Central Indiana Green Infrastructure Network: Linking Landscapes and Communities Indianapolis, IN

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Central Indiana Green Infrastructure
NetworkLinking Landscapes and
CommunitiesIndianapolis, IN June 16, 2009
Photo Credit Central Indiana Land Trust
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• Agenda
• Quick review of Green Infrastructure
• Overview of Central Indiana Green Infrastructure
  Network
• Introduction to Implementation Quilt
• Breakout Sessions
• Lunch and Next Steps

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Green Infrastructure What Is It?
Strategically planned and managed networks of
natural lands, working landscapes and other open
spaces that conserve ecosystem values and
functions and provide associated benefits to
human populations.

Photo Credit Adrian Van Dellen
(www.americanrivers.org)
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Photo Credit The Conservation Fund and the
Center for Transect Studies
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Conceptual Model of Approach
Cores are unfragmented natural cover with at
least 100 acres of interior conditions.
Corridors link hubs and allow animal, water,
seed and pollen movement between hubs
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Green Infrastructure Ecological benefits
Adapted from Benedict and McMahon 2006.
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Green Infrastructure Social Benefits
Adapted from Benedict and McMahon 2006.
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What Green Infrastructure is Not!

• A regulatory program
• A short-term solution
• An isolated effort
• No growth or anti-development
• Green engineered structures

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The Green Infrastructure Approach

• Leadership Forum
• Convening of stakeholder group to articulate
  vision, goals and objectives

• Network Design
• Identification of key network lands

• Implementation Quilt
• Formulation of a framework for matching available
  resources to the needs of the network

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The Need for Green Infrastructure

• Indianapolis ranks 99th out of 100 metropolitan
  areas in per capita carbon emissions from
  transportation and residential energy use
• Marion county ranks national at 568th out of 592
  in air quality according to the American Lung
  Association
• Forbes.com ranks Indiana 49th out of 50 states in
  its Americas Greenest States
• Indiana has the highest amount of toxic
  discharges into water bodies according to the US
  EPA
• Indiana is 29th in bike friendliness according to
  the League of American Bicyclists

Alesia, Mark. Heather Gillers and Tim Evans.
Indiana ranks near the bottom in environment
issues Indy Star, April 22, 2009 Penner, Diana.
Bikes lose ground. IndyStar, May 12, 2009
Giller, Heather. EPA Oks fewer checks of cities
air, May 23, 2009
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• Planning Timeline
• Study Area
• Nine Counties, 5 mile buffer
• Leadership Forum
• July 25, 2008 First Leadership
• forum attended by 43 stakeholders
• Goals and Indicators
• Community Asset Mapping
• Technical Review Team
• Winter review of Green Infrastructure
  methodology, focal species, and other
  information.

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Central Indiana GI Network Goals

• Conserve significant contiguous natural habitat
• Identify and protect a network of stream and land
  corridors for wildlife movement and human
  enjoyment
• Help local planning become more environmentally
  sensitive
• Increase public awareness of the multiple
  benefits of a green infrastructure network
• Increase public support for green infrastructure
  
• Increase the coordination of green infrastructure
  and grey infrastructure projects (utility and
  road corridors) to maximize the benefits for
  nature and people

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Landscape Type Forest
American Woodcock (Scolopax minor)
Ovenbird (Seiurus aurocapillus)

• Deciduous successional shrubland
• 20 acres - 3 acres

• Mid-late successional deciduous forest
• Forest interior bird
• Area sensitive
• Forest patches gt 750 acres

Yellow-breasted chat (Icteria virens)

• Till plains deciduous successional
• shrubland
• Shrubby openings of any shape gt 12.5 acres

Wood Thrush (Hylocichla mustelina)

• Till plains deciduous forest
• 247 acres
• ?

• Added Marion County Forest Blocks/woodlots gt
  12.5 acres
• Roads
• 100 meter edge

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Core Forests
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Core Forests
Bradford Woods
Morgan-Monroe State Forest
Forest Legacy
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Landscape Type Wetlands

• Spotted Salamander (Ambystoma maculatum)

• Vernal pools data not available

• King Rail (Rallus elegans)
• Emergent wetlands/marshes
• gt 20 acres

• Indiana Bat (Myotis sodalist)
• MaxEnt modeling
• Solar radiation
• Climate data
• Land use
• Other layers

Still modeling!
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Core Wetlands
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Core Wetlands
Brandywine Creek
Big Blue River
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Landscape Type Aquatic Systems (12 digit HUCS)

• High quality streams
• Hilsenhoff Biotic Index or HBI lt 5.50
• Qualitative Habitat Evaluation Index or QHEI gt
  50 (mean score 65.7 and sd 14.24)

River Otter (Lontra canadensis)

• Known occurrences plus 50km of high quality
  stream

Photo credit US FWS

• Riparian buffers
• Streams with riparian buffer on both sides (50
  meters)

• Fresh water mussels
• Use expert knowledge to delineate best streams
  for mussel habitat

Photo credit Illinois State Museum
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Core Aquatics
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Core Aquatics
Mounds State Park
Fall Creek
Lick Creek
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Total core areas per county
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• Audubons Important Bird Areas
• TNCs Conservation Portfolios

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• Ongoing
• Corridors least cost path and corridors
• IN Bat modeling
• Mid- July, 2009

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Floodplain statistics
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Sugar Creek
Brandywine Creek
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Big Walnut Creek
White Lick Creek
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Assets, Needs, and Opportunities Exercise

• 109 opportunities
• 38 are within core areas

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• Boone County
• Conservation Opportunity Protect habitat along
  Sugar Creek corridor
• Hamilton County
• Conservation Opportunity White River and
  Hinkle Creek Conservation
• Madison County
• Conservation Opportunity Protect Fall Creek
  Valley and White River Riparian Corridor

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• Hendricks County
• Conservation Opportunity Protect Big Walnut
  Creek riparian corridor
• Marion County
• Conservation Opportunity Increase protection
  upstream of Fort Benjamin Harrison
• Hancock County
• Conservation Opportunity protection of Sugar
  Creek (greatest mussel diversity within the
  region) and Brandywine Creek also contains great
  mussel populations

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• Morgan County
• Conservation Opportunity Active management of
  Bradford Woods for control of invasive species
  and water quality.
• Johnson County
• Conservation Opportunity Expand and buffer Land
  Trusts Heron Rookery
• Shelby County
• Conservation Opportunity Protect Brandywine
  Creek for fishing, bird watching, and protection
  of endangered mussel habitat

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Conclusions

• 43 K acres already protected
• 4,259 acres in floodplain
• aggressive restoration around core areas (Boone,
  Hancock, Hendricks)
• encourage good stewardship of natural areas
  (Morgan and Johnson)

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QUESTIONS
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For more information contact Ole Amundsen,
Program Manager607-277-0999, oamundsen_at_conservati
onfund.orgJazmin Varela, Information
Manager919-967-2223, jvarela_at_conservationfung.org