Permits

Charles Bagwell .—The applicant, Charles Bagwell, had proposed the creation of four lots of 0.4 ha (1 ac.) each for detached, singlefamily residential development from a 3.9-ha. (9.6-ac.) parcel situated adjacent to the southern border of the Pismo Lake Ecological Reserve.^[8] The reserve, which is owned and managed by the California Department of Fish and Game (DFG), is fed by Meadow Creek and is bordered by thick stands of arroyo willow. The subject parcel consisted primarily of a steep slope, dipping toward the reserve, vegetated with coast live oak and having a strand of riparian vegetation on the north side. The applicant had proposed locating the building sites on the back side of the ridge, away from the reserve, but incorporated most of the oak and riparian woodland into one of the building sites.

The Regional Commission found that the proposed development, which the land division would have facilitated, posed a serious potential threat to the oak and riparian woodlands and the adjacent Pismo Lake Ecological Reserve. Accordingly, the Regional Commission approved the land division with the condition that the applicant offer to Grover City, or if the city refused, the DFG, a 2-ha. (5-ac.) portion of the parcel containing all of the oak and riparian woodland, for the purpose of protecting the woodlands and adjoining reserve in perpetuity. The land was ultimately accepted by the city, with the further requirement that it be managed as an integral part of the Pismo Lake Ecological Reserve and subject to the regulatory provisions governing all state ecological reserves.

Aqueduct Farms , Inc .—In a project related to the above development, the applicant proposed dividing 12.6 ha. (31 ac.) of land on the north side of the Pismo Lake Ecological Reserve into three parcels (4.5 ha. [11 ac.], 5.3 ha. [13 ac.], and 2.0 ha. [5 ac.]) to accommodate general commercial and recreational developments.^[9] Portions of the original parcel had been disturbed by filling and grading. The remainder consisted of gently rolling swales and ravines dipping down toward the reserve. These portions of the property were vegetated with a combination of coastal sage scrub species and a variety of herbs and other introduced grasses; the area adjacent to the reserve was dominated by arroyo willow. The Regional Commission allowed the creation of the building sites on the already disturbed areas and a small portion of the site with the shallowest gradient (less than 20%), but required the applicant to offer to the DFG the remaining 6.1 ha. (15 ac.) to be incorporated into the Pismo Lake Ecological Reserve.

[8] South Central Coast Regional Commission. 1978. Application and permit 133-08: Charles Bagwell. On file with the South Central Coast District Office, Santa Barbara, Calif.

[9] South Central Coast Regional Commission. 1979. Application and permit 205-15: Aqueduct Farms, Inc. On file with the South Central Coast District Office, Santa Barbara, Calif.

California Department of Parks and Recreation/San Luis Obispo County Flood Control District .—The applicants proposed clearing 2,748 cu. m. (3,600 cu. yd.) of sediment from 396 m. (1,300 ft.) of Los Osos Creek, which discharges into the southern end of the Morro Bay estuary. The purpose of the channel clearing was to increase the floodflow capacity of the channel and protect an adjacent local road from flooding.^[10] The project as proposed would have entailed the use of a drag-line bucket from the adjacent frontage road. This technique would require removal of the mature riparian canopy, consisting of arroyo willow, on the west bank and trimming back of willows on the east bank so that the drag-line bucket could be drawn along the channel.

While recognizing the need to alleviate the periodic flooding of the adjacent road, the Regional Commission sought to reduce the impacts of the channel clearing by requiring the applicants to submit an alternative plan which did not require the removal of any mature willows and minimized any necessary trimming. One possible alternative method of clearing out sediment and instream vegetation would utilize a "clamshell" dredge, which can be operated more selectively and only requires minimal trimming of the riparian canopy. Because removal of any vegetation, whether instream or riparian, would result in increased sedimentation of the Morro Bay estuary, the Regional Commission also recommended that future applications for stream modifications of Los Osos Creek be accompanied by an erosion control plan which identified the sources of sediments in Los Osos Creek and provided mitigation measures designed to eliminate excess stream sedimentation.