Glossary

Flood zones are defined by the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) to identify varying levels of flood risk and inform the Flood Insurance Rate Map. Floods are the second-most common natural disaster, and they often occur quickly in low-lying areas after heavy rains. The 100-year floodplain is the area that has a 1-percent-annual-chance of flooding and is also referred to as the base flood, while moderate flood hazard areas are between the limits of the base flood and the 0.2-percent-annual-chance or 500-year flood.

Flood zones are defined by the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) to identify varying levels of flood risk and inform the Flood Insurance Rate Map. Floods are the second-most common natural disaster, and they often occur quickly in low-lying areas after heavy rains. The 500-year floodplain is the area that has a 0.2-percent annual chance of flooding and is also referred to as the moderate flood hazard area. These are between the limits of the 1-percent-annual-chance (base flood) and the 0.2-percent-annual-chance.

The amount of carbon stored in live vegetation such as trees, shrubs, and grasses. A common method to estimate aboveground carbon includes transferring calculations of biomass sampled at the plot scale to remotely-sensed data such as satellite imagery or aerial LiDAR, using metrics such as vegetation type, size class, and canopy density. Broadcasting individual biomass samples to remotely-sensed data enables wide-area estimation of carbon storage.

Jurisdiction: Gilroy. Protection: The agricultural buffer/agricultural transition area shall be a minimum of 150 feet measured from the edge of the agricultural, agricultural preserve, greenbelt area. No public access shall be allowed in this transition area due to the potential for complaints about and exposure to the dust and spraying associated with agricultural activities. Agricultural mitigation requires equal protection (1:1 ratio) for the loss of agricultural lands that no longer will be designated agricultural land due to conversion to urban uses.

Jurisdiction: Brentwood. Protection: Preserve designated agricultural lands in Brentwood's Planning Area. For example, the City's policies require the use of buffers such as greenbelts, drainage features, parks, or other improved and maintained features in order to separate residential and other sensitive land uses, such as schools and hospitals, from agricultural lands and agricultural operations. 

Jurisdiction: San Mateo County. Protection: Privately owned lands meeting zoning designation and general land use criteria for eligibility under the Williamson Act for landowners considering entering into an Agricultural Preserve and Williamson Act contract. The Area is non-regulatory and non-obligatory.

California's Farmland Mapping and Monitoring Program (FMMP) produces maps and statistical data used for analyzing impacts on California’s agricultural resources. Agricultural land is rated according to soil quality and irrigation status; the best quality land is called Prime Farmland. The maps are updated every two years. In addition to categorizing the quality of agricultural lands as Prime, Statewide, or Unique, counties can also designate land as farmland of Local Importance.  

Jurisdictional policies adopted to protect farms and ranches from urban development. Policies include Napa County's Measure J (extended to 2058 as Measure P in 2008) and Solano County's Orderly Growth Initiative (extended to 2028 as Measure T in 2008), in which changes to General Plan policies describing intent, minimum parcel size and maximum building intensity of lands designated "Agricultural Resource" or "Agriculture, Watershed, Open Space" cannot occur unless approved by the voters. Includes city and county area policies that prioritize agricultural conservation of natural resources and preservation of farms and ranches, based upon counties' general plans and zoning maps.

Jurisdiction: Morgan Hill. Protection: Agricultural Priority Areas are identified as Morgan Hill's first priority for conservation inside the city's sphere of influence.

Jurisdiction: U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service, Alameda County, Contra Costa County. Protection: When a species is proposed for listing as endangered or threatened under the U.S. Endangered Species Act, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) must consider whether there are areas of habitat believed to be essential to the species' conservation. Those areas may be proposed for designation as critical habitat. Critical habitat for the Alameda whipsnake was designated by USFWS in 2006. 

Jurisdiction: U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service, Alameda County, Contra Costa County. Protection: The Altamont Pass Wind Resources Area Conservation Plan is being developed to minimize impacts to birds caused by wind turbines, and conserve birds and other terrestrial species while allowing wind energy development and operations in the area.

Jurisdiction: U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service, California Department of Fish & Wildlife, Alameda County, Contra Costa County. Protection: Antioch Dunes evening-primrose is a California endangered plant species, which means that killing or possession of plants collected from the wild is prohibited by the California Endangered Species Act (CESA). Antioch Dunes evening-primrose is a short-lived perennial plant found at the Antioch Dunes National Wildlife Refuge. 

Stormwater runoff can carry pollutants from the surrounding landscape into stormwater drains, which are then delivered to streams. The Avoided Pollutant Load map shows the amount (or "load", in kilograms/year) of nitrogen that is infiltrated along with stormwater runoff over an annual period. The load is based on typical stormwater nitrogen concentrations and the annual runoff retention volume, which is a function of land cover and soil type. For more info, see Stormwater management services maps for the San Francisco Bay Area.

Jurisdiction: U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service, California Department of Fish & Wildlife, Alameda County, Contra Costa County. Protection: Baker’s larkspur is a California endangered plant species, which means that killing or possessing plants is prohibited by the California Endangered Species Act (CESA). The species is also listed as endangered under the federal Endangered Species Act. 

One of the 22 conservation elements defined in the North Bay RCIS. These are the focus of defined Goals, Objectives, and Actions that people can take to protect or restore the subject of the element, which can be a species, habitat, or process. Find detailed information about Bat Habitat in the RCIS final document.

Large Landscape Blocks are areas of high ecological integrity that build upon existing protected areas and serve as the end points for the Critical Linkages. The California Protected Areas Database and Conservation Easements were used as the foundation to delineate large landscape blocks for the greater Bay Area. Protected areas were aggregated if within 500m of each other (easements whose primary purpose was agriculture, farmland, or cultural/historical were excluded from this step). Urban land was then removed from the resulting 500m aggregation to ensure only natural, grazing, and agriculture land was included in the aggregation, along with protected lands and conservation easements. A roadless area analysis was then conducted to identify areas of high ecological integrity.

Penrod, K., P. E. Garding, C. Paulman, P. Beier, S. Weiss, N. Schaefer, and R. Branciforte. 2013. Critical Linkages: Bay Area & Beyond. Produced by Science & Collaboration for Connected Wildlands, Fair Oaks, CA www.scwildlands.org in collaboration with the Conservation Lands Network www.BayAreaLands.org.

The broader regions of connectivity important to facilitate the movement of multiple species and maintain ecological processes. The Bay Area Critical Linkages is a network of habitat linkages designed for a number of focal species. These linkages, together with the large landscape blocks they connect and the key riparian corridors, buffer zones, and important baylands they encompass, represent the mosaic of habitat needed for conserving biodiversity. The Bay Area Critical Linkages is meant to build upon our existing conservation investments and identify those areas needed to maintain those investments.

Penrod, K., P. E. Garding, C. Paulman, P. Beier, S. Weiss, N. Schaefer, and R. Branciforte. 2013. Critical Linkages: Bay Area & Beyond. Produced by Science & Collaboration for Connected Wildlands, Fair Oaks, CA www.scwildlands.org in collaboration with the Conservation Lands Network www.BayAreaLands.org.

Jurisdiction: U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service, Alameda County, Contra Costa County. Protection: This species has been listed by the USFWS as threatened, meaning the species is likely to become endangered in the foreseeable future throughout all or a significant portion of its range, but they are not in danger of extinction right now. Critical habitat was finalized for this species in 2008.

Jurisdiction: California Department of Water Resources, U.S. Bureau of Reclamation. Protection: The Plan goals are to provide for the conservation and management of endangered and threatened species through habitat preservation and restoration as well as to streamline the environmental permitting process for water projects and some development in the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta region.

The San Francisco Bay has lost an estimated 85 percent of its historic wetlands to development or other alteration. Thus, all remaining wetland habitat is a conservation priority. The San Francisco Estuary Institute's (SFEI) map of modern baylands shows remnant tidal marsh, as well as filled and diked former baylands. Learn more about the baylands at http://www.sfei.org/ecoatlas.

The areas identified as important for protection and conservation falling under the jurisdiction of the Bay Conservation and Development Commission (BCDC). The Commission holds authority over development projects within the San Francisco Bay region, including Suisun, San Pablo, Honker, Richardson, San Rafael, San Leandro and Grizzly Bays and the Carquinez Strait; certain waterways that flow into the Bay; certain salt ponds or managed wetlands around the Bay; a shoreline band jurisdiction which extends 100 feet inland from the Bay; and the Suisun Marsh. Data layer created by Greenbelt Alliance based upon plan maps and jurisdictional coverage description available through San Francisco Bay Plan website.

Jurisdiction: San Francisco Bay Conservation and Development Commission (BCDC). Protection: BCDC is a California state planning and regulatory agency with regional authority over the San Francisco Bay, the Bay’s shoreline band, and the Suisun Marsh. Its mission is to protect and enhance San Francisco Bay and to encourage the Bay’s responsible and productive use for this and future generations. State law requires sponsors of projects that propose to fill or extract materials from the Bay to apply for a BCDC permit. In addition to minimizing any fill required for an appropriate project and ensuring that the project is compatible with the conservation of Bay resources, BCDC is tasked with requiring maximum feasible public access within the Bay’s 100-foot shoreline band.

Jurisdiction: Benicia. Protection: Ensure that new development is compatible with the surrounding architectural and neighborhood character. Require preservation of open space corridors between Lake Herman, Sulphur Springs Mountain, the Northern Area, the northeast hills, the Benicia State Recreation Area, and the marshlands east of I-680.

This data set uses the following bike path classifications from cities and counties throughout the region:

Class I: Off-Street Shared-Use Path - A bikeway physically separated from motorized vehicular traffic by an open space or barrier. Pedestrians, skaters, wheelchair users, joggers, and other non-motorized users typically use shared-use paths.

Class II: Bike Lane - Portion of the roadway that has been designated by striping, signing and pavement markings for the preferential or exclusive use of bicycles. Some cities and counties also define wide shoulders as bike lanes. Always ride about 4 feet from parked cars to avoid the door zone.

Class III: On-Street Bike Route - Any road or street designated for bicycle travel. These routes are not for the exclusive use of cyclists. Often, routes include residential streets with low auto volumes and speeds.

Jurisdiction: Union City. Protection: On sites that have the potential to contain critical or sensitive habitats, or special-species, or are within 100 feet of such areas, the City shall require the project applicant to survey the site by a qualified biologist at the proper time of year. Appropriate mitigation measures will be incorporated into the project as necessary to protect the resources.

Jurisdiction: Alameda County, Castro Valley. Protection: Limit the amount of impervious surface within 100 feet of the top of the creek bed channel to limit erosion and acceleration of water flow into the creek channel. The city protects natural wildlife via conservation. This will feature open space connected to large habitat areas. Conservation encourages landowners to initiate easements that protects wildlife.

Jurisdiction: Fremont. Protection: Evaluate development within 100 feet of the top of bank of riparian areas and water bodies, including creeks, lakes, ponds, marshes, and vernal pools. This distance shall be increased to 200 feet in areas above the toe of the hill. Carefully assess the extent and characteristics of riparian corridors and creeks to a minimum distance of 100 feet from the top of bank below the toe of the hill and 200 feet from the top of bank above the toe of the hill. 

Jurisdiction: Petaluma. Protection: Create setbacks for all tributaries to the Petaluma River extending a minimum of 50 feet outward from the top of each bank, with extended buffers where significant habitat areas, vernal pools, or wetlands exist. Development shall not occur within this setback, except as part of greenway enhancement (for example, trails and bikeways). 

Jurisdiction: Contra Costa County, Martinez, Pleasant Hill, Walnut Creek, Lafayette, Orinda, Richmond, Pinole, and Hercules. Protection:  The Briones Hills Agricultural Preserve Area Compact was made in 1988 between Contra Costy County and the Cities of Martinez, Pleasant Hill, Walnut Creek, Lafayette, Orinda, Richmond, Pinole, and Hercules. The signatories agree not to annex lands in the Briones Hills planning area for urban development. This area also includes East Bay Regional Park District lands and large tracts of agricultural land east of EBMUD watershed lands.

One of the 22 conservation elements defined in the North Bay RCIS. These are the focus of defined Goals, Objectives, and Actions that people can take to protect or restore the subject of the element, which can be a species, habitat, or process. Find detailed information about Burrowing Owl in the RCIS final document.

The California Assembly is the lower house of California State Legislature that first votes on resolutions before the California State Senate.There are 80 districts within California each with one representative in the assembly.

One of the 22 conservation elements defined in the North Bay RCIS. These are the focus of defined Goals, Objectives, and Actions that people can take to protect or restore the subject of the element, which can be a species, habitat, or process. Find detailed information about California Black Rail in the RCIS final document.

Jurisdiction: CA Coastal Commission Protection: Along with the Bay Conservation and Development Commission (BCDC), and the California Coastal Conservancy, the Coastal Commission is one of California's three designated coastal management agencies for the purpose of administering the federal Coastal Zone Management Act (CZMA) in California. Under California's federally-approved Coastal Management Program, the California Coastal Commission manages development along the California coast except for San Francisco Bay, where the San Francisco Bay Conservation and Development Commission oversees development. The third agency, the California Coastal Conservancy, purchases, protects, restores, and enhances coastal resources. The primary authorities for the Coastal Program are the California Coastal Act, McAteer-Petris Act, and Suisan Marsh Preservation Act.

Jurisdiction: U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service, Alameda County, Contra Costa County. Protection: the California red-legged frog is federally listed under the Endangered Species Act as a threatened species throughout its range in California. Critical habitat was revised and finalized for this species by USFWS in 2010. 

One of the 22 conservation elements defined in the North Bay RCIS. These are the focus of defined Goals, Objectives, and Actions that people can take to protect or restore the subject of the element, which can be a species, habitat, or process. Find detailed information about California Red-Legged Frog in the RCIS final document. https://scta.ca.gov/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/BAYLANDS-CONSERVATION-STRATEGY-COMPLETE_UPDATED-ADA-508-Final.pdf#page=110

One of the 22 conservation elements defined in the North Bay RCIS. These are the focus of defined Goals, Objectives, and Actions that people can take to protect or restore the subject of the element, which can be a species, habitat, or process. Find detailed information about California Ridgway's Rail in the RCIS final document.

The California State Senate is the upper house of the California State Legislature. There are a total of 40 senate districts within California.

Jurisdiction: U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service, Alameda County, Contra Costa County. Protection: The California tiger salamanders around Sonoma County and Santa Barbara are endangered, which means they are in danger of extinction throughout all or a significant portion of its range. California tiger salamanders in the Central Valley are threatened. The species is likely to become endangered in the foreseeable future throughout all or a significant portion of its range, but they are not in danger of extinction right now. USFWS designated critical habitat for this species in 2011.

Preserving prime agricultural lands and open space is a key statutory mandate of California's Local Agency Formation Commissions (Cortese-Knox Hertzberg Act 2000, Gov. Code §56301). The Storie Index is a soil rating based on soil characteristics that govern the land's potential utilization and agricultural capacity. Lands with an index score of 80-100 or Grade 1 are statutorily defined as prime agricultural land. This land valuation is independent of other physical or economic factors that might determine the desirability of growing certain plants in a given location. The characteristics evaluated include suitable soil profiles, surface texture, slope, and dynamic properties. 

One of the 22 conservation elements defined in the North Bay RCIS. These are the focus of defined Goals, Objectives, and Actions that people can take to protect or restore the subject of the element, which can be a species, habitat, or process. Find detailed information about Central California Coast Steelhead in the RCIS final document.

One of the 22 conservation elements defined in the North Bay RCIS. These are the focus of defined Goals, Objectives, and Actions that people can take to protect or restore the subject of the element, which can be a species, habitat, or process. Find detailed information about Chinook Salmon in the RCIS final document.

Jurisdiction: U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service, Alameda County, Contra Costa County. Protection: Chinook have been classified into six major groups, or Evolutionarily Significant Units (ESUs) by NOAA Fisheries. The California Coastal Chinook Salmon ESU includes all natural spawning populations of Chinook Salmon from rivers and streams south of the Klamath River to the Russian River. Due to concern over depressed population sizes relative to historical abundance, California Coastal Chinook Salmon was federally listed as threatened in 1999. 

A city's boundary that defines where urban services and utilities are provided.

A city boundary not regulated by the county Local Agency Formation Commission. For a city, the planning area boundary typically coincides with the sphere of influence that encompasses land both within the city limits and potentially annexable land.

Used as part of the North Bay RCIS tool to highlight actions that support climate change resilience. This is one of 12 themes developed via user research by GreenInfo to help users find the most relevant of 150 actions in the North Bay RCIS.

Climate migration routes are movement pathways to help wildlife adapt to climate change. Plants and animals have specific habitat requirements and lack the ability to change their environment, and so, as their current habitat becomes unsuitable they may search out new, more suitable habitat in response to changing conditions. These pathways connect current climate to similar climate in the future along microclimate stepping stones.

The California Air Resources Board created this data to help ensure that the state's landmark climate funding is distributed to communities that most need support. Certain populations are especially vulnerable to the impacts of climate change.  At least 35 percent of California Climate Investments must benefit from these populations, which include disadvantaged communities, low-income communities, and low-income households, also known as "priority populations." 

Climatic water deficit (CWD) quantifies evaporative demand exceeding available soil moisture.

This model defines habitat using species-appropriate vegetation within two miles of a species observation from the California Natural diversity Database (CNDDB). It is more conservative in defining habitat and therefore best for locating mitigation. Read more in the Mitigation Wizard methods.

This model defines habitat using species-appropriate vegetation within four miles of a species observation from the California Natural diversity Database (CNDDB). It is more liberal in defining habitat and therefore best for defining impact. Read more in the Mitigation Wizard methods.

The California Natural Diversity Database (CNDDB) is a geographic and tabular inventory of the status and locations of rare plants and animals in California and is maintained by the biogeographic data branch of the California Department of Fish and Wildlife. CNDDB staff work with partners to maintain current lists of rare species and maintain an ever-growing database of GIS-mapped locations for these species. Species occurrence records in the CNDDB come from a variety of sources with differing accuracies. For the Greenprint, we filtered the records in order to report only recent records with a high degree of confidence in spatial accuracy. The table below shows table values used to filter records.

Estuarine migration space is undeveloped uplands that are projected to become tidal with sea level rise. This layer is the union two estimates of Coastal Habitat Migration Space - Potential Future Coastal Habitat and Coastal Migration Space Preparation. 

Sea level rise presents a new challenge to coastal habitat conservation. This layer maps the vulnerability and resilience of coastal habitats and imperiled species and also maps potential future habitat.  Potential future coastal habitat are undeveloped uplands that are projected to become tidal and/or are adjacent to vulnerable habitats that could become coastal habitat if conserved, restored, or managed.

Suitable areas for management in support of current and future estuarine-upland transition zones.

The ability of a particular coastal area and its communities to recover from flooding from extreme weather events. Climate change is predicted to have significant adverse effects on coastal zones due to the dangerous combination of storm surge, downstream flooding, and sea level rise. In the Greenprint, coastal resilience focuses on nature's role in reducing coastal flood risk. Natural coastal habitats, such as wetlands, act to disperse storm energy and temporarily store flood water, which can reduce the level of vulnerability of coastal communities.

The area under regulatory control by coastal management agencies with jurisdiction over all federal activities and federally licensed activities that affect coastal resources.

Used as part of the North Bay RCIS tool to highlight actions that support climate change resilience. This is one of 12 themes developed via user research by GreenInfo to help users find the most relevant of 150 actions in the North Bay RCIS.

Jurisdiction: Gilroy. Protection: Requires development along Uvas Creek and the main branch of Llagas Creek to be set back either the entire area of the floodway or 250 feet on either side of the creek centerline, whichever is greater. 

Jurisdiction: Sonoma County Protection: Community Separators are rural open space and agricultural and resource lands that separate cities and other communities, prevent sprawl, protect natural resources, and provide city and community identity by providing visual relief from continuous urbanization. Community Separators enhance the identities of individual cities and communities. The policy preserves the visual identities of communities by maintaining these open space areas between cities and communities.

Jurisdiction: Concord. Protection: The reuse of the Inland Area of the Concord Naval Weapons Station (CNWS) represents a significant opportunity for Concord and for the region to grow and provide long-lasting benefits. The City led an open and transparent planning process with the local and regional community from 2006-2012, culminating in the Concord Reuse Project Area Plan, which will result in a world class, transit-oriented project. The Concord Reuse Project site will have portions of its land that are considered open space and thus should be protected accordingly.

Jurisdiction: U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service, Alameda County, Contra Costa County. Protection: When a species is proposed for listing as endangered or threatened under the Endangered Species Act, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (Service) must consider whether there are areas of habitat believed to be essential to the species' conservation. Critical habitat for this species was designated in 2006. 

Jurisdiction: Alameda County. Protection: The East Alameda County Conservation Strategy (EACCS) seeks to preserve endangered species through habitat protection. In 2010, EACCS assessed areas all across East Alameda County for their conservation value and established guiding biological principles for conducting conservation in the county. Part of that guidance includes working with willing landowners to implement long-term conservation stewardship that would offset impacts from local land use, transportation or other infrastructure projects.

Jurisdiction: Cloverdale. Protection: A set of policies to conserve and protect the area's natural vegetation. For example, Policy CDO 7-1.a amended the Zoning Ordinance to provide 100 foot buffers (50 feet on each side) from creeks and rivers shown on the City's Conservation Elements Map. Where the Russian River buffer is wider than 50 feet on the map, provide the wider buffers.

onservation Element Map. Where the Russian River buffer is wider than 50 feet on the map, provide the wider buffers.

A voluntary legal agreement between a landowner and a land trust or government agency that permanently limits uses of the land in order to protect its conservation values. The conservation easements in the Greenprint were obtained from the California Conservation Easement Database (CCED), a state-wide inventory of lands that have been permanently protected from development. Lands protected under easements are generally not accessible to the public. For more information about protected lands and the CCED, visit https://www.calands.org/.

Jurisdiction: Los Altos Hills. Protection: Protect and maintain those areas necessary to the integrity of natural resources and processes, with special emphasis on, but not limited to, the groundwater recharge and drainage system, open spaces vital for wildlife habitat, open spaces suitable for  agriculture, and other areas of major or unique ecological significance. Open space easements may be required by the Town as a condition of approval for site development. When an easement is required, the property owner signs an agreement with the Town to keep the easement undeveloped and in its  natural condition.

The Conservation Lands Network (CLN) is the make-up of the types, amount and distribution of habitats that comprise the most essential lands needed to sustain the biodiversity of the San Francisco Bay Area. Many factors were considered in the development of the CLN, including the conservation targets (coarse and fine filter), goals for those targets, land use, proximity to existing protected lands, and conservation suitability (ecological integrity) of the landscape, in addition to the expert opinion of a focus team scientists. The CLN is complemented by the Bay Area Critical Linkages, which consists of lands that are important for movement of particular focal species such as mountain lion, badger, and deer.

We developed a "heat map" of conservation priority areas as identified by a number of organizations or academic studies. Each hexagon was attributed according to its overlap with each of the priority areas. A total priority score was summed across these 13 priority types. Finally, the score was normalized 0.0-1.0 based on the number of potential conservation priorities that could be designated for each hexagon.  Read more in the Mitigation Wizard methods.

Jurisdiction: Contra Costa County. Protection:  Setback areas shall be provided along natural creeks and streams in areas planned for urbanization. The setback areas shall be of a width adequate to allow maintenance and to prevent damage to adjacent structures, the natural channel and associated riparian vegetation. The setback area shall be a minimum of 100 feet; 50 feet on each side of the centerline of the creek. 

Jurisdiction: Napa County Protection: Includes: CON-14:To offset possible losses of fishery and riparian habitat due to discretionary development projects, developers shall be responsible for mitigation when avoidance of impacts is determined to be infeasible. Such mitigation measures may include providing and permanently maintaining similar quality and quantity habitat within Napa County, enhancing existing riparian habitat, or paying in-kind funds to an approved fishery and riparian habitat improvement and acquisition fund. Replacement habitat may occur either on-site or at approved off-site locations, but preference shall be given to on-site replacement; and CON-28: To offset possible additional losses of riparian woodland due to discretionary development  projects and conversions, developers shall provide and maintain similar quality and quantity of replacement habitat or in-kind funds to an approved riparian woodland habitat improvement and acquisition fund in Napa County. While on-site replacement is preferred where feasible, replacement habitat may be either on-site or off-site as approved by the County. 

Jurisdiction: U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service, Alameda County, Contra Costa County. Protection: When a species is proposed for listing as endangered or threatened under the Endangered Species Act, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (Service) must consider whether there are areas of habitat believed to be essential to the species' conservation. Critical habitat for this species was designated in 2006. 

Jurisdiction: U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service, Alameda County, Contra Costa County. Protection: This species is listed as endangered by the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service.

Jurisdiction: Solano County. Protection: The Tri-City and County Cooperative Plan for Agriculture and Open Space Preservation was adopted by Solano County and the cities of Vallejo, Benicia, and Fairfield in 1994 as part of each jurisdiction’s general plan. The plan is intended to guide future land use and park planning for the protection of open space and agricultural resources in an area located south of SR 12 and west of I-680. 

The administrative division of a region which coordinates certain government functions, including law enforcement, through court systems and sheriff's departments, transportation plans, and other services.

The zoning designations combined from the eight counties of the Bay Area without San Francisco. This information includes general and specific zoning codes, with text descriptions copied from the original county map files online in 2016.

Jurisdiction: San Rafael. Protection: Adequate setback for a structure from a drainageway shall be determined at the time of project review. Setbacks should include a twenty-five foot (25′) or greater setback between any structure and the high top of the creek bank.

The US Fish & Wildlife Service is required by the Federal Endangered Species Act to identify areas (critical habitat units) considered essential for the conservation of a threatened or endangered species that may require special management and protection.

The waterways and waterbodies identified as essential for the conservation of a threatened or endangered species under the Federal Endangered Species Act that may require special management and protection.

Used as part of the North Bay RCIS tool to highlight actions that support climate change resilience. This is one of 12 themes developed via user research by GreenInfo to help users find the most relevant of 150 actions in the North Bay RCIS.

The average dollar value of crops produced for each agricultural type. USDepartment of Agriculture (USDA) and California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection's CALFIRE Fire and Resource Assessment Program (FRAP), in cooperation with California Department of Fish and Wildlife VegCamp program and extensive use of USDA Forest Service Region 5 Remote Sensing Laboratory (RSL) data, has compiled the "best available" land cover data available for California into a single comprehensive statewide data set.

One of the 22 conservation elements defined in the North Bay RCIS. These are the focus of defined Goals, Objectives, and Actions that people can take to protect or restore the subject of the element, which can be a species, habitat, or process. Find detailed information about Crotch Bumble Bee in the RCIS final document.

Opportunity mapping is a way to measure and visualize place-based characteristics linked to critical life outcomes, such as educational attainment, earnings from employment, and economic mobility. Opportunity maps can be used to inform how to target investments and policies in a way that is conscious of the independent and inter-related effects that research has shown places have on economic, educational, and health outcomes.

CTCAC and HCD charged the research partners with creating an opportunity map to identify areas in every region of the state whose characteristics have been shown by research to support positive economic, educational, and health outcomes for low-income families—particularly long-term outcomes for children. The map has also been used to inform similar policies in other state funding programs, such as HCD’s Multifamily Finance Super NOFA and the California Debt Limit Allocation Committee’s regulations for 4% LIHTCs. However, some methodological adjustments may be called for if the map is applied to broader contexts and different application processes.

This model defines habitat for a small number of species using the California Wildlife Habitat Relationships model (CWHR), developed by California Department of Fish and Wildlife. Read more in the Mitigation Wizard methods.

Jurisdiction: Dixon, Davis, Solano Land Trust, federal and state agencies. Protection: The Agricultural Reserve Overlay indicates an area in which the County encourages private landowners to voluntarily participate in agricultural conservation easements. This overlay incorporates existing agricultural conservation easements and established new land easement acquisition methods (such as TDRs) that encourage landowner cooperation, with the goal of permanently protecting the prime farmlands and scenic resources of the area located between the two cities.

Jurisdiction: U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service, Alameda County, Contra Costa County. Protection: When a species is proposed for listing as endangered or threatened under the Endangered Species Act, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (Service) must consider whether there are areas of habitat believed to be essential to the species' conservation. This species has been listed as threatened. Critical habitat for this species was designated in 1980.

Jurisdiction: Delta Protection Commission. Protection: The Delta Protection Act of 1992 established the Delta Protection Commission, a State entity to plan for and guide the conservation and enhancement of the natural resources of the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta, while sustaining agriculture and meeting increased recreational demand. The Act defines a Primary Zone, which comprises the principal jurisdiction of the Delta Protection Commission. The Primary Zone of the Delta includes approximately 500,000 acres of waterways, levees and farmed lands extending over portions of five counties: Solano, Yolo, Sacramento, San Joaquin and Contra Costa. The Secondary Zone is the area outside the Primary Zone and within the “Legal Delta”; the Secondary Zone is not within the planning area of the Delta Protection Commission. 

Jurisdiction: U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service, Alameda County, Contra Costa County Protection: When a species is proposed for listing as endangered or threatened under the Endangered Species Act, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (Service) must consider whether there are areas of habitat believed to be essential to the species' conservation. Delta Smelt was listed as threatened under the Federal Endangered Species Act and the California Endangered Species Act (CESA) in 1993. In 2009, CESA status was changed to endangered. USFWS designated critical habitat for this species in 1994.

Jurisdiction: Union City. Protection: Development clusters shall be encouraged in the Hillside Area. Development clusters shall be surrounded by major open space, and shall be visually unobtrusive and harmonious with the natural environment.

Jurisdiction: Santa Clara County. Protection: Development initiatives on areas greater than 30 percent slope shall be thoroughly evaluated before approval in accordance with all existing regulations. In addition, a public hearing shall be required and notice should be provided to residents within 300 feet of the subject property.

Jurisdiction: Lafayette. Protection: Imposes development restrictions along major ridgelines, which are to be preserved in their natural state as natural resource and wildlife corridors. A setback of 400 feet for a Class I ridgeline and a setback of 250 feet for a Class II ridgeline should be implemented.

A Disadvantaged Community is defined by the state of California as a neighborhood burdened by pollution and vulnerable to the adverse effects of pollution. Disadvantaged communities are defined as the top 25% scoring areas from CalEnviroScreen along with other areas with high amounts of pollution and low populations.

Urban investment in low-income communities and communities of color may fail to equitably distribute benefits to existing residents, leading to neighborhood gentrification and displacement of low-income and/or minority residents. The Urban Displacement Project at the University of California-Berkeley identifies three different displacement typologies: low-income communities at risk of gentrification and/or displacement; low-income communities experiencing ongoing gentrification and/or displacement; and moderate- to high-income communities in advanced gentrification.

Jurisdiction: Dublin. Protection: Preserves both the Doolan Canyon area to the East of the city and the area to the West of the city as agricultural or open space land and prevents any residential or commercial development. The measure, approved directly by the City Council in 2014, removed authority from the city council to control the property, preventing any development without approval from voters.

Jurisdiction: Brentwood, Clayton, Oakley and Pittsburg, Contra Costa County, Contra Costa County Flood Control and Water Conservation District and East Bay Regional Park District. Protection: The East Contra Costa County HCP/NCCP is intended to provide regional conservation and development guidelines to protect natural resources while improving and streamlining the permit process for endangered species and wetland regulations.

Jurisdiction: Novato. Protection: Section 19.35 of the Novato Zoning Ordinance establishes buffer areas along watercourses to protect water quality, minimize flood hazards and maintain or expand storage capacity for flood waters. Section 19.35 establishes a “stream protection zone” that includes the stream bed, the stream banks, all riparian vegetation and a buffer zone at least 50 feet wide, measured from the top of the channel bank. The stream protection zone may be expanded or reduced based on specific site conditions. Any proposed development, grading, fill, planting, or vegetation removal requires a use permit. In order to obtain a use permit, an applicant must submit a Stream Management Plan and incorporate annual maintenance requirements into the project.

The economic value of stormwater retention by natural infrastructure (primarily vegetation) can be calculated from the reduced costs of maintenance and construction of "gray" (concrete and steel) stormwater infrastructure, i.e. rainfall intercepted by vegetation reduces the volume of water that must be carried and treated by gray infrastructure. This dataset provides an estimate of the current valuation of stormwater services. For more info, see Stormwater management services maps for the San Francisco Bay Area.

The emissions from soil disturbance assume that 30% of the carbon stored in soils will be emitted. The emissions estimates do not account for current land uses (i.e. current agricultural tilling), and therefore may be an overestimate of actual carbon emissions. 

Jurisdiction: San Carlos. Protection: All new development shall be set back a minimum 25 feet from the top of bank line or such other distance as specified by the Planning Commission. Promotes the establishment of native vegetation and the removal of nonnative invasive plants in riparian areas.

Jurisdiction: Calistoga. Protection: No construction, grading or vegetation removal may occur in areas with a slope of 30 percent or greater, unless an exemption is granted. Permitted projects are subject to restrictions and design reviews related to their location.

Equity Priority Areas in the Bay Area are defined as a neighborhood that contains predominantly low-income and minority households, or that carries a burden of social disadvantages. These were previously called Communites of Concern. This layer uses MTC Communities of Concern (2020) with American Community Survey Data (2014-2018).

Jurisdiction: Dublin. Protection:  Require erosion control plans for proposed development. Restrict areas of steep slopes (more than 30%) to permanent open space, as part of an overall cluster development concept on approved plans. Any development in otherwise restricted areas shall require substantial mitigation which has considerable benefit to the community, in keeping with the standards of Dublin General Plan Policy 3.2.2.A.1.

This model is optimized for locating existing habitat to protect. We use either species occurrence or species range data crossed with suitable vegetation for a given species, as described in the Mitigation Wizard methods.

The risk of vegetation becoming highly stressed by climate change, because the vegetation in those areas will likely experience climate conditions that are only marginally suitable or unsuitable. The use of the vegetation community maps provided in the California Climate Vulnerability Assessment permits examination of the rates of transition from climatically suitable to climatically stressed extents for each vegetation type.

Land of importance to the local agricultural economy as determined by each county's board of supervisors and a local advisory committees.

Farmland that is otherwise similar to Prime Farmland but with minor shortcomings, such as greater slopes or less ability to store soil moisture. Land must have been used for irrigated agricultural production in the last four years.

Used as part of the North Bay RCIS tool to highlight actions that support climate change resilience. This is one of 12 themes developed via user research by GreenInfo to help users find the most relevant of 150 actions in the North Bay RCIS.

This mapping effort intends to create more accurate fire hazard zone designations that support fire mitigation strategies in areas where potential hazards warrant these investments. The fire hazard zones provide specific designation for application of defensible space and building standards consistent with known mechanisms of fire risk to people, property, and natural resources.

Human-made barriers to salmonid migration, including road-stream crossings, irrigation diversions, and dams, that have been deemed priorities for removal by the California Department of Fish and Wildlife based on significance to fish migration. Migration passage impediments and delays affect both adult and juvenile fish. Given the magnitude and severity of barriers and the decline of salmonid populations, reconnecting isolated stream habitat is an important priority for the restoration of impaired anadromous salmon and steelhead stocks. The Passage Assessment Database (PAD) is an ongoing map-based inventory of known and potential barriers to anadromous fish in California, compiled and maintained through a cooperative interagency agreement.

The Passage Assessment Database (PAD) is an ongoing map-based inventory of known and potential barriers to anadromous fish in California, compiled and maintained through a cooperative interagency agreement. Total barriers to salmonid migration include some road-stream crossings and dams.

Jurisdiction: U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service, Alameda County, Contra Costa County. Protection: When a species is proposed for listing as endangered or threatened under the Endangered Species Act, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (Service) must consider whether there are areas of habitat believed to be essential to the species' conservation. USFWS designated critical habitat for this endangered species in 2013.

Jurisdiction: Hercules. Protection:  Franklin Canyon is a 483-acre parcel of open space/agricultural land which forms the northeastern most parcel of land within the City of Hercules in Contra Costa County. Adopted in 2010, the purpose of this ordinance is to protect Franklin Canyon and nearby open space lands from harmful and unnecessary development by designating the land for agricultural and limited residential use (minimum parcel size of 40 acres).

One of the 22 conservation elements defined in the North Bay RCIS. These are the focus of defined Goals, Objectives, and Actions that people can take to protect or restore the subject of the element, which can be a species, habitat, or process. Find detailed information about Freshwater Wetland Habitat in the RCIS final document.

Policies that provide limited protection to a range of natural and agricultural values. They include rural growth measures and open space reserves that are set aside permanently or temporarily by a single jurisdiction or by several jurisdictions.

Jurisdiction: Santa Clara County. Protection: A series of policies whose goals are to: preserve natural streams, riparian areas, and freshwater marshes by protecting them from pollution, development impact, hazardous chemicals; adopt tree removal regulations; and protect endemic and endangered species.For example, R-RC 37 provides that lands near creeks, streams, and freshwater marshes shall be considered to be in a protected buffer area, consisting of 150 feet from the top bank on both sides where the creek or stream is predominantly in its natural state, or 100 feet from the top bank on both sides of the waterway where the creek or stream has had major alterations.

Jurisdiction: Walnut Creek. Protection: The development of land with slopes of 20 percent or greater or within 75 vertical feet of any ridgeline is prohibited.

Undeveloped locations where it is easier to build new development, including parcels adjacent to existing and recent development as well as major roads, and low sloped lands.

Used as part of the North Bay RCIS tool to highlight actions that support climate change resilience. This is one of 12 themes developed via user research by GreenInfo to help users find the most relevant of 150 actions in the North Bay RCIS.

The land on which existing vegetation is suited to the grazing of livestock.

One of the 22 conservation elements defined in the North Bay RCIS. These are the focus of defined Goals, Objectives, and Actions that people can take to protect or restore the subject of the element, which can be a species, habitat, or process. Find detailed information about Green Sturgeon in the RCIS final document.

Groundwater Dependent Ecosystems are defined under the Sustainable Groundwater Management Act (SGMA) as “ecological communities or species that depend on groundwater emerging from aquifers or on groundwater occurring near the ground surface.”

Water that penetrates below the root zone, infiltrating soils and potentially replenishing aquifers.

Plan Bay Area 2040 is an updated long-range Regional Transportation Plan and Sustainable Communities Strategy for the nine-county San Francisco Bay Area. In early 2016, ABAG and MTC developed and evaluated three land use and transportation scenarios as part of the update of Plan Bay Area 2040, the region’s long-range transportation and housing plan. Planners at MTC and ABAG have generated regional forecasts for: (1) Jobs: what will the economy look like and where will new jobs be? (2) Housing: where will new housing be developed and who will live there? (3)opulation: how will our region grow? (4) Travel Needs: where will people need to go and how will they get there? (5) Funding for Transportation Improvements: what funds will be available from gas taxes, sales taxes, bridge tolls and the like? 

The three scenarios depicted a different combination of: Housing Development, Commercial Growth and Transportation Investments.

One of the 22 conservation elements defined in the North Bay RCIS. These are the focus of defined Goals, Objectives, and Actions that people can take to protect or restore the subject of the element, which can be a species, habitat, or process. Find detailed information about Habitat Connectivity in the RCIS final document.

Habitat coverage is calculated dynamically based on the species you have targeted for mitigation. The goal is to allow you to focus on hexagons that either have more coverage (useful for protection scenarios) or with less coverage (for restoration scenarios). The tool takes total acres for all target species in each hexagon and then divides that by the product of the number of species selected times the size of a single hexagon.

Used as part of the North Bay RCIS tool to highlight actions that support climate change resilience. This is one of 12 themes developed via user research by GreenInfo to help users find the most relevant of 150 actions in the North Bay RCIS.

Areas identified as important for protection and conservation in jurisdictional plans and in the Bay Area's Habitat Conservation Plans.

Habitat Rarity is calculated dynamically based on the species you have targeted for mitigation. It highlights hexagons containing a combination of species that are sparsely distributed throughout the area under review. Within each hexagon the calculation is formulated through the sum of a per species value. The per species value is calculated by dividing the hexagon size by the total acres a species covers within the hexagon, then it is multiplied by the total number of species in the hexagon. The per species value is calculated for each species found in a hexagon and their results are summed.

This model is optimized for locating potential restoration areas. We use either species occurrence or species range data crossed with suitable vegetation for a given species, but we include several additional land cover types where restoration activity for a species might occur: agricultural areas, barren land, and eucalyptus groves. Read more in the Mitigation Wizard methods.

Jurisdiction: Fairfield. Protection: General Plan policy states that development is discouraged on slopes in excess of twenty (20) percent and/or unstable soils. In November 2016, voters approved Measure T, which amends the Fairfield General Plan to allow a land preserve and open space conservation area at I-680 and Golden Hill Road.

A Fire Hazard Severity Zone (FHSZ) is a mapped area that designates zones (based on factors such as fuel, slope, and fire weather) with varying degrees of fire hazard (i.e., moderate, high, and very high). FHSZ maps evaluate wildfire hazards, which are physical conditions that create a likelihood that an area will burn over a 30- to 50-year period. They do not take into account modifications such as fuel reduction efforts. The Conservation Lands Network (CLN) is made up of the types, amount and distribution of habitats that comprise the most essential lands needed to sustain the biodiversity of the San Francisco Bay Area. Where high and very high fire hazard severity and the CLN overlap, land stewardship plays an important role. Fuel reduction, defensible space around structures, and home “hardening” can reduce the risk of catastrophic wildfire on lands important to the region’s biodiversity.  

Jurisdiction: Fremont. Protection: Seven open space designations and one public facility designation appear on the City General Plan land use map. The Hill Area Open Space designation applies to most of the open lands defined by voter-approved Measure A (Hillside Initiative of 1981) and Measure T (Hill Area Initiative of 2002). This designation includes two sub-areas, and a total of three designations. 

Jurisdiction: Fremont. Protection: Measure T applies to Fremont’s eastern Hill Area and includes all land above the toe of the hill (TOH, the line along the base of the hills where the natural grade first becomes 20 % or more), extending south and east to Alameda Creek and Calaveras Creek. Measure T permits only very low densities of one unit per 20 acres for existing parcels.

Jurisdiction: San Jose. Protection: Avoid any new development along ridges and other major hillside areas (typically all properties that exceed 30% slope) that surround the valley floor to minimize visibility of development on these aesthetic resources. 

Jurisdiction: Morgan Hill. Protection: Buildings, private streets, and driveways may not be constructed on slopes greater than 20 percent except when the review authority finds that the proposed encroachment will not conflict with the purpose and intent of the H combining district. 

Jurisdiction: San Ramon. Protection:  No structure shall be located within 100 feet, measured vertically, of the centerline of a major ridge, or within 50 feet, measured vertically, of the centerline of a minor ridge. Where structures are proposed within 1,000 feet of a major ridge as identified in General Plan, the building pad shall be graded and the building designed so that the structure maintains a low-profile appearance and conforms to the natural grade of the hillside, as determined by the review authority.

Jurisdiction: Vallejo. Protection: Hillside projects in Planned Development areas in which buildings are proposed on average natural slopes in excess of 10% shall be carefully evaluated to insure the enhancement and preservation of the natural topography and character of the hillsides.

Jurisdiction: Hayward. Protection: Policy LU-7.1 prohibits the construction of buildings on unstable and steep slopes (slopes greater than 25 percent). Policy LU-7.2 discourages the placement of homes and structures near ridgelines to maintain natural open space and preserve views. If ridgeline development cannot be avoided, the City shall require grading, building, and landscaping designs that mitigate visual impacts and blend the development with the natural features of the hillside.

Jurisdiction: Fremont. Protection: Measure A prevents development from exceeding one unit per acre or one unit per four acres for constrained lands.

Hillside areas identified as important for protection or to minimize landslide threat based upon the physical descriptions in city and county general plans. Policies assess the slope of a hill, the area of a hill above a certain elevation, and the area within a certain vertical or horizontal distance from a ridgeline.

Jurisdiction: Novato. Protection: No development potential shall be allowed for areas with average slopes of greater than 25 percent.

Jurisdiction: Pittsburg. Protection: Building pads and structural elements shall be located at least 150 feet away, horizontally, from the crest of a major ridgeline.

The extent of San Francisco and San Pablo bays as they likely appeared about 200 years ago, when Europeans first arrived in the region. Learn more about the baylands at www.sfei.org/ecoatlas.

The data provides a comprehensive view of the distribution of past large fires going back to 1950.

Cumulative hectares of suitable habitat in a 25-hectare region for species that may be impacted by proposed transportation projects in the next two decades. These species have some regulatory protective status that requires compensatory action to mitigate development impacts.

Areas over aquifers where soil or rock conditions enable higher rates of recharge and therefore make the aquifer more vulnerable (or susceptible) to surface contaminants.

One of the 22 conservation elements defined in the North Bay RCIS. These are the focus of defined Goals, Objectives, and Actions that people can take to protect or restore the subject of the element, which can be a species, habitat, or process. Find detailed information about Hydrologic Processes in the RCIS final document.

Section 303(d) of the Federal Clean Water Act gives states the responsibility of preparing a list of surface waters (e.g., water bodies and streams) not meeting water quality standards due to pollutants. To comply with 303(d), State and Regional Water Boards assess water quality monitoring data for California's surface waters every two years to determine if they contain pollutants at levels that exceed protective water quality standards. Waterbodies with pollutants that exceed protective water quality standards are considered "impaired" and are placed on the State's 303(d) list.

Section 303(d) of the Federal Clean Water Act gives states the responsibility of preparing a list of surface waters (e.g., water bodies and streams) not meeting water quality standards due to pollutants. To comply with 303(d), State and Regional Water Boards assess water quality monitoring data for California's surface waters every two years to determine if they contain pollutants at levels that exceed protective water quality standards. Waterways with pollutants that exceed protective water quality standards are considered "impaired" and are placed on the State's 303(d) list.

An index of the habitat value to species listed as threatened and endangered under the Endangered Species Act, including birds, mammals, reptiles, and amphibians. The index combines threatened and endangered species richness (measured by the overlap of species ranges) and the suitability of the vegetation to support each of those species.

Preserving prime agricultural lands and open space is a key statutory mandate of California's Local Agency Formation Commissions (Cortese-Knox Hertzberg Act 2000, Gov. Code §56301). Irrigation capability is a soil characteristic that classifies potential agricultural lands by the suitability of soils for most kinds of field crops. The soils are grouped according to their limitations for field crops, the risk of damage if they are used for crops, and the way they respond to management. Class I and II lands are statutorily defined as prime agricultural land.

Riparian corridors that were prioritized for conservation, specifically focusing on native species found in San Francisco bay, as part of the Conservation Lands Network (CLN) database.

Land Cover comprises the major land cover classes in the Bay Area, including natural classes (forest, woodland, shrubland, herbaceous/grassland, water, etc.) and artificial classes (urban, rural residential). Rural residential includes areas where land parcels are 10 acres or less. The source for Land Cover is the Conservation Lands Network 2.0 Vegetation Map, which is a custom combination of Eveg (USFS), Fveg (Cal FIRE), soils (CalGS), and temperature (PRISM). More detail about the creation of the map can be found in Chapter 3: Methodology of the CLN 2.0 full report.

Land cover data were compiled from several sources. The base layer used was the statewide "fveg" dataset produced by the California Fire Resource and Assessment Program (FRAP). This dataset is a raster grid of 30-meter raster cells classified into the major land cover types found in the California Wildlife Habitats Relationship (CWHR) model developed by the California Department of Fish and Wildlife. Where other finer-scale data were available, the fveg dataset was updated.  Read more in the Mitigation Wizard methods.

Areas where vegetation will not likely be stressed by climate change because the vegetation in those areas will likely experience climate conditions that are within the range of conditions they are currently found in in California.

An index that indicates the presence and accessibility of microhabitat options by quantifying both the permeability of the landscape and the diversity in potential "wetness" and "heat" based on topography.

Jurisdiction: Cloverdale. Protection: On hillside sites, any development, grading for roadways, and lighting, including building lighting, shall not be visible from the level areas of the city below the 400-foot elevation. Where a hillside site has land with slopes over 20 percent and slopes less than 20 percent, development should be placed on lands less than 20 percent if feasible. Remaining hillside areas (with slopes over 20 percent) shall be deemed undevelopable areas and made subject to easements or other legal guarantees that prohibit development of the hillsides and cannot be removed without city approval.

Highways and other major roads can bisect otherwise intact habitat linkages, creating barriers to wildlife movement. The Bay Area Open Space Council prepared a geographic database of such highway barriers throughout the Bay Area via visual analysis of aerial photography, and maps of vegetation and habitat linkages.

This map shows recent unconsolidated sediments and the corresponding liquefaction susceptibility for the urban core of the San Francisco Bay region.

Jurisdiction: San Mateo County. Protection: Prohibit development on slopes of 30% or more, unless (1) no alternative exists or (2) the only practicable alternative site is on a skyline or ridgeline. Parcels shall not be created where the only building site, in whole or in part, including roads and driveways, is on a slope of 30% or more. 

Jurisdiction: U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service, Alameda County, Contra Costa County Protection: This species has been listed as endangered under the federal Endangered Species Act.  USFWS designated critical habitat for the species in 2006.

Low-income is defined as 80% or less of the median household income in California, based on data from the American Community Survey (2019's five-year estimates) from the United States Census. The 80% threshold is widely used in California for equity-oriented park funding decisions, based on Assembly Bill 31 (2008), which set the first measurable equity standard for statewide park funding in California. Learn more from California State Parks' ParksforCalifornia.org methods page, under Disadvantaged and Severely Disadvantaged Communities.

Jurisdiction: U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service, Alameda County, Contra Costa County. Protection: This species is Federally listed under the Endangered Species Act as a threatened species in Washington, Oregon and California, and State-listed as endangered in California and as threatened in Oregon and Washington. USFWS designated critical habitat for the species in 2011.

One of the 22 conservation elements defined in the North Bay RCIS. These are the focus of defined Goals, Objectives, and Actions that people can take to protect or restore the subject of the element, which can be a species, habitat, or process. Find detailed information about Marin Western Flax in the RCIS final document.

Jurisdiction: Contra Costa County. Protection: This designation applies to agricultural lands that are composed primarily of prime (Class I or II) soils in the Soil Conservation Service Land Use Capability Classifications, which are considered the very best soils for farming a wide variety of crops. This land is designated to preserve and protect economically viable agricultural units while discouraging "ranchette" housing development.

Jurisdiction: Napa County. Protection: Measure P extends the provisions of Measure J, the Agricultural Lands Preservation Initiative, which voters passed in 1990 to 2058. Specifically it continues to require voter approval for land designation changes in agricultural and watershed areas.

Jurisdiction: Napa County. Protection: Provisions governing the intent and maximum building intensity for lands designated Agriculture, Watershed and Open Space and Agricultural Resourcemay not be amended or deleted without subsequent voter approval until after December 31, 2058, or after a later date if an extension is approved by the voters. 

Jurisdiction: Solano County. Protection: The County's 1994 Orderly Growth Initiative directed residential growth into the county's seven cities, rather than the unincorporated areas. Lands zoned for agriculture cannot change without a popular vote thereby supporting the County's economy and quality of life. Measure T was an amendment that preserved and updated the Orderly Growth Initiative; it was approved by voters in 2008. This measure readopted the Orderly Growth Initiative’s policies that strictly limit the Board of Supervisor’s ability to change the designation of “Agriculture” or “Open Space” lands through the year 2028 and updated the Orderly Growth Initiative’s density standards for development of “Agriculture” or “Open Space” lands and extend the effect of those density standards through the year 2028.

Some metrics reported by the GreenPrint application will be less accurate when measured over smaller areas. This is often a function of the dataset resolution as well as natural variation in the real-world conditions. When the reported area is below a certain acreage, some metrics may be suppressed so as not to give misleading results and/or the metric value may be supplemented with warnings. Metrics in this glossary will note minimum acreage thresholds where they apply.

Jurisdiction: Morgan Hill. Protection: Policies seek to establish a greenbelt around the City, which is intended to physically define the City and separate it from San Jose and San Martin. The goal is to preserve El Toro Mountain, conserve resources and protect the City’s cultural heritage to help Morgan Hill retain its rural atmosphere as it continues to grow. The Greenbelt includes areas with steep hillsides, severe geologic/environmental constraints, open space, & areas located on the fringe of the community, and does not include unincorporated areas.

Watersheds that supply water to a water utility.

Territories of California Native peoples are from Native Land Digital. Their disclaimer states: This map does not represent or intend to represent official or legal boundaries of any Indigenous nations. To learn about definitive boundaries, contact the nations in question. The data is a work in progress with tons of contributions from the community.

Jurisdiction: American Canyon. Protection: Where riparian corridors are retained, they shall be protected by an adequate buffer with a minimum 100 foot protection zone from the edge of the tree, shrub, or herb canopy. Prohibits developments that alter the biological integrity of Riparian Corridors, unless no feasible alternative exists or the damaged habitat is replaced with a habitat of equivalent value.

The many types of tidally-influenced natural habitats, such as mudflats and marshes, that are found at the interface of uplands and the Bay estuary. See further land-cover definitions at https://coast.noaa.gov/digitalcoast/training/ccap-land-cover-classifications.html

Jurisdiction: Petaluma. Protection: On sites with slopes greater than 30 percent, require all development to be clustered outside of the 30 percent slope areas (and preferably on land less than 15 percent in slope) where possible.

How much of a 500-year floodplain has been been left untouched by urban and industrial purposes such as sewers, dam building, hydroelectric power, and drinking water, such that the area still retains a complete or almost complete complement of species native to the area within a more-or-less naturally functioning ecosystem.

Those parts of the Active River Area that are still in a natural or semi-natural condition and are assumed to contribute to healthy river/stream function and water-related ecosystem services. These parts include the material contribution areas, the meander belts, the floodplains, and riparian wetlands of a river or stream. The degree of naturalness is used as an indicator of watershed health in the California Integrated Assessment of Watershed Health.

Jurisdiction: Healdsburg. Protection: A series of Implementation Measures directed towards protecting the City’s riparian resources. The City's Land Use designations provide for a 100-foot setback from the Russian River, a 35-foot setback from Foss Creek, and a 25-foot setback from other streams with riparian vegetation and/or aquatic life, as measured from the top of the existing or proposed bank, whichever is greater.  

Jurisdiction: Napa (city). Protection: The City shall protect riparian habitat along the Napa River and its tributaries from incompatible urban uses and activities. Policy NR-1.4 establishes that the City will review all future waterway improvement projects (e.g., flood control, dredging, private development), as well as all projects that are within 100 feet of the waterway, to ensure that they protect and minimize effects on the riparian and aquatic habitats.  Native plantings are encouraged along waterways to stabilize banks and reduce stormwater runoff.

The vegetation communiteis used to define habitats and Conservation Element targets for the North Bay Regional Conservation Investment Strategy. Learn more by reading the relevant section of the north Bay RCIS document.

Jurisdiction: U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service, Alameda County, Contra Costa County. Protection: The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service listed the northern spotted owl as threatened under the Endangered Species Act in 1990. USFWS first designated critical habitat for the spotted owl in 1992. The designation was revised in 2008 and a new final rule designating critical habitat was published in December 2012. 

Jurisdiction: Benicia. Protection: Hillside areas that have slope over 30 percent are to be kept as open space areas.

Jurisdiction: Tiburon. Protection: 50- to 100-foot setback from riparian buffer. An environmental assessment is required for developments proposed on sites that may contain special-status species, sensitive natural communities, native wildlife nurseries and nesting locations. In addition, the Town strongly discourages development on slopes exceeding 40%.

Jurisdiction: Livermore. Protection: No building may be located in a riparian corridor, defined as areas within 200 feet from the center of a permanent or intermittent stream. No development, conversion to cultivated agriculture, or keeping of animals may be permitted that materially reduces the quantity or quality of water in a corridor. Dams to store water for agriculture may be permitted, however, provided water is released in quantities and at times so as not to impair aquatic life or riparian vegetation. 

Jurisdiction: San Ramon. Protection: Retain hillsides steeper than 20 percent slope as open space, except for slopes and ridgelines that may be altered. 100 foot buffer from riparian centerline. 

Jurisdiction: Calistoga. Protection: All waterways shall be buffered to prevent development in riparian setback area and preserve the open space associated with rivers and streams in Calistoga. A minimum of 30-foot setbacks shall be required from the top of the high bank. Developments within a protective stream buffer must include a riparian habitat management plan. Moreover, all waterways shall be buffered to prevent development and preserve open spaces around rivers and streams.

Jurisdiction: Portola Valley. Protection: Areas hazardous to the public safety and welfare should be retained as open space. Such areas include: slopes generally over 30 percent; fault zones - bands on either side of known fault traces sufficient to include lands of probable ground rupture; areas of geologic instability; and streams and their flood plains.

Jurisdiction: Larkspur. Protection: Designate and preserve in open space the areas those portions of the Northridge that are above the 350-foot elevation, Baltimore canyon, the Piedmont and Redwood Avenue areas, Big and Little King Mountains and their saddle area, the Tubb Lake watershed, and the ridge above the old quarries on the San Quentin Peninsula. 

Jurisdiction: Santa Rosa. Protection: Require a Hillside Development Permit as part of a proposed subdivision, proposed development, or new land use on that portion of a site with a slope of 10 percent or greater.

Open space is addressed by policy measures that vary in their efficacy at protecting farmland, riparian resources, or natural resource lands. "High policy protection lands" are protected by one or more policy measures that prohibit most urban development on that land. "Medium policy protection lands" are protected by one or more policy measures where development is intended to be limited but is still possible with a special permit. "Low policy protection lands" do not fall under any specific protective policy measures.

Jurisdiction: Moraga. Protection: Development shall be prohibited on slopes with grades of twenty percent (20%) or greater and on the crests of minor ridgelines, defined as any ridgeline with an elevation greater than 800 feet above mean sea level. 

Jurisdiction: Half Moon Bay. Protection: The city has designated portion of areas as open space reserve consistent with the local coastal program land use plan; including areas currently in some form of agricultural use and areas not now in production. These areas will be converted to urban uses only after all other areas designated for urban development in the local coastal program and general plan have been substantially developed.

Jurisdiction: Solano County. Protection: The County's 1994 Orderly Growth Initiative directed residential growth into the county's seven cities, rather than the unincorporated areas. Lands zoned for agriculture cannot change without a popular vote thereby supporting the County's economy and quality of life. Measure T was an amendment that preserved and updated the Orderly Growth Initiative; it was approved by voters in 2008. This measure readopted the Orderly Growth Initiative’s policies that strictly limit the Board of Supervisor’s ability to change the designation of “Agriculture” or “Open Space” lands through the year 2028 and updated the Orderly Growth Initiative’s density standards for development of “Agriculture” or “Open Space” lands and extend the effect of those density standards through the year 2028.

Jurisdiction: Danville. Protection: No development is permitted within one hundred (100) feet (measured vertically) of the centerline of a major ridgeline (the line running along the highest portion) or on a slope of less than 30 percent in steepness, except when an exception is granted by the Planning Commission. 

ParkServe provides in-depth data to guide local park improvement efforts. It provides data from over 15,000 cities, towns, and villages, covering more than 75% of the U.S. population. The web-based tool can determine the percentage of residents who live within a 10-minute walk of a local park, and identify the neighborhoods most in need of new parks. 

The risk of air pollution exposure  to particulate matter of 2.5 micrometers or less (PM2.5) from mobile and stationary sources, as identified in Plan Bay Area 2040. High risk areas show a PM2.5 concentration greater than 0.8 μg/m3, which tends to occur along high-traffic freeways and rail lines, locations with numerous stationary sources, and locations where a single stationary source has very high estimated PM2.5 risk.

The value of flood reduction is higher in watersheds that are likely to experience flooding. The peak flow  reduction map shows areas that are more conducive to infiltrating stormwater runoff. This dataset considers different combinations of land covers and soil types to help estimate the infiltration rate of stormwater runoff (in cubic meters) during a 100-year flood event ("Peak Flow Reduction"). Runoff retention, both annually and during extreme storm events, reduces the need to replace or update existing systems, and contributes to potential groundwater recharge. For more info, see Stormwater management services maps for the San Francisco Bay Area.

Jurisdiction: Windsor. Protection: The Town requires development proposals on slopes of 20 percent or greater to include assessments of slope stability, susceptibility to landslide, and erodibility, prepared by certified engineering geologists. 

Jurisdiction: Sonoma County. Protection: Design discretionary projects so that structures and roads are not located on slopes of 30 percent or greater. Include erosion control measures for any discretionary project involving construction or grading on lands with slopes over 10 percent.

Jurisdiction: Vacaville. Protection: Ridges and slopes of 25 percent and greater shall remain undeveloped in order to maintain agricultural grazing areas, protect the public health and safety, and provide for community separation and open space, except that a limited area of golf course development with minimized grading may be permitted.

Jurisdiction: Palo Alto. Protection: The City amended its Stream Protection Ordinance in 2017 to establish 150 feet as the desired stream setback along natural creeks in open space and rural areas west of Foothill Expressway. This 150-foot setback would prohibit the siting of buildings and other structures, impervious surfaces, outdoor activity areas and ornamental landscaped areas within 150 feet of the top of a creek bank. 

Used as part of the North Bay RCIS tool to highlight actions that support climate change resilience. This is one of 12 themes developed via user research by GreenInfo to help users find the most relevant of 150 actions in the North Bay RCIS.

The air pollution exposure risk to cancer causing emissions from mobile and stationary sources as identified in Plan Bay Area 2040. High risk areas show increased cancer risk is greater than 100 in a million which tend to occur along high traffic freeways and rail lines, locations with numerous stationary sources, and locations where a single stationary source has very high estimated cancer risk.

Used as part of the North Bay RCIS tool to highlight actions that support climate change resilience. This is one of 12 themes developed via user research by GreenInfo to help users find the most relevant of 150 actions in the North Bay RCIS.

The Bay Area is rich with scenic resources that interplay across a varied topography of neighborhoods, valleys, mountain ranges, the Pacific and the Bay. While it is challenging to measure the scenic value of an area, the combination of digital locational imprinting on photos and photo sharing websites allows the measurement of photo-user days.  A photo-user-day (PUD) is measured as one unique user who took one or more photos on a unique day, in that location. The PUD data is derived from Flickr photos taken from 2005 to 2017 and only includes photos taken in parks (CA Protected Areas Database 2018), and undeveloped lands including over water (CA FMMP 2016). For more information, see Using social media to quantify nature-based tourism and recreation.

Jurisdiction: Portola Valley Protection: In 2007, the Town added Section 18.59 to the Municipal Code, which provides for the following creek setbacks: Parcels less than one acre in size: 30 feet from top of bank, or thirty-five feet from ordinary high water mark; Parcels of one acre to two and one-half acres: 45 feet from top of bank or fifty feet from ordinary high water mark; and Parcels of two and one-half acres or more, including new subdivisions—55 feet from top of bank or 60 feet from ordinary high water mark.

Jurisdiction: Morgan Hill Protection: Action NRE-2E: Hillside Ordinance should be applied to development on areas with an average slope in excess of 10 percent. 

Jurisdiction: Morgan Hill Protection: Action NRE-2B: Preserve El Toro Mountain at an elevation above 500 feet and Llagas and Paradise Valleys above 600 feet.

Jurisdiction: Morgan Hill. Protection: Action NRE-2E: Hillside Ordinance should be applied to development on areas with an average slope in excess of 10 percent. Action NRE-2B: Preserve El Toro Mountain at an elevation above 500 feet and Llagas and Paradise Valleys above 600 feet.

Farmland with the best combination of physical and chemical features able to sustain long term agricultural production. This land has the soil quality, growing season, and moisture supply needed to produce sustained high yields. To be classified as Prime Farmland, land must have been used for irrigated agricultural production in the last four years.

Lands that provide agricultural, natural resource, scenic, recreational, and/or ecological values and ecosystem functions. These areas are identified through consensus by local jurisdictions and park/open space districts as lands in need of protection due to pressure from urban development or other factors. PCAs are categorized by four designations: Natural Landscapes, Agricultural Lands, Urban Greening and Regional Recreation.

 Priority Development Areas represent areas identified and delineated by local jurisdictions as part of the region's Sustainable Communities Strategy, for new and/or intensified development. This feature set contains the Priority Development Areas (PDAs) used by the Metropolitan Transportation Commission (MTC) and the Association of Bay Area Governments (ABAG) for analysis and mapping related to Plan Bay Area 2050. Plan Bay Area 2050 is the latest update to the long-range Regional Transportation Plan and Sustainable Communities Strategy for the nine-county San Francisco Bay Region.

California Statewide Groundwater Elevation Monitoring priority basins are determined by the California Department of Water Resources (CDWR) according to the following criteria: overlying population, projected growth of overlying population; public supply wells; total wells; overlying irrigated acreage; reliance on groundwater as the primary source of water; impacts on the groundwater, including overdraft, subsidence, saline intrusion, and other water quality degradation; and any other information determined to be relevant by CDWR.

Priority landscapes for above ground urban greening projects, such as tree planting, are evaluated by the overlap of five factors that contribute to the need for urban greening. The five elements include daytime population density, land surface temperature, air pollution exposure, lack of urban tree canopy, and degree of land surface imperviousness. Areas that receive high scores in all the factors are determined to be appropriate for urban greening projects to reduce the impacts of the urban heat island effect and pollution exposure.

Jurisdiction: Cupertino. Protection: New structures shall not disrupt a 15% site line from a prominent ridge, measured from the top of ridge at the closest point from the structure. Hillside exception required for development greater than 500 square feet area on slopes equal to or greater than 30 percent.

Jurisdiction: Los Altos. Protection: Continue to identify and acquire additional land for parks and recreational uses. Leave intact and put requirements to set aside of development generally on areas in excess of 30 percent hillside slope.

Land that has a permanent limitation on development (i.e., conversion to intensive human uses). Permanent protection typically comes in the form of fee title ownership by a conservation or park entity (e.g. land trust, open space district, regional/state/federal park agency) or via a conservation easement established by the propoerty owner. Examples of land protected by fee title ownership include dedicated parkland or nature preserves.

Jurisdiction: San Anselmo. Protection: The ridge zone shall extend 150 horizontal feet in both directions from the lowest elevation of the ridgeline, or 50 feet vertically, whichever is more restrictive. All lands located above the 150 foot mean sea level elevation are to be placed in a special conservation zone, and residential development is to be limited to a density of one unit per acre or less. the Town intends to review the building location, access, and exterior design of structures proposed for vacant lots in this area.

Used as part of the North Bay RCIS tool to highlight actions that support climate change resilience. This is one of 12 themes developed via user research by GreenInfo to help users find the most relevant of 150 actions in the North Bay RCIS.

Publicly accessible parks, preserves and trails, ranging in size from less than one acre to over 50,000 acres, and managed and maintained by the region's many local, regional, state, and federal agencies and organizations.

Race and ethnicity metrics are based on Census Block Group data from the American Community Survey (2019's five-year estimates) from the United States Census. The Greenprint uses the same categories as those used by the Bay Area Equity Atlas, which in some cases combine multiple Census categories to simplify reporting. Note that we have set the minimum acreage threshold for this metric to match the median area of a Census Block Group in the Bay Area.

This shows the distribution of landslides evident in the landscape, most of which are slumps, translational slides, and earth flows. These are of interest both for evaluation of hazard risk and for use in further study of landslides. Future movement of such landslides is most likely to occur within and around the places where they have previously occurred. 

Species that are known to be uncommon or declining and therefore have been given federal or state statutory protection to maintain their survival.

A broad picture of regional habitat connectivity for plant and animal species whose movement may be inhibited by developed or agricultural land uses.

These areas of channelized connectivity represent the last remaining natural habitat linkages through a region. A landscape of connected habitats is critical to the survival of wildlife and plants by enabling movement for daily activity and dispersal. In a changing climate, connectivity will become even more important to species survival by enabling species to move to more suitable habitat as needed.

These areas of diffuse connectivity contribute to regional connectivity as broad, unfragmented lands that allow wildlife and plants to move freely. A landscape of connected habitats is critical to the survival of wildlife and plants by enabling movement for daily activity and dispersal. In a changing climate, connectivity will become even more important to species survival by enabling species to move to more suitable habitat as needed.

These areas of intensified connectivity are natural lands that provide the few remaining options for natural habit linkages through a region. A landscape of connected habitats is critical to the survival of wildlife and plants by enabling movement for daily activity and dispersal. In a changing climate, connectivity will become even more important to species survival by enabling species to move to more suitable habitat as needed.

Jurisdiction: City of Fairfield. Protection: all integration of new open space will be  compatible with adjacent areas so as to create a natural topographical appearance and avoid abrupt changes in slope.

Regional trails and trail systems are designed to serve populations greater than one community, often connecting multiple communities. Regional trails can be paved or unpaved and are mostly off-street. The Bay Area has well over a thousand miles of regional trails. The two premier regional trails are the Bay Area Ridge Trail, which circles the San Francisco Bay along the mountain ridgelines, and the San Francisco Bay Trail, which encircles the Bay at the shoreline. Other regional trails include the California Coastal Trail, Juan Bautista de Anza National Historic Trail, Napa Valley Vine Trail, the West County Trail in Sonoma County, and many hundreds of miles of paved off-street trails in Contra Costa County managed by East Bay Regional Park District. Trail completion is a priority of Bay Area conservation and recreation agencies and organizations and was also a focus of many Priority Conservation Areas submitted to the Association of Bay Area Governments in 2015.

Of the given metric (e.g. acreage of baylands), the total amount in the Bay Area that is protected by policies, fee ownership, or easements.

Of the given metric (e.g. acreage of baylands), the total amount in the County that is protected by policies, fee ownership, or easements.This is only presented if the analyzed area fits entirely within one county.

The proportion of a given metric (e.g. acreage which is protected by easement) that lies within your analyzed area, compared to the entire Bay Area. For example, a 10% value for Baylands would indicate that the Baylands in your analyzed area constitute 10% of the Baylands in the entire Bay Area.

The proportion of a given metric (e.g. acreage which is protected by easement) that lies within your analyzed area, compared to the entire county. For example, a 10% value for Baylands would indicate that the Baylands in your analyzed area constitute 10% of the Baylands in the entire county. This field is only displayed if the analyzed area fits entirely within a single county.

The proportion of a given metric (e.g. acreage which is protected by easement) that lies within your analyzed area, compared to the entire watershed. For example, a 10% value for Baylands would indicate that the Baylands in your analyzed area constitutes 10% of the Baylands in the entire watershed. This field is only displayed if the analyzed area fits entirely within a single watershed.

The metric being reported, e.g. Baylands.

The percentage of your analyzed area's acreage that fits into the given metric category. For example, a 12% for "Farmland of Local Importance" indicates that 12% of your analyzed area fits into that category. This is presented only for acreage-based metrics.

Metrics reported by the analysis tool are expressed in a variety of units: acreage, linear mileage, actual count, rating or score, and so on. The values represented should always be taken along with the units in which they are presented.

Used as part of the North Bay RCIS tool to highlight actions that support climate change resilience. This is one of 12 themes developed via user research by GreenInfo to help users find the most relevant of 150 actions in the North Bay RCIS.

Surface water storage watersheds are identified by the combined volume of all reservoirs within their watershed system and measured according to the average reservoir storage volume.

Jurisdiction: American Canyon. Protection: Require developments to preserve the topographic character of hillsides and canyons by concentrating projects on lesser slopes; no mass grading on slopes exceeding 25 percent.

Jurisdiction: American Canyon.Protection: Prohibition of development on slopes exceeding 50 percent and maintenance of natural grades in higher elevation areas.

Jurisdiction: Alameda County. Protection: In no case shall required housing be built on or which protrudes over hilltops or ridgelines, on slopes of more than 20 percent,critical wildlife habitat, or within 100 feet of a riparian corridor.

Jurisdiction: Rio Vista. Protection: General guidelines for setbacks are 100 feet from the edge of perennial streams; 50 feet from the edge of intermittent streams; and 50 feet from the edge of sensitive habitats, including riparian zones, wetlands, and habitats of rare, threatened, and endangered species. 

Jurisdiction: Solano County. Protection: Solano's Resource Conservation Overlay identifies and protects areas of the county with special resource management needs. The overlay protects resources by (1) requiring study of potential effects if development is proposed in these locations, and (2) providing mitigation to support urban development in cities.

Jurisdiction: Solano County. Protection: This policy in the General Plan called for an ordinance to be developed that protects riparian water quality through proper buffer zones that keep riparian areas an appropriate width apart from one another depending upon the size of the developed land. This ordinance was not developed; however, the County considers imposing buffers as needed based on the potential environmental impacts identified in a CEQA report.

Jurisdiction: Marin County. Protection: Protect views of the Ridge and Upland Greenbelt Areas by amending policies and maps to identify a border on parcels that abut the area. For example, Ridge and Upland Greenbelt lands would be rezoned to the Planned District category and adjacent buffer areas to a transitional district, thereby subjecting them to County Design Review Requirements that include visually sensitive designs and rural densities.

Jurisdiction: Fairfax Protection: Development within a ridgeline scenic corridor, defined as the area on either side of the ridgeline within 150 feet horizontal distance measured at right angles to the ridgeline or 100 feet vertically of the major ridge, whichever is a greater, requires additional permitting.

Jurisdiction: Tiburon. Protection: When considering open space and development interests, undeveloped ridgelines are to have the highest priority. Developments and landscaping shall be setback a minimum of 150 horizontal feet and 50 vertical feet of either side of Tiburon Ridge.

Jurisdiction: Pleasanton. Protection: Adopted by voters in 2008, Measure PP prohibits placing housing units or structures on slopes of 25 percent or greater or within 100 vertical feet of a ridgeline  and prohibits grading to construct residential or commercial structures in those same areas.

Jurisdiction: Pleasanton. Protection: This measure implements Measure PP and QQ, by prohibiting the development of housing units or structures on slopes of 25 percent or greater or within 100 vertical feet of a ridgeline.

One of the 22 conservation elements defined in the North Bay RCIS. These are the focus of defined Goals, Objectives, and Actions that people can take to protect or restore the subject of the element, which can be a species, habitat, or process. Find detailed information about Riparian Corridors in the RCIS final document.

Jurisdiction: San Jose. Protection: Provide 100 foot setback from riparian habitat. Ensure developments are consistent with City's Riparian Corridor Policy. Implement appropriate measures to restore, and/or mitigate damage to riparian corridors; update Policy; restrict or carefully regulate development in streamside areas.

Jurisdiction: Rohnert Park. Protection: Environmental Conservation Measure (EC)-13 establishes creek protection zones extending a minimum of 50 feet (measured from the tops of the banks and a strip of land extending laterally outward from the top of each bank) for creeks, with extended buffers where significant habitat areas or high potential wetlands exist. Wider buffers are to be established in significant habitat areas. No development is allowed in these areas except for greenway enhancements such as trails and bikeways.

Riparian policies limit or prohibit new construction within a certain buffered distance from rivers and streams to avoid adverse impacts of urban development on water quality, scenic and recreational values, and other ecosystem services.

Water that flows over the surface of the land into streams and rivers.

One of the 22 conservation elements defined in the North Bay RCIS. These are the focus of defined Goals, Objectives, and Actions that people can take to protect or restore the subject of the element, which can be a species, habitat, or process. Find detailed information about Salt Marsh Harvest Mouse in the RCIS final document.

Jurisdiction: San Mateo County. Protection: The main goal of a Habitat Conservation Plan (HCP) is to gain authorization for incidental take of covered endangered or threatened species under the ESA and the NCCP Act for activities which will occur in accordance with approved land-use and capital-improvement plans.The San Bruno Mountain Area HCP was created to protect and improve habitat for endangered species on San Bruno Mountain including the mission blue, callippe silverspot, San Bruno elfin and bay checkerspot butterflies, as well as the overall native ecosystem of San Bruno Mountain.

Jurisdiction: Morgan Hill. Protection: Policy NRE-3.2 instructs the City of Morgan Hill to work in collaboration with the City of San Jose and Santa Clara County in order to ensure the San Jose Coyote Valley Greenbelt continues providing the non-urban buffer for the north side of Morgan Hill.

Jurisdiction: Santa Clara Valley Habitat Agency, Gilroy, Morgan Hill, San José, Santa Clara County, Santa Clara Valley Water District, and Santa Clara Valley Transportation Authority (Partners). Protection: A primary goal of any Habitat Conservation Plan (HCP) is to obtain authorization for incidental take of covered species under the ESA and the NCCP Act for covered activities which will occur in accordance with approved land-use and capital-improvement plans. The Plan allows the six Partners to receive endangered species permits for activities and projects they conduct and those under their jurisdiction. Protections include a 100-to 200-foot riparian buffer around Category 1 streams. 

Jurisdiction: Santa Clara Valley Habitat Agency, Gilroy, Morgan Hill, San José, Santa Clara County, Santa Clara Valley Water District, and Santa Clara Valley Transportation Authority (Partners). Protection: A primary goal of any Habitat Conservation Plan (HCP) is to obtain authorization for incidental take of covered species under the ESA and the NCCP Act for covered activities which will occur in accordance with approved land-use and capital-improvement plans. The Plan allows the six Partners to receive endangered species permits for activities and projects they conduct and those under their jurisdiction. 

Jurisdiction: U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service, Alameda County, Contra Costa County. Protection: Santa Cruz tarplant is a California endangered plant species, which means that killing or possessing plants is prohibited by the California Endangered Species Act (CESA). The species is also listed as threatened under the federal Endangered Species Act. USFWS designated critical habitat for this species in 2002.

Jurisdiction: U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service, Alameda County, Contra Costa County. Protection: The Conservation Strategy, adopted in December 2005, provides the biological framework for conservation of the endangered California tiger salamander and four rare plant species found in conjunction with wetland habitat on the Santa Rosa Plain. It identifies conservation areas and mitigation requirements for development projects that will impact the habitat of these protected species. It is being implemented by the County of Sonoma and the Cities of Santa Rosa, Rohnert Park, and Cotati, and the Town of Windsor.

Jurisdiction: Sonoma County. Protection: To retain the largely open, scenic character of important Scenic Landscape Units, this policy directs the County to avoid amendments to increase residential density in Scenic Landscape Units in excess of one unit per ten acres. The land use plan may designate a lower density or larger minimum lot size.

Jurisdiction: Contra Costa County. Protection: Development on open hillsides and significant ridgelines shall be restricted. Slopes of 26 percent or more should generally be protected. Additionally, there should be no construction within 50 feet or on top of major scenic ridgelines. Any new development shall be encouraged to generally conform with natural contours to avoid excessive grading. Extreme topographic modification, such as filling in canyons or removing hilltops, shall be avoided. 

By mid-century, the Bay Area could see 4 feet of inundation from the combination of Sea Level Rise (SLR) and a storm with a once in five year chance. This scenario assumes 2 feet of SLR by 2050 caused by continued high GHG emissions. This scenario is considered a "medium-high risk" aversion scenario, a cautious scenario that is recommended for planning for critical infrastructure. Inundation maps from Bay Area Adapting to Rising Tides (ART) were overlaid on land-cover maps from NOAA's Coastal Change Analysis Program (C-CAP) to show where inundation will affect the natural and built environments. 

By the end of the century, the Bay Area could see 9 feet of inundation from the combination of Sea Level Rise (SLR) and a storm with a once in five year chance. This scenario assumes 7 feet of SLR by 2100 caused by continued high GHG emissions. This scenario is considered a "medium-high risk" aversion scenario, a cautious scenario that is recommended for planning for critical infrastructure.  Inundation maps from Bay Area Adapting to Rising Tides (ART) were overlaid on land-cover maps from NOAA's Coastal Change Analysis Program (C-CAP) to show where inundation will affect the natural and built environments.

This hazard layer is used to display the composite shaking risk across the Bay Area, based on all earthquake scenarios and probability information using the Modified Mercalli Intensity (MMI) scale. The layer shows likely shaking intensity in the Bay Area in any 50-year period from all possible faults.

Jurisdiction: San Mateo County. Protection: Local Coastal Program establishes buffer zones 50 feet outward on both sides of riparian corridors from the “limit of riparian vegetation” for perennial streams and 30 feet outward for intermittent streams. Where no riparian vegetation exists along both sides of riparian corridors, extend buffer zones 50 feet from the predictable high water point for perennial streams and 30 feet from the midpoint of intermittent streams. No new residential parcels shall be created whose only building site is in the buffer area.

Jurisdiction: Rio Vista. Protection: These areas are defined as “areas possessing one or more natural resources that, when taken together, create a feature that is uniquely representative of Rio Vista’s character.” The City shall ensure that the development process respects the unique characteristics and  functions of Sensitive Local Resource Areas. The preferred treatment is first, avoidance of disturbance; second, on-site restoration; third, in-kind restoration; then, other approaches or mitigation. General guidelines for setbacks will include 100 feet from the edge of perennial streams; 50 feet from the edge of intermittent streams; and 50 feet from the edge of sensitive habitats, including riparian zones, wetlands, and habitats of rare, threatened, and endangered species. 

The amount of nitrogen dioxide (NO2) sequestered by tree canopy, grasslands,and shrublands improving air quality and supporting the health of Bay Area communities. Sequestration rates are specific to county, urban/rural context, land cover type, and percent cover.

The amount of particulate matter (PM2.5) sequestered by tree canopy, grasslands,and shrublands improving air quality and supporting the health of Bay Area communities. Sequestration rates are specific to county, urban/rural context, land cover type, and percent cover.

The San Francisco Estuary Institute EcoAtlas Project Tracker is a data entry tool for uploading and editing information on wetland restoration, mitigation, and habitat conservation projects throughout California. It provides a comprehensive view of wetlands projects across the Bay Area and beyond. The Greenprint pulls data from the Project Tracker daily to show the most current information.

One of the 22 conservation elements defined in the North Bay RCIS. These are the focus of defined Goals, Objectives, and Actions that people can take to protect or restore the subject of the element, which can be a species, habitat, or process. Find detailed information about Shallow Subtidal Habitat in the RCIS final document.

Jurisdiction: San Anselmo. Protection:  The Single-Family Residential-Conservation designation is assigned to those residential properties that are one acre or more and are located at or above the 150 foot mean sea level elevation, but outside of the land designated as Very Low Density (Hillside and Ridge). In order to preserve the unique visual qualities of these lands, development is to be limited to a density of one unit per acre or less.

Jurisdiction: San Anselmo. Protection: The ridge zone shall extend 150 horizontal feet in both directions from the lowest elevation of the ridgeline, or 50 feet vertically, whichever is more restrictive. Development on land with an elevation above 150 feet will be limited by Town Engineer and Planning Commission review.

Jurisdiction: Saratoga.Protection: Construction is not allowed in an area with an average slope that exceeds 30 percent or an area that exceeds 40 percent natural slope under the structure. Additional requirement must be consistent the Measure "A" area, or hillside specific plan.

Jurisdiction: Gilroy. Protection:  Slopes greater than 30 percent, areas of high landslide risk, and areas with highly expansive soils on slopes greater than 10 percent are not suitable for development and will remain open space. Slopes of 10 to 30 percent may be suitable for low intensity, low density development, subject to site-specific review and approval.

Jurisdiction: U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service, Alameda County, Contra Costa County. Protection: This plant species was federally listed as endangered throughout its range in 1997. It is state-listed as rare. USFWS designated critical habitat for this species in 2007. 

The carbon content in soil organic matter from microorganisms, root exudates, decomposed organisms, and soil biota. Soil organic carbon storage is summarized to a depth of 30cm.

Jurisdiction: Solano County Water Agency, Vacaville, Fairfield, Suisun City, Vallejo, Solano Irrigation District, Maine Prairie Water District. Protection: The Solano HCP establishes a framework for complying with endangered species regulations requiring permits for incidental take of protected species, while accommodating future urban growth, development of water-related and other public infrastructure undertaken by the Plan Participants.

Jurisdiction: Sonoma County. Protection: Identify and protect native vegetation and wildlife, particularly occurrences of special status species, wetlands, sensitive natural communities, woodlands, and areas of essential habitat connectivity. Protection of these areas helps to maintain the natural vegetation, support native plant and animal species, protect water quality and air quality, and preserve the quality of life, diversity and unique character of the County.

Jurisdiction: Sonoma County. Protection: Policy WR-2e (formerly RC-3h) requires proof of groundwater with a sufficient yield and quality to support proposed uses in Class 3 and 4 water areas, and requires test wells or the establishment of community water systems in Class 4 water areas. 

Jurisdiction: Sonoma County. Protection: Protection: Policy WR-2e (formerly RC-3h) requires proof of groundwater with a sufficient yield and quality to support proposed uses in Class 3 and 4 water areas, and requires test wells or the establishment of community water systems in Class 4 water areas. Test wells may be required in Class 3 areas. 

Jurisdiction: Sonoma County. Protection: In designated Habitat Connectivity Corridors, encourage property owners to consult with CA Department of Fish & Game, install wildlife friendly fencing, and provide for roadway undercrossings and oversized culverts and bridges to allow movement of terrestrial wildlife. Includes Sonoma Valley Corridor and Laguna West Corridor.

Jurisdiction: Sonoma county. Protection: Develop comprehensive programs for preservation and restoration of the freshwater marsh habitat of the Laguna de Santa Rosa area, the extensive marsh areas along the Petaluma River, other tidal marshes, and freshwater marshes such as the Pitkin, Kenwood, Cunningham, and Atascadero Marshes.

Jurisdiction: Sonoma County. Protection: Ordinance Number 6089 established Streamside Conservation Areas (SCAs) to protect and enhance riparian corridors along streams in order to balance multiple uses. SCAs include 200 feet from Russian River, 100 feet from Flatland and 50 feet from other riparian corridors.

Jurisdiction: Livermore. Protection: The South Livermore Valley Area Plan was adopted in 1993 to ensure an orderly development of the area. The Plan seeks to protect, enhance, and increase viticulture and other cultivated agriculture in the South Livermore Valley, by directing new residential development to appropriate locations, preserving existing vineyards and prime vineyard soils.

Used as part of the North Bay RCIS tool to highlight actions that support climate change resilience. This is one of 12 themes developed via user research by GreenInfo to help users find the most relevant of 150 actions in the North Bay RCIS.

Species richness is calculated dynamically based on the species you have targeted for mitigation. The score is the count of target species with some habitat in each hex. This allows you to focus on hexagons that deliver habitat for the highest number of your target species.

A Sphere of Influence is defined as a planning boundary outside of an agency's legal boundary (such as the city limit line) that designates the agency's probable future boundary and service area.

Jurisdiction: Stanford University. Protection: The Stanford HCP establishes a comprehensive conservation program that protects, restores and enhances habitat areas; monitors and reports on covered species (California red-legged frog, California tiger salamander, and an intergrade form of the San Francisco gartersnake); and avoids and minimizes impacts on species and their habitats. The HCP also provides major new commitments of land protection, personnel, and resources dedicated to habitat conservation.

Jurisdiction: NOAA Fisheries, Alameda County, Contra Costa County. Protection: One distinct population segment (DPS) of steelhead trout is listed as endangered under the Endangered Species Act, and 10 DPS and 1 experimental non-essential population are listed as threatened. NOAA designated critical habitat for this species in 2005.

Jurisdiction: NOAA Fisheries, Alameda County, Contra Costa County. Protection: One distinct population segment (DPS) of steelhead trout is listed as endangered under the Endangered Species Act, and 10 DPS and 1 experimental non-essential population are listed as threatened. NOAA designated critical habitat for this species in 2005.

Jurisdiction: NOAA Fisheries, Alameda County, Contra Costa County Protection: Steller sea lions were first listed under the Endangered Species Act in 1990. In 1997 NOAA Fisheries recognized two populations, classifying the eastern population as threatened and the western population as endangered. The eastern population has since recovered and is no longer listed. The western population remains endangered. NOAA Fisheries designated critical habitat for this species in 1993.

Jurisdiction: Marin County. Protection:  A Stream Conservation Area (SCA) is established to protect the active channel, water quality and flood control functions, and associated fish and wildlife habitat values along streams. Sets a 20-foot buffer minimum in city corridor; 100-foot minimum in coastal, baylands corridors; 20 feet minimum in streams. Inside the City-Centered Corridor, a setback from streams is 100 feet for parcels above 2 acres, 50 feet between 0.50 and 2 acres and 20 feet for 1/2 acres.

Jurisdiction: San Francisco Bay Conservation and Development Commission (BCDC), Solano County, and the California Department of Fish and Game (DFG). Protection: This area consists of tidal marshes, seasonal marshes, managed wetlands and lowland grasslands. It is the intent for this area to remain in its existing marsh and related uses as provided for in the Suisun Marsh Local Protection Program. Within the Primary Management Area lands are generally to be retained in minimum parcel sizes of 250 acres. 

Jurisdiction: San Francisco Bay Conservation and Development Commission (BCDC), Solano County, and the Department of Fish and Game (DFG). Protection: Secondary management areas include the Western Hills region, Suisun Valley region, the Jepson Prairie Region, and the Montezuma Hills region. These areas consist of upland grasslands and agricultural lands and serve as a buffers to the wetland areas. The Secondary Management Area is designed to assure retention of upland areas adjacent to the marsh in uses compatible with its protection as provided for in the Suisun Marsh local Protection Program.

Jurisdiction: U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service, Alameda County, Contra Costa County. Protection: This species of thistle was listed by the USFWS as endangered in 1997. It is endemic to California, where it is found only in the San Francisco Bay Area and the Sacramento-San Joaquin River Delta. USFWS designated critical habitat for this species in 2007.

One of the 22 conservation elements defined in the North Bay RCIS. These are the focus of defined Goals, Objectives, and Actions that people can take to protect or restore the subject of the element, which can be a species, habitat, or process. Find detailed information about Tidal Habitat in the RCIS final document.

Jurisdiction: U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service, Alameda County, Contra Costa County. Protection: USFWS listed this species as endangered in 1994. A revised critical habitat designation was published in 2013.

A 'Transit Priority Area' is defined in California Public Resource Code, Section 21099 as an area within one-half mile of a major transit stop that is existing or planned, if the planned stop is scheduled to be completed within the planning horizon included in a Transportation Improvement Program or applicable regional transportation plan.

The tsunami inundation map was prepared to assist cities and counties in identifying their tsunami hazard. It is intended for local jurisdictional coastal evacuation planning uses only. This map does not meet disclosure requirements for real estate transactions nor for any other regulatory purpose.

Farmland of lesser quality soils used for the production of the State's leading agricultural crops. This land is usually irrigated, but may include non-irrigated orchards or vineyards as found in some climatic zones in California. Land must have been cropped in the last four years.

The groundwater recharge potential on developed lands represents the volume of water that could be recharged to underlying groundwater basins with the addition of green infrastructure. Natural infrastructure, especially above aquifers, promotes infiltration of runoff that could help meet or exceed the estimated recharge potential. New green infrastructure might be especially useful in areas that are currently very built up (impervious), with low infiltration capacity. However, groundwater recharge is complex, especially in urban systems, and potential pollutants from adjacent land should be evaluated very carefully before developing low impact development recharge projects. Site-scale tools such as GreenPlanIT can be used for planning  and stormwater professionals should be consulted for the design of facilities. For more info, see Stormwater management services maps for the San Francisco Bay Area.

The estimated amount of carbon (measured in metric tons of CO2-equivalent) stored in street trees in urban areas. 

A planning boundary of a city and/or county that defines where urban growth can and cannot occur. UGBs are mapped from current General Plan maps and Local Agency Formation Commission documents.

Urban Heat Island, Air Temperature is reported by high and medium urban heat island threat classes from the source report. Large urban areas often experience higher temperatures, greater pollution, and more negative health impacts during hot summer months, when compared to more rural communities. This phenomenon is known as the urban heat island. Heat islands are created by a combination of heat-absorptive surfaces (such as dark pavement and roofing), heat-generating activities (such as engines and generators), and the absence of vegetation (which provides evaporative cooling). 

The land surface temperature layer (from 2010) combines land cover types from National Land Cover Database with thermal temperature from Landstat on developed lands to identify areas experiencing the urban heat island effect.

A planning area regulated by each county's Local Agency Formation Commission that delineates where land is available for development and services. California Gov. Code Section 56080 describes it as "undeveloped, or agricultural land, either incorporated or unincorporated, within the sphere of influence of a city, which is served by urban facilities, utilities, and services."

Jurisdiction: Vacaville-Dixon Greenbelt Authority. Protection: The Vacaville-Dixon Greenbelt Agreement identifies approximately 1,000 acres of land located between Vacaville and Dixon that were purchased by the Vacaville-Dixon Greenbelt Authority (VDGA) to be maintained in productive agriculture or as other open space uses mutually agreed upon by VDGA.

Jurisdiction: Vacaville Fairfield-Solano Greenbelt Authority. Protection: The Vacaville-Fairfield-Solano Greenbelt Agreement identifies approximately 4,100 acres between Vacaville and Fairfield that must be preserved to serve as a permanent separation between the urban areas of Fairfield and Vacaville. This area must be maintained in agriculture and open space uses consistent with the provisions of the agreement. The greenbelt serves as a community separator, a setting for recreational activities, a buffer between agricultural and urban areas, and as an ultimate limit for urban growth.

Jurisdiction: U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service, Alameda County, Contra Costa County. Protection: Vernal pool fairy shrimp are translucent, slender crustaceans (relatives of lobsters, crabs, saltwater shrimp and barnacles). USFWS listed this species as threatened in 1994, and published a revised final critical habitat designation in 2006. 

Vernal pools are seasonal depressional wetlands that are covered by shallow water for variable periods from winter to spring, but may be completely dry for most of the summer and fall. These wetlands range in size from small puddles to shallow lakes and are usually found in a gently sloping plain of grassland. The inventory in the Greenprint combines the knowledge of vernal pools and vernal pool complexes distributed across the Bay Area from local and federal agencies. Understanding the extent of these unique ecosystems is vital for the monitoring of and recovery planning for listed and sensitive species that are uniquely adapted to live in this environment.

Jurisdiction: U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service, Alameda County, Contra Costa County. Protection: Vernal pool tadppole shrimp are translucent, slender crustaceans (relatives of lobsters, crabs, saltwater shrimp and barnacles). USFWS listed this species as endangered in 1994, and published a revised final critical habitat designation in 2006. 

Jurisdiction: Napa County. Protection: Protects the scenic quality of the County both for visitors as well as residents. No building or other administrative permit shall be issued for any new structure or improvement to an existing structure if the structure is located on a slope of 15 percent or more, or if the structure is located on any minor or major ridgeline. 

Vulnerable coastal habitats are habitats where the exposure to sea level rise (weighted by sensitivity of that habitat to sea-level rise impacts) was greater than the adaptive capacity - the area available to transgress inland.

One of the 22 conservation elements defined in the North Bay RCIS. These are the focus of defined Goals, Objectives, and Actions that people can take to protect or restore the subject of the element, which can be a species, habitat, or process. Find detailed information about Waterfowl and Shorebird Habitat in the RCIS final document.

Used as part of the North Bay RCIS tool to highlight actions that support climate change resilience. This is one of 12 themes developed via user research by GreenInfo to help users find the most relevant of 150 actions in the North Bay RCIS.

An index of water quality based on conductivity, turbidity, and nitrate concentration, based on the California Integrated Assessment of Watershed Health, conducted by the U.S. EPA (2013).

Over the past 20 years, multiple initiatives have been undertaken to create a cohesive policy for application of statewide watershed management actions. These initiatives constitute the policy framework for watershed management within California. At the county level, such policies include voter-protected agricultural watershed county lands in Napa County's Measure J, Solano County's Orderly Growth Initiative for marsh and watershed designated lands, and groundwater policies in Sonoma County.

Watershed boundaries are created based on topographic divides and delineated areas where surface water runoff drains into a common surface water body, such as a lake or section of a stream. It is important to consider that while watershed boundaries identify surface water runoff divides, they often do not represent groundwater flow divides. Groundwater flows generally follow the topographic flow direction, just as surface water runoff does. However, the movement of water in the subsurface is more complex and groundwater flow directions may not coincide with surface water flow directions.

The Water Trail is a network of launch and landing sites around the San Francisco Bay. The sites allow people in human-powered boats and beachable sail craft to take single-day and multiple-day trips on the Bay.

One of the 22 conservation elements defined in the North Bay RCIS. These are the focus of defined Goals, Objectives, and Actions that people can take to protect or restore the subject of the element, which can be a species, habitat, or process. Find detailed information about Western Pond Turtle in the RCIS final document.

Jurisdiction: U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service, Alameda County, Contra Costa County. Protection: USFWS listed the western snowy plover as threatened in 1993. A revised final critical habitat was published in 2011 along the coasts of California, Oregon and Washington. 

Areas where water covers the soil or is present either at or near the surface of the soil all year or for varying periods of time during the year, including during the growing season. Water saturation largely determines how the soil develops and the types of plant and animal communities that live in and on the soil. Wetlands may support both aquatic and terrestrial species. The prolonged presence of water creates conditions that favor the growth of specially adapted plants and promote the development of characteristic wetland soils. Wetlands provide habitat for fish, wildlife and plants--many of which have a commercial or recreational value--recharge groundwater, reduce flooding, provide clean drinking water, offer food and fiber, and support cultural and recreational activities.

In the Mitigation Wizard, the selector for detailed or simple wetlands is used to toggle which types of wetland are displayed. In simple mode some subtypes of wetland will be aggregated.

The zone of transition between unoccupied land and human development, and likely including communities that are within 0.5 miles of the zone. These wildland urban interface (WUI) lands and communities adjacent to and surrounded by wildlands are at risk of wildfires. CAL FIRE produced a statewide map to flag areas that could be considered WUI zones. Wildland Urban Interface, Wildland Urban Intermix, and Wildfire Influence Zones developed by CalFire FRAP. This dataset is appropriate for displaying the overall pattern of WUI development at the county level, and comparing counties in terms of development patterns. The Greenprint reporting tool shows all three layers on the web map, but reports acreage only of Wildland Urban Interface and Wildland Urban Intermix.

Jurisdiction: Alameda County, Contra Costa County, Marin County, Napa County, San Francisco, San Mateo County, Santa Clara County, Solano County, Sonoma County. Protection: The Williamson Act, also known as the California Land Conservation Act of 1965, enables local governments to enter into contracts with private landowners for the purpose of restricting specific parcels of land to agricultural or related open space use.  In return, landowners receive property tax assessments which are much lower than normal because they are based upon farming and open space uses as opposed to full market value. 

Williamson Act properties are enrolled in a California program providing property tax relief to owners of farmland and open space land in exchange for a ten-year agreement that the land will not be developed or otherwise converted to another use. The state payments to counties to support this program ceased in FY 2009; the decision to continue the program is being made on a county by county basis.

One of the 22 conservation elements defined in the North Bay RCIS. These are the focus of defined Goals, Objectives, and Actions that people can take to protect or restore the subject of the element, which can be a species, habitat, or process. Find detailed information about Working Lands in the RCIS final document.

Jurisdiction: U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service, Alameda County, Contra Costa County. Protection: Yellow or golden larkspur is a perennial herb in the buttercup family. USFWS listed this species as endangered in 2000 and published a final critical habitat designation in 2003.