Source: https://law.justia.com/cases/california/court-of-appeal/4th/100/550.html
Timestamp: 2019-04-21 06:12:40+00:00

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RANCHO VIEJO, LLC, Plaintiff and Appellant, v. TRES AMIGOS VIEJOS, LLC, Defendant and Respondent.
Best Best & Krieger, James B. Gilpin, Melissa W. Woo for Plaintiff and Appellant.
Appellant Rancho Viejo, LLC sued respondent Tres Amigos Viejos, LLC for damages after water imported by respondent for irrigation flowed onto and damaged appellant's adjoining property. The trial court granted summary judgment in favor of respondent on the ground appellant's causes of action were barred by Civil Code section 3482.5, fn. 1 which exempts prescribed agricultural activities from nuisance liability. Appellant contends (1) its causes of action for trespass and failure to contain irrigation water are not subject to section 3482.5's exemption; (2) section 3482.5 was not intended to apply to circumstances where the adjoining properties were originally a single parcel that was subdivided into urban use by the original owner; and (3) assuming section 3482.5 was applicable to the facts, appellant raised triable issues of material fact preventing summary judgment based on the statute as a complete defense. We conclude the court correctly applied section 3482.5 to appellant's causes of action, and appellant has not demonstrated the existence of any material factual issue as to respondent's ability to prove its activities fall within the statute. Accordingly, we affirm.
Edker and Blanche Pope owned 500 acres of real property located in the San Luis Rey River Valley in North San Diego County, otherwise known as [100 Cal. App. 4th 556] the Pope Ranch. In or about 1984, the Popes explored developing portions of the property into residential lots and a lake. fn. 2 A specific plan prepared in or about that time proposed devoting approximately 115 acres of the Pope Ranch to continued agricultural uses, including 110 acres for avocado production on sloping hills on the eastern boundary of the property.
On December 1, 1997, the Popes sold appellant the portion of the Pope Ranch commonly known as the Lake Rancho Viejo Subdivision (the lower property). The lower property is largely within a relatively flat alluvial plain and is flanked on the east by Lancaster Mountain. At the time of the sale, it contained vacant fields and a 30-year-old commercial orange grove with approximately 500 trees. Those trees were irrigated and harvested for commercial purposes on a regular basis. The Popes retained ownership of the remaining 96 acres situated on a hill located on the eastern boundary of the lower property (the upper property). The upper property contained an orange grove as well as an avocado grove consisting of approximately 6,600 trees that since the mid-1970's had been commercially farmed on a continuous basis. Those groves have been irrigated by pumping water uphill from wells containing water from the adjacent San Luis Rey River. Although the upper property is located in a municipal water district, district water is not available to the owners because there is no water meter for the groves. The well water is saltier than metropolitan water, and thus in order to dilute the water's salinity, more well water is applied to the trees than if metropolitan water were available. For years, rain water and natural runoff has flowed down from the upper property onto the lower property, as has irrigation water from the upper property and from a grove owned by third parties above the upper property.
In 1998, appellant began preparing the lower property for development. It cut down the orange trees and graded building pads directly beneath the avocado grove on the upper property. Appellant excavated cut slopes into the hills along the boundary between the upper and lower properties. During the grading, appellant encountered water seepage on the northeastern section [100 Cal. App. 4th 557] of the property and observed water streams and water in canyons on several lots. The mass grading was completed between April and September of 1998.
In November 1998, the Popes sold the upper property to respondent. Respondent's sole business is commercial avocado farming. It continued to irrigate the upper property in a manner identical to the way it was irrigated before its purchase. In May 1999, appellant discovered water cascading and seeping from the cut slopes in various lots as a result of respondent's irrigation of the upper property, causing damage to and destabilization of the slope. It requested respondent solve the problem by either reducing its irrigation or installing water control systems to prevent the runoff. In June 1999, after respondent refused its request, appellant installed an additional subdrain system at its own expense to remedy the runoff.
Appellant sued respondent seeking damages and injunctive and declaratory relief under causes of action for failure to contain irrigation water, trespass and nuisance. Respondent moved for summary judgment on the ground section 3482.5 provided a complete defense to appellant's causes of action. In response, appellant voluntarily dismissed its nuisance cause of action without prejudice.
Relying upon Souza v. Lauppe (1997) 59 Cal. App. 4th 865 (Souza), the trial court granted summary judgment in respondent's favor on the ground section 3482.5 barred appellant's causes of action. fn. 3 Following oral arguments and the parties' submission of supplemental briefing, the trial court confirmed its ruling. It entered judgment in respondent's favor.
Section 3482.5 was added in 1981 by the enactment of Assembly Bill 585 (hereafter AB 585). (Stats. 1981, ch. 545, § 1, p. 2192.) Subdivision (a)(1) of the statute provides: "No agricultural activity, operation, or facility, or appurtenances thereof, conducted or maintained for commercial purposes, and in a manner consistent with proper and accepted customs and standards, as established and followed by similar agricultural operations in the same locality, shall be or become a nuisance, private or public, due to any changed condition in or about the locality, after it has [100 Cal. App. 4th 559] been in operation for more than three years if it was not a nuisance at the time it began."
[3a] Based in part on the statute's literal language, appellant contends section 3482.5 does not apply to trespasses or other causes of action arising from the discharge of irrigation water onto another's land. It focuses on the distinction between the torts of nuisance and trespass, pointing out the former is an interference with the use and enjoyment of land not requiring interference with possession, and the latter an invasion of interest in the exclusive possession of land. Appellant maintains the statute's legislative history demonstrates the Legislature did not intend to confer absolute immunity for agricultural activities; it only intended to protect farmers from "traditional" farming operations causing noise, odors, dust or "items otherwise related to the enjoyment of one's land" as opposed to activities causing an adjoining landowner property damage as a result of a physical invasion. It asserts, "Thus, while Section 3482.5 may bar a claim for nuisance against a farmer for the smell of his cows, it will not shield him from liability if a cow escapes and trespasses onto a neighbor's property, thereby destroying or damaging the neighbor's property."
[3b] Section 3482.5 broadly defines an agricultural activity, operation, or facility, or appurtenances thereof as used in subdivision (a)(1). Such matters "shall include, but not be limited to, the cultivation and tillage of the soil, dairying, the production, cultivation, growing, and harvesting of any agricultural commodity including timber, viticulture, apiculture, or horticulture, the raising of livestock, fur bearing animals, fish, or poultry, and any [100 Cal. App. 4th 560] practices performed by a farmer or on a farm as incident to or in conjunction with those farming operations, including preparation for market, delivery to storage or to market, or delivery to carriers for transportation to market." (§ 3482.5, subd. (e), emphasis added.) fn. 4 By its plain language, section 3482.5 was intended to immunize farmers from nuisance liability for "any practices performed by a farmer or on a farm incident to . . . farming operations," (§3482.5, subd. (e), emphasis added) as long as the other conditions of the statute are met. Appellant does not, nor could it reasonably, argue that irrigation is not an agricultural activity or operation. Rather, it maintains the statute, by expressly limiting its protection to nuisance lawsuits, necessarily excludes such activities if they cause physical damage to adjoining or other properties.
 Thus, many activities will give rise to liability both as trespass and a nuisance, if they result in the violation of a person's right of exclusive possession of land, and also constitute an unreasonable and substantial interference with the use and enjoyment of the land. fn. 5 (See Mangini, supra, 230 Cal. App. 3d 1136-1137 [citing California cases that recognize invasions of property otherwise amounting to a trespass may also constitute a nuisance under the statutes]; KFC Western, Inc. v. Meghrig (1994) 23 Cal. App. 4th 1167, 1178-1181 [plaintiffs could state causes of action [100 Cal. App. 4th 562] for both continuing nuisance and continuing trespass against former owners of property based upon soil contamination from underground storage tanks]; see also Resolution Trust Corp. v. Rossmoor Corp. (1995) 34 Cal. App. 4th 93, 99 ["Failure to clean up contamination causing ongoing damage to property has been held to constitute such [a continuing] nuisance. [Citations.] Likewise, the same conduct gives rise to an action for continuing trespass"]; 47 Cal.Jur.3d (2001) Nuisances, § 3; Rest.2d Torts, § 821D, com. e, p. 102. fn. 6 ) [3c] We therefore reject appellant's attempt to exclude respondent's conduct from the reach of the statute by distinguishing between trespass and nuisance theories on the basis of physical invasion and damage to property.
Moreover, appellant's interpretation of the statute would frustrate its apparent purpose. We concede that, read literally, the statute immunizes specified agricultural enterprises only as against claims based upon a theory of public or private nuisance and not against claims based on other liability theories, such as trespass. But we cannot accept appellant's position that the Legislature intended by this reference to focus strictly upon the pleaded theory of liability and reject immunity for an accepted and established farming activity amounting to a nuisance, simply because it is pleaded as a trespass. Our review of the legislative history provided by appellant demonstrates no such intent. Indeed, a letter from the sponsor of AB 585, Assemblyman John Thurman, urging the speaker of the Assembly to support the measure, indicates an intention contrary to such a narrow reading of the statute. In that letter, Assemblyman Thurman stated: "AB 585 is an important step toward eliminating suits by individuals who have moved to a new housing development 'in the country' and find the long-established farm bordering their back fence offends their senses. Suits against agricultural operations for dust, wind machine or tractor noise, livestock or poultry [100 Cal. App. 4th 563] smells and other things commonly associated with the operation of an agricultural enterprise are becoming more prevalent as urban development reaches out to meet agricultural areas. AB 585 will stop this dangerous cycle by allowing agriculture to operate without undue pressure from urbanization. Keeping agricultural land in agricultural use is the goal." (Chairman of the Assembly Committee on Agriculture John E. Thurman, letter to Speaker of the Assembly Willie L. Brown, Jr., May 5, 1981, emphasis added.) Assemblyman Thurman sought broad protection for traditional farming practices performed in conjunction with long-standing commercial operations when neighboring properties are developed into residential or urban use. The history of AB 585 prepared by the Senate Committee on the Judiciary explains the bill's purpose is to "attempt to forestall some of the loss of prime agricultural land on the outskirts of growing urban areas." It states: "The source of this bill and its supporters contend that the agricultural industry should be preserved and protected against the threat of nuisance liability, particularly where an agricultural enterprise has been in existence for a number of years, only to become subject to encroachment by a spreading city into the farmer's area."
Appellant seeks to distinguish Souza on the basis that the invasion, the flooding of rice crops, was continuing in nature whereas here, the water intrusion occurred only when respondent irrigated its land. The distinction is baseless. Irrigation is an ongoing operation in commercial farming generally, and was regularly conducted in this case according to the undisputed testimony of respondent's irrigation worker, Salvador Munoz. fn. 7 Even where the watering is an occasional leaching, it is still a practice that is repeated on a regular basis. As for appellant's other attempts to distinguish Souza, we agree the case does not address the precise issue before us. But we need not rely upon Souza for this aspect of our holding, we independently support our conclusion by the undisputed facts of this case revealing that appellant's causes of action alleging property damage from irrigation water intrusion fall within the literal language of the statute.
California's statute does not expressly carve out damage claims. Moreover, as indicated, California law defines a nuisance as including those activities that intrude upon and cause physical damage to property. On that basis we would disagree with the reasoning of the Washington court to the extent it would give protection to farmers who are being sued for damages based on a nuisance theory, but not those who are being sued for the same damages based on a trespass theory. We decline to apply the reasoning of the Washington court to the statute before us.
 Appellant contends section 3482.5 does not apply to situations where a farmer subdivides his or her land and initiates the urbanization of portions of the property but continues to conduct agricultural activities on the remainder. It maintains the statute was enacted for the purpose of protecting farmers who are innocent victims of urbanization and to stem the removal of land from agricultural uses where residential development moves in next door to a longstanding agricultural activity; that given these goals, the statute cannot immunize a farmer who profits from urban development on his land yet also seeks to protect his continued agricultural activity.
Nor does our conclusion change by the fact respondent is not the same entity that has been conducting avocado farming on the upper property for over three years. Respondent correctly points out that section 3482.5 is predicated on the duration of the agricultural operations, not the duration of the farmland's ownership. We would defeat the purpose of section 3482.5 if we found it applied only to farming operations continuously conducted by the same farmer for over three years before occurrence of the changed condition. The statute cannot be read to permit developers to enjoin a long-established farming operation as a nuisance simply because the farm was purchased and operated by a new owner. fn. 10 Appellant's argument does not persuade us to reverse the court's application of section 3482.5 to its causes of action.
 Appellant contends that, assuming section 3482.5 governs its causes of action, it raised material factual issues as to whether certain requisites of the statute are satisfied. Specifically, appellant maintains its evidence raises disputes as to (1) whether respondent's irrigation methods were conducted or [100 Cal. App. 4th 568] maintained in a manner consistent with proper and accepted customs and standards followed by similar agricultural operations in the same locality; (2) whether its claim arose due to a changed condition in or about the locality; and (3) whether each parties' actions were reasonable. We disagree.
In support of its motion, respondent submitted the declaration of expert Richard Marrocco, who explained that virtually 100 percent of avocado groves in Southern California need massive amounts of irrigation to make up for the lack of rainfall because seasonal rainfall is insufficient to sustain the trees. Marrocco further explained avocado trees require occasional "leaching" in addition to regular irrigation to leach out traces of saline in the irrigation water, regardless of whether the water comes from wells or public sources. He opined, based on his decades of experience in the avocado and citrus industries, respondent's "agricultural activity and operation is, and has been, conducted and maintained for a commercial purpose in a manner consistent with proper and accepted customs and standards, as established and followed by similar agricultural operations in the same locality." He concluded, "[Respondent's] grove has been in compliance with such customs and standards for many more than three years, probably 20 years."
On this element of section 3482.5, appellant's opposition relied on the declaration of agriscience expert James McDonald. He averred that, based on his investigation of the site, appellant irrigated its avocado groves with water having a very high salt level; that if appellant used metropolitan water as do most avocado farmers in Riverside and San Diego County, its trees would require significantly less water; and that large volumes of irrigation water was draining onto appellant's property due to respondent's application of "deep irrigation" to its avocado trees as compensation for the salinity levels. But McDonald did not directly contradict Marrocco's opinions as to avocado farmers in the locale using well water -- as respondent points out, he did not address whether metropolitan water was in fact available for respondent's use, nor did he state that respondent was overwatering its groves, or that it uses more well water than other avocado farmers in the locality that also use well water. In short, McDonald's declaration was insufficient to sustain appellant's burden of producing competent evidence to contradict respondent's showing and raise a disputed issue of material fact on this element.
 Appellant claims it demonstrated a triable issue as to whether its claim arose due to a changed condition in or about the locality by presenting evidence of the fact it purchased the lower property in December 1997, and respondent purchased the upper property in November 1998.
We have already rejected this argument, which is based on the premise that section 3482.5 does not immunize a new farmer who has purchased and taken over an agricultural operation that had been in place for over three years. As stated, the undisputed evidence from respondent's declarants, including Munoz and Jerome Stehly, respondent's grove manager, was that commercial avocado farming had occurred on the upper property since the mid-1970's. Appellant's attempt to dispute this fact through evidence respondent had been conducting its own farming of the groves commercial operations for only approximately a year and a half does not raise a triable issue as to whether these circumstances fall outside the ambit of section 3482.5.
 Appellant contends it raised an issue of material fact as to the "reasonableness" of the parties' respective actions under the "Civil Law Rule" expressed in Keys v. Romley (1966) 64 Cal. 2d 396, 409-410. [100 Cal. App. 4th 570] fn. 12 It argues it acted reasonably because it consulted with engineering specialists to determine the property's suitability for development, but respondent "has not acted reasonably in the use of its property because it is applying excessive amounts of water to its property, causing surface water to run onto the property of Appellant."
McIntyre, Acting P. J., and McConnell, J., concurred.
FN 1. All statutory references are to the Civil Code unless otherwise indicated.
FN 2. Neither party made any request for rulings on the numerous written evidentiary objections nor did the trial court make any such rulings. Because counsel failed to obtain rulings on their objections, they are waived; this court must view all of the evidence as having been admitted. (Code Civ. Proc., § 437c, subds. (b) & (c); Johnson v. City of Loma Linda (2000) 24 Cal. 4th 61, 65-66; Ann M. v. Pacific Plaza Shopping Center (1993) 6 Cal. 4th 666, 670, fn. 1.) The record contains a copy of the "Specific Plan for Lake Rancho Viejo" prepared for The Wellington Group, an entity that is not a party nor has been identified by the parties as associated with the Popes. The document does not reflect the date of its original preparation, however it indicates it was revised in March 1984. We infer favorably to appellant that the Popes were aware of and supported the proposed development as they were the property owners at that time.
FN 3. In part, it ruled: "[R]egardless of how they are denominated, plaintiff's claims for relief are 'in fact based on a theory of nuisance' because they allege the violation of a single primary right, i.e., the plaintiff's right to the unimpaired ownership and undisturbed enjoyment of their premises." It ruled appellant failed to establish triable issues as to whether respondent's activities were (1) agricultural; (2) conducted "consistent with proper and accepted customs and standards as established and followed by similar agricultural operations in the same locality"; and (3) in operation for more than three years.
FN 4. Section 3482.5, subdivision (a)(2) provides: "No activity of a district agricultural association that is operated in compliance with Division 3 (commencing with Section 3001) of the Food and Agricultural Code, shall be or become a private or public nuisance due to any changed condition in or about the locality, after it has been in operation for more than three years if it was not a nuisance at the time it began. This paragraph shall not apply to any activities of the 52nd District Agricultural Association that are conducted on the grounds of the California Exposition and State Fair, nor to any public nuisance action brought by a city, county, or city and county alleging that the activities, operations, or conditions of a district agricultural association have substantially changed after more than three years from the time that the activities, operations, or conditions began."
FN 7. See footnote 9, post.
FN 8. In full, RCW 7.48.305 provides: "Notwithstanding any other provision of this chapter, agricultural activities conducted on farmland and forest practices, if consistent with good agricultural and forest practices and established prior to surrounding nonagricultural and nonforestry activities, are presumed to be reasonable and shall not be found to constitute a nuisance unless the activity has a substantial adverse effect on the public health and safety. [¶] If those agricultural activities and forest practices are undertaken in conformity with all applicable laws and rules, the activities are presumed to be good agricultural and forest practices not adversely affecting the public health and safety for purposes of this section and RCW 7.48.300. An agricultural activity that is in conformity with such laws and rules shall not be restricted as to the hours of the day or day or days of the week during which it may be conducted. [¶] Nothing in this section shall affect or impair any right to sue for damages."
FN 9. Respondent submitted the declaration of Salvador Munoz, who began working on the upper property in 1975 and who at the time of the motion was the person in charge of watering the avocado groves on the upper property. He averred he has been involved in watering the avocado groves since 1982 and that the grove has been irrigated since then on a regular basis. Munoz continued: "The amount of water varies depending on the temperature, rainfall, and needs of the trees. The only thing that has changed is who pays my paycheck. Today I am still in charge of watering [the upper property], and we do nothing different than we did in the past." In an attempt to counter that fact, respondent submitted the deposition testimony of Walter George, who stated he observed more surface water coming off the avocado groves from the upper property in 1999 than he had in 1998, when appellant was conducting grading operations. George's testimony does not address the watering practices of the upper property; indeed he indicated during the deposition that he had "no idea" of respondent's watering schedule. His testimony does not raise a disputed issue as to the fact respondent's watering practices, which may vary as a result of certain conditions including rainfall, are in any event consistent with watering practices that have been conducted since 1982.
FN 10. We do not address cases where the evidence shows the new farmer changed the nature or extent of the agricultural operations. The evidence before us shows respondent continued to irrigate the upper property in a manner identical to the manner it was irrigated in the past.
FN 11. In part, Marrocco averred: "The Tres Amigo Grove is in the Rainbow Municipal Water District. I am very familiar with groves that buy water from Rainbow Municipal Water District. I professionally consult and manage thousands of acres of avocados in this District. I also own and live on an 100 acre avocado grove that uses Rainbow Municipal Water District water. All of these groves routinely leach. In addition, I am personally aware of thousands of acres of other groves located outside the Rainbow Municipal Water District that use well water. These groves also require regular leaching. Therefore, it is clearly an accepted custom and practice to perform regular leaching in this locality. The Tres Amigo Grove would require regular leaching whether it uses its own well water or 'public water.' "

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