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Preserve - Noonan Ranch Conservation Bank |
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The Noonan Ranch Conservation Bank is a vernal pool conservation bank located in unincorporated Solano County, California,
east of the City of Fairfield and immediately north of Travis Air Force Base. The Bank is owned and managed by Canon
Station. There is no public access on the Bank property.
The Bank lies near the western edge of the 20,000-acre Jepson Prairie ecosystem, a region where grazing is the primary land
use and the natural topography is mostly intact and contains extensive, relatively undisturbed vernal pool complexes,
containing a high concentration of sensitive plant and animal species. Soil types and many of the species present on the Bank
are similar to those found in the Jepson Prairie area, with Contra Costa goldfields (Lasthenia conjugens) being a notable
exception. The Bank has been grazed since the early 1900s. A drainage channel bisects the site and diverts the flow of Union
Creek across and off the Bank in a southwesterly direction.
The 190-acre Conservation Bank provides approximately 3.3 acres of breeding habitat and 148.59 acres of upland habitat for
the federally threatened California tiger salamader (Ambystoma californiense). Approximately 11.81 acres of vernal pool and swale habitat, and 1.8 acres of seasonal wetland within streams, are under preservation for the federally endangered plant Contra Costa goldfields. Other special-status plants present at the Conservation Bank include dwarf downingia (Downingia pusilla) and legenere (Legenere limosa). The Bank contains 16.75 acres of seasonal wetlands, including two playa pools, and 3.54 acres of stream segments exhibiting wetland characteristics.
The Center for Natural Lands Management (CNLM) accepted a conservation easement on this property in April 2009. The purpose
of the conservation easement is to help ensure that the land will be retained in perpetuity in open space condition and
managed to support the flora and fauna that the bank was established to protect. CNLM’s role, in perpetuity, is to monitor
the bank and ensure that the terms of the conservation easement are maintained.
Questions about CNLM’s role should be directed to:
Cathy Little
Preserve Manager
Center for Natural Lands Management
Email: clittle@cnlm.org
The Noonan Ranch Conservation Bank can provide environmental mitigation for projects on similar habitat types or affecting
the species protected on this preserve. For pending sales and price information, contact Anthony Russo at arusso@blproperties2.com
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