A Habitat Conservation Plan is a component of the Endangered Species Act.  It describes how a jurisdiction will avoid, minimize and mitigate impacts to wildlife and natural habitat caused by the development of land.  Clark County’s Multiple Species Habitat Conservation Plan (MSHCP) currently covers over 758 species of wildlife and plants to be protected under the plan.  

The DCP oversees the Multiple Species Habitat Conservation Plan (MSHCP) and compliance with the Endangered Species Act.  As part of that compliance, an “incidental take permit” was granted and that permit is getting close to expiring.  DCP will be applying to amend that permit to allow for continued protection and conservation efforts and streamlined development.  DCP is looking for input from the community on the future of desert conservation, wildlife protection, and residential and commercial development.

The original permit is set to expire when all 145,000 acres has been developed, or in January of 2031, whichever comes first.  There are only approximately 17,000 acres left to develop under the current permit, but there are approximately 215,000 acres of undeveloped, non-federal, land, or land that may become non-federal throughout Clark County.  

If an amendment is not granted, and the permit expires through development of the remaining 17,000 acres allow or the set expiration of January 2031, the economy will be negatively impacted, and development of important infrastructure and affordable housing initiatives will be dramatically impeded.

• Increased number of acres covered under the permit, addressing the gap between the approximately 17,000 acres left to develop on the current permit and the approximately 215,000 acres of undeveloped, non-federal, land, or land that may become non-federal, throughout Clark County.
• Revise the list of species covered under the permit to ensure the focus is on the most vulnerable and most likely to be impacted by non-federal development activities. 
• Increase the next permit term to 50 years.  The permit amendment is a lengthy and expensive process and planning for the next 50 years will provide the community with economic stability and assurances that responsible growth will continue, as necessary, while protecting species and their habitats.
• Update avoidance, minimization and mitigation measures.  This is necessary to address changes in policies and regulations while continuing to adequately offset impacts from increased acres of development to the maximum extent practicable.
• Increase the per-acre disturbance fee to fully fund the increase in avoidance, minimization and mitigation measures.  This is necessary to demonstrate that the amendments being requested can be fully funded.