CLAM Manual and Conservation Plan
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Nassau County Conservation Lands Acquisition and Management Manual and Conservation Plan Approved: Prepared: November 3,2020 Preparer: Marc Hudson, Director of Strategic Conservation North Florida Land Trust Table of Contents Acknowledgements ............................................................................................................ 4 Introduction ...................................................................................................................... 6 Goals of the Nassau CLAM .................................................................................................. 7 Primary Goals ................................................................................................................. 7 1. Water Issues ............................................................................................................ 7 2. Species and Habitat Protection ................................................................................... 7 3. Outdoor Recreation and Quality of Life ...................................................................... 7 Secondary Goals ............................................................................................................. 8 4. Working Lands ......................................................................................................... 8 5. Value for Money ...................................................................................................... 8 6. Regulatory Solutions ................................................................................................ 9 Glossary of Terms ............................................................................................................ 10 Role of the Conservation Plan in the CLAM ......................................................................... 12 Nomination, Application, Approval and Purchase Process Chart ......................................... 13 Nomination and Approval Process ...................................................................................... 14 Conservation Land Acquisition and Management Committee ............................................. 14 Forming the CLAM Committee .................................................................................... 15 Nominating Properties for the CLAM ............................................................................... 16 Ranking Properties for the CLAM .................................................................................... 18 Acquisition of Conservation Lands ...................................................................................... 20 Management Process Chart ........................................................................................... 24 Management Plans ........................................................................................................... 25 Management Partnerships .......................................................................................... 26 Conservation Easement Monitoring and Violation Resolution ................................................ 26 Transparency and Reporting ............................................................................................. 27 Appendices ...................................................................................................................... 29 Appendix A: Nassau County Conservation Plan ................................................................... 30 Appendix B: CLAM Resource Rankings ............................................................................... 46 Appendix C: Mapbook of Data Layers ................................................................................. 48 Appendix D: Document Review and Natural Resource Inventory ...........................................69 Appendix E: Ranking Calculator ........................................................................................ 106 Appendix F: Nomination Form…………………………………………………………………………………........110 2 Acknowledgements Nassau Board of County Commissioners District One, John Martin District Two, Aaron Bell District Three, Jeff Gray District Four, Thomas Ford District Five, Klynt Farmer Nassau County Staff Taco Pope, AICP, County Manager Thad Crowe, AICP, Planning Director Holly Coyle, Assistant Planning Director Sue Ann Alleger, Planner II Naomi Braff, Planner I Doug McDowell, AICP, Senior Planner Abigail Weiss, AICP, Planner II/GIS Analyst Subject Matter Experts Ramesh Buch, Director of Real Estate, St. Johns River Water Management District Adrienne Burke, AICP, Esq., Former Nassau County Planning Director Robert Companion, P.E., Engineering Director, Nassau County Justina Dacey, Agricultural Agent, Institute for Agricultural Science (IFAS) Dave Edwards, White Oak Conservation Jo Anna Emanuel, US Fish and Wildlife Service Valerie Feinberg, AICP, Former Nassau County Asst. & Interim Planning Director Kelly Gibson, Planning and Conservation Director, City of Fernandina Beach Jennifer Hart, Regional Supervisor, Florida Forest Service Charles Houder, Director, Office of Land Conservation, Alachua County Tom Kallemeyn, Florida Department of Environmental Protection Ann Kemp, Amelia Tree Conservancy Margaret Kirkland, Amelia Tree Conservancy Katie Peay, P.E., Stormwater Engineer, Nassau County Daniel Penniman, Biological Scientist, Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission Keith Rowell, Land Programs Administrator, Florida Forest Service Kailey Saver, AICP, Former Senior Planner, Nassau County James Tomazinis, Florida Department of Environmental Protection Sandra Vardaman, Land Conservation Biologist, Alachua County Joe Vaughn, Landowner Assistance Biologist Kip Webber, US Army Corp of Engineers Alyssa Neil, Former Planner, Nassau County and 300 Nassau County Residents 3 Introduction The following document was created by North Florida Land Trust (NFLT), a 501(c) non-profit operating in Nassau County to preserve and conserve the county’s natural, historic, and working lands resources. NFLT was retained by the county to bring their experience in the identification and acquisition of conservation resources to assist in the creation of their own Conservation Lands Acquisition and Management program, known in short, as the CLAM. NFLT brought their experience to bear in the realms of strategic conservation planning, to develop for the county a conservation plan which would help them identify, rank, and assess lands for acquisition and management. The product of that work is the Conservation Plan and the CLAM Resource Rankings. In addition, they were asked to produce a manual of operations for the administration and management of the CLAM program, which is available in the form of the CLAM Manual, and supplementary documents to that manual are the attached calculator and nomination form. We were also asked as natural resource professionals to review the County’s inventory of natural resources and the existing regulatory tools within the county’s control, mostly planning and zoning tools, to see how well the county’s resources are currently protected so as to contrast that with a land acquisition program. The product of that work is attached as the Document Review and Natural Resource Inventory. Nassau County is at this moment, working to be proactive in the conservation of their natural resources. They are currently behind the state’s average for counties in terms of natural resource protections, having only preserved 7% of their landmass, as compared to a statewide average of 29%. Nassau County is also facing new and significant development threats, having quickly gone from being a rural county with a bustling beach community, they are now turning into an exurban and suburban growth area for Metro Jacksonville. However, they have a bounty of healthy natural resources, bounded by the St. Marys and Nassau Rivers, with scenic and unique barrier island resources and boundless miles of forestland. We are certain that if they maintain that pro-activity, and initiated the programs described herein, that they can ensure a sustainable county with a wealth of natural resources for years to come. We thank the county for the opportunity to help them describe their conservation future. Marc Hudson Director of Strategic Conservation North Florida Land Trust 4 Goals of the Nassau CLAM The following summarizes the collected goals that have been expressed by Nassau County commissioners, staff, and the general public in the process of developing this conservation plan. Their input was gathered via interview and surveys of those groups. The goals have been described in two tiers, primary and secondary. Primary goals were identified in interviews and surveys as either overwhelmingly supported or repetitiously mentioned. Secondary Goals were still mentioned or selected at a magnitude great enough for consideration but at a lesser level of support. Primary Goals: 1. Water Issues Water Issues, as a whole, were provided the highest emphasis by all those polled in the surveys. The following are the primary goals on addressing water issues within the county: 1.1 Water Quality: The preservation of Nassau County’s high quality waters, free of pollutants, healthily maintained for wildlife and recreationalists alike. 1.2 Flooding and Storm Surge: The mitigation of the negative impacts of flooding and storm surge by preserving that green infrastructure which is important to the county’s resiliency. 1.3 Sea Level Rise Adaptation: To facilitate adaptation to changing conditions for