The city of Willits has agreed to institute a wood stove off-set program, (as suggested by the County's Air Pollution Control Officer, David Faulkner), which will require a payment of $1500 into a City wood stove replacement fund for every wood burning appliance installed in the new subdivision. The money will be used to replace polluting wood stoves in Willits. Not only is this the first such program in the County, but the $1500 off-set fee is one of the highest in the State. It actually reflects the true cost of installing a good quality, EPA-approved stove! If enough wood stoves are replaced, pollution from wood smoke should actually decrease.
The second (and do I dare say "exciting") concession that resulted from the settlement agreement was the developer's agreement to contribute $30,000 over a five year period to the MTA to operate a shuttle bus on Main Street in Willits. This may not seem exciting to those unacquainted with Willits. But Willits stretches for several miles from the north to its ignominious mall at the south end along only one street - Hwy. 101. Needless to say, it can be congested. As a result, Willits faces the prospect of a freeway through its valley. Willits also has a City Council that doggedly refuses to take any responsibility for local traffic congestion. This settlement has forced the City, for the first time, to embrace the idea that public transportation is a good thing, and a viable solution to traffic congestion. It is certainly the first time in the County, and perhaps in the State, that a public transportation system, and not simply more pavement, has been offered as a mitigation for development.
We hope that both innovations will become the standard for all new development in the County.
Copyright Mendocino Environmental Center 2004
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