CCP 01-21-2003 - Laserfiche WebLink

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I I. I I I I I I I ,e I I I I I I ! .- I EAW: B. ARE THERE ANY STATE-LISTED ENDANGERED, THREATENED, OR SPECIAL- CONCERN SPECIES; RARE PLANT COMMUNITIES; COLONIAL WATERBIRD NESTING COLONIES; NATIVE PRAIRIE OR OTHER RARE HABITAT; OR OTHER SENSITIVE ECOLOGICAL RESOURCES ON OR NEAR THE SITE? NO lL YES IF YES, DESCRIBE THE RESOURCE AND HOW IT WOULD BE AFFECTED BY THE PROJECT. INDICATE IF A SITE SURVEY OF THE RESOURCES WAS CONDUCTED. DESCRffiE MEASURES TO BE TAKEN TO MINIMIZE OR AVOID ADVERSE IMP ACTS. AUAR: B. For an A UAR, prior consultation with the DNR Natural Heritage program for information about reports of rare plant and animal species in the vicinity is required. If such consultation indicates the need, an on-site habitat survey for rare species in the appropriate portions of the AUAR area is required. Areas of on-site surveys should be depicted on a map, as should any "protection zones" established as a result. A search (ERDB# 20030006) of the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources (DNR) - Natural Heritage database was conducted for an area within an approximate I-mile radius of the project site. The DNR report is included in Appendix C. No observations of rare plant or animal species or significant natural features were identified on the project site. However, the database search revealed that the project site is within a "known concentration" area of Blanding's turtles (Emydoidea blandingii), a species listed as threatened in Minnesota. The DNR has identified 13 such "known concentration" areas in the state and gives these areas highest priority for rcsearch and management activities. In addition, these areas are relied upon to maintain the species' security in the state. The prefened habitat of the Blanding's turtle is calm, shallow water and dense aquatic vegetation. The Blanding's turtle prefers to nest in large areas of undisturbed, sandy uplands. The Blanding's turtle's late maturation, low reproductive potential, long-lived adults and high mortality of eggs and juveniles are factors that make it particularly susceptible to human disturbanccs. As stated in thc excerpt from the DNR publication Minnesota's Endangered Flora and Fauna (included in Appendix C), "Population and reproductive dynamics suggest viable populations of Blanding's turtles are dependent on large numbers of animals and adequate areas of undisturbed habitat" The DNR search includes ten observations of Blanding's turtles near the project site. The dates of these observations rangc from 1988 to 1998. The sightings of Blanding's turtles included in the DNR report were noted 200 feet west of the Guidant Campus; near Marsden Lake (locatcd one-half to one and one-half miles north of the project site along the east side of the Twin Cities Army Ammunition Plant (TCAAP) site); and near Snail Lake (located approximately one half mile northeast of the project site). Three of the sightings wcrc observed within approximately one half mile of the site to the north, Guidant Campus Master Plan Final AUAR and Mitigation Plan - 14- January 2003