Open Space Plentiful But Endangered in Sonoma County

Sonoma County has some of the largest expanses of open space in the Bay Area – some 171,200 acres of undeveloped land.

But about 115,000 acres, or more than two-thirds of the total space, is at risk of development over the next three decades, according to a new study by the Greenbelt Alliance, a conservation and urban planning advocacy group.

Areas at high risk include Santa Rosa, Petaluma and Rohnert Park, as well as the unincorporated parts of the Sonoma Valley, which have little zoning rules and other protections against urban sprawl. Around Petaluma, all areas outside the city's urban growth boundary are at moderate to high risk of development over the next decade, according to the report.

"It reminds everybody what's at risk and what we need to do," said Ralph Benson, executive director of the Sonoma Land Trust told the Press Democrat. 

About 13,800 acres of the county's open space is likely to become housing within the next 10 years, according to the report.

But it's not all dire. Parks, protected open space and farmland have all increased, according to the report, growing 28 percent.

To read the full report, click here.

Then tell us, are you concerned about encroaching development in Petaluma?