There is hereby created an environmentally sensitive lands conservation district for environmentally sensitive lands owned and managed for conservation purposes, as further described in the Sanibel Plan. The regulations and restrictions for the environmentally sensitive lands conservation district contained in this article are, where applicable, supplementary and cumulative to other provisions of this of sections 78-1 through 78-11; chapter 86; chapter 94; chapter 98; chapter 106; chapter 110; chapter 118; chapter 122; and articles II through XV of this chapter. To the extent of any conflict, the provisions of this article shall control. Although lands owned by or under control of the federal or state government may be included in this district, to the extent that local control over the use or development of such lands conflicts with, or is preempted by, superior powers of the federal or state government, the use and development standards contained in this article shall not apply.

(Ord. No. 85-26, § 1(I.D.7), 11-27-1985; Ord. No. 92-13, § 3, 7-21-1992)

(a)

Map. The lands included in the environmentally sensitive lands conservation district are identified on the environmentally sensitive lands conservation district map, established by section 126-242.

(b)

Purchased lands. All lands which heretofore have been purchased by the city with funds from the environmentally sensitive lands acquisition program are included in the environmentally sensitive lands conservation district. All lands to be purchased in the future by the city with funds from the environmentally sensitive lands acquisition program shall be automatically included in the environmentally sensitive lands conservation district. Other lands purchased by the city for environmental purposes may be placed into the environmentally sensitive lands conservation district as provided in subsection (c) of this section.

(c)

Addition of lands to the district. Land may be added to the environmentally sensitive lands conservation district by amendment to the environmentally sensitive lands conservation district map in accordance with procedures established in sections 78-12 through 78-15; chapter 82; and sections 90-3 through 90-5. However, to ensure compliance with the Sanibel Plan, all lands purchased by the city with funds from the environmentally sensitive lands acquisition program shall automatically be included in the environmentally sensitive lands conservation district, effective upon closing of the purchase.

(d)

Removal of lands from the district. Land may be removed from the environmentally sensitive lands conservation district by amendment to the environmentally sensitive lands conservation district map in accordance with procedures established in sections 78-12 through 78-15, chapter 82 and sections 90-3 through 90-5, subject to the restrictions contained in section 82-32.

(Ord. No. 85-26, § 1(I.D.7(a)), 11-27-1985; Ord. No. 92-13, § 3, 7-21-1992)

(a)

In addition to the preservation districts, namely the gulf beach and bay beach zones, established by this Land Development Code, there is a need to establish a conservation district for other environmentally sensitive lands, including both tidal and freshwater wetland areas.

_____

(b)

Over one-half of the land area in the city is owned and managed for conservation purposes. A general inventory of these environmentally sensitive conservation lands include:

_____

(c)

The creation of a district for these environmentally sensitive lands that are owned and managed for conservation purposes can promote the coordination of the management of these resources, thereby better ensuring that established objectives for these conservation lands are achieved.

(Ord. No. 85-26, § 1(I.D.7(b)), 11-27-1985; Ord. No. 92-13, § 3, 7-21-1992)

The purpose and intent of the environmentally sensitive lands conservation district is to:

(1)

Protect public health, safety and welfare;

(2)

Protect and conserve environmentally sensitive lands so as restore and maintain the integrity of these lands in as near a natural state as possible;

(3)

Establish objectives for environmentally sensitive lands;

(4)

Prescribe suitable uses and development activities to be permitted on environmentally sensitive lands;

(5)

Ensure that, where development activity does take place, it will be located and undertaken in a manner that will be the least disruptive to the natural functions of these environmentally sensitive lands; and

(6)

Ensure that the maintenance and restoration of these environmentally sensitive lands is an integral part of any site alteration or development activities in the environmentally sensitive lands conservation district.

(Ord. No. 85-26, § 1(I.D.7(c)), 11-27-1985; Ord. No. 92-13, § 3, 7-21-1992)

The following words, terms and phrases when used in this article, shall have the meanings ascribed to them in this section, except where the context clearly indicates a different meaning:

Environmentally sensitive lands conservation district means an approximately 6,000 acre area identified on the environmentally sensitive lands conservation district map consisting of environmentally sensitive lands owned or controlled and managed for conservation purposes.

Passive recreation means those recreational opportunities afforded by such natural resources as the native flora, fauna, and aesthetic appeal of a natural setting and requiring minimum development to utilize and enjoy such resources, including nature study, hiking, canoeing, picnicking, birding, fishing and other activities which do not involve active disturbance of the environment or excessive clearing and recontouring of the land. In beach areas, activities such as shelling, fishing, hiking, boating, swimming, picnicking, board sailing, sunbathing, scuba diving and snorkeling are considered passive recreation.

(Ord. No. 85-26, § 1(I.D.7(d)), 11-27-1985; Ord. No. 92-13, § 3, 7-21-1992)

Cross reference— Definitions generally, § 1-2.

The following objectives have been established for the environmentally sensitive lands conservation district:

(1)

To prohibit residential, special use and commercial development in the district.

(2)

To ensure that the principal use of land in the district remains conservation.

(3)

To ensure that any site alteration or development activity on lands in the district retains the conservation use of the lands and includes the preservation, enhancement or restoration of the natural resources in the environmentally sensitive lands conservation district.

(4)

To ensure that management programs and practices for lands in the environmentally sensitive lands conservation district are coordinated in a manner that protects and preserves these natural resources that function as an ecological system.

(Ord. No. 85-26, § 1(I.D.7(e)), 11-27-1985; Ord. No. 92-13, § 3, 7-21-1992)

The following uses and structures, along with appropriate accessory uses and structures, shall be the only permitted uses and structures, in the environmentally sensitive lands conservation district, regardless of the zone district in which they are located:

(1)

Preservation and conservation of environmentally sensitive lands, including restoration, enhancement and maintenance of these natural resources.

(2)

Passive recreation.

(3)

Surface water management facilities.

(4)

Minor public and publicly regulated utilities, primarily for transmission.

(5)

Educational facilities, including workshops, laboratories, and observation structures, for the study of wildlife, conservation or ecology.

(6)

Normal and incidental accessory uses, such as parking to accommodate permitted uses.

(Ord. No. 85-26, § 1(I.D.7(f)), 11-27-1985; Ord. No. 92-13, § 3, 7-21-1992)

The following development standards shall control development on all lands in the environmentally sensitive lands conservation district:

(1)

Site alteration and development activities shall not decrease the water storage capacity or adversely impact the hydrologic regime of the wetlands.

(2)

Disturbance of native vegetation shall be limited to the minimum necessary for the development or site alteration activity.

(Ord. No. 85-26, § 1(I.D.7(g)), 11-27-1985; Ord. No. 92-13, § 3, 7-21-1992)