Centennial Creek Mitigation Project

Centennial Creek Mitigation Project

Construction of the Route 46 Corridor Improvement Project has impacted wetlands and other waters in the Union, Whitley 2A, Whitley 2B, and future Cholame section. Onsite mitigation is maximized within the Caltrans right-of-way; however, additional acreage is required by jurisdictional agencies but cannot be accommodated onsite. The remaining acreage of offsite mitigation requirements for the Union segment consists of approximately 0.474 acre of wetlands creation and enhancement, while the Whitley 2A and Whitley 2B segments and Cholame section require approximately 3.292 acres of other waters creation, enhancement, and re-establishment. The Centennial Creek Mitigation Project intends to improve hydrology and function of the creek by removing and/or replacing undersized culverts, removing hardscaping and debris, and engineering roughened riffles (shallow portions of the creek with large rocks placed to form natural habitat) at intervals along the system to encourage aggradation and reestablishment of a riffle/pool system. The total area proposed for mitigation is approximately 4.14 acres, which includes 0.53 acres of wetlands creation and enhancement, as well as 3.61 acres of other waters creation, enhancement, and reestablishment. Restoration will occur along 6,300 linear feet of Centennial Creek. The improvements to the infrastructure will be followed by over two acres of planting a variety of native species to create vegetation structure and increase plant diversity and habitat quality. A plant establishment period will be for 3 years, followed by a monitoring period of 7 years, for a total of 10 years after planting to successfully meet agency success criteria.

Paso Robles

San Luis Obispo