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recommendations regarding mitigation measures for potential impacts to those special status species and/or sensitive habitats that may occur within or be affected by the proposed project. Special status species include those plants and wildlife species that have been formally listed, are proposed as endangered or threatened, or are candidates for such listing under the federal Endangered Species Act (ESA) or California Endangered Species Act (CESA). These acts afford protection to both listed and proposed species. In addition, California Department ofFish and Game (CDFG) Species of Special Concern, which are species that face extirpation in California if current population and habitat trends continue, and U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) Species of Concern are considered special status species. The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (Corps) regulates "Waters of the United States" under Section 404 of the Clean Water Act. "Waters of the United States" are defmed broadly as waters susceptible to use in commerce, including interstate waters and wetlands, all other waters (intrastate water bodies, including wetlands), and their tributaries (33 CFR 328.3). Potential wetland areas, according to the three criteria used to delineate wetlands stated in the Corps' Wetlands Delineation Manual (1987), are identified by the presence of: 1) hydrophytic vegetation; 2) hydric soils; and 3) wetland hydrology. Under Section 404 of the Clean Water Act, Corps jurisdiction in the slough channel extends to the high tide line, calculated as +8.18 feet NorthAmerican Vertical Datum (NA VD). Under Section 10 of the 1899 Rivers and Harbors Act, Corps jurisdiction in the Oyster Slough channel extends to mean high water level, given as +6.18 feet NA VD. Tidal waters are also under the jurisdiction of the Regional Water Quality Control Board (RWQCB) and the Bay Conservation and Development Commission (BCDC). The jurisdiction area of the RWQCB in tidal areas is the same as that of the Corps. Under the McAteer~Petris Act, BCDC jurisdiction in tidal waters of San Francisco Bay extends to five feet above mean sea level, which in the slough extends to +8.31 feet NA YD. On April 27 and 29, 2004, the study area was traversed on foot to determine plant communities present within the study area, whether existing conditions provided suitable habitat for any special status plant or wildlife species, and whether sensitive habitats were present. The study area is bounded by Oakland International Airport and recreation/golf course uses on the north; industrial development to the east; and the Oyster Bay Regional Shoreline Park to the south. Plant communities in the study area include coastal salt marsh (middle and low), non~native annual grassland, and coyote brush scrub. Large portions of the study area are unvegetated, either naturally (mudflat) or due to development (riprap and gravel surfaces). The northern coastal salt marsh in the study area is considered a sensitive plant community by CDFG. This wetland community includes low and middle marsh vegetation communities. No other sensitive habitats occur in or adjacent to the study area. Wetlands and waters potentially under the jurisdiction of the Corps, the RWQCB, and BCDC are located within and/or adjacent to the study area. Approximately 0.03 acre of tidal salt marsh occurs in the study area on the north levee bank. Low marsh (cordgrass) occupies about 0.01 acre and Y4204IS.00693.doc - 4/5/07 -14-