Landscape Conservation and Advance Mitigation Planning

Landscape conservation and advance mitigation planning identifies priority mitigation and conservation areas before impacts occur, with the goal of preserving larger areas of higher habitat quality and increasing wildlife connectivity. This type of advance planning also results in more efficient and streamlined permitting for development projects.

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Programs

NCCP

Natural Community Conservation Planning

The Natural Community Conservation Planning (NCCP) Program promotes collaborative planning efforts designed to provide a long-term, regional-scale permit resulting in the conservation of plants, animals, and their habitats, while allowing for compatible and appropriate economic activity.

RCIS

Regional Conservation Investment Strategies

The Regional Conservation Investment Strategies (RCIS) Program encourages a voluntary, non-regulatory regional planning process intended to result in high-quality conservation outcomes through Regional Conservation Assessments (RCAs), Regional Conservation Investment Strategies (RCISs), and Mitigation Credit Agreements (MCAs).

Conservation Banking

Conservation and Mitigation Banking

The Conservation and Mitigation Banking Program protects and manages land based on its natural resource values. In exchange, mitigation credits are established to be sold to permittees needing compensatory mitigation for environmental impacts from their projects. The program is a multi-agency effort and involves state and federal agencies outside of CDFW.

Wildlife Connectivity

Connectivity Advance Mitigation

The Connectivity Advance Mitigation Program establishes advance mitigation credits within Conservation and Mitigation banks or Mitigation Credit Agreements for wildlife connectivity actions.

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Advance Mitigation

Advance mitigation includes preserving, establishing, and protecting land prior to identifying compensatory mitigation required through permitting. By mitigating in advance, mitigation can be directed toward priority conservation areas to achieve greater regional conservation benefits. CDFW programs that include advance mitigation include: NCCPs, Banking, and MCAs within the RCIS Program.

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Entity Due Diligence for Mitigation Lands

Entities seeking to hold conservation easements or manage and steward mitigation lands must be reviewed by CDFW through the Entity Due Diligence process. Additionally, entities proposed to hold endowments must also be reviewed to ensure they are meeting specific requirements.

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Conservation Planning Data and Tools

Large-scale conservation planning within California and in the Western United States depends on GIS data layers and decision support tools. These links are a guide to the correct use and availability of some of these tools.

Habitat Conservation Planning Branch
P.O. Box 944209, Sacramento, CA 94244-2090
HCPB@wildlife.ca.gov