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Once your town has made a commitment to develop a comprehensive woodland conservation program, priorities for conservation should be established. To be able to establish priorities for conservation, the community must understand the resources that are present and their value to the community. A lack of factual data about the type, health and quality of trees and woodland stands is a major reason why the land development process often results in saving poor quality trees or woodlands.

If some tree clearing must be done to allow for property improvements, then lower quality woodland areas should be sacrificed in favor of high priority areas. As appealing as it is to save every tree and every stand of woodlands on every development site or private property, this approach is not realistic, practical, or fair. The idiom “choose your battle” might be used to describe this concept.

After natural resource data has been compiled, the many layers of data should be shown on one map, so that critical natural resource areas are visually apparent. For instance, the relationship between forest cover and aquifer recharge areas, will be more apparent. This may result in that forest cover having a higher priority for conservation than forest cover that does not fall over critical natural resources.

During the inventory process, general data that distinguishes the type, health, and condition of each different woodland stand in the municipality should be gathered. The town may have places with key vistas, hedgerows, and trees that form the edge of rural and rustic roadways. If these resources are important to the community, they should be inventoried along with other tree and woodland data.

Once data is mapped, each community must decide which resources have the highest priority, or value, and which are not as important. There are ecological, social and economically based priorities. Each community should decide what is important and why.

A community with a strong agricultural ethic may determine that hedgerows and woodlands which separate farming uses from other uses have a higher value than other woodlands. Towns with erosion problems on steeply sloping hillsides may determine that woodlands on erodible slopes have a higher priority for conservation than woodlands on more stable soils. The conservation program should be geared toward protecting the resources that have a high value to the community.

Once priorities for conservation are established, a map that clearly shows all of the resources of the community and their priority for conservation should be prepared. If your community has clear maps that are readily available to developers and private land

NATURAL RESOURCES THAT MAY BE INCLUDED IN A

COMMUNITY INVENTORY

! Geology! Geography! Topography! Climate! Hydrology: Surface and

Groundwater! Soil! Vegetative Communities! Wildlife: Threatened and

Endangered Species! Land Use! Air Quality! Historic and Cultural Resources! Infrastructure: Roads, Water

Supply, Wastewater Disposal! Noise! Regional Relationships! Water Quality: Chemical and

Biological! Existing Trails, Greenways, and

Preserved Land

! Geology! Geography! Topography! Climate! Hydrology: Surface and

Groundwater! Soil! Vegetative Communities! Wildlife: Threatened and

Endangered Species! Land Use! Air Quality! Historic and Cultural Resources! Infrastructure: Roads, Water

Supply, Wastewater Disposal! Noise! Regional Relationships! Water Quality: Chemical and

Biological! Existing Trails, Greenways, and

Preserved Land

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AN EXAMPLE OF PRIORITIES FOR CONSERVATION

(In order of importance)

! Stream Corridors! Wetlands/Floodplains! Steep Slopes! Threatened and

Endangered Habitat! Contiguous Forests! Hedgerows

! Stream Corridors! Wetlands/Floodplains! Steep Slopes! Threatened and

Endangered Habitat! Contiguous Forests! Hedgerows

1. WHICH TREES SHOULD BE CONSERVED?

owners, the information can be considered before land purchases and land disturbance activities are proposed.

When mapping woodlands to establish local priorities, it is important to consider forest cover at a regional level. It is well established that large tracts of contiguous forest cover, and forested areas that connect such large tracts, contribute to healthy wildlife. Whenever there are opportunities to conserve or connect large tracts of forest at a regional level, this should be done.

Regional greenway systems, open space connections, bikeways, trail systems, and other recreational opportunities should also be understood as part of the process of developing priorities for conservation. It may be desirable to create forested corridors to connect forested open space tracts or plan greenways that connect to the greenway systems of adjacent communities. Stream corridors are excellent places to do that. This would be a proactive approach, and the intent should be shown on a plan. APPROACH: TREES OR WOODLANDS?

In New Jersey, many communities have made attempts to incorporate “tree” conservation in the land development process. Very few towns have been successful incorporating “woodland” conservation, however. For towns that have woodland conservation programs, it is very rare for the program to include conservation of under story vegetation along with trees in woodland areas.

What is the difference between conserving trees and conserving woodlands? The answers are under story vegetation and long term protection. By conserving everything between the ground and the tree canopy, we provide wildlife habitat and the ability of the woodland to regenerate itself. In addition, wooded land areas can be legally described and protected by easements for the long term.

When the under story vegetation is changed to lawn or removed from a woodland area during a land disturbance activity, the woodland area is converted to a stand of individual trees. A change in under story vegetation can cause the woodland area to decline. If mown lawn is introduced under trees, emerging saplings are destroyed. Eventually, the trees age and die. In a woodland condition, seedlings emerge from the forest floor and the woodland regenerates itself in perpetuity unless the natural process is interrupted by the invasion of exotic and invasive plant species or other factors.

It may be appropriate to have a policy that conserves both individual specimen trees in good health, woodlands and hedgerows. Each community must determine which strategies to use only after developing a clear understanding of what types of tree and woodland resources are present in the community and have priority for conservation.

DEFINING CONSERVATION

Woodland conservation is the retention, care and management of priority woodland areas for the benefit of a community. Priority woodlands are those tree stands and their under story vegetation that have been identified as having special qualities warranting conservation. For example, unusual or old growth stands, habitats for rare or endangered plants or animals or aquifer recharge may warrant special attention and priority for conservation. Each municipality should use a community supported planning process to determine those resources they would like to see preserved.

As a last step in the process of determining which trees should be conserved, each community should also establish how they want to conserve trees. If three acres of woodlands are protected with under story intact during a construction project, will they be protected from future clearing? How long should they be protected from clearing? Each community must decide the answers to these questions. If long term protection is a goal, then action must be taken to achieve that goal.

One way to minimize future clearing of individual trees conserved as part of the land development process is to pass a regulation requiring a tree cutting permit for individual property owners. In this case, owners would be required to submit a permit application, which give reasons for clearing the tree. A qualified professional would have to assess each application on a case by case basis, and work with individual property owners to determine whether other options are available.

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WHAT DO YOU HAVE?·

! Native Woodlands! Individual Trees! Historic Trees! Big Trees! Old Christmas Tree Farms! Disturbed Sites! Scrub-Shrub

! Native Woodlands! Individual Trees! Historic Trees! Big Trees! Old Christmas Tree Farms! Disturbed Sites! Scrub-Shrub

WHAT SHOULD BE CONSERVED?

! Ecologically Important Resources

! Socially Important Resources

! Economically Important Resources

! Ecologically Important Resources

! Socially Important Resources

! Economically Important Resources

WHY CONSERVE IT?

! Water Quality! Steep Slope Protection! Wildlife Habitat! Separation of Land Uses! Vista Protection! Recreation! Historic Sites! Specimen Trees! Land Use Buffers

! Water Quality! Steep Slope Protection! Wildlife Habitat! Separation of Land Uses! Vista Protection! Recreation! Historic Sites! Specimen Trees! Land Use Buffers

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owners, the information can be considered before land purchases and land disturbance activities are proposed.

When mapping woodlands to establish local priorities, it is important to consider forest cover at a regional level. It is well established that large tracts of contiguous forest cover, and forested areas that connect such large tracts, contribute to healthy wildlife. Whenever there are opportunities to conserve or connect large tracts of forest at a regional level, this should be done.

Regional greenway systems, open space connections, bikeways, trail systems, and other recreational opportunities should also be understood as part of the process of developing priorities for conservation. It may be desirable to create forested corridors to connect forested open space tracts or plan greenways that connect to the greenway systems of adjacent communities. Stream corridors are excellent places to do that. This would be a proactive approach, and the intent should be shown on a plan. APPROACH: TREES OR WOODLANDS?

In New Jersey, many communities have made attempts to incorporate “tree” conservation in the land development process. Very few towns have been successful incorporating “woodland” conservation, however. For towns that have woodland conservation programs, it is very rare for the program to include conservation of under story vegetation along with trees in woodland areas.

What is the difference between conserving trees and conserving woodlands? The answers are under story vegetation and long term protection. By conserving everything between the ground and the tree canopy, we provide wildlife habitat and the ability of the woodland to regenerate itself. In addition, wooded land areas can be legally described and protected by easements for the long term.

When the under story vegetation is changed to lawn or removed from a woodland area during a land disturbance activity, the woodland area is converted to a stand of individual trees. A change in under story vegetation can cause the woodland area to decline. If mown lawn is introduced under trees, emerging saplings are destroyed. Eventually, the trees age and die. In a woodland condition, seedlings emerge from the forest floor and the woodland regenerates itself in perpetuity unless the natural process is interrupted by the invasion of exotic and invasive plant species or other factors.

It may be appropriate to have a policy that conserves both individual specimen trees in good health, woodlands and hedgerows. Each community must determine which strategies to use only after developing a clear understanding of what types of tree and woodland resources are present in the community and have priority for conservation.

DEFINING CONSERVATION

Woodland conservation is the retention, care and management of priority woodland areas for the benefit of a community. Priority woodlands are those tree stands and their under story vegetation that have been identified as having special qualities warranting conservation. For example, unusual or old growth stands, habitats for rare or endangered plants or animals or aquifer recharge may warrant special attention and priority for conservation. Each municipality should use a community supported planning process to determine those resources they would like to see preserved.

As a last step in the process of determining which trees should be conserved, each community should also establish how they want to conserve trees. If three acres of woodlands are protected with under story intact during a construction project, will they be protected from future clearing? How long should they be protected from clearing? Each community must decide the answers to these questions. If long term protection is a goal, then action must be taken to achieve that goal.

One way to minimize future clearing of individual trees conserved as part of the land development process is to pass a regulation requiring a tree cutting permit for individual property owners. In this case, owners would be required to submit a permit application, which give reasons for clearing the tree. A qualified professional would have to assess each application on a case by case basis, and work with individual property owners to determine whether other options are available.

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WHAT DO YOU HAVE?·

! Native Woodlands! Individual Trees! Historic Trees! Big Trees! Old Christmas Tree Farms! Disturbed Sites! Scrub-Shrub

! Native Woodlands! Individual Trees! Historic Trees! Big Trees! Old Christmas Tree Farms! Disturbed Sites! Scrub-Shrub

WHAT SHOULD BE CONSERVED?

! Ecologically Important Resources

! Socially Important Resources

! Economically Important Resources

! Ecologically Important Resources

! Socially Important Resources

! Economically Important Resources

WHY CONSERVE IT?

! Water Quality! Steep Slope Protection! Wildlife Habitat! Separation of Land Uses! Vista Protection! Recreation! Historic Sites! Specimen Trees! Land Use Buffers

! Water Quality! Steep Slope Protection! Wildlife Habitat! Separation of Land Uses! Vista Protection! Recreation! Historic Sites! Specimen Trees! Land Use Buffers

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