Trinity County supervisors introduce ordinance change to clarify administrative buffer rules for commercial cannabis; Post Mountain growers urge inclusion

The Trinity County Board of Supervisors voted unanimously April 5 to introduce and waive first reading of an ordinance amending county code sections 17.4.43 and 17.32 that clarify when Administrative Buffer Reductions (ABRs) may be used in commercial cannabis permitting.

The board’s action adopts staff-recommended language (referred to in staff materials as “option B”) that narrows the circumstances under which a buffer reduction can be granted: a buffer reduction would be permitted only for “previously developed sites,” meaning parcels that show preexisting mature canopy areas within 350 feet of an adjacent legal dwelling and that had been used for cultivation prior to adoption of the ordinance. The revised language also preserves a pathway for projects that already have an approved environmental (appendix C) document to apply for a reduction.

Why it matters: the change seeks to balance two county objectives—preventing newly created cultivation…