Agmt 2006 State Coastal Conservancy

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e e Conservancy in connection with the initial funding authorizations and have not changed. .Disbursement of additional funds for these same treatment and eradication projects is, thus, consistent with the previous CEQA finding: that the environmental effects associated with the treatment and eradication under this . authorization and the mitigation measures to reduce or, avoid those effects were fully identified and considered in the FEIS/R adopted by the Conservancy September 25,2003. (See Exhibits land 2). . . 4. The proposed authorization is consistent with the Project Selection Criteria and Guidelines adopted by the Conservancy on January 24, 2001. 5. The California Wildlife Foundation and Friends of Corte Madera Creek Watershed are private nonprofit organizations existing under Section SOl(c)(3) of the United States Internal Revenue Code, whose purposes are consistent with Division 21. 0f the California Public Resources Code." . PROJECT DESCRIPTION: Introduction As explained in detail in previous staff recommendations (Exhibits 1 and 2), treatment and control of invasive Spartina and its hybrids within the San Francisco Bay Estuary is critical to the lorlg-term health of the Estuary and to the species which inhabit and rely upon the salt marshes and tidal flats along its perimeter. Invasive Spartina spreads at a greater than exponential rate, and every marsh restoration project implemented within the south and central San Francisco Bay Estuary in the past 15 years has been' invaded by non-native invasive Spartina. Since 1999, the Conservancy has managed the regionally coordinated effort to address the problem. Since 2003 the Conservancy advanced the project through the following authorizations: . In September 2003 and June 2004, the Conservancy l) certified the "Final Programmatic Environmental Impact StatementlEnvironmental Impact Report, San Francisco Estuary Invasive Spartina Project: Spartina Control Program" (FEIS/R); 2) authorized disbursement of Conservancy funds as contracts for environmental consulting services needed to operate and manage the Control. Program, and as a grant to the Association of Bay Area Governments (ABAG) to initiate a signage program; and 3) authorized disbursement of funds available. from two CALFED grants, as separate grants to ten organiiations for implementation of Phase I of the Control Program involving treatment and removal of invasive Spartina on 12 demonstration sites. . In March and June 2005, the Conservancy authorized implementation of Phase II of the Control Program through 2006 induding 1) ongoing and expanded environmental consulting services to prepare 23 site-specif~ plans covering 132 sub-sites, and environmental documentation, mapping and monitoring; 2) augmentation of existing grants and awards of new grants to. organizations to implement treatment in 2005 and 2006 for all known infested sites throughout the Estuary; and 3) augmentation of a grant to ABAG to coordinate with partners to 0-3 i:~XHjB! t 'i .,