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• Nature's Refuge EAW Record of Decision page 17 • The DNR comments that the project could be a candidate for implementation under the "exceptional natural resource value" provision of the Wetland Conservation Act, which allows credit for projects that restore exception natural resource values. Before the DNR would agree to the use of this provision or permit the taking of state - listed plant species, the City would have to assure us that it would put in place adequate regulatory and management mechanisms to protect and sustain these resource values well into the future. Response: The project proposer called a meeting in March 2005 to present the project concepts to all pertinent regulatory agencies administering the Minnesota WCA and other wetland /natural resources regulatory programs, such as the Rice Creek Watershed District, the Minnesota DNR, and the US Army Corps of Engineers, the Minnesota Board of Soil and Water Resources, the Anoka Conservation District, and the City of Lino Lakes. A primary objective of this meeting was to determine if the natural resources of the proposed project site were of high enough quality to qualify for ENRV provisions of the MN WCA. At this March 2006 meeting, project ecologists presented ecological assessment information on the site's natural resources, habitats, and rare species populations, along with site design concepts for the proposed conservation development. The consensus among the regulatory agencies in attendance can be summarized as the following: The wetland resources present on the proposed site are of high enough quality to be eligible for the ENRV provisions of the MN WCA, and rare plant species populations present on the property (as well as suitable habitat for these species) are concentrated within the proposed conservation areas and could be protected and managed, in perpetuity, as part of a large -scale conservation area that achieved numerous environmental objective (such as ENRV wetland mitigation and banking, state - listed species mitigation, and natural resources conservation and enhancement). As previously mentioned (above), the project ecologists have developed the restoration and management plan for one of only two ENRV wetland mitigation plans to have been approved in the state of Minnesota (Blaine Ponds, Blaine, Minnesota). Assessment of pre- restoration conditions of the Blaine Ponds conservation area has been completed in 2006, and implementation of the restoration plan will begin in 2007. Other • The DNR notes that the project will result in the removal of a significant amount of wood from the site. Depending on the condition of the wood, the developer may elect to market it as sawlog, landscaping material, firewood, or bio -fuel for the production of energy. The DNR strongly recommends that the City contact the DNR for advice on this subject.