Division of Lands & Forests Bureau of State Land Management HEMLOCK-CANADICE UNIT MANAGEMENT PLAN Final Livingston County towns of Livonia, Conesus and Springwater Ontario County towns of Richmond and Canadice January 2015 NYS Department of Environmental Conservation Region 8 Sub-Office 7291 Coon Rd. Bath, New York 14810 Hemlock-Canadice Unit Management Plan New York State Department of Environmental Conservation’s Mission “The quality of our environment is fundamental to our concern for the quality of life. It is hereby declared to be the policy of the State of New York to conserve, improve and protect its natural resources and environment and to prevent, abate and control water, land and air pollution, in order to enhance the health, safety and welfare of the people of the state and their overall economic and social well-being.” - Environmental Conservation Law 1-0101(1) Preface It is the policy of the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation (NYS DEC) to manage state lands for multiple benefits to serve the people of New York State. This Unit Management Plan (Unit) is the first step in carrying out that policy. The plan has been developed to address management activities on this unit for the next 10 year period. Some management recommendations may extend beyond the 10 year period. Factors such as budget constraints, wood product markets, and forest health problems may necessitate deviations from the scheduled management activities. Vision Statement for All State Forests State Forests on the Hemlock-Canadice Unit will be managed in a sustainable manner by promoting ecosystem health, enhancing landscape biodiversity, protecting soil productivity and water quality. In addition, the State Forests on this unit will continue to provide the many recreational, social and economic benefits valued so highly by the people of New York State. DEC will continue the legacy which started more than 80 years ago, leaving these lands to the next generation in better condition than they are today. This plan sets the stage for DEC to reach these ambitious goals by applying the latest research and science, with guidance from the public, whose land we have been entrusted to manage. Green Certification In 2000, New York State DEC-Bureau of State Land Management received Forest Stewardship Council® (FSC®) certification under an independent audit conducted by the National Wildlife Federation - SmartWood Program. This certification included 720,000 acres of State Forests in DEC Regions 3 through 9 managed for water quality protection, recreation, wildlife habitat, timber and mineral resources (multiple-use). To become certified, NYS DEC had to meet more than 75 rigorous criteria established by FSC. Meeting these criteria established a benchmark for forests managed for long-term ecological, social and economic health. The original certification and contract was for five years. By 2005 the original audit contract with the SmartWood Program expired. Recognizing the importance and the value of dual certification, the Bureau sought bids from prospective auditing firms to reassess the Bureaus State Forest management system to the two most internationally accepted standards 1 Preface - FSC and the Sustainable Forestry Initiative® (SFI®) program. However, contract delays and funding shortfalls slowed the Departments ability to award a new agreement until early 2007. Following the signed contract with NSF-International Strategic Registrations and Scientific Certification Systems, the Department was again audited for dual certification against FSC and additionally the SFI program standards on over 762,000 acres of State Forests in Regions 3 through 9. This independent audit of State Forests was conducted by these auditing firms from May until July 2007 with dual certification awarded in January 2008. State Forests continue to maintain certification under the most current FSC and SFI standards. Forest products derived from wood harvested off State Forests from this point forward may now be labeled as “certified” through chain-of-custody certificates. Forest certified labeling on wood products may assure consumers that the raw material was harvested from well-managed forests. NYS DEC is part of a growing number of public, industrial and private forest land owners throughout the United States and the world whose forests are certified as sustainably managed. The Department’s State Forests can also be counted as part a growing number of working forest land in New York that is third-party certified as well managed to protect habitat, cultural resources, water, recreation, and economic values now and for future generations. The Unit Management Planning Process New York State’s management policy for public lands follows a multiple use concept established by New York’s Environmental Conservation Law. This allows for diverse enjoyment of state lands by the people of the state. Multiple use management addresses all demands placed on these lands, such as: watershed management, timber management, wildlife management, mineral resource management, rare plant and community protection, recreational use, taxes paid, and aesthetic appreciation. For more information regarding the Unit Management Planning (UMP) process please refer to the Strategic Plan for State Forest Management (SPSFM) at www.dec.ny.gov/lands/64567.html. In this plan, an initial resource inventory and other information is provided, followed by an assessment of existing and anticipated uses and demands. This information is used to set goals and management objectives. Management actions tables provide an estimated cost and timetable for accomplishing these objectives. 2 Hemlock-Canadice Unit Management Plan Prepared by the Hemlock-Canadice Unit Management Planning Team: NYS Department of Environmental Conservation Committee Members: Gretchen Cicora Senior Forester Linda Vera Citizen Participation Specialist Joel Fiske Senior Forester John Gibbs Regional Forester Bill Glynn Mineral Resources Specialist (Retired) Art Kirsch Senior Wildlife Biologist Andrew Drake For. Tech. I Emily Bonk For. Tech. I Pat Dormer Forest Ranger Dan Cordell Forest Ranger Peter Austerman Senior Biologist (Aquatic) Jenny Landry Diversity Biologist City of Rochester Committee Members: Don Root Watershed Conservationist (Retired) Greg Whitney Supervisor of Water Supply Maintenance Len Schantz Manager of Water Production (Retired) Acknowledgments The Hemlock-Canadice Unit Management Planning Team would like to gratefully acknowledge the efforts of all those who contributed to this plan. We particularly would like to thank the following people for information and review they provided: Dave Mager Regional Real Property Supervisor Amy Mahar Diversity Biologist Jason Griggs Maintenance Assistant New York State Department of Environmental Conservation Division of Lands and Forests, Region 8 7291 Coon Rd Bath NY 14810 607-776-2165 www.dec.ny.gov/lands/68822.html 3 Preface Table of Contents NEW YORK STATE DEPARTMENT OF ENVIRONMENTAL CONSERVATION’S MISSION ......................... 1 PREFACE ............................................................................................................................................ 1 VISION STATEMENT FOR ALL STATE FORESTS ................................................................................... 1 GREEN CERTIFICATION ...................................................................................................................... 1 THE UNIT MANAGEMENT PLANNING PROCESS .................................................................................. 2 PREPARED BY THE HEMLOCK-CANADICE UNIT MANAGEMENT PLANNING TEAM: ............................ 3 NYS Department of Environmental Conservation Committee Members: ..................................... 3 City of Rochester Committee Members: ....................................................................................... 3 Acknowledgments ..................................................................................................................................................................... 3 TABLE OF CONTENTS ......................................................................................................................... 4 HEMLOCK-CANADICE UNIT LOCATION MAP .................................................................... 10 INTRODUCTION............................................................................................................................. 11 HISTORY OF STATE FORESTS AND WILDLIFE MANAGEMENT AREAS ............................................... 11 HISTORY OF HEMLOCK-CANADICE UNIT ......................................................................................... 12 City of Rochester: Water Supply and Stewardship ..................................................................... 13 INFORMATION ON THE UNIT ................................................................................................... 16 IDENTIFICATION ............................................................................................................................... 16 Table 1: Acreage and Boundary Line of State Land ................................................................... 16 Table 2: Hemlock and Canadice Lakes ...................................................................................... 16 GEOGRAPHY .................................................................................................................................... 16 CLIMATE .........................................................................................................................................