Defenders' Experts
Massachusetts BioMap
Massachusetts
Funded by the Massachusetts Executive Office of Environmental Affairs, the
BioMap project was initiated by the Massachusetts Natural Heritage and
Endangered Species Program in the spring of 1998. Project collaborators included
the Massachusetts Executive Office of Environmental Affairs, Massachusetts
Division of Fisheries and Wildlife, MassGIS, Manomet Center for Conservation
Sciences, The Nature Conservancy, Harvard Forest, and the Natural Heritage
Programs of New Hampshire, Vermont, New York, Connecticut, and Rhode Island. The
goal of the project was "to promote strategic land protection by producing a map
showing areas, that if protected, would provide suitable habitat over the long
term for the maximum number of Massachusetts' terrestrial and wetland plant and
animal species and natural communities." The Massachusetts BioMap was created
using GIS technology to process state rare species and exemplary natural
communities data. Completed in the summer of 2001, the map identifies 2,130,000
acres (42 percent of the state) as important to the long-term conservation of
species and natural communities. Of the area identified, 1,160,000 acres (23
percent of the state) are considered Core Habitat, and 970,000 acres (19 percent
of the state) are considered Supporting Natural Landscape-areas that act as
buffer zones.
The BioMap is now being used to facilitate informed land conservation decisions, including land acquisition priorities, throughout Massachusetts. The Massachusetts Executive Office of Environmental Affairs has been encouraging towns to use the BioMap to guide land use planning decisions as part of their Community Preservation plan. The Community Preservation Initiative is designed to address the problems associated with urban sprawl that affect the quality of life of the state's residents. The Massachusetts Executive Office of Environmental Affairs held 24 Community Preservation summits across the state where they presented community specific information on the effects of existing local zoning on development patterns, water resources, and biodiversity. The forums provided local officials, planners and the public with resources needed to make ecologically informed decisions about the future development patterns of their community. With BioMap information, local land use planners are now better equipped to identify which natural areas and open spaces in their communities may need protection and which may be developed responsibly.
The BioMap is also being used in the review process of conservation easements, or conservation restrictions. The Massachusetts Executive Office of Environmental Affairs approves conservation restrictions if a public benefit is demonstrated. Since protecting biodiversity is viewed as a public benefit, the BioMap can serve as a guide to prioritize and approve future conservation restrictions in areas identified on the map.
The West Eugene Wetlands Plan addresses the need for protection of significant natural lands within designated growth areas while still allowing some development.
The Beginning with Wildlife Program provides habitat maps, species descriptions, and guidance to local communities to help integrate biodiversity protection into local land-use planning and guide habitat conservation decisions.
The purpose of Arizona's Sonoran Desert Conservation Plan is to ensure the long-term protection of "the heritage and natural resources of the west in Pima County."
The goal of the Chicago Wilderness is "to protect the natural communities of the Chicago region and to restore them to long-term viability, in order to enrich the quality of life of its citizens and to contribute to the preservation of global diversity."
The Willamette Restoration Strategy addressed water quality and habitat issues in Oregon's Willamette basin and adopted a strategy to protect and restore the basin's ecological health.
The BioMap project's goal was "to promote strategic land protection by producing a map showing areas, that if protected, would provide suitable habitat over the long term for the maximum number of Massachusetts' terrestrial and wetland plant and animal species and natural communities."
The Landscape Project's goal is "to protect New Jersey's biological diversity by maintaining and enhancing rare wildlife populations within healthy functioning ecosystems."
In 1994, Defenders initiated the Oregon Biodiversity Project which produced a statewide biodiversity assessment and a conservation strategy that included 42 "Conservation Opportunity Areas" across the state.
Maryland's two important planning programs are the Green Infrastructure Assessment and the GreenPrint Program.
The Southeast Ecological Framework Project used GIS technology and landscape ecology principles to identify ecologically significant areas and connectivity in Kentucky, Tennessee, North Carolina, South Carolina, Mississippi, Alabama, Georgia, Florida.
