BILL ANALYSIS Ó
AB 1845
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Date of Hearing: March 29, 2016
ASSEMBLY COMMITTEE ON WATER, PARKS, AND WILDLIFE
Marc Levine, Chair
AB 1845
(Dahle) - As Introduced February 9, 2016
SUBJECT: Protected species: take: rough sculpin
SUMMARY: Authorizes the Department of Fish and Wildlife (DFW)
to authorize the take of rough sculpin, a fully protected fish,
resulting from repair of Spring Creek Bridge in Shasta County if
specified conditions are met. Specifically, this bill:
1)Authorizes DFW to authorize take of the rough sculpin
resulting from impacts attributable to repairing the Spring
Creek Bridge in Shasta County, if all of the following
conditions are met:
a) Requirements of the California Endangered Species Act
(CESA) are met, including that the take is incidental to an
otherwise lawful activity, the impacts are minimized and
fully mitigated, adequate funding is provided for
monitoring, and the take permit will not jeopardize the
continued existence of the species;
b) Measures necessary to meet a conservation standard are
incorporated into the project.
2)Provides that this authorization for take of rough sculpin
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shall not be construed to exempt the project from any other
law.
3)States legislative findings and declarations regarding the
Spring Creek Bridge at Fall River, its importance in providing
access to ranches, residences and United States Forest Service
lands, and the need of the County of Shasta for take
authorization regarding rough sculpin in order to maintain
that access.
4)Makes other technical conforming changes.
EXISTING LAW:
1)Prohibits the taking or possession of species listed as fully
protected fish except as specified. The species that are
classified as fully protected fish include but are not limited
to the rough sculpin.
2)Authorizes DFW to authorize the taking of a fully protected
fish species whose conservation and management is provided for
in a natural community conservation plan (NCCP) approved by
DFW.
3)Authorizes DFW to authorize incidental take of the fully
protected unarmored threespine stickleback fish, and the fully
protected limestone salamander, under certain limited
circumstances, provided specified criteria and standards are
met for minimization, mitigation, non-jeopardy, and
conservation.
4)Provides for the listing of species as threatened or
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endangered under federal and state endangered species acts.
The DFW may issue permits for incidental take of listed
species, if specified conditions are met, including
mitigation, minimization, and adaptive management
requirements.
FISCAL EFFECT: Unknown
COMMENTS: This bill would authorize the DFW to issue an
incidental take permit for the take of rough sculpin, a fully
protected fish, if certain conditions are met, in order to allow
a project to replace a bridge on Spring Creek Road over the Fall
River in Shasta County to proceed.
1)Author's Statement: This bill would allow a one-time project
specific exemption from the fully protected fish species
statute to allow a permit for the replacement of an aging
bridge on Spring Creek Road over the Fall River. Without
these repairs the bridge will close indefinitely cutting off
access to private homes as well as public forest lands forcing
the use of unmaintained, narrow roads for access. If there
were to be a fire or major emergency, access would be
questionable as some emergency vehicles would not be able to
gain access which becomes an issue of public safety.
2)Background: According to background information provided by
the author, the Spring Creek Bridge is deteriorating and in
need of repair. Shasta County initiated a project to replace
the bridge in 2008. The bridge is a 150 foot long,
multi-span, wood structure constructed in 1950. It is load
limited to three tons. The wood structure, constantly exposed
to water, is in a constant state of decay requiring
significant and ongoing maintenance. Caltrans bridge
inspection records indicate that out of 200 bridges in Shasta
County, this bridge is in the worst condition. The bridge
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provides access to ranches, including nine residences, and
U.S. Forest Service lands. If the bridge is closed, residents
would be required to take a 10 mile detour to Fall River Mills
on narrow roads that would be impassable in winter. In 2009
an environmental study revealed the presence of rough sculpin
in the Fall River, which is protected under California law as
a fully protected fish species.
The rough sculpin, Cottus asperrimus, is the smallest member of
the fish family Cottidae, at approximately 3-4 inches in
length. The species occurs only in Shasta County in the Pit
River, in the Burney Falls area, including Hat Creek, Fall
River and its tributaries, in the upper reaches of Lake
Britton near Hat Creek, and in Crystal Lake. Due to the
limited range of the rough sculpin the DFW indicates that any
impact to their habitat is significant. Siltation from
dredging and bank erosion caused by livestock grazing are some
of the primary threats to the species. The species is listed
both as threatened under CESA, and as a fully protected fish
species under California law. While DFW can issue incidental
take permits for species that are protected under CESA,
subject to mitigation and related requirements, the fully
protected species statutes do not allow for the issuance of
take permits, but prohibit all take of the species, with
narrow exceptions only for scientific research, or as part of
a Natural Community Conservation Plan (NCCP).
The Legislature has recently considered similar requests for
exceptions to allow take of fully protected species for
specific projects. The most related bill was AB 1973 (Olsen),
Chapter 121, Statutes of 2012, which authorized take of a
fully protected species for a road project in Mariposa County.
These other bills included provisions requiring compliance
with CESA conditions for mitigation, minimization, avoidance
of jeopardy, and monitoring, and required that the project
include measures to meet a conservation standard. This bill
includes similar protective provisions.
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3)Prior and related legislation: AB 353 (Lackey), Chapter 620,
Statutes of 2015, authorized DFW to authorize take of a fully
protected fish species known as the unarmored threespine
stickleback resulting from a habitat restoration project on
Bouquet Creek if specified conditions are met, including CESA
requirements for minimization and mitigation, necessary
measures to satisfy a conservation standard for recovery, and
an adaptive management process that substantially contributes
to the long-term conservation of the species.
AB 1973 (Olsen), Chapter 121, Statutes of 2012, authorized DFW
to authorize incidental take of the limestone salamander, a
fully protected amphibian species, resulting from impacts
attributable to a highway restoration project in Mariposa
County known as the Ferguson Slide Permanent Restoration
Project, provided specified conditions are met, including but
not limited to, adoption of specific avoidance and mitigation
measures, CESA requirements for minimization and mitigation,
necessary measures to satisfy a conservation standard for
recovery, and an adaptive management process.
AB 2001 (Mathis) of this Session would authorize the take of a
fully protected fish for scientific research or for efforts to
recover the species. AB 2001 is pending in this committee.
AB 2488 (Dababneh) of this Session would authorize the DFW to
authorize incidental take under CESA of the unarmored
threespine stickleback, a fully protected fish species, for
take attributable to operations of the Metropolitan Water
District of Southern California's Foothill Feeder water supply
facility, as specified. AB 2488 is also pending in this
committee.
4)Support Arguments: The county of Shasta emphasizes that this
bill would allow for authorization of repairs to the Spring
Creek Bridge with minimal impact to the rough sculpin. They
indicate that the Shasta County Department of Public Works has
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been working on this project since 2009, but that due to the
rough sculpin's status as a fully protected species, the DFW
cannot issue a permit for the project. The County is working
with DFW and believes that the project can be constructed in a
way to minimize impacts to the fish if an incidental take
permit can be issued.
5)Opposition Arguments: None received.
REGISTERED SUPPORT / OPPOSITION:
Support
Shasta County Board of Supervisors
Opposition
None on file
Analysis Prepared by:Diane Colborn / W., P., & W. / (916)
319-2096
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