San Bernardino National Forest Baldy Mesa Off-Highway Vehicle Trails and Staging Area Mitigated Negative Declaration March 2015 State of California Department of Parks and Recreation Off-Highway Motor Vehicle Recreation Division San Bernardino National Forest Baldy Mesa Off-Highway Vehicle Trails and Staging Area Mitigated Negative Declaration March 2015 Prepared for: State of California, Department of Parks and Recreation Off-Highway Motor Vehicle Recreation Division 1725 23rd Street, Suite 200 Sacramento, CA 95816 (916) 324-4442 www.ohv.parks.ca.gov Prepared by: MIG | TRA Environmental Sciences, Inc. 545 Middlefield Road, Suite 200 Menlo Park, CA 94025 (650) 327-0429 www.traenviro.com Mitigated Negative Declaration Page 1 MITIGATED NEGATIVE DECLARATION Project: Baldy Mesa OHV Trails and Staging Area Project Sponsor: San Bernardino National Forest Lead Agency: California Department of Parks and Recreation (CDPR), Off-Highway Motor Vehicle Recreation (OHMVR) Division Availability of Documents: The Initial Study (IS) for this Mitigated Negative Declaration is available for review at: San Bernardino National Forest 602 S. Tippecanoe Avenue San Bernardino, CA 92408 Contact: Al Colby, Grants Administrator Phone: (909) 382-2618 CDPR, OHMVR Division 1725 23rd Street, Suite 200 Sacramento, CA 95816 Contact: Maria A. Olmos Phone: (916) 445-1667 PROJECT DESCRIPTION The OHMVR Division proposes to award grant funds to the San Bernardino National Forest, Front County Ranger District and Southern California Mountains Foundation, for development of a 23-mile 50-inch Off Highway Vehicle (OHV) trail, staging area improvements, and obliteration and restoration of 55 miles of unauthorized trails in the Baldy Mesa OHV Area in San Bernardino County. The project includes new trail construction on four miles and upgrading 19 miles of user-created trail to U.S. Forest Service (USFS) standards. Closed trails would be ripped, seeded, and mulched. The 0.6-acre staging area improvements include k-rails around its perimeter to define its boundaries and contain vehicles to designated areas. REGULATORY GUIDANCE The San Bernardino National Forest previously prepared the Baldy Mesa OHV Trails and Staging Area Environmental Assessment (EA) (EA; September 2013) and Decision Notice and Finding of No Significant Impact (September 2013), which covered trail and staging area development and unauthorized trail restoration, pursuant to the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA). Awarding grant funds is a project under the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) (CEQA; Public Resources Code § 21000 et seq.) and the CEQA Guidelines (14 CCR §15000 et seq.). According to CEQA Guidelines Section 15070, a public agency shall prepare a proposed Negative Declaration (ND) or a Mitigated ND for a project when: 1. The IS shows that there is no substantial evidence, in light of the whole record before the agency, that the project may have a significant effect on the environment, or 2. The IS identifies potentially significant effects, but: - Revisions in the project plans made before a proposed Mitigated ND and IS are released for public review would avoid the effects or mitigate the effects to a point where clearly no significant effects would occur, and San Bernardino National Forest – Baldy Mesa OHV Trails and Staging Area Project Supplement to Environmental Assessment – March 2015 California Department of Parks & Recreation, Off-Highway Motor Vehicle Recreation Division Mitigated Negative Declaration Page 2 - There is no substantial evidence, in light of the whole record before the agency, that the project as revised may have a significant effect on the environment. CEQA and the CEQA Guidelines establish the OHMVR Division as the lead agency. The lead agency is defined in CEQA Guidelines Section 15367 as “the public agency which has the principal responsibility for carrying out or approving a project.” The lead agency shall conduct an IS to determine if the project may have a significant effect on the environment (CEQA Guidelines §15063(a)). To meet this requirement, “the lead agency may use an [EA] or similar analysis prepared pursuant to [NEPA]” (CEQA Guidelines §15063 (a)(2)). The OHMVR Division prepared a Supplement to the EA using the Environmental Checklist in CEQA Guidelines Appendix G to provide additional environmental analysis. The EA in conjunction with the Supplement comprise the IS used by the OHMVR Division to evaluate the potential for the project to have significant effects pursuant to CEQA Guidelines Section 15063 (a)(2). PROPOSED FINDING The OHMVR Division has reviewed the IS and determined that it identifies potentially significant project effects, but: 1. Revisions to the project plans and incorporated herein as mitigation would avoid the effects or mitigate the effects to a point where clearly no significant effects would occur, and 2. There is no substantial evidence, in light of the whole record before the agency, that the project may have a significant effect on the environment. Pursuant to California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) Guidelines Sections 15064(f)(3) and 15070(b), a Mitigated ND has been prepared for consideration as the appropriate CEQA document for the project. BASIS OF FINDING Based on the environmental evaluation presented in the IS, the project would not cause significant adverse effects related to aesthetics, agriculture/forestry resources, air quality, cultural resources, geology/soils, greenhouse gas emissions, hazards/hazardous materials, hydrology/water quality, land use/planning, mineral resources, noise, population/housing, public services, transportation/traffic, and utilities/service systems. The project does not affect any important examples of the major periods of California prehistory or history. The project does not have impacts that are individually limited, but cumulatively considerable. In addition, substantial direct, adverse effects on humans would not occur. The project could result in significant adverse effects to special-status plant species or roosting bats and nesting birds. However, the project has been revised to include the following measures, which reduce these impacts to a less-than-significant level. With implementation of these measures, the project would not substantially reduce the habitat of a fish or wildlife species, cause a fish or wildlife population to drop below self-sustaining levels, threaten to eliminate a plant or animal community, or substantially reduce the number or restrict the range of a rare or endangered plant or animal. The project could result in significant indirect adverse effects to humans by affecting recreation access. Proposed fencing could create conflicts with non-OHV recreation groups by blocking access to the Sanford-Mormon Trail. With mitigation this impact is reduced to a less-than- significant level. IMPACT BIO-1: The coast horned lizard (Phrynosoma coronatum blainvillii), a California Species of Special Concern, is known to occur in the project area and could be present in work San Bernardino National Forest – Baldy Mesa OHV Trails and Staging Area Project Supplement to Environmental Assessment – March 2015 California Department of Parks & Recreation, Off-Highway Motor Vehicle Recreation Division Mitigated Negative Declaration Page 3 areas. If present, coast horned lizard individuals could be harmed by vegetation removal, trail and fence construction activities, or vehicle movement. Mitigation Measure BIO-1: A qualified biologist shall conduct a survey for coast horned lizards to determine presence in the project area prior to any vegetation clearing. If no coast horned lizards are found, no further mitigation is necessary. • If the survey finds coast horned lizards, then during brush clearing, trail formalization and construction operations, and obliteration and restoration of unauthorized trails, any loose dirt and sand piles in temporarily impacted areas that will be left overnight shall be covered with tarps or plastic with the edges sealed to prevent coast horned lizards from burrowing into the dirt. • If the survey finds coast horned lizards, then the disturbance and/or removal of vegetation within the project area shall not exceed the minimum reasonably necessary to accomplish the project objectives. Precautions to avoid damage to areas outside the project disturbance boundary shall include construction flagging, clearly defined access routes, and minimized turning areas. • If the survey finds coast horned lizards, then an employee education program shall be conducted prior to brush clearing, trail development, and restoration activities. The program shall consist of a brief presentation by persons knowledgeable in California Species of Special Concern including the coast horned lizard and legislative protection to explain concerns to all personnel involved with vegetation removal and grading. The program would include the following: a description of the coast horned lizard and its habitat, an explanation of the status of the coast horned lizard, and a list of measures being taken to reduce impacts to the species during project activities. Crews shall be instructed that if a coast horned lizard is found, it is to be left alone and the construction manager must be notified immediately. • If the survey finds coast horned lizards, then vehicles shall not drive more than five miles per hour within the areas where clearing and grading are underway. If a coast horned lizard is seen in the path of a vehicle, the vehicle shall stop until the lizard is