Wildlife Hazard Management at Riverside County Airports: Background and Policy
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Wildlife Hazard Management at Riverside County Airports: Background and Policy Prepared for: Riverside County Airport Land Use Commission 4080 Lemon Street, 14th Floor Riverside CA 92501 October 2018 Prepared by: Mead and Hunt, Inc. 1360 19th Hole Drive, Suite 200 Windsor, CA 95492 THIS PAGE INTENTIONALLY LEFT BLANK Table of Contents Page Chapter 1. Wildlife Hazards and Aviation ........................................................................... 1 1.1 Background ............................................................................................................................................. 2 1.2 Wildlife Strike Data and Trends .............................................................................................................. 4 1.2.1 Increased Wildlife Strikes and Strike Reporting ........................................................................ 4 1.2.2 Rate of Damaging Strikes .......................................................................................................... 5 1.3 Community Efforts for Better Wildlife Hazard Management ................................................................... 5 Chapter 2. Regulations and Guidance ................................................................................ 7 2.1 Federal Regulations and Wildlife Hazard Management ......................................................................... 7 2.1.1 Title 14 of the Code of Federal Regulations (CFR), Part 139 ................................................... 7 2.1.2 Federal Grant Assurances ......................................................................................................... 7 2.1.3 Advisory Circulars and CertAlerts.............................................................................................. 9 2.1.4 Advisory Circular 150/5200-33B, Wildlife Hazards On and Near Airports ................................ 9 2.1.5 Interagency Memorandum of Agreement ................................................................................ 11 2.1.6 Other Federal Resources and Guidance ................................................................................. 11 2.2 State of California Regulations and Guidance ..................................................................................... 11 Chapter 3. Wildlife and Hazardous Wildlife Attractants in Riverside County ................ 13 3.1 General Environmental Setting ............................................................................................................. 13 3.2 The Pacific Flyway ................................................................................................................................ 13 3.2.1 Local Conditions that Accommodate Migratory Birds ............................................................. 16 3.2.2 Influence of Migration at Riverside County Airports ................................................................ 17 3.3 Hazardous Wildlife ................................................................................................................................ 17 3.3.1 Hazardous Wildlife Species ..................................................................................................... 17 3.3.2 Wildlife Strikes at Riverside County Airports ........................................................................... 18 3.4 Hazardous Wildlife Attractants ............................................................................................................. 20 3.4.1 Waste Collection, Transfer and Disposal Facilities ................................................................. 21 3.4.2 Water Management Facilities .................................................................................................. 21 3.4.3 Wetlands .................................................................................................................................. 22 3.4.4 Agricultural Activities ............................................................................................................... 23 3.4.5 Golf Courses ............................................................................................................................ 23 3.4.6 Landscaping and Vegetation ................................................................................................... 23 Chapter 4. Wildlife Hazard Management and Land Use Compatibility Planning ........... 25 4.1 Location of Wildlife Strikes ................................................................................................................... 25 4.1.1 Elevation of Wildlife Strikes (above ground level) ................................................................... 25 4.1.2 Wildlife Hazard Management Within the Airport Influence Area ............................................. 26 4.2 Effectiveness of Wildlife Management Policies .................................................................................... 27 Wildlife Hazard Management i October 2018 Riverside County Airports TABLE OF CONTENTS Chapter 5. Recommended Policies and Best Management Practices ............................ 29 5.1 Identify and Discourage Potentially Hazardous Wildlife On and Near Riverside County Airports ....... 29 5.2 Identify and Avoid New Land Uses that Could Attract Hazardous Wildlife .......................................... 33 5.3 Avoid Habitat Conservation for Hazardous Species On and Near Airports ......................................... 37 5.4 Review and Identify Appropriate Water Quality/Stormwater Management Designs for Projects Near Airports ................................................................................................................................................. 40 5.5 Review and Identify Appropriate Landscaping Designs and Plant Materials ....................................... 55 Chapter 6. References ....................................................................................................... 61 TABLES Table 2-1 FAA Advisory Circulars and CertAlerts ................................................................................... 9 Table 3-1 Ranking of the Relative Hazards to Aviation of 25 Wildlife Species ..................................... 18 Table 3-2 Wildlife Involved in FAA Strike Records for Airports in Riverside County, CA ..................... 20 Table 4-1 Height of Wildlife Strikes Above Ground Level Commercial and General Aviation Aircraft (1990 to 2015) ...................................................................................................................... 25 Table 4-2 Comparison of Wildlife Observed at BWI Marshall Airport 2001 v. 2012 ............................. 28 Table 5-1 Summary of Hazardous Wildlife Involved in Wildlife Strikes at ............................................ 30 Table 5-2 Land Use, Safety Considerations and Policy Recommendations Pertaining to Potentially Hazardous Wildlife In the AIA .............................................................................................. 34 Table 5-3 Risk Factors of Best Management Practice (BMP) Characteristics ..................................... 42 Table 5-4 Evaluation of Stormwater Best Management Practices and Adaptive Management Techniques for an Aviation Environment ............................................................................. 47 Table 5-5 Summary of Landscape Design Guidance for Projects Near Riverside County Airports ..... 56 Table 5-6 Acceptable Plants Identified in the Riverside County Landscaping Guide ................................. 58 EXHIBITS Figure 2-1 Separation distances within which hazardous wildlife attractants should be avoided, eliminated or mitigated (FAA, 2007). .................................................................................... 10 Figure 3-1 Pacific Flyway and Airport Locations, Riverside, California ................................................. 14 Figure 3-2 Migratory Bird Paths at the Salton Sea ................................................................................ 15 Figure 5-1 Multiple Species habitat Conservation Plan (MSHCP) Lands .............................................. 38 APPENDICES Appendix A. 14 CFR Part 139.337, “Wildlife Hazard Management” Appendix B. FAA AC 150, 5200-33B, “Wildlife Hazard Attractants On and Near Airports.” Appendix C. Wildlife Strikes at Riverside County Airports (1990 to 2016) Appendix D. CertAlert 06-07, “Requests by State Wildlife Agencies to Facilitate and Encourage Habitat for State-Listed Threatened and Endangered Species and Species of Special Concern on Airports” October 2018 ii Wildlife Hazard Management Riverside County Airports Chapter 1 Wildlife Hazards and Aviation Chapter 1. Wildlife Hazards and Aviation Conflicts between aircraft and wildlife have occurred since the dawn of aviation. Orville Wright was the pilot associated with the first documented bird strike in 1905 during a flight over Dayton, Ohio. The first fatality associated with a wildlife strike occurred on April 3, 1912, when Calbraith Rodgers died after his aircraft struck a gull and crashed in Long Beach, California. Photo 1: Calbraith Rodgers in flight. Source: Pioneers of Flight (pioneersofflight.si.edu). FAA and others have performed research regarding wildlife strikes for approximately five decades; FAA and other federal agencies have: • Tracked wildlife strike data since 1990 to identify the species struck most, the altitudes at which strikes occur most frequently, the type and extent of aircraft damage, and impact