Agenda - Planning Commission - 04/05/2007

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eralcultureofderegulation,environmenta\ policy regression, and inadequate funding for environmental protection. HABITAT AND SPEClES INfORMATION There is no one-size-fits-all zoning toolbox for habitat and species protection because of the sheer variety of habitats and species. In BrevardCounty,Florida, sea turtles need the protection of beachfront Iightil1g ordinances during breeding season to avoid disorienta' tion of nesting fema\es and hatchlings. quality initiatives. The next section reviews the information sOurces that are available to planners drafting habitat. and species.spe- cific zoning regulations. Natural HerittJge Program. The Natural Heritage Network,a coalition of natural her- itage programs,beganwitn the first state Natural Heritage Program (NHp)inSC!uth CarolirJa irJ ~974- Since that time, Natural Heritage Programs have been established in every state, the Navajo Nation, ~o Canadian provinces, and 19 Latin American and include taxonomy, species distributions, rei- ativerarity!abundance,populationtrends, and habitat requirements. Community-level data include vegetation structure and mm- position, disturbance regimes, and spatial distribution. The major types of information included in NHPdata are listed in the table on page 4. Planners need to be aware of several limitations ofNHP data. First, the data contain holes that can result in false negatives-the absence of an occurrence in the data does not necessarily mean thatnothingsignifi- cant exists. The likely reason is that no data exist for that area.NHPstypically usedataco\\ectedby others for other pur- poses.lndeed,the data are biased toward well-surveyed areas such as those around universities, roads,andfieJdsta- tions.Secondly,the data are based on point locations of rare species and community types and so emphasize plant populations, small animals, and narrowly defined community types that are easy to map. Locational precision is diffi- cult for species with wide habitat ranges (many large mammals) and species with low population densities. Also, many species rely Dnmultiplehabitattypes,such as forests and wetlands, and those landscape gradients are not adequately represented in NHPdata.The thirdproblemwithNHPdataisthattheyheav- ilyemphasizerarity,andraritydoesnotnec- essarily mean that the species is vulnerable to extinction. , ~ ;;. ~ Ii Similarly,f'loridaprovides~wlld\lfecrossingsM over expressways to secure the migratory pat- tems of large mammals such as the Florida panther. In the West, fencing ordinances like those in RoutlCounty,Colorado,guarantee pass-through access for wildlife (the alterna- tive is entilnglementand death).The zoning toolthatwHl protect wildlife i1nd habitat depends on species need,ofcourse. So plan- ners should study the data before drafting the regulations. Unfortunately, most cities lack staff expertise on these issues, and limited funds oftengoinsteadlowatersu~plyandwater Caribbean countries. NHPwas created to help set priorities for conselVation by providing data on rare,endangered,orex.emplary speciesorecosystems,andto hel~reduceor avoid damage to biological resources that might result from land useand economic development policies and programs. The pro- gram provides oelailed local inforrnation on plants, animals, and ecosystems to better inform natural resources management and \and-usedecisions. NHP data are collected from local, state, and federal agencies, and from uni- versitiesandcitizens.Species-leveldata ZONINGPRACilCE 1.07 ~M'RICAIlPLANN'NGASSOCl~T1{)NIP1't