2.
Response
to
Comments
2.9
Individual
Responses
to
Comments
from
Organizations
within
the
Baylands
Project
site.
As
noted
in
that
response,
a
formal
wetland
delineation
prepared
in
2003
was
used
along
with
several
reconnaissance
site
visits
to
map
wetland
areas
within
the
Baylands
Project
site.
A
review
of
20
years
of
air
photos
conducted
as
part
of
the
Final
EIR
confirmed
the
adequacy
of
the
wetland
mapping
provided
in
the
Draft
EIR.
OSEC
-111
The
larval
host
plant
for
San
Bruno
elfin
butterfly
is
Sedum
spathulifolium,
which
has
not
been
identified
on
Icehouse
Hill.
Sedum
is
a
perennial
forb
species
that
would
be
identifiable
if
present
on
the
site
during
the
various
floristic
survey
periods.
Because
there
were
no
sightings
of
this
plant
during
any
study
periods,
it
was
determined
that
the
San
Bruno
elfin
butterfly
could
not
lay
eggs
within
the
Baylands
Project
area.
The
only
stickleback
fish
that
may
occur
in
the
San
Francisco
Bay
area
would
be
classified
as
the
more
common
three-spine
stickleback
with
nomenclature
of
(
Gasterosteus
aculeatus
),
with
no
subspecies
.
While
comments
that
refer
generically
to
“stickleback”
are
presumed
to
reference
the
unarmored
three-spine
stickleback,
based
on
the
historical
record
for
the
agency-listed
subspecies
of
unarmored
three-spine
stickleback
(ssp.
williamsoni
),
it
appears
that
this
species
has
never
occurred
within
the
San
Francisco
Bay
region.
The
endangered
unarmored
three-spine
stickleback
(
Gasterosteus
aculeatus
williamsoni
),
a
subspecies
of
three-spine
stickleback
(
Gasterosteus
aculeatus
),
is
restricted
to
three
areas:
the
upper
Santa
Clara
River
and
its
tributaries
in
Los
Angeles
County,
San
Antonio
Creek
on
Vandenberg
Air
Force
Base
in
Santa
Barbara
County,
and
the
Shay
Creek
vicinity
(which
includes
Shay
Pond,
Sugarloaf
Pond,
Juniper
Springs,
Motorcycle
Pond,
Shay
Creek,
Wiebe
Pond,
and
Baldwin
Lake),
in
San
Bernardino
County.
Two
other
species
of
three-spine
stickleback
occur
in
southern
California.
Regardless,
the
need
for
evaluation
of
“stickleback”
is
unwarranted
due
to
the
more
common
nature
of
the
three-spine
stickleback
(
Gasterosteus
aculeatus
),
which
is
the
only
subspecies
that
might
be
found
in
the
San
Francisco
Bay.
The
sentence
on
page
4.C-14
immediately
preceding
the
sentence
quoted
in
the
comment
states,
“Icehouse
Hill
is
the
only
location
on
the
Baylands
Project
Site
where
the
substrate
is
suitable
to
support
these
three
species,”
which
indicates
it
is
potential
habitat
for
the
host
species,
Under
these
circumstances
presence
of
host
plant
species
was
assumed,
and
in
the
Draft
EIR
(and
as
revised)
Mitigation
Measure
4.C-1c
requires
pre-construction
plant
surveys
to
ensure
avoidance
of
host
plants,
including
Viola
pedunculata,
Lupinus
albifrons,
and
L.
formosus
and
L.
versicolor.
An
assessment
of
habitat
suitability
for
San
Francisco
garter
snake
was
undertaken
using
appropriate
analysis
Brisbane
Baylands
Final
EIR
2.9.3-43
May
2015