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Plains - All American Oak Mitigation Project
Plains - All American Project - Oak Habitat Loss
The Plains - All American (AAPL) Project involves the operation of a large diameter
buried crude oil
pipeline, designed to carry 300,000 barrels
per day of locally produced petroleum to refinery destinations outside
Santa Barbara County. The vast scope of the project and its course
through various sensitive habitat areas called for an Environmental
Impact Report (EIR)
to assess the project's adverse consequences to area resources. The
EIR concluded that installation of the AAPL would result in significant
impacts to riparian and oak woodland habitats. Mitigations proposed
to minimize impacts required narrowing the pipeline right-of-way to
50 feet in these habitats and avoidance of the largest trees where
possible. AAPL committed to these measures in the EIR, yet the residual
impact was recognized as significant.
Project approval imposed a condition requiring the pipeline operator
to develop a Restoration, Erosion Control, and Revegetation Plan
(RECRP). The plan is intended to affect soil stabilization and erosion
control along the pipeline right-of-way to mitigate the land disturbance
that resulted from pipeline installation. The RECRP included an
Off-site Oak Mitigation Program in response to the County mandate
that all trees removed by construction be replaced.
While it had been forecast that 500, or perhaps as few as 250 oak
trees would be lost, the actual number removed by construction was
approximately 2,300. Three separate oak species were impacted: valley
oaks (82), coast live oaks (1,303), and blue oaks (878).
On November 23, 1987 the Planning Commission approved modifications
to the Offsite Oak Mitigation Plan to account for the unanticipated
mass of trees impacted through pipeline construction. All American
agreed to launch an extensive acorn planting program to compensate
for losses of the three oak populations. All American also agreed
to install protective faunal exclosures, employ weed control, implement
an irrigation system, and monitor oak regeneration success.
Monitoring efforts revealed that the
restoration plan was ineffective, illuminating
difficulties inherent to large-scale
oak regeneration. A Condition Effectiveness
Study (B-2
Review) of AAPL's Final Development
Plan in 1992 examined the failed Oak
Mitigation Plan and spurred the development
of an alternative program. A revised
mitigation program was approved the County
Planning Commission on December 16, 1992.
The program was launched with a one-time
payment from AAPL in the amount of $841,000,
of which $141,000 covered start-up costs
and $700,000 is held as a perpetual oak
restoration endowment fund. The interest
income from the endowment is earmarked
for oak restoration in the County.
The program was implemented at the University
of California’s Sedgwick Reserve
near Santa Ynez, under a contract with
UCSB. The management plan developed by
USCB researchers and County staff is
three-pronged, including large scale
oak tree planting experiments, research
on factors affecting oak habitat restoration,
and public outreach. The oak trees are
planted from acorns, and are allowed
to grow naturally, without water, fertilizer,
etc. Different plots receive different
treatments (e.g., fencing, rodent exclosures,
cattle grazing). Out of more than 8,000
acorns planted in 5 plantings since 1996,
approximately 800 were alive as of Spring,
2004. Some of the questions being addressed
in the experiments include: How does
managed cattle grazing affect seedling
survival? How significantly do rodents,
wild pigs, and wild grazers affect seedling
survival? How many acorns must you plant
on average for one seedling to survive,
in the absence of watering and intensive
management practices? How long does it
take for a seedling’s roots to
reach down to perennial water sources.
For detailed information please refer
to the UCSB final report, which is posted
on the UCSB- Santa Barbara County Oak
Restoration Project website.
The UCSB contract expired in August,
2005. Planning and Development staff
reviewed the accomplishments of the 10-year
research/restoration program and prepared
a summary report for the Planning Commission.
The Planning Commission hearing, originally
scheduled for January 25, 2006, was postponed
in order to involve the County’s
newly hired oak tree specialist and the
Agricultural Commissioner’s office
in the program review. An addendum to
the staff report was prepared following
the joint review process, and the 10-year
review was presented at the Planning
Commission hearing of April 5, 2006.
Both the staff report and addendum can
be viewed at the Planning
Commission website.
The Planning Commission voted unanimously
to extend UCSB’s Oak Restoration
Program at Sedgwick for 7 years, with
a guaranteed funding of $20,000 per year.
The program will be administered through
the Agricultural Commissioner’s
Office. Any income from the AAPL endowment
fund exceeding UCSB’s allotment
will be directed to the Agricultural
Commissioner’s Oak Tree Regeneration
Program, to be used solely for reestablishment
of oak savannahs and woodlands. The program
will be reviewed by the Planning Commission
again in 7 years.
For further information, please contact
Lottie Martin, Oak Tree Specialist (934-6200).
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