| Project Home | Project Team | Project Methodology | Project Results | Get Report & Data | Request Information | ||
|
||
|
The southeastern United States historically had large areas of unique ecological character and high biodiversity. Population growth and urban sprawl are seen to be major problems in allocating resources in the future. Current trends in land conversion of natural ecosystems in the southeastern United States show high losses of several ecosystem types. These ecosystems support sustainable human activities, provide habitat for many threatened and endangered species, and provide highly desirable recreation activites for those living in the southeastern United States. Furthermore, these natural systems act as a buffer and a natural waste processing system as long as they are not overloaded. Consumptive human activities continue to impact the natural environment, causing many conflicts in land use activities and undesirable pollution effects where the intensity is greater than the environment can take. In addition to the natural areas remaining in the southeast, lands in agricultural and silvicultural use can contribute to the region's overall ecological integrity and have the potential to maintain connectivity between areas of higher ecological significance. These lands also provide direct economic benefit. But agricultural lands are also being lost to suburbanization in high growth areas of the southeast. So where linkages comprised of native habitats and native ecological processes are not available, lands in agriculture and silviculture will be identified as part of the green infrastructure. Agricultural and silvicultural lands will also be identified when they buffer areas of native habitat. In order to safeguard the natural environment and protect human health, threats to ecological function and conflicts in resource allocation need to be identified and prioritized. Effective and efficient protection measures then must be established to minimize environmental degradation and loss of economic well-being. The delineation of the green infrastructure in the southeastern US will help to determine where the best natural areas are remaining and where natural areas and agricultural lands are in danger from urban sprawl, toxic release sites, superfund clean-up sites, waste treatment facilities and non-point sources. Integrated on a watershed approach, impacts on ground and surface drinking water sources can be detected. The effect of EPA's protection efforts will be helped by understanding the nature of the spatial relationship between these natural resources and human use impacts. Additionally, the project has the potential to greatly benefit the states to be included in the analysis. States will benefit by having access to a comprehensive analysis of areas of ecological significance found within their boundaries. This can prove useful in allocation of funding for conservation and environmental protection measures at the local and state levels. Furthermore, each state will be able to view its areas of ecological significance in the context of other states and the potential for connectivity among these areas. |
||
|
|
|
Related Sites:GeoPlan Center, University of FloridaUS Environmental Protection Agency US Environmental Protection Agency Region 4 |
||