SU0008578 - Laserfiche WebLink

Home Browse Search

5.ENVIRONMENTAL CHECKLIST MOUNTAIN HOUSE NEIGHBORHOODS K AND L INITIAL STUDY 4.BIOLOGICAL RESOURCES Sensitive Fish There are two sensitive salmonids that may potentially migrate through Old River on their way to or from upstream spawning grounds on a seasonal basis:fall-run Chinook salmon(Oncorhynchus tshawytscha)and Central Valley steelhead (0. mykiss). While no suitable salmonid spawning habitat occurs along the section of Old River adjacent to the project site,fish likely pass through this waterway on occasion in the fall and spring. While fall-run Chinook salmon are known to occur in Old River,federally listed winter-run Chinook salmon only use Central Valley drainages located farther to the north. Both fall-run Chinook salmon and steelhead use areas farther upstream in the San Joaquin River system that are suitable for spawning and rearing. In addition to salmonids, both the federally listed threatened Delta smelt (Hypomesus transpaciflcus) and now de-listed Sacramento splittail were identified in the 1994 MEIR as potentially occurring in Old River on a seasonal basis. The Master Plan includes a requirement for future surveys for these species(as well as salmonids) in Old River, using otter trawls prior to project development along Old River. These surveys have not been undertaken, however, due to elimination of the proposed marina on Old River that was part of the original Mountain House proposal,the listing of Chinook salmon as a threatened species, and the associated need for a federal take permit to handle the species. Furthermore, since publication of the 1994 MEIR,the seasonal distribution of Delta smelt has been better documented and the likelihood of occurrence in Old River or nearby waterways is considered extremely low as this species rarely, if ever, migrates so far upstream from the Bay and lower Delta. Additionally, potential impacts on Delta smelt are routinely mitigated through construction scheduling pursuant to a programmatic agreement between USFWS and U.S.Army Corps of Engineers(USACOE), negating the need for project-specific surveys unless determined necessary by resource agencies for confirmation purposes. San Joaquin County Multi-Species Habitat Conservation and Open Space Plan Neighborhoods K and L are located within the Central/Southwest Transition Zone designated by the San Joaquin County Multi-Species Habitat Conservation and Open Space Plan (SJMSCP)(San Joaquin COG,2001). The SJMSCP was adopted in 2001 and is intended to provide a strategy for conserving agricultural lands and wildlife habitat while accommodating a growing population and property rights of individual landowners. The SJMSCP has established an assessment process for conversion of land to non-open space uses when such conversion might affect the plant and animal species covered by the SJMSCP. The species of concern known to or potentially occurring in the project area and covered by the SJMSCP include but are not limited to San Joaquin kit fox, Swainson's hawk,western pond turtle, and burrowing owl. Sensitive species that have even a remote potential for occurrence in the SPIT area, such as California tiger salamander and California red-legged frog, are addressed under the SJMSCP. (9f7W) 5-54