Habitat Conservation Plan - Development:

The HCP is a legal document negotiated by a committee of stakeholders, private landowners, the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service, and the National Marine Fisheries Service to protect and enhance wildlife species of concern. A county-wide HCP document and an Environmental Impact Statement will be drafted and contain a series of management requirements for private lands, which when adopted, will mitigate the impacts of threatened and endangered species on individual farms. Each farmer, rancher, and orchardist will have the opportunity to voluntarily participate in this HCP. If they choose to do so, they then will enter into a process of developing a specific wildlife plan for their own farm, and in so doing, receive a guarantee of regulatory certainty, no sudden surprises demanding a change in the agreed upon management practices. They also will receive not only protection from prosecution for incidentally killing a threatened species or their habitat while farming, but safe harbor protection should abundant new wildlife move on to their land. Everyone will benefit. The wildlife is safe, and the landowners protected.

Implementation and Timeline: