Agenda - Council - 07/26/2005 - Laserfiche WebLink

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implementation in single wetlands, complexes or stream watersheds. Review of existing data from within the City can help establish baselines and expectations. 9.26.03 Purpose and Implementation. Subd. 1. Through the adoption and enforcement of this Section, the City shall promote the general health, safety, and welfare of its residents by both conserving and protecting wetlands and requiring sound management practices and mitigation as provided for in the WCA wlmn development occurs in the vicinity of wetlands. Through the implementation of this Section, the City seeks to accomplish the following purposes: To satisfy the requirements of the WCA as it may be amended and, thereby achieve no net loss of wetlands within the City; To preserve the natural character of the landscape through the maintenance of wetland ecosystems; c. To preserve scenic viewsheds; d. To establish greenway corridors in the City when combined with appropriate upland features; To ensure water quality by maintaining the ability of wetlands to recharge ground water and receive the discharge of ground water, to retain sediment and toxicants and filter and strip nutrients from surface water runoff before it discharges into community lakes and streams, thus avoiding the contamination and eutrophication of these water features; To provide wildlife habitat and. thereby support the maintenance of diversity of both plant and animal species within the City; and To put in place a means of baselining the existing wetlands in the City in order to determine if the buffering policies are effective in maintaining wetland quality upon development. This monitoring should include but is not limited to water quality measures, flora analysis and biological surveys. To develop a methodology for determining the relative value of the various wetland types within the City. By use of a values and measures system, four wetland management classifications will be defined. They are Preserve, Manage 1, Manage 2, and Manage 3. Various buffering' scenarios will be defined dependent upon the value of a wetland as measured. More valued wetlands will have more stringent buffering guidelines. ' To place a higher level of priority to protect and preserve larger, connected wetland complexes of high ecological integrity than smaller, isolated, wetlands that have already incurred substantial eutrophication and contamination.