GoalsWildlifeHabitat


 * Benefit Description for Wildlife Habitat**

Natural areas and well‐managed forests support healthy ecosystems and biodiversity in our region. Wildlife habitat balances our built environment and provides opportunities for scientific research and educational experiences. Human activities are disrupting wildlife habitat and unalterably changing the natural world that we depend on for food, air, and water.

TLC envisions a Triangle Region in which verdant habitat and healthy ecosystems support a wide diversity of native plant and animal populations.

<<This one seems like a keeper - nobody has knocked it down despite numerous opportunities. I suggest a tweak of breaking this goal down into smaller parcels -- either through graduated percentages (e.g.: 50% in 2030, 75% in 2045, 100% in 2060 - or however the percentages work out to accommodate the tension between realistic-ness and ambition) or through prioritization (e.g.: all Nationally Significant by 20xx, all State Significant by 20yy, all Regionally Significant by 20zz, etc). I question if this would be too much detail - should the prioritization be left for the implementation phase? On the other hand, it seems to make sense that we place the urgency of protecting the most unique places first. --DN>>
 * Potential Goal**: All known significant natural areas (defined below) are under conservation management (defined below) by Year Y. <>


 * Significant natural areas are** (starting proposal – needs thought – work with Natural Heritage Program to select appropriate categories for internal benchmarking) …
 * Natural Heritage Program SNHAs, national, regional, & local – includes aquatic and terrestrial
 * Natural Heritage Program Landscape/Habitat Indicator Guilds – core areas and connectors


 * Conservation management is …**
 * State Nature Preserve dedication
 * Conservation ownership
 * Conservation easement
 * NHP Registry / managed by landowner for conservation
 * caring for the land in ways that maintain or enhance the natural integrity of a site and ensures native habitats and ecosystems thrive...(js)


 * Questions about this …**
 * forever?
 * Focus on natural heritage-defined lands?
 * What takes priority – national/ state/ regional / local importance?
 * Feasibility?
 * Aquatic vs upland / terrestrial
 * How would you measure (back to definition of significant natural areas and conservation management)?

Other potential goals (TR): In Year Y, the Triangle remains X% in (native) forest cover. <> X% of priority habitat land identified in our State Wildlife Action Plan is protected/conserved by year Y.

Something along the lines of each county has an established network of well-connected natures preserves by year 2030...this could be more specific as far as size of hubs and length of corridors. <<I like where you're going, but how do we define "well-connected"? What if we refined this to say each county has a (TLC owned?) nature preserve by X date? (I don't know if all of our counties currently have a nature preserve?) (This may also get lumped under connecting people to nature) (js) Designated nature preserves in each county are connected through at least 300 ft wide wildlife corridors by year .... (LAC) <>

<<There are a lot of postage stamp sites identified in the natural heritage inventories. I strongly believe that TLC should have a role in connecting those sites to provide for the "Habitat Reservoirs" needed for long-term species success. So I would expand on Leigh Ann's idea to something like: Conserve X% of the Major Habitat Corridors of the Triangle by 2030, Y% by 2040, Z% by 2050 -- with definitions of "conserve" (could be "under conservation management") and "major habitat corridors" to be determined. --DN>>


 * List of items of interest**
 * Native species (need to define which ones)
 * A certain amount of forest cover
 * Connectivity / corridors // hubs and connectivity
 * Ecosystems and biodiversity
 * Significant natural areas, threatened and endangered species
 * Keystone / umbrella / indicator species
 * State wildlife action plan
 * Natural communities
 * Does our mission imply a landscape view?


 * Other ideas …** I (george) think that SNHAs and LHIs cover this
 * Representative ecosystems conserved and connected (sound familiar? Old mission?)
 * Large “reservoir” populations of plants and animals … Triangle has large enough … self-sustaining biodiversity … connected … eg, natural heritage program landscape cores … all core landscapes connected