In this workshop you will learn the framework for mitigation and mitigation monitoring, especially considering botanical resources, and how laws like CEQA can be leveraged to advocate for responsible mitigation measures that keep California’s natural habitat resources in mind. Read on for details.

Mitigation Measures & Monitoring

October 4-6, 2021
Ventura, CA
Taught by David Magney

CNPS Members $300 / Non-Members $350
Capacity: 20 participants
Last Day to Register: September 26, 2021

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Objectives

Target Audience: This workshop is geared towards botanists, wildlife biologists, consultants, and agency staff. We will focus primarily on botanical resources, but other non-botanical biological resources will also be discussed.

Full Description: This workshop will provide a framework for mitigation and mitigation monitoring for botanical resources, based primarily on CEQA impact assessments. Topics will include which mitigation measures need to be monitored and why, various monitoring methods, and thresholds of significance and success. This workshop will focus on botanical resource issues, however non-botanical biological monitoring will also be discussed, particularly for those resources related to habitat, or methods often used.

Homework will be assigned on the evening of day 2. To earn a certificate of completion, participants will need to pass (72% score or higher) an optional 50-question test (multiple choice and true/false questions) covering the subject matter covered in the workshop.

Participants will learn:

  • The regulatory requirements for mitigation and mitigation monitoring
  • How to draft a mitigation measure and why
  • What is needed/expected to monitor mitigation measures
  • Various methods used to monitor mitigation measures
  • The biological resource issues that need to be mitigated and monitored

Schedule & Locale

Monday, October 4

Meet at the Casitas Springs Community Center, afternoon in the classroom

2:00 pm
Meet and greet; workshop overview

2:30 pm
Survey: 50 questions to provide a baseline of the group’s existing understanding of mitigation measures and monitoring

3:30 pm
ABCs of mitigation and monitoring: what is mitigation and monitoring, overview of mitigation measures including procedures and research needs, monitoring requirements

5:00 pm
Break for the day

Tuesday, October 5

Meet at the Casitas Springs Community Center, morning in the classroom, afternoon in the field

9:00 am
Why mitigate and monitor – the basics: what drives requirements to mitigate and to monitor the mitigation, environmental regulations including CEQA

9:45 am
Identifying the resource impacted: assessments conducted to satisfy various regulatory permits, types of impacts requiring mitigation

10:30 am
Mitigation responsibilities: who requires mitigation, project-related impacts (direct, indirect, cumulative) and significance, mitigating to less-than-significant levels, findings

11:15 am
Elements of a mitigation measure: identification of resource to be mitigated, mitigation site(s), ratio, and duration, responsible party, measure feasibility, mitigation and monitoring plans, success criteria, monitoring frequency, compliance entity

Noon
Lunch break (please bring your own lunch and water)

1:00 pm
Field exercise: visit 1-2 field sites (TBA) to consider how mitigation would be monitored

5:00 pm
Break for the day

Wednesday, October 6

Meet at the Casitas Springs Community Center, all day in the field

9:00 am
Mitigation measure review practicum: review biological resource mitigation measures, analyze practicalities and feasibility of monitoring the measures

10:45 am
Discussion of case study: elements to consider when developing a mitigation measure related to how success/failure would be monitored

Noon
Lunch break (please bring your own lunch and water)

1:00 pm
Review and summary of workshop

2:45 pm
Discussion: personal experiences and questions

4:00 pm
Test (optional) for certificate of completion, workshop evaluations

5:00 pm
Workshop concludes

Schedule subject to change.

Venue: This workshop will be held at the Casitas Springs Community Center, located at 8437 Edison Drive, Ventura, CA 93001  Additional details will be provided to registered participants about a week before the workshop.

Materials & Requirements

Please bring...

  • Notebook and pen/pencil
  • Clipboard
  • Sturdy shoes or boots, hat & field clothing appropriate for the weather and conditions (e.g. protection from poison oak, rain, sun, heat/cold, insects, etc.), for Wednesday afternoon
  • Packable lunches, plenty of water, and snacks for both full days

Materials Provided: CNPS will provide relevant handouts and references.

Physical Requirements: Participants should be physically able to walk along uneven paths and trails, and remain outside for up to 4 hours at a time. This workshop will be held rain or shine. We will spend approx. 20% of the time in the field.

About the Instructor

David Magney

David Magney, Special Projects Program Manager of the CNPS Rare Plant Program and President of David Magney Environmental Consulting (DMEC), is a biologist/botanist, Certified Consulting Botanist and Certified Arborist, and physical geographer with a thorough knowledge of the flora of CA and over 30 years of field experience. David joined CNPS staff in mid-2016 after 32 years in various leadership roles as a volunteer focusing on conservation and rare plants, including serving as CNPS Board President and president of the Channel Islands Chapter for many years.

As an environmental consultant, David has worked on and managed a large variety of projects throughout the Pacific Southwest, including biological resource inventories, vegetation mapping and classification, wetland delineations and restoration, rare plant surveys and ecological studies, fisheries habitat assessment and mitigation design, fisheries monitoring, small mammal trapping and surveys, biological impact analysis and mitigation, and construction and mitigation monitoring. He formed DMEC in 1997 after spending 2 years with FugroWest, 6 years with Jones & Stokes Associates, and 3 years with Dames & Moore, as well as working with the Los Padres National Forest and UCSB Herbarium. David earned a BA in Geography and Environmental Studies (emphasis in botany) from UC Santa Barbara in 1985. He also holds an A.S. in Landscape Horticulture from Ventura College. David has taught courses and given presentations on wetland impacts and mitigation, CEQA, Clean Water Act permitting, water quality, riparian and wetland plant identification, and wetland delineation methodology. He has authored two floras in CA and presented numerous papers on vegetation and water quality, and has nearly completed a manual on the flora of Ventura County (www.venturaflora.com). He served on the Environmental Review Board for Los Angeles County Regional Planning, and the City of Ojai’s Tree Committee until late 2016.

Registration

Before registering, please review our full workshop cancellation policy and participant expectations. The last day to cancel your registration for this workshop and receive any refund (less the cancellation fee) is Monday, September 20, 2021. For other ways to register, please see our full registration & payment policy.

Did you know CNPS members get discounts on workshops? If you’re not a current member, you can join or renew now before completing the registration form below to qualify for special members-only rates!