Type: report

Article abstract: San Diego County's Natural Community Conservation Programs (NCCP) are challenged with management and monitoring of approximately 200,000 acres of conserved lands in the western region of the county, with invasive species-both plants and animals−being one of the greatest threats to ecological processes and persistence of rare species. The Conservation Biology Institute (CBI), Dendra, Inc., and California Invasive Plant Council (Cal-IPC) have been working with land managers in developing the State's first strategic plan for management and monitoring of invasive plant species on a regional level. This project has included: - Guiding the collection of invasive plant distribution data by mapping contractors (AECOM). - Conducting detailed impact assessments for regionally important invasive plants, using a modified form of the standard Plant Assessment Forms (PAF) developed by Cal-IPC, with transparent and detailed scoring and evaluations specific to the western San Diego region. - Developing a strategic plan that identifies priorities for near-term management and monitoring on a regional basis. This document incorporates the results of these efforts and serves as a multi-year framework and reference for near-term implementation of invasive plant control in the region. This document is intended to be a starting point for review and refinement, as land managers learn more about the distribution and impacts of invasive plants and how best to control them, recognizing that priorities and funding will change over time. A subsequent document will suggest an organizational framework for long-term implementation of the recommendations herein. This strategic plan prioritizes on-the-ground projects based on invasive plant impacts, with special consideration of narrow endemic species covered by the Natural Community Conservation Planning (NCCP) programs, management goals, and feasibility of successful implementation. Discussions with land managers were and continue to be critical to this process. Plant Assessment Forms for the 55 species reviewed as part of this project are available for review and download at: http://sdmmp.com/management/Management_MainPage.aspx. Of these, 29 species are discussed in this document as priorities for near-term management and monitoring. Table 1 presents these species by management level, generally following the conventional categorization of invasive plant control strategies used by Cal-IPC and oth