Agenda - Environmental Policy Board - 03/15/2007 - Special Meeting

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II. SUMMARY OF QUALIFICATIONS Applied Ecological Services, Inc. (AES) is a broad~based ecological consulting, contracting and restoration firm that was founded in 1978. Our staff of experienced scientists and project managers is adept at tackling difficult and unique environmental problems on a variety of scales. AES has been the principal ecological consultant on hundreds of large-scale restoration and site remediation projects, including dozens of NRI/ As, conservation planning efforts, and conservation developments. As industry leaders, 'AES scientists have developed state-of-the-art natural resources . inventory and assessment methods, conservation planning strategies, natural resource mitigation/restoration techniques, and expertise in pennitting that have become national models. As mentioned in Section I, AES understands how natural resources and conservation values can be effectively integrated with planning initiatives, and a scientifically sound NRII A is a critical first step. AES has a long track record of successful projects very similar to your own. In December 2006, AES completed a MLCCS update/revision for 6 townships in Scott County totaling 184 square miles. This project entailed close coordination with Scott County, working with existing MLCCS data (which needed corrections, refinements, and augmentation), and developing and implementing an intensive yet efficient protocol to update the data for conservation planning in the County. AES also developed a GIS quality assurance/quality control (QA/Qc) protocol to maximize data quality. Ms. Patricia Freeman (Sr. Natural Resources Specialist for Scott County, 952-496-8752) would give a very positive referral for AES' work on this project. Also recently, AES played a leadership role in the comprehensive plan updates for the City of Chisago and the City of Isanti. Natural resources (including uplands, wetlands, and surface waters) were identified, assessed, and modeled for these communities, and the results were iritegrated with conununity values to develop a conservation framework for planning. These two growing communities face many of the same issues as the City of Ramsey, suggesting that the strategies developed by AES for these projects may be very appropriate for Ramsey. One AES strategy that has direct and important applications to the Ramsey NRI project is our method of identifying "multifunctional greenway corridors." Opportunities for multifunctional greenway corridors are identified within the landscape, and then these corridors can be designed to provide three primary functions: 1. Regional stormwater and surface water management services via a series of natural elements (a regional approach to AES' Stormwater Treatment Train ™ concept). 2. Regional habitat and corridor connections designed for both native wildlife and native plant communities. 3. Regional trail opportunities for human use and enjoyment (exercise, passive recreation, etc.). AES has experience working with conununities on prioritization, ordinance, and funding strategies to help bring these multifunctional greenway corridors and other conservation strategies to reality. 2 Proposal- City of Ramsey NRI