Since 1995, The University of Florida has been working with the
Florida Department of Environmental Protection to assist in the
development of the Florida Statewide Greenways Plan. The
University of Florida was asked to develop a decision support model
to help identify the best opportunities to protect ecological
connectivity statewide. Geographic information systems (GIS)
software was used to analyze all of the best available data on land
use data and significant ecological areas including important
habitats for native species, important natural communities,
wetlands, roadless areas, floodplains, and important aquatic
ecosystems.
All of this information was then integrated in a
process that identified a statewide Ecological Greenways Network
containing all of the largest areas of ecological and natural
resource significance and the landscape linkages necessary to link
these areas together in one functional statewide network. The
process was collaborative and overseen by three separate state-
appointed greenways councils. During the development of the model,
technical input was obtained from the Florida Greenways Commission,
Florida Greenways Coordinating Council, state, regional, and
federal agencies, scientists, university personnel, conservation
groups, planners and the general public in over 20 sessions.
When the modeling was completed, the results were thoroughly
reviewed in public meetings statewide as part of the development
of the Greenways Implementation Plan completed in 1999.
In 1999-2000, the Ecological Greenways Network was prioritized,
reviewed, and approved by the Florida Greenways and Trails
Council. The approved prioritization separated the Network into 6
priority levels to delineate degrees of significance and to support
strategic protection efforts. The ecological greenways were
prioritized in a two step process. First, two meetings with staff
from the Department of Environmental Protection, Florida Fish and
Wildlife Conservation Commission, Florida Natural Areas Inventory,
the Water Management Districts, and other agencies and groups were
conducted to discuss criteria and data for selecting priorities.
Based on these meetings, the University of Florida developed a GIS
model that refined and modified the original ecological greenways
model process to identify features within the ecological greenways
model results that were either high, moderate, or lower priorities
for protecting statewide connectivity.
The next step involved separating areas identified as high
and moderate priorities into even more refined classes of priority
using a general set of criteria. Though the original
prioritization was used to support this effort, more refined
priorities were needed to serve as a better planning tool. The
following criteria was used to place potential landscape linkage
and corridor projects into more refined priority classes:
1) Potential importance for maintaining or restoring populations of
wide-ranging species (e.g., Florida black bear and Florida panther)
2) Importance for maintaining a statewide, connected reserve network
from south Florida through the panhandle.
3) Other important landscape linkages that provide additional
opportunities to maintain statewide connectivity especially in
support
of higher priority linkages.
4) Importance as a riparian corridor to protect water resources,
provide functional habitat gradients, and to possibly provide
connectivity to areas within other states.
The Florida Greenways Program implementation report (1998) included
the identification of critical linkages as the next step following
prioritization in the process of protecting an ecological greenways
network across the state. Critical linkages serve as more defined
project areas that are most important for protecting the Florida
Ecological Greenways Network. Such critical linkages are to be
approved by the Florida Greenways and Trails Council on an
iterative basis as linkages are protected or priorities change over
time.
Two primary data sets were used to delineate the first
iteration of critical linkages. To define linkages that are most
critical to the protection of the Florida Ecological Greenways
Network, prioritization based on both ecological criteria and level
of threat by conversion to development (development pressure) is
needed. For ecological-based prioritization, the prioritization
process described above that categorized the Florida Ecological
Greenways Network into six priority levels was used (Fig. 1; Hoctor
et al. 2001). Development pressure was modeled by Jason Teisinger
(2002). These analyses were then combined to identify candidate
areas for selection as Critical Linkages. Areas were selected that
had either very high ecological significance or high ecological
significance while also having critical areas threatened by
development. Ten areas were selected for Critical Linkage status
and these areas will now serve as the highest priorities for
protecting landscape connectivity through the Florida Forever
Program, Save Our Rivers program, and for other conservation
initiatives where state, regional, and local government can work
with willing landowners to protect our best remaining large,
connected landscapes statewide.
The Florida Ecological Greenways Network delineation process
combined a systematic landscape analysis of ecological significance
and the identification of critical landscape linkages in a way that
can be replicated, enhanced with new data, and applied at different
scales. The Ecological Network connects and integrates existing
conservation areas with unprotected areas of high ecological
significance. Such an integrated conservation land network will
protect important ecological functions, community and landscape
juxtapositions, and the need for biotic movement more thoroughly
than the present collection of isolated conservation areas. The
highest priority landscape linkages, and especially the Critical
Linkages, within Ecological Greenways Network are essential for
conserving viable populations of our flagships species such as the
Florida black bear and Florida panther that require large,
connected areas to support viable populations. These and other
high priority ecological greenways also represent the best
opportunities to maintain large, connected landscapes that will
best conserve biological diversity over the long term and maintain
essential ecological processes and services including water quality
and quantity protection, protection from storms, clean air, nature
recreation, etc. For more information on the Florida Ecological
Greenways Network identification process, see Hoctor et al. (2000)
or http://www.geoplan.ufl.edu.
It should be noted that some existing conservation lands are
included within the Ecological Greenways Network prioritization
results. The areas of overlap between Critical Linkages and
various priority levels and existing conservation lands is intended
to show connectivity to larger conservation lands and the role of
smaller conservation lands in priority areas. However, the
inclusion of existing conservation lands is not meant to serve as a
comprehensive analysis or depiction of the significance of all
existing conservation lands to the Ecological Greenways Network.
The Ecological Greenways Network prioritization results are
intended to help prioritize lands for existing and future
conservation land protection (acquisition, easement, and incentive)
programs. To best view and use this dataset, the most updated
version of existing conservation lands from Florida Natural Areas
Inventory (or available through FGDL) should be used as an overlay.
This dataset is based on the Ecological Greenways Network, which is
the result of the public review process of the original ecological
network model results. Between July 1997 and July 1998 review and
comment was conducted using two approaches. Regional Greenways
Task Forces reviewed the results and suggested modifications (July
1997 - May 1998) and public hearings were held (October 1997 and
June - July 1998) where further modifications were suggested. The
Florida Greenways Coordinating Council was asked to review these
recommendations and to advise on their appropriateness. Suggested
changes to the ecological model results derived from this process
were minimal. They included the elimination of a few areas that
were no longer suitable for inclusion because of their recent
development or isolation from the rest of the network. In central
and southeast Florida, there were a few areas suggested for
addition to widen and enhance the effectiveness of corridors or to
provide additional connectivity.
As provided for in Florida statutes, the Florida Ecological
Greenways Network delineation and prioritization results are
intended to be used for planning purposes related to land
protection programs such as Florida Forever. The Greenways and
Trails Program was established by statute (FS 260.0141) to
facilitate the establishment of a statewide system of greenways and
trails. Such greenways and trails shall be acquired pursuant to
this act. Planning materials, maps, data, and other information
developed or used in the program shall not be construed as
designation of lands as part of the statewide system of greenways
and trails. Identification of lands in such information shall not:
(1) Require or empower any unit of local or regional government,
or any state agency, to impose additional or more restrictive
environmental, land-use, or zoning regulations;
(2) Be construed or cited as authority to adopt, enforce, or amend
any environmental rule or regulation; comprehensive plan goals,
policies, or objectives; or zoning or land-use ordinance;
(3) Be used as the basis for permit denial; imposition of any
permit condition; or application of any rule, regulation, or ordinance by
any subdivision of local, regional, or state government; or
(4) Be construed or cited as authority by any governmental agency
to reduce or restrict the rights of owners of lands so identified.
It should also be considered that this dataset is based on a GRID
with a resolution of 180 meters (180 m X 180 m cells), which is
approximately 8 acre squares. Therefore, users should not expect
detailed accuracy at high resolutions. The modeling and
identification effort of a statewide ecological network is intended
to serve as a general basis for state level conservation planning.
It may serve as an adequate framework or guide for regional and
local conservation planning efforts, but it should be supplemented
by more resolute datasets and analyses especially at the local
level. The conservation/land protection process should also always
include ground-truthing to evaluate sites in the field. In
addition, these data are based on land use information that, by its
nature, is outdated. An effort was made to update land use data
provided by the Water Management Districts, mostly completed in
1990, by comparing this data with 1994-1995 SPOT 10 meter
resolution imagery. All areas that appeared to be converted to
development (residential, commercial, industrial but not including
conversion to intensive agriculture)were added to avoid identifying
areas as ecologically significant that are now developed. However,
it should be obvious that development continues at a rapid pace,
and areas identified in the model results could now be converted to
intensive land uses or could be converted in the near future.
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