Section 1930.5 Of Chapter 12. Significant Natural Areas From California Fish And Game Code >> Division 2. >> Chapter 12.
1930.5
. (a) Contingent upon funding being provided by the Wildlife
Conservation Board from moneys available pursuant to Section 75055 of
the Public Resources Code, or from other appropriate bond funds,
upon appropriation by the Legislature, the department shall
investigate, study, and identify those areas in the state that are
most essential as wildlife corridors and habitat linkages, as well as
the impacts to those wildlife corridors from climate change, and
shall prioritize vegetative data development in these areas.
(b) It is the intent of the Legislature that the Wildlife
Conservation Board use various funds to work with the department to
complete a statewide analysis of wildlife corridors and connectivity
to support conservation planning and climate change adaptation
activities.
(c) (1) It is the policy of the state to promote the voluntary
protection of wildlife corridors and habitat strongholds in order to
enhance the resiliency of wildlife and their habitats to climate
change, protect biodiversity, and allow for the migration and
movement of species by providing connectivity between habitat lands.
In order to further these goals, it is the policy of the state to
encourage, wherever feasible and practicable, voluntary steps to
protect the functioning of wildlife corridors through various means,
as applicable and to the extent feasible and practicable, those means
may include, but are not limited to:
(A) Acquisition or protection of wildlife corridors as open space
through conservation easements.
(B) Installing of wildlife-friendly or directional fencing.
(C) Siting of mitigation and conservation banks in areas that
provide habitat connectivity for affected fish and wildlife
resources.
(D) Provision of roadway undercrossings, overpasses, oversized
culverts, or bridges to allow for fish passage and the movement of
wildlife between habitat areas.
(2) The fact that a project applicant does not take voluntary
steps to protect the functioning of a wildlife corridor prior to
initiating the application process for a project shall not be grounds
for denying a permit or requiring additional mitigation beyond what
would be required to mitigate project impacts under other applicable
laws, including, but not limited to, the California Endangered
Species Act (Chapter 1.5 (commencing with Section 2050) of Division
3) and the California Environmental Quality Act (Division 13
(commencing with Section 21000) of the Public Resources Code).
(d) The Legislature finds and declares that there are a number of
existing efforts, including, but not limited to, efforts involving
working landscapes, that are already working to achieve the policy
described in subdivision (c).
(e) Subdivision (c) shall not be construed to create new
regulatory requirements or modify the requirements of subparagraphs
(B) and (E) of paragraph (4) of subdivision (a) of Section 2820 of
the Fish and Game Code, or the California Environmental Quality Act
(Division 13 (commencing with Section 21000) of the Public Resources
Code).
(f) For purposes of this section, the following terms have the
following meanings:
(1) "Habitat stronghold" means high-quality habitat that supports
wildlife in being more resilient to increasing pressures on species
due to climate change and land development.
(2) "Wildlife corridor" means a habitat linkage that joins two or
more areas of wildlife habitat, allowing for fish passage or the
movement of wildlife from one area to another.