| Topaz Solar Farm (TSF) and California Valley Solar Ranch (CVSR) were constructed on over 2000 hectares that support significant numbers of endangered, threatened, and special-status species within the Carrizo Plain, San Luis Obispo County, California. Species present include San Joaquin kit fox, American badger, giant kangaroo rat, San Joaquin antelope squirrel, and burrowing owl. Detailed species distributions were incorporated during project design to minimize impacts. For example, the initial CVSR layout would have impacted over 90% of giant kangaroo rats on site, yet construction impacted less then 10%. San Joaquin kit fox were observed within the CVSR construction footprint on over 1000 occasions and at TSF radio-collared kit foxes were located daily within the construction footprint. No construction related injury or mortality of kit foxes or giant kangaroo rats occurred at either site during the multi-year build out. Monitoring and avoidance techniques utilized during construction and operation of these facilities would be highly applicable to monitoring and avoiding desert tortoise at similar facilities in the Mojave Desert; negating or reducing the need for permanent removal of tortoises, while reducing mortality and loss of habitat. Here we present practical recommendations for managing tortoise populations within renewable energy facilities during and post-construction. |