Santa Rosa Plain Conservation Strategy (original) (raw)

Conservation strategy adopted by local agencies in Sonoma County

See Press Release (December 7, 2005)

The Santa Rosa Plain Conservation Strategy seeks to create a long-term program to mitigate potential adverse effects on listed species due to future development on the Santa Rosa Plain. The program will contribute to the recovery of several listed Sonoma County species and to conservation of their sensitive habitats. These species, all protected by the Endangered Species Act, are:

• California tiger salamander(The Sonoma County distinct population segment)
• Burke's goldfield
• Sonoma sunshine
• Sebastopol meadowfoam
• The many-flowered navarretia

The strategy was developed over the last 18 months by the Santa Rosa Plain Conservation Strategy Team, made up of representatives of government agencies and interested parties. Their goals were to:

• Develop a habitat conservation strategy that contributes to the recovery of CTS and listed plant species
• Identify proposed areas for conservation
• Develop an implementation framework for the conservation strategy which identifies short- and long-term actions and milestones as needed
• Establish development process predictability

View the Conservation Strategy

All of these files are in pdf format. Some of the maps are quite large in order to give you a high level of detail. You will need the current version of the free Adobe Acrobat© reader (version 7.0) in order to open them.

Title Page 147 KB

Team members

Executive Summary 66.4 KB

Table of Contents and List of Tables, Figures and Appendices 72.4 KB

Main body of the document 559 KB

Maps

Figure 1 - Conservation Strategy Study Area Overview 4.42 MB

Figure 2 - Conservation area overview 4.4 MB

Figure 3 - Strategy map 4.7 MB

The April 2007 revision of Figure 3 is the current strategy map.

Figure 4 - Alton conservation area 876 KB

Figure 5 - Wright conservation area 749 KB

Figure 6 - Kelly conservation area 761 KB

Figure 7 - Llano conservation area 843 KB

Figure 8 - Stony point conservation area 845 KB

Figure 9 - Northwest Cotati conservation area 808 KB

Figure 10 - Southeast Cotati conservation area 909 KB

Figure 11 - Southwest Cotati conservation area 990 KB

Figure 12 - Southwest Santa Rosa conservation area 823 KB

Figure 13 - Windsor plant conservation area 1.2 MB

Appendices

Appendix A - Species Accounts (See current online accounts)

Appendix B - 1998 Biological Opinion Programmatic Formal Consultation for U.S. Army Corps of Engineers 404 Permitted Projects that May Affect Four Endangered Plant Species on the Santa Rosa Plain, California

Appendix C - CA Tiger Salamander Survey Protocol

Appendix D - [Plant Survey Protocol](documents/Santa%5FRosa%5FFinal%5FConservation%5FStrategy/Appendix%5FD%5F FWS%5FPlant%5FSurvey%5FProtocols.pdf)

Appendix E - Mapping Criteria

Appendix F - Mitigation Bank Review Team Checklist

Appendix G - Preserve Management Plan Template

Appendix H - Charts

• Chart 1a - Process for Project Approval by State and Federal Agencies without Conservation Strategy Wetlands/CTS/Listed Plants Present
• Chart 1b - Process for Project Approval by State and Federal Agencies with Conservation Strategy Wetlands/CTS/Listed Plants Present
• Chart 2 - Proposed Process for Project Approval with Conservation Strategy Projects with Potential for Presence of CTS
• Chart 3 -Preservation Bank (bank approval without wetlands)
• Chart 4 - Wetland and/or Preservation Bank

Appendix I - Peer Reviewer Selection Criteria

Appendix J - Peer Review Questions

Appendix K - Administrative Draft for Peer Review

Appendix L - Peer Reviewer Comments

Appendix M - Response to Peer Review Comments

Appendix N - Summary of Comments and Responses

Below are some of the highlight of the plan:

Conservation Areas

The Conservation Strategy identifies eight conservation areas for CTS and listed plants, one CTS and listed plant preserve system, and one listed plant conservation area.

Preserve Establishment

Preserves may be established within the conservation areas by acquiring land in fee title or through conservation easements, and may include wetland restoration/creation and habitat enhancement.

Translocation

Translocation of listed species is allowed through collection and relocation to suitable habitat within the Plain. The Conservation Strategy outlines the conditions under which this can take place and when it may be required.

Habitat Improvement

Three types of habitat improvement may occur as a part of the Conservation Strategy. They include wetland creation, wetland restoration, and enhancement of wetland and upland habitat. Criteria for lands proposed for habitat improvement are detailed in the Conservation Strategy.

Preserve Management

Preserve management plans will be required and must detail activities that are necessary to maintain and enhance the wildlife, plant communities and wetland habitats, including management of water, vegetation and predators.

Adaptive Management

An Adaptive Management Team (AMT) will ensure that preserve management is occurring consistent with the Conservation Strategy.

Mitigation

The goal of mitigation is to reduce, or compensate for, the negative impact an action may have on a listed species or sensitive habitat. The Conservation Strategy addresses the mitigation requirements for CTS, the listed plant species and seasonal wetlands, including vernal pools. See Interim Mitigation Guidelines

Implementation

In January 2005, a group referred to as the Implementation Committee was formed to develop a plan to implement the Conservation Strategy. This group is currently comprised of representatives of local jurisdictions, the Fish and Wildlife Service, the California Department of Fish and Game, and the agricultural, environmental and private landowner communities. The Implementation Committee is preparing a plan that, when adopted by the various agencies, will provide the basis for implementation of the Conservation Strategy.

Potential Funding

There are a variety of potential funding sources to assist in implementation of the Conservation Strategy. Direct mitigation is the most likely and certain source. Other potential sources include land acquisition grants, Habitat Conservation Plan (HCP) land acquisition grants, private foundation grants, State revolving funds, Sonoma County Agriculture and Open Space Protection District funds, Legislative and Congressional appropriations, and private stewardship programs.