Habitat Conservation Planning and Natural Community Conservation Permitting

Online

Under the Endangered Species Act, Habitat Conservation Plans (HCPs) are becoming increasingly common regulatory necessities and planning tools for many, including joint-powers agencies, cities and counties, local districts and state agencies, energy companies and private developers in California. Recent listings of threatened and endangered species have resulted in conflicts with existing and planned land use and water projects.

Gain an overview of state and federal endangered species laws and recommendations for best approaches to conservation planning. Explore case studies of simple single species and complex multispecies HCPs. Topics include:

Endangered Species Act Section 10 requirements for HCPs and conservation planning guidelines
California Natural Community Conservation Planning Act process guidelines
Regional conservation plans and low effect HCPs
Integrated compliance with Section 404 of the Clean Water Act wetlands and stream regulations
No surprises, safe harbors and candidate conservation agreements

Course Format and Pacing
This is an online remote learning course delivered through UC Davis CPE’s learning management system, Canvas, with supplemental live sessions hosted on Zoom. The course consists of approximately 6.5 hours of content, combining pre-recorded lectures with a mandatory live Zoom session led by the instructor(s).

Academic Units

CEUs

0.65

Section Number

254LAN102

Instruction Method

Online class

Association Credits

American Planning Assoc (AICP)

6.50 AICP hours

Section Notes

Access to your course in Canvas will be available 7 days before the course start date. Please note that course start and end dates, as well as live sessions (if applicable), are subject to change.

Enrollment Policies

Drop requests (withdraw with a refund) will be approved, less a $30 processing fee, if the request is received before the refund deadline. Click here to view complete enrollment policy information including details on withdrawals and transfers.

Refund Deadline: 4/13/2026. Refunds and/or enrollment transfers will not be approved after this date. 

Students enrolling after the first day of class are expected to reach out to their instructor to make sure they receive all content and are on track with the course. 

Technical Requirements

To ensure your success in this course, please review our technical requirements page at online learning.

Discounts

CAAA Member Discount

Current members of the Cal Aggie Alumni Association (CAAA) and other UC alumni associations receive 10% off the course fee of one course per quarter, not to exceed $100. If you don't have your discount code, contact CAAA at alumni@ucdavis.edu to request it.

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Schedule

Apr 20th, 2026 to Apr 24th, 2026, 12:00am to 12:00am

Instructors

Lucas Bare

Lucas Bare is a managing director in ICF’s Conservation Planning and Implementation Practice with over 14 years of professional experience in environmental planning, natural resources management, and conservation biology. Lucas’ is an expert on Endangered Species Act (ESA) compliance and permitting options (Section 10 and Section 7), preparing Environmental Assessments and Environmental Impact Statements under the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA), and developing Eagle Conservation Plans under the Bald and Golden Eagle Protection Act (BGEPA). Lucas manages projects across multiple sectors, including energy development, transmission, water, and local and federal land and resource management agencies.

Bernadette Clueit

Bernadette Clueit Bernadette Clueit is a Senior Conservation Planner with ICF. She has an extensive background in field biology and over 10 years of experience in project management and grant management for a diverse portfolio of multidisciplinary projects. Ms. Clueit’s areas of expertise include Endangered Species Act (ESA) Section 7 and Section 10 consultation, regulatory permitting, and environmental assessment and compliance. She is well versed in the California ESA and Natural Community Conservation Planning Act, California Coastal Act, and the Porter-Cologne Water Quality Control Act. Her work also regularly includes National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) and California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) document review and preparation.

Melissa Klungle

Melissa Klungle Melissa Klungle is a Managing Director of Conservation Planning with ICF. She has more than 20 years of experience and an academic background in Fisheries and Wildlife Management. Her experience includes Endangered Species Act (ESA) consultation, data gathering and analysis, technical report writing, environmental compliance and permitting, agency consultation, habitat restoration, and facilitation. She is a project manager and strong technical writer and has managed and authored Habitat Conservation Plans (HCPs), environmental assessments (EAs), environmental impact statements (EISs), and biological assessments (BAs) following the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) stipulations for projects throughout the United States.