Stream Environment Zone (SEZ) – SEZs are land areas owing their physical and biological characteristics to the presence of surface water or shallow groundwater for a significant duration of the growing season in most years. SEZs typically encompass streams, adjacent wetlands, and many of the transitional areas that exist between the boundaries of these waters and adjacent upland landforms and plant communities.

Enhanced – Habitat is considered enhanced when actions are taken that heighten, intensify or improve one or more habitat functions for the benefit of special status species, water quality, property protection, recreation or scenic quality. Enhancements result in a net gain in function but not in area of the aquatic resource.

Restored – Habitat is considered restored when actions have been taken that re-establish or rehabilitate a SEZ with the goal of returning natural or historic functions and characteristics to a degraded SEZ.  Restoration actions can rebuild a former SEZ and result in a gain in both SEZ area and function.

Special status species – Any species in the Tahoe Basin that is listed as threatened, endangered, sensitive or petitioned at the federal, state or regional level, or are included in the USFS list of sensitive species, species of concern, or species of interest, or included in TRPA’s threshold species list. Species may be listed because of low population or distribution, declining abundance or other factors.

Project Completion – A SEZ project is complete when construction, grading and initial revegetation are complete. In many cases, additional work may continue as practitioners irrigate vegetation, monitor results, close financial accounts or permits.

Annual Reportable Units - The number of SEZ acres restored or enhanced that was completed during the construction season and will not need any further construction work. SEZ acres should only be reported when personnel are sure that no future construction, grading or substantive new vegetation planting will be necessary in the area. Care should be taken not to double count area in projects spanning multiple years. 

This information should be entered into the EIP Database by the implementing agency’s project manager within 30 days of project completion as defined in Section 5.1 above. Projects that take place over more than one year should report on the annual reportable units completed by December 31st of each calendar year.