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City of Arden Hills – 2040 Comprehensive Plan <br /> <br /> <br />Approved:, 2018 <br />10-10 <br />10.5.1 Natural Resources Assessment <br /> <br />The Rice Creek Watershed District (RCWD) evaluated the natural areas within <br />its jurisdiction, which includes all of Arden Hills, to determine the relative quality <br />of remaining natural areas. The RCWD evaluated the natural resource data <br />based on the following characteristics: <br />o Health of natural area: High quality areas with native vegetation were <br />considered more important than areas with partial or total dominance by <br />invasive species. <br />o Size: Large natural areas (five acres or greater) were considered more <br />important that small natural areas (less than five acres). <br />o Rarity of community type within the watershed: Natural community types <br />that are rare due to specific site requirements (fens, bogs, etc.), or have <br />become rare due to historic land use changes or degradation (prairie, oak <br />savanna, etc.) were considered more important than more common <br />natural community types. <br />o Adjacency to other natural areas: Natural areas that are immediately <br />adjacent to several other natural areas were considered to be more <br />important than natural areas that are adjacent to one or no other natural <br />areas. <br />o Proximity of healthy natural areas to other healthy natural areas: Healthy <br />natural areas that are in close proximity to each other (within 1/8 of a <br />mile) were considered more important than isolated healthy natural <br />areas, healthy natural areas in close proximity to degraded natural areas, <br />or degraded natural areas in close proximity to each other. <br /> <br />These natural resource characteristics were combined to form the overall natural <br />resource assessment ranking for each area shown on Figure 10.3. <br /> <br />10.5.2 Wetland Restoration Assessment <br /> <br />All wetland areas within the RCWD were evaluated to determine their potential <br />for vegetation and/or hydrologic restoration. A wetland’s potential for either type <br />of restoration was determined in the following manner: <br /> <br />o Vegetation Restoration: The Minnesota Land Cover Classification System <br />(MLCCS) data includes information on whether or not a natural area is <br />dominated by invasive species. Wetlands dominated by invasive species <br />represent an opportunity to restore native vegetation. Taking this into <br />account, wetland communities that were recorded in the MLCCS as <br />dominated by invasive species and greater than two acres in size were <br />included in this category and displayed on the map. Draft 04/04/2018