RZ-07-00008 Dunford FDP Ordinance 2010-013

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33.2 The proposed amendment bears a substantial relation to the public health, safety or welfare. The applicant states: Through this application only requires to show a substantial relationship to one of the above, this project bears a substantial relationship to each of the following: In regards to the Public Health; the county has adopted the high population projections as provided by the Washington State Office of Financial Management to guide growth in the county for the next twenty years (Attachment N). These projections provide for substantial growth in the county outside of the cities, the UGAs and the UGNs. One of the main concerns in regards to Public Health in the county, expressed by Kittitas County Citizens, the Department of Ecology, the County, and Upper County Cities, is the continued development of unmonitored, untested and uncontrolled exempt wells. Every new exempt well that is drilled increases the possibility of aquifer pollution, reduction of the usable aquifer, and the possibility to interfere with existing water rights. This entire proposed project will be placed within and served by the Hidden Valley water system, which is a Group A Water System that currently meets the Department of Health's requirements and has been approved by the Department of Health. The applicant of this proposal has ownership of both ground and surface Senior Water Rights. A small portion of these water rights will be used to provide for the domestic water needs of this proposal. Group A Public Water Systems provide greater public health protection than individual exempt wells or Group B water systems due to increased federal and state testing requirements. By approving this application, a portion of the county's projected growth will be directed from other rural areas of the county where multiple individual exempt wells could be drilled to serve multiple homes and population, to this area where a Group A Water System already exists. This redirection of the population growth from areas that may require the development of individual exempt wells to an area served by an existing and approved Class A Water System with Senior Water Rights bears a substantial relation to the public, health, safety, or welfare. Additionally, due to the current well moratorium in Upper Kittitas County, this is one of the few places growth and development can occur Z-07-08 and LL -08-02 Dunford PUD Rezone and Preliminary Large Lot Subdivision Page 7 of 28