Appendix E.14 Spotlight Surveys Report California Flats Solar Project Spotlight Surveys for San Joaquin Kit Fox and American Badger Project # 3308 Prepared for: California Flats Solar, LLC 135 Main Street, 6th Floor San Francisco, CA 94105 Prepared by: H. T. Harvey & Associates April 2014 Cal Poly Technology Park, Bldg. 83, Ste. 1B San Luis Obispo, CA 93407 Ph: 805.756.7400 F: 805.756.7441 Executive Summary The California Flats Solar Project (Project) is a 280-megawatt photovoltaic solar power plant proposed for development in southeastern Monterey County, California. When approved, the solar facility and related operations infrastructure will be built on approximately 1037 hectares (2562 acres) (Project site) of the 29,137-hectare (72,000-acre) Jack Ranch, which is a working cattle ranch. The overall development will include improvements to an existing access road and its connection to State Route 41 (access road/Hwy 41 improvement areas). Together, the Project site and access road/Hwy 41 improvement areas constitute the 1058-hectare (2615-acre) Project impact area (PIA), where all direct, Project-related impacts will occur. A biological study area (BSA) was delineated around the PIA, within which most Project-related biological surveys and assessments are being conducted. The Project site is located within a landscape dominated by gently rolling terrain and grasslands, interspersed with several, mostly ephemeral, riparian corridors and drainages. Numerous wildlife species are known to occur in the region, some of which have been identified as candidate, sensitive, or special-status species in local or regional plans, policies, or regulations, or by the California Department of Fish and Wildlife (CDFW) and/or U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. In particular, the CDFW California Natural Diversity Database contains 47 records of the state- and federally endangered San Joaquin kit fox (Vulpes macrotis mutica), observed at locations within 32 kilometers (~20 miles) of the Project site. Likewise, the American badger, a CDFW California Mammalian Species of Special Concern, is documented from 17 locales within 32 kilometers (~20 miles) of the Project site. The spotlight survey results, reported here, along with the results of previous surveys conducted throughout the PIA and in the Project vicinity, provide strong evidence that San Joaquin kit fox do not commonly occur on the Project site, yet regularly occur within the lowlands of the Cholame Valley. Spotlight surveys in the winter of 2012 and fall of 2013 resulted in the observation of four San Joaquin kit fox and seven American badgers. San Joaquin kit fox were observed along the access road corridor, within the lowlands of the Cholame Valley, and within linkage habitat mapped by Penrod et al. (2010) south of Cholame Valley. San Joaquin kit fox were not observed on the Project site. American badgers were observed within the Project site and within the lowlands of the Cholame Valley, and are considered likely to occupy habitats throughout the PIA and the Project vicinity. California Flats Solar Project H. T. Harvey & Associates i Spotlight Surveys April 2014 Table of Contents Section 1.0 Introduction ............................................................................................................................................. 1 Section 2.0 Methods .................................................................................................................................................... 5 2.1 Study Area .......................................................................................................................................................... 5 2.2 Survey Methods ................................................................................................................................................ 5 2.2.1 Survey Sessions ....................................................................................................................................... 5 2.2.2 Spotlighting .............................................................................................................................................. 5 Section 3.0 Results ....................................................................................................................................................... 8 3.1 Spotlight Surveys .............................................................................................................................................. 8 3.2 San Joaquin Kit Fox ......................................................................................................................................... 9 3.3 American Badger .............................................................................................................................................. 9 3.4 Other Wildlife ................................................................................................................................................... 9 3.5 Feral Species .................................................................................................................................................... 12 Section 4.0 Discussion............................................................................................................................................... 13 4.1 San Joaquin Kit Fox ....................................................................................................................................... 13 4.1.1 Habitat Use and Distribution.............................................................................................................. 13 4.1.2 Suitability of Habitat within the Project Site .................................................................................... 14 4.1.3 Suitability of the Project Site as a Corridor ...................................................................................... 14 4.2 American Badger ............................................................................................................................................ 15 4.2.1 Habitat Use and Distribution.............................................................................................................. 15 4.3 Feral Species .................................................................................................................................................... 16 Section 5.0 Conclusion .............................................................................................................................................. 17 5.1 San Joaquin Kit Fox ....................................................................................................................................... 17 5.2 American Badger ............................................................................................................................................ 17 Section 6.0 References ............................................................................................................................................... 18 Figures and Table Figure 1. Vicinity Map ........................................................................................................................................................ 2 Figure 2. Occurrences of Special-status Species within 32 kilometers (~20 miles) of the Project Site ................ 3 Figure 3. 2012 Spotlight Survey Routes .......................................................................................................................... 6 Figure 4. 2013 Spotlight Survey Routes .......................................................................................................................... 7 Figure 5. Wildlife Observed during Spotlight Surveys 2012–2013 ........................................................................... 10 Figure 6. San Joaquin Kit Fox and American Badger Observed during Spotlight Surveys 2012–2013 ............. 11 Table 1. Wildlife Observed during Spotlight Surveys 2012–2013 .............................................................................. 8 California Flats Solar Project H. T. Harvey & Associates ii Spotlight Surveys April 2014 Contributors Brian Boroski, Ph.D., Vice President and Senior Wildlife Ecologist—Principal-in-Charge Daniel G. Duke, J.D., Associate, Senior Regulatory Specialist Robert K. Burton, Ph.D., Senior Ecologist, Project Manager Howard O. Clark, Jr., M.S., Senior Ecologist California Flats Solar Project H. T. Harvey & Associates iii Spotlight Surveys April 2014 Section 1.0 Introduction The California Flats Solar Project (Project) is a 280-megawatt photovoltaic solar power plant proposed for development in southeastern Monterey County, California (Figure 1). When approved, the solar facility and related operational infrastructure (Project site) will be built on approximately 1037 hectares (2562 acres) of private ranchland. The 29,137-hectare (72,000-acre) Jack Ranch is a working cattle ranch located in an unincorporated area of southeastern Monterey County and northeastern San Luis Obispo County, near the borders of Kings and Fresno counties. The Project will include construction, installation, and operation of energy-related infrastructure (e.g., solar panels, inverters, substations, and new power poles and transmission lines) and improvements needed to operate and maintain facilities (e.g., buildings, internal roadways, access roads, fencing, and lighting). The Morro Bay–Gates 230-kilovolt transmission line crosses the Project site, with capacity sufficient
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