SCH Number 2019110194

Project Info

Title

Agreement with the San Diego Natural History Museum for Monitoring, Management, and Predator Control Services for the Endangered California Least Tern and Threa

Description

The proposed project is an agreement between the San Diego Unified Port District (District) and the San Diego Natural History Museum for monitoring, management, and predator control services for the endangered California Least Tern and threatened Western Snowy Plover. Services would occur at an approximately 42-acre site at the D Street Fill site (south of the Sweetwater Chanel), in the City of Chula Vista; activities may occur on various parcels in Chula Vista and National City due to the migratory nature of predator control. The site is jointly managed by the District, on District tidelands, and by the US Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS), as part of the Sweetwater Marsh National Wildlife Refuge. Routine monitoring and management tasks include: obtain all required state and federal permits to conduct least tern monitoring, banding, and compliance reporting; coordinate closely with the District and USFWS on minor maintenance of fencing and signage replacement to protect the nesting site; prepare D Street Fill for nesting (prune of vegetation that could be used as a predator perch, scrape the site free of vegetation, coordinate with predator control services, and complete the placement of ceramic tiles at grid intersections of 30-meter squares to assist in nest mapping); monitor the least tern nesting colony at least two times per week, at a minimum, during the nesting season and conduct snowy plover monitoring at low tide (monitoring includes nest location, abundance, and fledging productivity estimates for least terns and snowy plovers); band chicks with appropriate bands using standard banding pliers and report on the bands used; measure and record chick wing chords and record weight; report status of least tern and snowy plover nesting; conduct photo documentation of monitoring activities; coordinate end of season GPS mapping of nests and sensitive vegetation; provide estimate of fledging success; coordinate with and attend California Fish and Wildlife (CDFW) and USFWS meetings regarding least tern and snowy plover nesting season and complete required reporting; provide management recommendations to ensure the future nesting success of least terns and snowy plovers; and work cooperatively and actively to identify and minimize or eliminate threats to endangered and threatened species, in consultation with the District and USFWS. Predator control tasks include: perform daily predator control services; obtain all required state and federal permits to use trapping devices and/or remove mammal and avian predators in accordance with all applicable laws and regulations; develop a predator control program to manage any potential mammalian or avian predators at the least tern nesting colonies at the site during the nesting season; trap or otherwise remove predators by any appropriate legal means until it has been determined that the least terns have abandoned or otherwise departed from the nesting sites on District property; set and monitor equipment as necessary to provide effective predator control for least terns and snowy plovers; remove all trapped animals from least tern nesting sites and disposed of in a legal manner; and prepare a final report with the results of the predator control program. The proposed project would further the goals, objectives, and policy recommendations of the District's Integrated Natural Resources Management Plan (INRMP), which guides planning, management, conservation, restoration, and enhancement of the Bay's natural resources. The following categorical determinations are based on the draft agreement, scope of services, and all project information know to the District as of the date of this determination.

1 documents in project