Chapter 9.56
BRASSICACEAE FAMILY PLANTS
Sections:
9.56.010 Purpose.
It is the purpose of this Chapter to ensure that both commercial and noncommercial growers of plants within the Brassicaceae family in Skagit County can reasonably coexist, by creating a mechanism to timely and reasonably provide notice and opportunity to cure as well as a mechanism to seek rapid judicial relief in the event that inter-landowner communication does not resolve the conflict arising from proximate Brassica crops. This Chapter is intended to supplement, and shall not alter, limit, or supersede, any other statutory and/or common law rights and/or causes of action for the abatement of public and/or private nuisances. (Ord. O20210002 (Exh. 1); Ord. O20190004 (Exh. 1))
9.56.020 Definitions.
“Brassica” means all plants of the Brassicaceae family identified in Appendix A hereto, and any genetic derivatives thereof whether or not named as set forth in Appendix A.
“Brassica Regulatory Scheme” means Chapter 15.51 RCW and Chapter 16-326 WAC including any future amendments thereto.
“Commercial Brassica seed crop” means a Brassica crop planted in accordance with the Brassica Regulatory Scheme and grown for the purpose of producing commercially viable seed.
“Flowering Brassica” means those plant species identified in Appendix A that have bolted or flowered, transitioning from vegetative to reproductive growth.
“Nuisance flowering Brassica” means a flowering Brassica noncommercially grown and maintained outside the Brassica Regulatory Scheme in a property located within a radius of two and one-half miles of a property planted in accordance with the Brassica Regulatory Scheme, in circumstances where notice and opportunity to cure has been afforded as set forth below. (Ord. O20210002 (Exh. 1); Ord. O20190004 (Exh. 1))
9.56.030 Nuisance declared.
The growing and maintenance of flowering Brassica within Skagit County outside the Brassica Regulatory Scheme is hereby declared a nuisance to the extent described below. This section shall apply to the entirety of Skagit County. (Ord. O20210002 (Exh. 1); Ord. O20190004 (Exh. 1))
9.56.040 Abatement remedy.
A party aggrieved by a violation of SCC 9.56.030 may seek redress and abatement according to the following remedy, and a flowering Brassica shall not be deemed a nuisance flowering Brassica unless the following notice and opportunity to cure provisions have been satisfied, which provisions shall be strictly interpreted:
(1) Notice. No flowering Brassica on a property shall be deemed a nuisance for the purpose of this Section unless notice has been furnished by an aggrieved party to the landowner(s) and tenant(s) in possession of the property to be charged with a nuisance under this section. The aggrieved party shall be solely responsible for correctly identifying the legal owner(s) and tenant(s) in possession of the property to be charged with a nuisance under this section. Notice furnished by the aggrieved party shall be deemed sufficient if accompanied by a declaration of service under penalty of perjury stating that the notice was delivered in person, posted on the door of the main residence at the property to be charged with nuisance, or placed in the U.S. mail addressed to the occupant of the property to be charged.
(2) Opportunity to Cure.
(a) Upon detection of a nuisance flowering Brassica, an aggrieved party seeking abatement must offer the landowner or tenant maintaining the nuisance flowering Brassica the estimated fair market value of the nuisance flowering Brassica in exchange for abatement (removal) of the nuisance flowering Brassica. The aggrieved party shall be responsible for determining and establishing the estimated fair market value of the nuisance flowering Brassica; provided, that landowner(s) and/or tenant(s) maintaining the nuisance flowering Brassica are not obligated to agree with or accept the estimated fair market value of the nuisance flowering Brassica as offered by the aggrieved party.
(b) If the offer set forth in Subsection (2)(a) of this Section is not accepted within 24 hours and the nuisance flowering Brassica abated, the aggrieved party may bring suit in the name of the aggrieved party to enjoin and abate the nuisance. (Ord. O20210002 (Exh. 1); Ord. O20190004 (Exh. 1))
Appendix A
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Brassica chinensis |
Pak choi |
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B. carinata |
Ethiopian mustard |
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B. juncea |
Brown mustard, oriental mustard, Chinese mustard, gai-choi, Indian mustard, kai-tsoi, karashina, leaf mustard, mustard cabbage, mustard greens, ostrich plume, southern cole, Swatow mustard |
|
B. napus |
Canola, colza, rape, rapeseed, rutabaga, Swede rape, turnip |
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B. napus var. napobrassica |
Rutabaga, Swede, Swedish turnip |
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B. nigra |
Black mustard, brown mustard, cadlock, scurvy, senvil, warlock |
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B. oleracea |
Cabbage, kale, kohlrabi, wild cabbage |
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B. oleracea var. acephala |
Borecole, braschette, cole, colewort, collards, flowering cabbage, kale |
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B. oleracea var. botrytis |
Broccoli, cauliflower |
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B. oleracea var. capitata |
Cabbage, savoy, savoy cabbage |
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B. oleracea var. gemmifera |
Brussels sprouts |
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B. oleracea var. gongylodes |
Kohlrabi |
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B. oleracea var. italica |
Asparagus broccoli, Italian broccoli, sprouting broccoli |
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B. pekinensis |
Celery cabbage, Chinese cabbage, pe-tsai, Shantung cabbage |
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B. rapa |
Canola, bird’s rape, bird’s rape mustard, field mustard, turnip |
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B. rapa subsp. trilocularis |
Field mustard |
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B. tournefortii |
African mustard |
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Other Crucifer genera and species present in Washington (bold font = species sometimes grown commercially in Washington State’s Brassica vegetable seed production districts) |
|
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Alyssum spp. |
Madwort, alyssum |
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Arabidopsis thaliana |
Mouse-ear cress |
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Arabis spp. |
Rock-cress |
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Armoracia rusticana |
Horseradish, red-cole |
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Barbarea spp. |
Winter cress, yellow-rocket |
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Berteroa incana |
Hoary alyssum |
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Cakile spp. |
Sea-rocket |
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Camelina sativa |
Camelina |
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Capsella bursa-pastoris |
Shepherd’s-purse |
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Cardamine spp. |
Cress, toothwort, pepperwort, bittercress, shotweed |
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Cheiranthus cheiri |
English wallflower, wallflower |
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Cochlearia officinalis |
Scurvy-grass |
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Conringia orientalis |
Hare-ear mustard |
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Coronopus didymus |
Swine-cress |
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Crambe spp. |
Colewort, crambe, scurvy-grass, sea kale |
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Descurainia spp. |
Tansymustard |
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Draba spp. |
Whitlow-grass, draba |
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Erucastum gallicum |
Dogmustard |
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Erysimum spp. |
Wallflower, cress, mustard |
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Hesperis matronalis |
Dame’s-rocket |
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Iberis spp. |
Candytuft |
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Lepidium spp. |
Peppergrass, pepperwort, tongue-grass |
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Lesquerella spp. |
Bladderpod |
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Lobularia maritima |
Sweet alyssum |
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Lunaria annua |
Bolbonac, honesty-plant, money-plant, moonwort, penny-flower, silver-dollar |
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Matthiola spp. |
Stock |
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Nasturtium officinale |
Watercress |
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Parrya nudicaulis |
Wallflower |
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Phoenicaulis cheiranthoides |
Wallflower, Phoenicaulis |
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Raphanus raphinastrum |
Jointed charlock, wild radish |
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R. sativus |
Radish |
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R. sativus cv. ‘longipinnatus’ |
Chinese radish, daikon |
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Rorippa spp. |
Field cress |
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Sibara virginica |
Rock-cress, sibara |
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Sinapis alba |
White mustard, yellow mustard |
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S. arvensis |
California rape, charlock, wild mustard |
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Sisymbrium spp. |
Mustard, tumble mustard, hedge mustard |
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Smelowskia spp. |
False candytuft |
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Stanleya spp. |
Prince’s plume, desert plume |
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Streptanthus spp. |
Jewelflower |
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Thelypodium spp. |
Tumble mustard, thelypodium |
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Thlaspi spp. |
Pennycress, stinkweed, fan weed, French weed |
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Thysanocarpus curvipes |
Fringe-pod, lace-pod |
(Ord. O20210002 (Exh. 1); Ord. O20190004 (Exh. 1))