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4 Environmental Analysis 4.4 Biological Resources longstanding way, and that confines the stream water up to its highest level. "Lake" includes "natural lakes or man-made reservoirs." Rivers, streams, lakes, and riparian vegetation that provide habitat for fish and wildlife species are subject to jurisdiction by the CDFW under Sections 1600-1616 of the California Fish and Game Code. Riparian areas are lands adjacent to streams, lakes, and estuarine-marine shorelines. Section 2785(e) defines "riparian habitat' as lands that contain habitat which grows close to and which depends upon soil moisture from a nearby freshwater source. The CDFW regulates the bed, bank to bank, as well as associated riparian vegetation and fish and wildlife resources. The CDFW has interpreted jurisdictional boundaries to be defined by the tops of stream banks (i.e., the limit of stream influence) and/or the limit of the canopy of riparian vegetation (outer drip line) that is hydrologically connected to river, stream, or lake, whichever is greatest. As a result, the area of CDFW jurisdiction is usually greater than the active channel and overlaps and extends beyond the USACE jurisdiction. Isolated wetlands not associated with a river, stream, or lake are not protected under Sections 1600 et seq. of the California Fish and Game Code. In addition, the CDFW does not have regulatory authority on tribal lands. CDFW jurisdiction may also extend to altered or artificial waterways based upon the value of those waterways to fish and wildlife (CDFG-ESD 1994), particularly to the extent that such constructed waterways were originally natural waterways. The Lake and Streambed Alteration Program requires execution of an agreement with the CDFW before any activity substantially modifies a river, stream, or lake. It is not legal to alter the bed or bank of a stream or lake or their natural water flow without a CDFW Streambed Alteration Agreement. The California Fish and Game Code Section 1602 requires an entity to notify the CDFW of any proposed activity that may substantially modify a perennial, intermittent, and ephemeral river, stream, or lake in the state. Notification is required by any person, business, state or local government agency, or public utility that proposes an activity that will: oo Substantially divert or obstruct the natural flow of any river, stream or lake; oo Substantially change or use any material from the bed, channel, or bank of, any river, stream, or lake; or oo Deposit or dispose of debris, waste, or other material containing crumbled, flaked, or ground pavement where it may pass into any river, stream, or lake. The notification requirement applies to any work undertaken in or near a river, stream, or lake that flows at least intermittently through a bed or channel. This includes intermittent and ephemeral streams and washes, and other watercourses with subsurface flows, or drainages with beds and banks that support aquatic life, riparian vegetation, or stream-dependent terrestrial wildlife. 4.4.2.8 San Joaquin County Multi-species Habitat Conservation and Open Space Plan The Project site is within the planning area for the San Joaquin County Multi-Species Habitat Conservation and Open Space Plan (SJMSCP). The SJMSCP plan area covers all of San Joaquin County except for federally owned lands. Most of the Project site is in San Joaquin County (approximately 90 percent). A small portion (approximately 10 percent) of the Project site is in Alameda County. The current area to be developed plans avoid Alameda County with the exception of the gen-tie line that is partially in Alameda County as described below. The portion of the proposed Project in San Joaquin County would be permitted under the SJMSCP. The Griffith Energy Storage Project 4.4-26 Tetra Tech/SCH 2022120675 Draft Environmental Impact Report August 2023