To: Columbia County Planning Commission

The Columbia Soil and Water Conservation District is opposed to the loss of farmland in this county. There were several problems in your staff report relating to soils in your proposed Comprehensive plan amendment and zone change to expand the Port Westward Industrial Site.

Your primary error relates to soils on the proposed expansion site. Contrary to your statement that there are only 335 acres of class II and III three soils and 622 acres of class VI soils, our digitized soil survey gives a much different figure. According to the Soil Survey (see attachment) you have 364 acres of Class II soils and 391 acres of Class III. Class VI soils are in minority with only 221 acres.
Well over 3/4th of your soils are Class II and III and are considered good agricultural ground. These soils are can be highly productive and have been used in the past to grow oats, wheat and other grains. Historically, these soils have also been used to produce mint, blueberries, cabbage, grass seed, pasture, hay and hybrid poplars.

In addition to soils, there are other problems:
As stated in the Comp Plan, a zone exception “must be compatible with surrounding natural resources or resource management production practices”. Establishing a shipping terminal could create dust, forcing existing farms to either close or relocate. Diesel fumes will adversely affect the quality of some of the crops (example would be mint products).

The Thompson property is located