2017.04.17 CC Packet - Laserfiche WebLink

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activities that modify a rare natural community must be denied if the local government unit determines that the proposed activities will permanently adversely affect the natural community. If you have any questions regarding this provision of the WCA, please contact Doug Norris, DNR Wetlands Program Coordinator, at 651-259-5125 or Doug.Norris@state.mn.us. A portion of the project boundary, including the wetlands mentioned above, is within a Central Region Regionally Significant Ecological Area (RSEA) that is ranked Moderate. The DNR Central Region (in partnership with the Metropolitan Council for the 7-county metro area), identified these ecologically significant terrestrial and wetland areas by conducting a landscape -scale assessment based on the size and shape of the ecological area, land cover within the ecological area, adjacent land cover/use, and connectivity to other ecological areas. The purpose of the data is to inform regional scale land use decisions, especially as it relates to balancing development and natural resource protection. A GIS shapefile of this data layer can be downloaded from the MN Geospatial Commons at https://gisdata.mn.gov/. Additional information, including pdf versions of the RSEA maps, is available at http://www.dnr.state.mn.us/rsea/index.html. State -listed Species • Blanding's Turtles (Emydoidea blandingii), a state -listed threatened species, have been documented in the vicinity of the proposed project and may be encountered on site. The project area is also within an area of statewide importance to the Blanding's turtle. These areas are relied upon to maintain the species' security within Minnesota, and the DNR considers them of the highest priority for Blanding's turtle research and management activities. Blanding's turtles use wetlands as well as upland areas up to and over a mile distant from wetlands. Uplands are used for nesting, basking, periods of dormancy, and traveling between wetlands. Because of the tendency to travel long distances over land, Blanding's turtles regularly travel across roads and are therefore susceptible to collisions with vehicles. Any added mortality can be detrimental to populations of Blanding's turtles, as these turtles have a low reproduction rate that depends upon a high survival rate to maintain population levels. Other factors believed to contribute to the decline of this species include wetland drainage and degradation, and the development of upland habitat. This project has the potential to impact this rare turtle through direct fatalities or habitat disturbance/destruction due to dewatering, excavation, fill, or other construction activities associated with the project. Actions to avoid or minimize disturbance to this state - protected turtle may include, but are not limited to, the following recommendations: ➢ Avoid Type 2 & 3 wetlands, ➢ To avoid any incidental takings, avoid filling or dewatering wetlands during the winter, ➢ Implement stringent sediment and erosion control methods, ➢ Use wildlife -friendly erosion control methods (see enclosed fact sheet), ➢ Monitor for turtles during construction and report any sightings to the DNR, ➢ As the project boundary is within an area of statewide importance, please refer to both lists of recommendations in the enclosed Blanding's Turtle Fact Sheet. The Page 2 of 5