The Need to Protect our Valuable Wetland Resources from Fragmentation Itasca County, MN

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The Need to Protect our Valuable Wetland
Resources from FragmentationItasca County, MN

• By Michael R. Kreutzer
• University of Saint Thomas
• Geography Department

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Background

• Forest Legacy Program
• Protects Forests
• Uses Federal Local Funds
• Conservation Easements
• Landowner Continues Ownership
• Can Continue to Use Forest Amenities
• Timber management
• Recreation
• Hunting
• Etc.

Photo and Commentary Courtesy Of Minnesota
Division of Natural Resources
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Forest Legacy Cont.

• FLEET
• Forest Legacy Ecological Evaluation Tool
• GIS processes used to develop project
• Based on DNR research for Forest Legacy Project.

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Why So Important?

• Fragmentation
• The process by which large areas of land are
  divided and isolated creating broken habitats and
  loss of biodiversity.

Photo Courtesy of www.forestbiodiversityinbc.ca/
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Fragmentation Cont.

• Some Important Notes on Fragmentation
• Fragmentation Occurs Naturally
• Geology
• Fire
• Disease (Drought, Insects)
• Etc.
• Some Species Do Benefit from Fragmentation
• Edging Effect

Photo Showing Edging Along Wildfire. Courtesy
of www.northernlattitude.com
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Main Concerns About Fragmentation

• Human Influenced Fragmentation is Threatening Our
  Valuable Environments
• Natural Processes are Being Disrupted
• We Do Not Fully Understand the Implications of
  Our Impact
• What We Do Understand is Mostly Negative

Photo Showing the Effects of Clear Cutting a
Forest For the Construction Of a Highway in
Canada Courtesy of Friends of the
Rouge Watershed www.frw.ca/rouge
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Purpose of The Project

• How does fragmentation affect valuable water
  resources?
• Simple Answers
• Fragmentation often leads to the mass reduction
  of or clear cutting of trees and forest
• Soil erosion, sedimentation, loss of biodiversity
  occurs
• Fragmentation often introduces development,
  resulting in pollution and unhealthy runoff
• Can lead to severe economic consequences

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So Why is the Water Issue So Important?

• Lakes, Rivers, Streams
• Wetlands
• 1) Water Storage
• Act as sponges, storing and slowly releasing
  water
• Slows water movement, reducing flood potential
  and erosive properties
• Helps manage flow properties especially during
  heavy wet or dry periods.
• Economic Impact Reduces costs of water treatment
  and potential flood damage

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Wetlands Cont.

• Wetlands
• 2) Water Filtration
• Slows water down
• Allows for particles to settle
• Plants capture and filter sediment
• Pollutants such as fertilizers and sewage are
  absorbed by plant roots and soils

Photo Courtesy of http//www.departments.bucknell
.edu/geography
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Wetlands Cont.

• Wetlands
• 3) Biodiversity
• 43 of threatened or endangered species in U.S.
  rely on wetlands.
• Home to millions of species of aquatic plants,
  insects, fish, foul, and other wildlife.

Photo Courtesy of Mark Sharp WWW.Atlas.Keystone.e
du
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Wetlands Cont.

• Wetlands
• 4) Recreation
• Wetlands provide a great place to
• Hunt
• Fish
• Canoe
• Explore our natural world
• Educate

Photo showing a class being taught at a wetlands
site. Courtesy of depts.washington.edu/wpa/youthf
ami.htm
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Wetlands Cont.

• Something to Consider
• Wetlands present in 185018.6 million acres
• Wetlands present in 20039.3 million acres
• EPA DID YOU KNOW?
• In 1991 wetland-related ecotourism activities
  such as hunting, fishing, bird-watching, and
  photography added approximately 59 billion to
  the national economy.
• According to the Pacific Coast Federation of
  Fishermens Associations, almost 79 billion per
  year is generated from wetland-dependent species,
  or about 71 percent of the nations entire 111
  billion commercial and recreational fishing
  industry in 1997.
• An acre of wetland can store 11.5 million
  gallons of floodwater.
• Up to one-half of North American bird species
  nest or feed in wetlands.
• Although wetlands keep only about 5 percent of
  the land surface in the conterminous United
  States, they are home to 31 percent of our plant
  species.

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Research Question

• How Do We Find Areas of Pristine Water Resources
  In Itasca County and Protect Them from
  Fragmentation?

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Methodology

• Used Fleet Model and Information from Minnesota
  Division of Natural Resources (DNR)
• Created 2 Initial Continuums
• Human Impact
• Environmental Quality

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Human Impact Continuum

• Variables
• Distance From
• Development
• Roads
• Major Roads
• Recently Logged Areas
• Public Access to Water
• Single Output Map Algebra
• Results
• Areas of Brown Heavy Human Impact
• Areas of Green Mild Human Impact

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Environmental Quality Continuum

• Variables
• Proximity to
• Wetlands
• Streams
• Lakes
• Trout Streams
• Single Output Map Algebra
• Results
• Blue Lakes/Streams
• Green High Environmental Quality
• Brown Low Environmental Quality

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Habitat Continuum

• Human Impact Continuum Environmental Quality
  Continuum Habitat Continuum
• Habitat Continuum X (Habitat and In Holding
  Fragmentation Parcels) Habitat, In holdings,
  and Fragmentation
• Results Effects of Fragmentation

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Final Step

• Isolated Habitat, In holdings, and Fragmentation
  Map to be Within Itasca County Floodplains
• Why Floodplains?
• Great example of a mix between environmental and
  economic concerns
• Realistically, we must select feasible amounts of
  land to be changes. If we only have enough money
  for one acre, this provides a view as to how and
  where it should be spent.

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Final Map/Conclusion
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Model
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Discussion

• For any Questions, Comments, Concerns or if you
  would like information on nay further research
  please feel free to contact me by email at
  mrkreutzer_at_stthomas.edu
• Thank You!

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Informational Sources

• http//www.epa.gov/owow/wetlands/pdf/fun_val.pdf
• http//www.dnr.state.mn.us/water/index.html
• http//files.dnr.state.mn.us/eco/wetlands/wetland_
  monitoring.pdf