Agenda - 08-31-2006-2 - Laserfiche WebLink

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Attachment 2 0 Expanding the Nature Preserve Concept for Additional Opportunities (Upper Eno Preserve) May 3, 2006 Background The adopted Lands Legacy Program Policy document (April 4, 2000) formally introduced the concept of a Nature Preserve - coordinating the protection of significant natural resource lands in close proximity to each other, as a "critical mass" for conservation purposes. Since this time, this concept has been operationalized in subsequent Lands Legacy Action Plans, with two emergent Nature Preserves (Seven - Mile Creek, New Hope) that are being created over time. In this sense, a Nature Preserve is generally defined as an area with a primary purpose of the protection of identified natural areas and wildlife habitat, prime forests, or lands of other ecological significance or sensitivity. A Nature Preserve is something between a Park (which has generally open public access) and a Natural Area (an identified habitat site protected but not open to the public) in that the most sensitive portions of a Nature Preserve site are left undisturbed and protected from human impacts, but a secondary purpose of limited public access, nature study and low- impact recreation in the less - sensitive portions of the site is appropriate. There are a number of examples, both locally and nationally, of this approach. Lands Legacy Action Plans since 2001 have elaborated on that concept to pursue the creation of a nature preserve in the Seven -Mile Creels basin southwest of Hillsborough. The Seven -Mile Creek basin is a self - contained unit of the larger Upper Eno watershed, and remains largely undeveloped and has few crossing roadways. More recently, acquisitions in 2005 by the County, other local governments, and land trust partners have begun to protect a corridor of land along the lower New Hope Creek between Erwin Road and the Durham County line. This grouping of acquisitions, known as the future New Hope Preserve, is continuing at this time. Back at Seven -Mile Creek, acquisitions have been accomplished and are still underway to tie together 160 acres acquired by the County in the 1970's with additional adjoining lands of resource significance. Approximately 300 acres is now owned by the County for the Preserve, with ongoing activity by both the County and the Eno River Association expected to add to that total in coming years. In recent years, additional acquisitions in nearby segments of the larger Upper Eno watershed have been accomplished to protect water quality or sensitive natural resource lands, and other opportunities are presenting themselves. The McGowan Creels Preserve (63 acres of former Duke Forest lands) and the Confluence of the Eno conservation easement (24 acres) are examples of projects completed in this area to date, and there are