Conservation Planning:

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Conservation Planning

• What is it?
• Why do it?
• How to do it
• - Natural resources inventories
• - Voluntary regulatory options

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Conservation Planning

• Conserve nature
• Protect resources for
• human benefit

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Conservation Planning

• Developing a vision for the future ecological
  health of an area
• NRI first step in Conservation Planning

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A Conservation Plan
Includes reference to a natural resources
inventory a description of important features
an action plan to protect these features over a
long period of time
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Why Land Conservation Planning?

• Land Fragmentation
• and its
• effects on wildlife and habitats,
• water resources and people

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Effects of Fragmentation on Wildlife

• Reduce diversity
• Change species composition
• Block animal movement
• Reduce genetic diversity

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What Can be Done to Protect Habitats?

• Identify important habitat areas
• Conserve large habitat areas
• Connect habitat areas
• Conserve habitats of rare species
• Maintain buffers around important habitats

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Conservation Biology Principles

• Make areas as large as possible
• Connect smaller areas near one another to
  create a bigger unit
• Locate areas close to each other
• Cluster areas rather than create a linear
  arrangement

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More Conservation Biology Principles

• Provide travel routes for animals by connecting
  reserves
• Include representative natural communities
• Include habitats for rare species or communities
• Work within watersheds when possible
• Include landscape variety (elevation, etc.)

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Natural Resources Inventories

• Listings
• Descriptions and
• Spatial information
• About selected natural features within a chosen
  geographic area

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Natural Resources InventoriesCan Include

• Political boundaries
• Roads
• Water resources
• Lands of special importance
• Habitat components
• Cultural features
• Much more!

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Basic Inventory

• Base map
• Conservation lands
• Water resources
• Lands of special importance
• Unfragmented blocks
• Wetlands composite

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Detailed Inventory Studies Collect additional
information on one or more specific natural
resources

• Expands on Basic Inventory
• Involves more than GIS maps

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Detailed Inventory Study Components

• Significant Wildlife Habitats
• Water Resources Evaluation
• e.g. water quality studies
• Wetland Studies
• e.g. evaluation, buffers, vernal pools
• Forest Resources
• e.g. managed forest lands, unusual
• forest communities

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Detailed Inventory Study Components

• Agricultural Lands Assessment
• active farmlands, agricultural profile
• Cultural and Natural
• Resource Features
• Archaeologic, Historic,
• Scenic, Recreation,
• Geologic
• Undeveloped Shorelands

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Natural Resources InventoriesCan Be Used For

• Conservation planning
• Reviewing development proposals
• Public education
• Master plans
• Evaluating effects of land use and zoning changes

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Geographic Information SystemsCombine the

• Ability to store, retrieve and analyze data
• Ability to present information as maps

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Land Conservation Techniques

• Conservation easements
• Land acquisition
• Other
• Incentives for Donations
• Federal income tax deduction
• Estate tax avoidance

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Conservation PlanningVoluntary Regulatory
Approaches
Voluntary Regulatory

• - Land Conservation
• - Prioritize areas for conservation
• - Educate the public
• - Initiate voluntary land conservation efforts
• - Establishing funding sources

• - Land Use Planning
• - Screen development proposals
• - Incorporate in master plan
• - Amend zoning ordinance
• - Evaluate effects of land use and zoning changes

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VOLUNTARY REGULATORY CHARACTERISTICS
Voluntary Regulatory
Can achieve optimal protection Minimal
protection
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VOLUNTARY REGULATORY CHARACTERISTICS
Voluntary Regulatory
Can achieve optimal protection Minimal
protection Only applies with willing Applies
broadly landowners
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VOLUNTARY REGULATORY CHARACTERISTICS
Voluntary Regulatory
Can achieve optimal protection Minimal
protection Only applies with willing Applies
broadly landowners Landscape scale
consideration Site level consideration
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VOLUNTARY REGULATORY CHARACTERISTICS
Voluntary Regulatory
Can achieve optimal protection Minimal
protection Only applies with willing Applies
broadly landowners Landscape scale
consideration Site level consideration Considers
cumulative effects Considers short term effects
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VOLUNTARY REGULATORY CHARACTERISTICS
Voluntary Regulatory
Can achieve optimal protection Minimal
protection Only applies with willing Applies
broadly landowners Landscape scale
consideration Site level consideration Considers
cumulative effects Considers short term
effects Appealing to landowners Landowner
resistance
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VOLUNTARY REGULATORY CHARACTERISTICS
Voluntary Regulatory
Financial incentives No financial incentives
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VOLUNTARY REGULATORY CHARACTERISTICS
Voluntary Regulatory
Financial incentives No financial
incentives Requires expenditures Inexpensive
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VOLUNTARY REGULATORY CHARACTERISTICS
Voluntary Regulatory
Financial incentives No financial
incentives Requires expenditures Inexpensive Le
ss prone to political More prone to political
influence influence
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VOLUNTARY REGULATORY CHARACTERISTICS
Voluntary Regulatory
Financial incentives No financial
incentives Requires expenditures Inexpensive Le
ss prone to political More prone to political
influence influence Not subject to zoning
variances Subject to zoning variances
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VOLUNTARY REGULATORY CHARACTERISTICS
Voluntary Regulatory
Financial incentives No financial
incentives Requires expenditures Inexpensive Le
ss prone to political More prone to political
influence influence Not subject to zoning
variances Subject to zoning variances Variety of
alternatives Limited alternatives
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Typical Level of Protection
Voluntary
Regulatory
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Geographic Coverage
Voluntary
Regulatory
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Examples of NRIs to Support Conservation Planning

• Durham
• Bear-Paw Regional Greenways
• Green Mountain Conservation Group

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Regional Greenway Planning
Proposed greenways connect and expand existing
conservation lands
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Greenway Goals

• Protect
• Habitats for native plants animals
• Streams, rivers, ponds, lakes, wetlands and
  groundwater

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Greenway Methods

• Conserve lands that can
• Connect existing conservation lands
• Add to existing conservation lands
• Protect surface waters, wetlands groundwater
• Include habitat for a rare species or natural
  community

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Bear-Paw Regional GreenwaysNatural Resources
Inventory
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Bear-Paw Regional GreenwaysNatural Resources
Inventory
Unfragmented land areas
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Bear-Paw Regional GreenwaysNatural Resources
Inventory
Water Resources
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Bear-Paw Regional GreenwaysNatural Resources
Inventory
Rare Species Natural Communities
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Bear-Paw Regional GreenwaysNatural Resources
Inventory
Important Farm Soils
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The Vision
Proposed greenways connect and expand existing
conservation lands
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Green Mountain Conservation Group
Madison Base Map
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Green Mountain Conservation Group
Madison Water Resources
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Green Mountain Conservation Group
Madison Soils
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Green Mountain Conservation Group
Madison Unfragmented Lands
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Green Mountain Conservation Group
Madison Co-occurrence Map
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Green Mountain Conservation Group
Madison Tax Map
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Conservation Planning

• Developing a vision for the future ecological
  health of an area
• NRI first step in Conservation Planning

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Implementing NRI ResultsConservation Plan

• Land Conservation
• Prioritize areas for conservation
• Educate the public
• Initiate voluntary land conservation efforts
• Establishing funding sources

• Land Use Planning
• Screen development proposals
• Incorporate in master plan
• Amend zoning ordinance
• Evaluate effects of land use and zoning changes

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CONSERVATION PLANS
BASIC ELEMENTS
Purpose protect inventoried and other
features and resources through
voluntary and/or regulatory means. Presents a
vision for the future ecological health of an
area. Based on and references a natural
resources inventory Describes an
action plan to protect inventoried and other
features over a long period of time.
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WHY CREATE A CONSERVATION PLAN?
C Identify and describe the most important
natural features and resources in a geographic
area C Promote conservation of these natural
features and resources C Guide municipal or
private voluntary land conservation
planning C Document conservation priorities and
recommended policies in a municipal
master plan C Suggest regulatory protection for
some features and resources
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COMPONENTS OF A CONSERVATION PLAN

• A statement of purpose
• Goals
• References to documents that support the work
• Review of a natural resource inventory
• Interpretation of the inventory
• Landscape level considerations - watersheds,
  biological
• needs of wildlife, etc.
• Recommended types and levels of protection for
  identified features and resources
• An action plan indicating what is to be done, by
  whom
• and when.

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You Are Not Alone!

• UNH Cooperative Extension
• Regional Planning Commissions
• County Conservation Districts
• Office of State Planning
• Department of Environmental Services
• NH Fish Game