The santa clara valley habitat plan (plan) covers 519,506 acres of urban, rural, and natural lands in santa claracounty, california

The California Department of Fish and Wildlife (CDFW) received a $1,067,000 Project Grant award from the U.S. Department of the Interior Fish and Wildlife Service Region 8 through the Cooperative Endangered Species Conservation Fund program. The grant will support planning for an amendment to the Santa Clara Valley Habitat Conservation Plan/Natural Community Conservation Plan covering 519,506 acres in Santa Clara County, California. The amendment aims to protect additional federally and state-listed species, as well as at-risk species not originally covered, given changes in listing status, range or life history information. It will add covered activities, expand the permit area, and potentially add a new co-permittee. The amendment will ensure the plan accurately reflects and evaluates take occurring in the plan area and that effects will not jeopardize covered species. It will also incorporate administrative changes from prior modification and clarification memos to increase efficiencies and clarity for the remainder of the 50-year permit term. The Santa Clara Valley Habitat Agency will receive $1,067,000 as a sub-awardee to support this planning work.

The plan permit area includes the city of SAN jose, the tenth largest city by population andthe sixth most diverse, large, city in the united states (politifact 2022 U.S. News and world report 2020). Theplan provides a framework for promoting the protection and recovery of natural resources, including threatenedand endangered species, while streamlining the permitting process for planned development, infrastructure, andmaintenance activities over a 50 year permit term. The plan is implemented by the santa clara valley habitatagency (habitat agency) and has been in implementation for almost a decade. As of reporting year 2021, the planhas permitted 361 projects and conserved 6,500 acres. The plan amendment is necessary to protect additional federal and state listed species as well as at risk speciesthat were not originally included, but may now warrant inclusion due to changes in listing status, range, or lifehistory information. The amendment will also add covered activities, expand the permit area, and potentially adda new CO permittee. The amendment will ensure that the plan accurately reflects and evaluates the amount of takeoccurring in the plan area and ensures that those effects will not jeopardize the covered species. IT will alsoincorporate several topics that have been addressed through modification and clarification interpretation memoswhich include administrative changes to language and policies which are intended to increase efficiencies andprovide greater clarity for the remainder of the permit term. Finally, the amendment process will provide anopportunity to further expand permit streamlining for aquatic resources also regulated by federal and stateagencies under the federal clean water act (CWA) and state porter cologne water quality control act (PCA.