The Regional Conservation Authority on Oct. 6 authorized the executive director to approve Amendment No. 3 to Agreement No. 24002 with ICF Jones & Stokes to advance work toward adding Crotch’s bumblebee (Bombus crotchii) to the Multiple Species Habitat Conservation Plan (MSHCP). The amendment adds up to $575,208 for implementation work, bringing the agreement cap to $1,330,378; the board approved the action unanimously, 16-0.

The action advances planning and technical work needed if the species is formally listed under state law. Aaron Gabbie, director of regional conservation at the RCA, told the board the California Fish and Game Commission declared Crotch’s bumblebee a candidate species on June 18, 2019, and that under state law candidate status carries protections similar to a listed species. Gabbie said the bumblebee is not currently covered by the MSHCP and that, absent an amendment, each project that could affect the species must seek its own separate incidental take permit.

Why this matters: adding the species to the MSHCP would provide long-term, streamlined permit coverage for permittees across Western Riverside County and a 75-year permit term under the plan. Gabbie said ICF evaluated permitting options and recommended a major amendment to the MSHCP—the most time-consuming and costly option but the one likely to provide the greatest certainty and the broadest coverage for infrastructure agencies and developers. "ICF recommended that the RCA and permittees amend the MSHCP to add the bumblebee," Gabbie said.

RCA staff said they also developed an interim permitting process to guide planning departments and applicants while the major amendment proceeds; staff plans to roll that interim process out to planning departments within the month. ICF evaluated a set of alternatives that included (1) a major amendment, (2) individual permitting for each applicant, and (3) a multiple-project permit that would bundle several projects. The staff presentation described the major amendment as roughly a five-step process—preliminary consultation, amendment request and documentation, wildlife agency review, environmental review/public comment (CEQA/NEPA), and final permit amendment and findings—and estimated the schedule at approximately two years depending on complexity and agency review.

The board’s item summary said tasks already completed under earlier work by ICF include development of a Crotch’s bumblebee habitat model, an evaluation of the MSHCP reserve system’s capacity to mitigate impacts, an interim permitting strategy, and standardized avoidance and minimization measures. Staff said RCA will pursue a U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service Section 6 planning grant this fall if funding is available to help pay for the amendment work.

The board motion to authorize the executive director to approve and execute the amendment was moved by City of Banning and seconded by District 2; the roll call and a verbal confirmation from Temecula were recorded and the motion passed 16-0.

Next steps: RCA staff will finalize the amendment with ICF as authorized, initiate the formal major amendment process with wildlife agencies if funding and schedules align, roll out the interim permitting guidance to local planning departments, and pursue Section 6 planning grant funding this fall to offset costs.