Kalamazoo River Watershed Land Conservation Plan

Abstract

The Kalamazoo River Watershed Land Conservation Plan was developed to select for conservation targets among ownership parcels in the Kalamazoo River Watershed (MI). The watershed, while historically degraded, features large areas of preserved Midwestern habitats. To facilitate for the permanent protection of these lands, this plan was developed using an ArcGIS-based analysis that scored ownership parcels based on the following conservation criteria: land cover, presence of wetlands, proximity to hydrology, proximity to existing conserved lands, presence of cold lands, and presence of threatened and endangered species habitat. These criteria were developed using a literature review of existing conservation plans and Kalamazoo River Watershed stakeholder input. The results from this analysis were used to identify conservation priorities, including: the top 100 scoring parcels in the basin, a database of the top 20% scoring parcels and their contact information, and priority subwatersheds for conservation.