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Valley Oak The valley oak (Quercus lobata) is considered vulnerable by the CNPS, and has been put on the society's Watch List. This list is for plants of limited distribution that are not currently rare or endangered, but are sensitive and declining in numbers. Valley oaks provide important resources to many wildlife species, and their diminishing numbers are also of concern to CDFG. The extensive spreading crowns afford opportunities for roosting, nesting, thermoregulation, and refuge from predators. Valley oak acorns provide food for birds such as acorn woodpeckers and mammals such as squirrels and mule deer. The bark houses insects that are food for bark- gleaning insectivorous birds such as ruby-crowned kinglets and plain titmice. A small valley oak on the proposed project site is threatened by the planned expansion of the transfer station (see Figure 3). The tree is about six inches in diameter and about 15 feet tall. POT ACTS Cumulative Impacts The proposed project will contribute to the regional fragmentation and reduction of open space used by Swainson's hawks and_other wide-ranging species. This project, in combination with other projects in the Central Valley, will add to the regional loss of potential wildlife habitat and will reduce the diversity and density of wildlife in the region. This is an unavoidable, significant cumulative impact of the sum of this proposed project and other projects scheduled for the San Joaquin Valley region. Unlike the vast majority of other projects proposed for the region, the contribution of the proposed project to cumulative impacts on the region is countered to some degree by the nature of the facility that is scheduled for expansion. The expansion of the transfer station is being undertaken to increase CRWS's ability to recycle much of the refuse generated by inhabitants of southern Sacramento County and northern San Joaquin County. The loss of open space associated with the proposed project may be more than offset in the long run by open space saved at regional landfill facilities due to CWRS's expanded recycling capacities. Immediate Impacts Expansion of the transfer station would not generate significant direct or indirect impacts to plant or wildlife species. The habitat on the proposed project site has already been greatly modified by previous activities and there is virtually nothing left of the botanical paleoenvironment, which probably consisted of riparian woodland. Only relatively common 11