In January of 2021, Washington County was issued an incidental take permit by the US Fish and Wildlife Service to authorize the incidental take of Mojave desert tortoise on private lands. The permit was issued in association with an agreement made by the County and local municipalities, known as a Habitat Conservation Plan (HCP). The County’s HCP requires tortoise surveys and removals prior to development on all lands adjacent to the Red Cliffs Desert Reserve. These areas, also known as “take areas,” may be adjusted to include additional locations if determined to contain tortoises. Landowners developing within these “take areas,” or in other identified tortoise habitat, are protected under the county’s permit as long as they coordinate with the HCP administration for tortoise surveys and removals prior to habitat alteration such as grading, digging and construction.
Washington County HCP, at no cost to the landowner, will conduct one set of tortoise surveys during the required windows for clearances from March 15 – May 15 or August 20 – October 20. Depending on the site of development, there may be restrictions on how soon development should occur to avoid tortoises returning to the area. Second surveys may be required if development does not occur within 60 days of a clearance or 90 days of a survey. If required, the costs of a second removal will be paid by the developer.
Note: Developers who are developing land immediately adjacent to the Reserve are required by ordinance to build an approved fence along the Reserve boundary prior to the County conducting the required surveys to prevent tortoises from returning to the property after the survey & removal.
Take areas and maps
A take area is a geographical area outside the Red Cliffs Desert Reserve designated as Mojave desert tortoise habitat. Any development or habitat disturbance within a take area must be coordinated with the Desert Reserve administration. There are 10 take areas designated within Washington County. The maps of those 10 areas are available here.
Request a survey
To coordinate development, or if you have questions, please contact the Desert Reserve administrator at (435) 301-7431 or the habitat biologist at (435) 301-7433. Should your development require a survey clearance, a form below will need to be filled out and emailed or mailed/dropped off to the Washington County HCP office. When doing so, please attach a plat or similar detailed map to show exact location of property in need of survey.
Forms
- Developers: Form A – Survey Request
- Municipalities: Utility & Development Request Form