Loading...
HomeMy WebLinkAboutMulti-Species Habitat Conservation Plan MEMORANDUM CITY OF PALM DESERT To: Honorable Mayor and Members of the City Council City Manager Bruce Altman From: Buford A. Crites Councilman Date: February 9, 1993 Re: MULTI-SPECIES HABITAT CONSERVATION PLAN Attached is a letter from the Coachella Valley Mountains Conservancy regarding CVAG' s development of a Multi-Special Habitat Conservation Plan (MSHCP ) . It is my belief that these issues may soon be on us, with the potential consequences which have occurred in Riverside and coastal California. Also attached is a letter from the United States Department of the Interior containing a specific example relative to the Federal Endangered Species Act. It seems to me we should consider a response to CVAG regarding the broader issue of development of a MSHCP before such an act is mandated by the federal government. BAC:phs attachment: as noted CITY COUNCIL ACTION: APPROVED DENIED RE EIVED OTHER 1}.: 't3-cjfyxga ( U ORD A. CRITES AYES:TING DATE j t COUNCILMAN L . 1 1 , L) Z el A-D� NOES: �Ar, ABSENT: UC '[)cy ABSTAIN: yr1C VERIFIED BY: LiC II' Original on File wi h City erk' s Office " COACHELLA VALLEY MOUNTAINS CONSERVANCY In partnership to protect our mountain heritage January 21, 1993 Governing Board City of Rancho Mirage TO: City and County Representatives on the Conservancy Governing Board City of Paint Springs FROM: Bill Havert City ofPain]Desert SUBJECT: CVAG involvement in developing a Multiple Species Habitat Conservation City of Coachella City of Cathedral City Plan(MSHCP) City of Indio City of La Quinta Purpose of this Memo • City of Indian Wells City tizenS Desert Hor Appointee Over-the last few months several meetings have been held to explore the potential need for Citizen Senate Appointee Citizen.issenrbly.ippointee an MSHCP in the Coachella Valley and the possible roles of CVAG and the Conservancy Riverside County Supervisor in such an effort. Late in January,it is anticipated that the Planning Directors otsrrtei 111 Subcommittee of CVAG will discuss this matter again and may decide to make Riverside County.Supervisor District iv recommendations,or provide an informational transmittal,to the CVAG Executive Board. .igua Caliente Band ofCal ntilla Indians ' State Deparnnent of My purpose in sending this memo to you is to provide background information for your Parks d Recreation reference,with the thought that you may wish to discuss this issue with City staff or your Bureau of LandCouncil colleagues City Council to suggest that your City encourage CVAG to pursue an U.S.Forest Service wikliife Conservation I3oani MSHCP actively. I believe the Conservancy could play a useful role in partnership with State Depanntentof CVAG in the development of an MSHCP,but it would require some funding through Fish and Game CVAG. Background and Need for an MSHCP In the mid 1980's a unique coalition of local governments,the development and environmental communities,and state and federal agencies developed a Habitat Conservation Plan(HCP) for the Coachella Valley fringe-toed lizard,resulting in the establishment of three preserves,the largest of which is the Coachella Valley(or Thousand Palms) Preserve. It was anticipated at the time that these preserves would also provide for the needs of a number of other species,principally those associated with the same sand dune system habitat as the fringe-toed lizard.The resulting HCP,however,did not formalize this approach,and did not contain the necessary information and analysis to meet the criteria of the Endangered Species Act to serve as an HCP for these various other species. Nonetheless,the preserves do provide important habitat for many other species and could well satisfy a significant portion of the conservation needs of a number of species currently proposed for federal listing. The three reserves could thus provide an • important nucleus of a true Multiple Species Habitat Conservation Plan reserve system. On the other hand,there are a number of species whose habitat needs are very different from the dune system,and whose inclusion in the fringe-toes lizard HCP was never contemplated. The listing of the peninsular bighorn sheep and some of the other species on the attached list will certainly have an effect on the planning process in the Coachella Valley,although the extent of the impact is difficult to gauge without more specific information about the range and habitat characteristics of the species likely to be listed. The peninsular bighorn sheep listing is likely to occur next May or shortly thereafter; several of the other species on the list could be listed within the next two to five years. The P.O. Box 2855 • Palm Desert, CA 9226I-2855 • 619-776-5026 bottom line is that there is likely to be an effect from the listings of sufficient magnitude to many jurisdictions to warrant further investigation of the feasibility and desirability of preparing an MSHCP as a proactive way of either obviating the need to list some species or,alternatively,of achieving pre-listing agreements regarding mitigation needs so that listing will not be accompanied with the disruption and crisis typical of listings. Current Situation I think the current situation,then,can best be summarized as follows: • The HCP for the fringe-toed lizard will not automatically meet the Endangered Species Act criteria for species other than the fringe-toed lizard. The HCP may provide a good foundation for an MSHCP for many species, but a new HCP will need to be developed for species which may become listed in the future. • The fringe-toed lizard HCP is turning out to have at least one significant deficiency; namely, that an essential sand source was not protected. This problem needs to be rectified and would undoubtedly be a goal of an MSHCP effort. A second problem has to do with the lack of an effective,consistent means for the collection of impact fees,resulting in great uncertainty as to whether the fees are collected and placed in the proper account for use in land acquisition to implement the HCP. • An essential preparatory step toward developing an MSHCP for the Coachella Valley would be a meeting with state level Department of Fish and Game personnel and regional level U.S.Fish and Wildlife Service personnel to establish the framework for the MSHCP and the "guarantees"which the agencies would offer in return for the preparation of an MSHCP to address,proactively,the habitat needs of species likely to be listed. Prior to such meetings,however,the implementation problems of the fringe-toed lizard HCP should be adequately addressed so that the Department and Service can be given a positive report on the effectiveness of that HCP. • Prior to meeting with the Service and the Department,it would make sense to pull together all the available data on the distribution of candidate and listed species to get as clear a picture as possible of the scope of the MSHCP issues. Thoughts on Where to Go from Here From the above discussion it seems clear that an MSHCP effort would best be approached in two phases. The first phase would consist of the following: 1. Collection and mapping of available data to estimate the scope and magnitude of the biological issues which need to be addressed. 2. Working with the fringe-toed lizard HCP management committee to resolve implementation issues. 3. In consultation with local Service,Department, BLM, and CVAG staff, develop a concept plan for an MSHCP,and meet with state and regional Department and Service personnel respectively to develop Memoranda of Understanding vis-a-vis what an MSHCP would consist of and what guarantees would accompany it regarding the MSHCP being viewed as satisfying the Endangered Species Act for the species covered by the MSHCP. a Listed or likely to be listed soon species occurring in the Coachella Valley Peninsular bighorn sheep Coachella Valley round-tailed ground squirrel Least Bell's vireo Flat-tailed horned lizard Coachella Valley fringe-toed lizard Desert tortoise Coachella Valley giant sand treader cricket Coachella Valley Jerusalem cricket Coachella Valley milkvetch Triple-ribbed milkvetch Gillia maculata California ditaxis Sensitive habitats Mesquite thickets Sand dunes and sand source areas Desert riparian/desert washes Palm oases 4. Develop a scope of work for a full MSHCP,a proposed budget,and potential funding sources. The second phase would be the actual development of an MSHCP. The first phase could be carried out by the Coachella Valley Mountains Conservancy, but it would require special funding since the work entailed is not part of the Conservancy's work plan and the Conservancy lacks the budget to add these work items. I believe that the Conservancy could perform all Phase I tasks for somewhere in the neighborhood of $5,000 to $10,000. Phase II would likely cost considerably more,particularly for biological field surveys and population viability studies,although it is impossible to estimate such costs at this point. Once Phase I were completed,CVAG might want to issue an RFP for the actual development of an MSHCP. �� ter aarr Tiu namrm lIN Q�P gym United States Department of the Interior �� p p � r s• BUREAU OF LAND MANAGEMENTiiiiim 1sgRCa°j California Desert District Office moiim N a 6221 Box Springs Boulevard IN REPLY REFER TO: Riverside,California 92507-0714 6780/6840 (CA-060.27) 01FEB Buford Crites City of Palm Desert 73-510 Fred Waring Drive Palm Desert, CA 92260 Dear Mr. Crites: On May 8, 1992, the U. S. Fish and Wildlife Service published a proposal to list the Peninsular Ranges population of bighorn sheep as federally endangered in the Federal Register. We have attached a copy of that proposed rule. This proposed rule was deemed necessary because of the present dramatic population decline. Whether there is a formal listing or not, these bighorn sheep, their habitat, and numbers must be managed to effect a recovery of the population throughout its range. In order to accomplish such a recovery, the Bureau of Land Management - California Desert District, U.S. Forest Service - San Bernardino National Forest, U. S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Anza-Borrego Desert State Park, and California Department of Fish and Game have joined together to prepare and implement a coordinated management plan. The planning effort will cover the nine-mountain ranges and their connecting corridors which comprise the total habitat of the Peninsular Ranges population. The planning area encompasses portions of Riverside, San Diego, and Imperial Counties as well as the Coachella Valley. Implementation of the plan will impact the cities of Palm Springs, Rancho Mirage, Palm Desert, Indian Wells, and others. In order to complete a plan, which will have such widespread impacts, we need your assistance. We are inviting you to participate in the Coordinated Resource Management Planning (CRMP) process associated with this effort. We will be holding our first meeting on March 4 , 1993 , at 5: 30 p.m. , in the Bureau of Land Management Palm Springs/South Coast Resource Area office located at 63-500 Garnet Avenue, North Palm Springs, California. This meeting will be used to: 2 . A scoping of your concerns and analysis of considerations to be included in the planning effort. If you cannot participate, please provide Donald J. Armentrout of my staff with the name of your alternate. Don can be reached at (909) 697-5239 . If you have any questions, please contact Don. We look forward to working with you in developing a planned approach for the recovery of this important population of bighorn sheep. Sincere , Henri R. Bisson District Manager Enclosure • DRAFT MILESTONES IN THE MOUNTAINS CONSERVATION EFFORT For untold centuries the Cahuilla were stewards of the mountains, their close relationship with the natural resources integrating conservation into their way of life. In more recent years, a number of agencies have been involved in specific conservation efforts. In 1959 Philip L. Boyd donated 3 sections of land and money to acquire 3 additional sections to the University of California to establish what became known as the Philip L. Boyd Deep Canyon Desert Research Center, just outside Palm Desert. The University has expanded the center still further since then and it became part of the University's Natural Reserve System in 1965. The state's Wildlife Conservation Board acquired more than 30 square miles,primarily in the Santa Rosa Mountains during the 1970's and 1980's, adding significantly to the nearly 170 square miles of public lands already managed by the Bureau of Land Management (BLM)..&n the mid 1980's a coalition of local cities, the County of Riverside, state and federal agencies, The Nature Conservancy, and many members of the local community acquired and set aside lands to create the Coachella Valley Preserve in the Indio Hills. The most recent milestones in protecting the mountains surrounding the Coachella Valley include: • 1988. Proposition 70, the California Wildlife, Coastal,and Park land Conservation Act, is passed by the voters,providing$19 million,requested by Friends of the Indian Canyons,to acquire lands for an Indian Canyons Heritage Park to be managed by the Agua Caliente Band of Cahuilla Indians. • 1990 The Secretary of the Interior designates the desert slopes of the San Jacinto and Santa Rosa Mountains as the Santa Rosa Mountains National Scenic Area, • 1991 The Coachella Valley Mountains Conservancy is created by the state legislature to acquire mountainous lands surrounding the Coachella Valley, for the public's enjoyment and the protection of cultural, scientific, scenic,and wildlife resources. • 1992 Through a land exchange and using federal Land and Water Conservation Funds to purchase lands,the BLM acquires 3,800 acres of lands in the National Scenic Area to continue to consolidate public ownership of the mountains. With the Proposition 70 funds and additional funds from the County,escrow opens on the acquisition of the sensitive lands at the mouths of Andreas,Murray,and Palm Canyons to create the Indian Canyons Heritage Park. The peninsular bighorn sheep is proposed by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service for listing as an endangered species because of the rapid decline in its numbers,providing renewed evidence of the urgent need to afford permanent protection for the mountains. • 1993 The Coachella Valley Mountains Conservancy takes an option to purchase nearly 3,000 acres of land in the Santa Rosa Mountains. The Planning and Conservation League proposes a 1994 statewide open space and park bond measure,akin to the 1988 Proposition 70. The Coachella Valley Mountains Conservancy would be included for between $15 and$20 million. The BLM requests$6 million of federal Land and Water Conservation Fund money to acquire lands in the Santa Rosa Mountains National Scenic Area,and$500,000 for land acquisition in the Morongo Canyon Area of Critical Environmental Concern. The Coachella Valley Mountains Conservancy,in recognition of the tremendous momentum to conserve the mountains,proclaims 1993 as The Year of the Mountains.