diego County. If members...cannot purchase organic produce locally, they will be forced to either drive farther to purchase local organic produce, or purchase organic produce that has been imported."

In recent years the ranch has been at the center of the eye gnat debate. In 2010 the County hired farm consultant Jim Bethke of the University of California Cooperative Extension to look into the problem after the County received complaints from nearby residents. He found, according to a letter from former Supervisor Pam Slater-Price to Jan Goldsmith, "ample evidence pointing to Be Wise Ranch as the source of a public nuisance."

Shortly after the report, Be Wise Ranch farmer Bill Brammer accused Slater-Price and her colleague Dianne Jacob of kowtowing to local residents and targeting his farm. The complaint claims that the farm worked with the County in good faith. The farm "implemented the Voluntary Eye Gnat Prevention Plan on Be Wise Ranch, placed traps, cloth barriers, and offered free traps to residents. In October, 2012 eye gnats on Be Wise Ranch had been reduced by 98% since 2010, and resident complaints were reduced by 85%."

But despite the progress, County Supervisors moved ahead.

Now, more than a month after they signed the eye gnat ordinances into law, Brammer and the Friends of San Diego Organic Produce have struck back. According to the complaint, the groups plan to file a petition against the County for violating the California Environmental Quality Act.

Their complaint claims the ordinances not only violate environmental laws, they also go against the State's Health and Safety Code.

"The interests of Petitioners have been and will continue to be adversely affected by the County's unlawful actions in violation of San Diego County land use regulations, CEQA, the Health and Safety Code, and the Code of Civil Procedure ("CCP"). The relief sought in this Petition would redress Petitioners and their injuries."

Sponsored
Here's something you might be interested in.
Submit a free classified
or view all
Previous article

Rock in peace? Fat chance

Point Loma man says city's noise ordinance is unconstitutional
Next Article

Volunteer Cop Triggers One-Man Crusade

Ask a Hipster — Advice you didn't know you needed Big Screen — Movie commentary Blurt — Music's inside track Booze News — San Diego spirits Classical Music — Immortal beauty Classifieds — Free and easy Cover Stories — Front-page features Drinks All Around — Bartenders' drink recipes Excerpts — Literary and spiritual excerpts Feast! — Food & drink reviews Feature Stories — Local news & stories Fishing Report — What’s getting hooked from ship and shore From the Archives — Spotlight on the past Golden Dreams — Talk of the town The Gonzo Report — Making the musical scene, or at least reporting from it Letters — Our inbox Movies@Home — Local movie buffs share favorites Movie Reviews — Our critics' picks and pans Musician Interviews — Up close with local artists Neighborhood News from Stringers — Hyperlocal news News Ticker — News & politics Obermeyer — San Diego politics illustrated Outdoors — Weekly changes in flora and fauna Overheard in San Diego — Eavesdropping illustrated Poetry — The old and the new Reader Travel — Travel section built by travelers Reading — The hunt for intellectuals Roam-O-Rama — SoCal's best hiking/biking trails San Diego Beer — Inside San Diego suds SD on the QT — Almost factual news Sheep and Goats — Places of worship Special Issues — The best of Street Style — San Diego streets have style Surf Diego — Real stories from those braving the waves Theater — On stage in San Diego this week Tin Fork — Silver spoon alternative Under the Radar — Matt Potter's undercover work Unforgettable — Long-ago San Diego Unreal Estate — San Diego's priciest pads Your Week — Daily event picks
4S Ranch Allied Gardens Alpine Baja Balboa Park Bankers Hill Barrio Logan Bay Ho Bay Park Black Mountain Ranch Blossom Valley Bonita Bonsall Borrego Springs Boulevard Campo Cardiff-by-the-Sea Carlsbad Carmel Mountain Carmel Valley Chollas View Chula Vista City College City Heights Clairemont College Area Coronado CSU San Marcos Cuyamaca College Del Cerro Del Mar Descanso Downtown San Diego Eastlake East Village El Cajon Emerald Hills Encanto Encinitas Escondido Fallbrook Fletcher Hills Golden Hill Grant Hill Grantville Grossmont College Guatay Harbor Island Hillcrest Imperial Beach Imperial Valley Jacumba Jamacha-Lomita Jamul Julian Kearny Mesa Kensington La Jolla Lakeside La Mesa Lemon Grove Leucadia Liberty Station Lincoln Acres Lincoln Park Linda Vista Little Italy Logan Heights Mesa College Midway District MiraCosta College Miramar Miramar College Mira Mesa Mission Beach Mission Hills Mission Valley Mountain View Mount Hope Mount Laguna National City Nestor Normal Heights North Park Oak Park Ocean Beach Oceanside Old Town Otay Mesa Pacific Beach Pala Palomar College Palomar Mountain Paradise Hills Pauma Valley Pine Valley Point Loma Point Loma Nazarene Potrero Poway Rainbow Ramona Rancho Bernardo Rancho Penasquitos Rancho San Diego Rancho Santa Fe Rolando San Carlos San Marcos San Onofre Santa Ysabel Santee San Ysidro Scripps Ranch SDSU Serra Mesa Shelltown Shelter Island Sherman Heights Skyline Solana Beach Sorrento Valley Southcrest South Park Southwestern College Spring Valley Stockton Talmadge Temecula Tierrasanta Tijuana UCSD University City University Heights USD Valencia Park Valley Center Vista Warner Springs
Close

Anchor ads are not supported on this page.

This Week’s Reader This Week’s Reader