Placer County staff outline conservation program, answer public questions on fees, scope and implementation

Placer County planning staff and the Placer Conservation Authority (PCA) presented an overview of the Placer County Conservation Program and responded to public questions Wednesday at the county Planning Commission hearing.

The presentation, delivered by Supervising Planner Rebecca Lillis and followed by remarks from PCA Executive Director Greg McKenzie, described the PCCP as a consolidated habitat and aquatic-resources conservation program covering roughly 201,000 acres of western Placer County. Lillis told commissioners the PCCP “strikes a balance between conservation and economic development by accommodating the anticipated growth in the region while streamlining the environmental regulatory permitting coverage required of covered activities.”

Commissioners and members of the public pressed staff on program details including which projects must enroll, how mitigation fees are calculated and adjusted, whether avoided riparian and oak woodland areas can be added to the PCA reserve system, and whether the program creates a conflict of interest because the county planning agency helped develop the PCCP.

Lillis summarized how the PCCP is structured: a combined Habitat Conservation Plan (HCP)/Natural Community Conservation Plan (NCCP) for 14 covered species, an Aquatic Resources Program (CARP) to address streams and wetlands, and an in-lieu fee program that funds mitigation and…