Geoscience Reference
In-Depth Information
search for enhancement and restorations sites, after the GIS-based model identified
sites based on the primary parameters. These secondary factors included:
• Toledo Metropark Priority Lands: the closer the site to Toledo Metropark
Priority Lands the higher the weight;
• Development Pressures: the presence of known or imminent development
pressures excluded areas identified as good restoration or enhancement sites
based on primary parameters;
• QHEI/HHEI: sites that are located in or adjacent to stream channels areas that
have been previously monitored using QHEI or HHEI and have been shown to
be of moderate quality (i.e., they have potential for restoration or enhance-
ment) have greater weight than those sites that have been shown to be of low
quality and thus are less restorable;
• Parcel Size: sites that occupy fewer, larger parcels will be more desirable than
sites that occupy a large number of smaller parcels.
Using the above primary parameters, the GIS-based model was run to identify
sites throughout the Tenmile Creek/Ottawa River and Swan Creek watersheds that
would be suitable for habitat restoration and/or enhancement. Three versions of
the model were generated, one for stream locations, one for isolated wetland
locations, and one for streams with adjacent wetlands, based on the weighting of
parameters as identified in Table
7.2
.
Model outputs were then mapped and evaluated that resulted in the deter-
mination that the top 30% of the sites, as defined by the predictive model score,
should be mapped throughout the study area, and that those sites with the highest
ranking would be selected for ground verification (Fig.
7.4
). After reviewing the
top 30% of the sites throughout the Swan Creek and Tenmile Creek/Ottawa River
watersheds, it became evident that the GIS model identified the largest number of
potential restoration and/or enhancement sites in the Oak Openings Subregion of
the two watersheds, which occupies the middle third of the study area, This
resulted in a disproportionately large number of sites in this region. The next
most abundant number of sites was observed in the western third, or Agricultural
Subregion, outside of the Oak Openings. However the majority of sites in this region
did not score as high as sites in the Oak Openings Subregion. The Urban Subregion
was found to contain the fewest number of sites.
Approximate boundaries were identified for the Agricultural, Oak Openings
and Urban Subregions, and the model reran to identify the top 30% of sites
within each of these three subregions (i.e., as opposed to the top 30% of sites
across the entire study area as previously run). As expected, this approach
identified a greater number of sites in the Urban Subregion, although the
number of sites in this subregion was still low compared as compared to the
number of sites in the other subregions. Figure
7.5
illustrates the identification
of the top restoration sites within each subregion of the Tenmile Creek/Ottawa
River and Swan Creek study area and by restoration type (stream, wetland,
isolated wetland).
