Siskiyou County planning staff presented proposed additions to the general plan safety element that explicitly address predators, wildlife-borne disease transmission, and carcass disposal, prompting commissioners to ask staff to add clarifications and local guidance.

The update adds a new chapter on wildlife hazards and divides it into disease-transmission risks and physical threats, James Phillips, senior planner, told the commission. Commissioners asked staff to add brucellosis and bovine tuberculosis to the disease section and to clarify that a West Nile vaccine exists for horses but not for humans.

Commissioners and staff discussed recent gray wolf activity in the county and county-level response options. The draft notes Fish and Wildlife monitoring and a Fish and Wildlife “strike team” response; commissioners asked staff to include the agency link showing wolf tracking and to explain why animals sometimes disappear from public maps. Commissioners also discussed local observations that wolves’ return may be shifting other predators westward and urged staff to capture that local trend in the safety element.

On carcass handling, staff said state law generally directs rendering and other regulated disposal methods but acknowledged that long travel distances make rendering impractical for many county residents. Commissioners and staff discussed existing state limits and a county-level option: a single county collection site and a pickup service to consolidate carcasses for proper disposal. Phillips said staff would research state law exceptions and whether county policy could establish a local disposal option.

Commissioners asked staff to clarify public-safety emphasis in the chapter (likelihood of human injury versus livestock loss), to add local data sources where available, and to insert specific, practical steps about on-farm disposal options that comply with state law. No formal action or vote was taken; the item is part of the workshop drafting process.

The commission flagged two follow-up tasks for staff: confirm and add language on brucellosis and bovine tuberculosis, and research the scope of state law on on-site burial versus rendering and whether a county collection service is feasible. Commissioners also asked staff to confirm vaccine references and to retain local observations about predator movements as context for the safety element.