Cooperative Agreement F22AC02786

THE VENTURA COUNTY RESOURCE CONSERVATION DISTRICT WILL WORK IN PARTNERSHIP WITH A PRIVATE LANDOWNER AND THE SERVICE, TO IMPLEMENT A HABITAT IMPROVEMENT PROJECT BY PLANTING NATIVE COAST LIVE OAKS AND WESTERN SYCAMORES THE OBJECTIVE IS TO RESTORE WILDLIFE HABITAT AND ENHANCE ECOLOGICAL HEALTH AT THE FOUR SITES LONG TERM OBJECTIVES ARE TO PROVIDE VIABLE STANDS OF OAKS AND SYCAMORES TO SUPPORT NATURAL RECRUITMENT OF NATIVE SPECIES AND REESTABLISH CONDITIONS THAT SUPPORT NATIVE VEGETATION TO THE DOWNSLOPE RIPARIAN ZONE PROJECT LOCATION THIS PROJECT WILL OCCUR IN AN AREA GENERALLY KNOWN AS BARLOW CANYON WHICH LIES IN THE FOOTHILLS NORTH OF VENTURA, CA GENERAL PROJECT LOCATIONS ARE SHOWN IN FIGURE 1 WHILE SPECIFIC PROJECT LOCATIONS WILL BE IDENTIFIED IN PROJECT SPECIFIC WORK PLAN THAT WILL BE DEVELOPED BY VCRCS AND THE PRIVATE LANDOWNER S ALL PROJECT ACTIVITIES WILL OCCUR ON PRIVATE PROPERTIES BASELINE ASSESSMENT THE GENERAL PROJECT AREA IS CURRENTLY UTILIZED FOR AGRICULTURE SUCH AS IRRIGATED ORCHARDS AND CATTLE GRAZING HABITAT CONDITIONS ARE CONSIDERED POOR QUALITY DUE TO THE LACK OF WOODY VEGETATION, INCLUDING SHRUBS AND TREES, WHICH WERE LOST IN THE 2017 THOMAS FIRE WHILE THERE ARE GRASSES AND FORBS, THE LACK OF SHRUBS AND TREES MEANS THERE IS A LACK OF HABITAT FOR NESTING, FORAGING, AND COVER STATEMENT OF PROBLEM THROUGHOUT CALIFORNIA, OVER A MILLION ACRES OF OAK HABITAT HAS BEEN LOST DUE TO TIMBER HARVEST, LAND USE CONVERSION, AND CLIMATE CHANGE INDUCED STRESSORS WILDFIRE, DROUGHT, PESTS, ETC FURTHERMORE, AS THESE TREES ARE LOST AND THEIR HABITAT FRAGMENTED, THERE ARE TOO FEW SPECIMENS AVAILABLE TO MAINTAIN NATURAL RECRUITMENT THIS IS AN ESPECIALLY RELEVANT FACTOR IN THE PROPOSED PROJECT AREA SINCE THERE ARE NO TREES TO PROVIDE SEEDS FOR NATURAL PROPAGATION AND SINCE THE PRESENCE OF GRAZING CATTLE INHIBIT REGROWTH OF NATURALLY RECRUITED SHRUBS AND TREES FROM CACHED SEEDS, ANTHROPOGENIC INTERVENTION IS NECESSITATED FURTHERMORE, THE LONG TERM ABSENCE OF WOODY VEGETATION, TREES ESPECIALLY, HAS LIKELY ALTERED THE HYDROLOGIC CYCLE BETWEEN THE UPLAND AND RIPARIAN AREA, CONTRIBUTING TO THE DECLINE OF VIABLE VEGETATION TO PROTECT THE INTERMITTENT STREAM CHANNEL AND REDUCING THE QUALITY AND QUANTITY OF AQUATIC RESOURCES FOR WILDLIFE WITHOUT INTERVENTION, THIS RIPARIAN HABITAT IS LIKELY TO CONTINUE TO DEGRADE RESTORATION HYPOTHESIS THE RESTORATION HYPOTHESIS IS THAT ESTABLISHING OAK WOODLANDS IN BARLOW CANYON WILL PROVIDE WILDLIFE HABITAT AND ENHANCE THE CLIMATE RESILIENCY OF THE RESTORATION AREA PROPOSED ACTIONS INCLUDE PLANTING APPROXIMATELY 400 TREES OAKS AND SYCAMORES AND MAINTAINING MONITORING THE TREES THROUGH ESTABLISHMENT WE EXPECT TO RE ESTABLISH STANDS OF OAKS AND INCREASE THE NUMBERS AND ABUNDANCE OF WILDLIFE USING THESE OAK STANDS