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San Joaquin County Environmental Checklist The importance of a view is related in part to the position of the viewer to the resource;therefore, visibility and visual dominance of landscape elements depend on their placement within the viewshed. A viewshed is defined as all of the surface area visible from a particular location(e.g.,an overlook)or sequence of locations(e.g.,a roadway or trail)(Federal Highway Administration 1983). To identify the importance of views of a resource,a viewshed must be broken into distance zones of foreground,middleground,and background. Generally, the closer a resource is to the viewer,the more dominant it is and the greater its importance to the viewer. Although distance zones in a viewshed may vary between different geographic region or types of terrain,the standard foreground zone is 0.25-0.5 mile from the viewer,the middleground zone from the foreground zone to 3-5 miles from the viewer,and the background zone from the middleground to infinity(U.S. Forest Service 1974). Visual sensitivity depends on the number and type of viewers and the frequency and duration of views. Visual sensitivity is also modified by viewer activity, awareness, and visual expectations in relation to the number of viewers and viewing duration. For example,visual sensitivity is generally higher for views seen by people who are driving for pleasure,people engaging in recreational activities such as hiking,biking or camping,and homeowners. Sensitivity tends to be lower for views seen by people driving to and from work or as part of their work(U.S.Forest Service 1974; Federal Highway Administration 1983;Soil Conservation Service 1978). Commuters and nonrecreational travelers have generally fleeting views and tend to focus on commute traffic,not on surrounding scenery;therefore,they are generally considered to have low visual sensitivity. Residential viewers typically have extended viewing periods and are concerned about changes in the views from their homes;therefore,they are generally considered to have high visual sensitivity. Viewers using recreation trails and areas,scenic highways, and scenic overlooks are usually assessed as having high visual sensitivity. Judgments of visual quality and viewer response must be based in a regional frame of reference(Soil Conservation Service 1978). The same landform or visual resource appearing in different geographic areas could have a different degree of visual quality and sensitivity in each setting. For example,a small hill may be a significant visual element on a flat landscape but have very little significance in mountainous terrain. Physical Setting Visual Character of Region The NCRC&SL is located in the northeastern region of San Joaquin County. This region primarily consists of agricultural land uses such as vineyards, orchards,livestock ranches,and associated residential structures. Notice of Preparation for the June 2006 North County Recycling Center and Sanitary Landfill 2_6 Permit Revision AS 06307.06