CONSERVATION PROSPECTS FOR THE NORTH COAST Salmon Creek Watershed, Mendocino County, California, © 2002-2005 Kenneth & Gabrielle Adelman, California Coastal Records Project, www.Californiacoastline.org A Review and Analysis of Existing Conservation Plans, Land Use Trends and Strategies for Conservation on the North Coast of California Report Prepared by The Conservation Fund Project Funding and Support by California State Coastal Conservancy August 2005 CONSERVATION PROSPECTS FOR THE NORTH COAST A Review and Analysis of Existing Conservation Plans, Land Use Trends and Strategies for Conservation On the North Coast of California Report Prepared by The Conservation Fund Project Funding and Support by California State Coastal Conservancy August 2005 CONSERVATION PROSPECTS FOR THE NORTH COAST: A Review and Analysis of Existing Conservation Plans, Land Use Trends and Strategies for Conservation on the North Coast of California For more information about this report, please contact: The Conservation Fund Chris Kelly, California Director PO Box 5326 Larkspur, CA 94977 SUGGESTED CITATION The Conservation Fund. 2005. Conservation Prospects for the North Coast: A Review and Analysis of Existing Conservation Plans, Land Use Trends and Strategies for Conservation on the North Coast of California. PHOTO CREDITS Cover photograph: Salmon Creek Watershed, Mendocino County, California Adelman, K. and G, CA Coastal Records Project Adelman, K. and G, CA Coastal Records Project: cover, pages 14, 21, 28, 32, 37, 42, 49, 57, 64, 75, 83, 87, 138, 140 Griffin, J: page ii, Garcia River Watershed, Mendocino County, California ii CONSERVATION PROSPECTS FOR THE NORTH COAST ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS The Conservation Fund is very grateful for the good work done by the many authors and contributors to the various existing conservation plans and studies about the North Coast.These plans and studies provide a wealth of information about the region, its natural resources, and the need for conservation action; without these materials, and the commitment of their authors, this report would not have been possible. The Conservation Fund would also like to thank the following individuals who assisted us by pro- viding guidance, insights, or review of the report as it took shape over the last many months: Kate Anderton, Save-the-Redwoods League Tom Baty, Commercial Fisherman, Marin County James Bernard, Mendocino Land Trust Louis Blumberg, The Nature Conservancy Ruth Blyther, Redwood Community Action Agency and Northcoast Regional Land Trust Michael Bowen, California State Coastal Conservancy Sheila Burns, Graphic Design Dick Cameron, The Nature Conservancy Amy Chestnut, Sonoma County Agricultural Preservation and Open Space District Brian Cohen, GreenInfo Network Mark Commandatore, California Health Services, Shellfish Program Maya Conrad, Northcoast Regional Land Trust Chuck Cook, The Nature Conservancy Susan Corbaley, California State Coastal Conservancy Karyn Gear, California State Coastal Conservancy Jill Geist, Humboldt County Board of Supervisors Matthew Gerhart, Mendocino Land Trust Shayne Green, Northcoast Regional Land Trust Jenny Griffin, Conservation Consultant Ruskin Hartley, Save-the-Redwoods League Art Harwood, Harwood Lumber and Redwood Forest Foundation, Inc. Tom Hofweber, Humboldt County Planning Department Marc Hoshovsky, California Resources Agency Curtis Jacoby, Legacy The Landscape Connection Jennifer Johnson, Marin Community Foundation Martina Koller, Pacific States Marine Fisheries Commission Maegan Leslie, GreenInfo Network CONSERVATION PROSPECTS FOR THE NORTH COAST iii Acknowledgements Ron LeValley, Pacific Coast Joint Venture Sungnome Madrone, Redwood Community Action Agency Stuart Martin, Sonoma County Agricultural Preservation and Open Space District Moira McEnespy, California State Coastal Conservancy Jeri Melo, Fort Bragg City Council Wendy Millet, The Nature Conservancy Tom Moore, Deptartment of Fish and Game, Shellfish Program Pete Nichols, Humboldt BayKeeper Program Claire Peaslee, Editing and Graphic Design Andrea Pickart, National Fish and Widlife Service Marta Puente, Sonoma County Agricultural Preservation and Open Space District Mike Reilly, Sonoma County Board of Supervisors Mark Reynolds, The Nature Conservancy Sheila Semans, California State Coastal Conservancy Kevin Shaffer, California Department of Fish and Game Bill Stewart, California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection iv CONSERVATION PROSPECTS FOR THE NORTH COAST CONTENTS ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS ................................................................... iii OVERVIEW OF STUDY METHOD AND PURPOSE ............................................ 2 Part 1: Catalogue of Existing Conservation Plans ............................................. 5 A. Methodology ........................................................................ 5 B. Description of Catalogue ............................................................ 5 Part 2: Synthesis of Selected Conservation Plans .............................................. 9 PART 2A. Plan Selection .................................................................. 9 PART 2B. Hydrologic Unit Summaries .................................................... 11 SMITH RIVER AND WINCHUCK RIVER HYDROLOGIC UNITS .............................. 14 LOWER KLAMATH RIVER HYDROLOGIC UNIT ............................................ 21 REDWOOD CREEK HYDROLOGIC UNIT .................................................. 28 TRINIDAD HYDROLOGIC UNIT ........................................................... 32 MAD RIVER HYDROLOGIC UNIT ......................................................... 37 EUREKA PLAIN HYDROLOGIC UNIT ...................................................... 43 EEL RIVER HYDROLOGIC UNIT .......................................................... 50 CAPE MENDOCINO HYDROLOGIC UNIT ................................................. 60 MENDOCINO COAST HYDROLOGIC UNIT ................................................ 65 RUSSIAN RIVER HYDROLOGIC UNIT ..................................................... 78 BODEGA HYDROLOGIC UNIT ............................................................ 84 MARIN COASTAL HYDROLOGIC UNIT .................................................... 90 SUMMARY OF GENERAL RECOMMENDATIONS NOTED IN HU SUMMARIES ................ 97 PART 2C: Synthesis Map ............................................................... 102 Part 3: Assessment of the Political, Economic and Social Factors Shaping the Region, and Recommendations for Action ...................................... 104 PART 3A: Political, Social and Economic Conditions on the North Coast ................. 105 PART 3B: Significant Factors Affecting Conservation Strategies .......................... 128 PART 3C: Regional Conservation Strategies ............................................. 133 PART 3D: Conservation Opportunity – Large-scale Working Forest Conservation on the Mendocino Coast .................................................. 144 REFERENCES .......................................................................... 147 APPENDIX 1: CATALOGUE OF NORTH COAST CONSERVATION PLANS .................... 151 APPENDIX 2: COASTAL RESOURCES MAPS .............................................. 219 CONSERVATION PROSPECTS FOR THE NORTH COAST v Contents APPENDIX 3: CONTACT LIST, NORTH COAST CONSERVATION GROUPS ................. 227 APPENDIX 4: GIS DATA SOURCES ...................................................... 240 ENDNOTES ............................................................................ 241 TABLES 202 TABLE 1: LAND OWNERSHIP (ACRES) ................................................ 105 204 TABLE 2: TIMBERLAND OWNERSHIP (2002) (IN ACRES) .............................. 106 TABLE 3: FEDERAL AND STATE ENVIRONMENTAL STATUTES WITH SIGNIFICANT INFLUENCE IN THE NORTH COAST REGION .............................. 109 TABLE 4: TOTAL POPULATION, POPULATION CHANGE, PROJECTED GROWTH ............ 113 5 TABLE 5: CALIFORNIA COASTAL TRAIL — IMPROVEMENTS NEEDED (2003) .............. 127 FIGURES FIGURE 1: NORTH COAST STUDY AREA MAP .............................................. 1 FIGURE 2: SMITH RIVER AND WINCHUCK RIVER HYDROLOGIC UNITS MAP .............. 12 FIGURE 3: LOWER KLAMATH RIVER, REDWOOD CREEK, AND TRINIDAD RIVER HYDROLOGIC UNITS MAP ............................................. 22 FIGURE 4: MAD RIVER AND EUREKA PLAIN HYDROLOGIC UNITS MAP ................... 38 FIGURE 5: EEL RIVER AND CAPE MENDOCINO HYDROLOGIC UNITS MAP ................ 52 FIGURE 6: MENDOCINO COAST AND RUSSIAN RIVER HYDROLOGIC UNITS MAP .......... 66 FIGURE 7: BODEGA AND MARIN HYDROLOGIC UNITS MAP .............................. 86 FIGURE 8: LAND OWNERSHIPS AND CONSERVATION PRIORITIES OF SELECTED PLANS (SYNTHESIS MAP) ................................................... 100 FIGURE 9: COASTAL RESOURCES MAP A ............................................... 220 FIGURE 10: COASTAL RESOURCES MAP B .............................................. 222 FIGURE 11: COASTAL RESOURCES MAP C .............................................. 224 vi CONSERVATION PROSPECTS FOR THE NORTH COAST FIGURE 1: NORTH COAST STUDY AREA MAP CONSERVATION PROSPECTS FOR THE NORTH COAST 1 OVERVIEW OF STUDY METHOD AND PURPOSE CALIFORNIA’S NORTH COAST is one of the richest, and rarest, ecoregions in the world. This south- ern extension of the temperate rain forests of the Pacific Northwest harbors rich coastal ecosystems such as coastal terrace prairies, dunes, estuaries, salt marshes, and redwood and Douglas fir – tan oak forests. Inland, the ecoregion