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Boone County Forest Cover. Phase II: The Public Health and Safety Benefits of Trees. Davey Resource Group and Northern Kentucky Urban and Community Forestry Council. Pressures to Boone County Forests . Development Lack of Tree Ordinances for Urban Forests
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Boone County Forest Cover Phase II: The Public Health and Safety Benefits of Trees Davey Resource Group and Northern Kentucky Urban and Community Forestry Council
Pressures to Boone County Forests • Development • Lack of Tree Ordinances for Urban Forests • Lack of Regulations Protecting Woodlands • Under Use of Professional Management • Environmental Impacts
Phase I: Boone County Forest Quality Methodology • Mapped forest units 10 acres and larger based on 1998 aerial photograph analysis. • Limited ground-truthing to identify forest size and location. • Created canopy cover map and performed statistical analysis. Northern KY University Environmental Resource Management Center (NKU ERMC)
Phase I: Findings • Boone County size = 157,280 acres • Total forest cover = 38% • Large crowns = 5% • Medium crowns = 30% • Small crowns = 65% • Watersheds = 0% - 69% forested
Benefits of Trees • Environmental • Economic • Recreational • Quality of Life • Public Health • Public Safety
Phase II: Boone County Forest Cover Methodology Analysis Results Recommendations
Results: Floodplains Total Floodplain 5,024 acres Forested Floodplain 1,323 acres 26% Forested
Results: Riparian Buffer Zone Total Riparian Buffer Zone 56,387 acres Forested Riparian Buffer Zone 22,806 acres 40% Forested
Results: Groundwater Sensitivity Sensitivity Rating 2 63% Sensitivity Rating 3 22% Sensitivity Rating 4 21%
Results: Highly Erodable Soils Canopy Cover on Highly Erodable Soils 54,369 acres 92% Forested
Results: Zoning Agriculture/Rural Residential Residential 85.2% Office/Industrial Recreation Airport 0.4% 3.0% 0.7% Conservation 4.6% 1.1% 5.2% Commercial
Results: Steep Slopes Slopes > 12% 41,322 acres Forested Slopes > 12% 27,502 acres 67% Forested
Results: Impervious Surfaces Total County 164,469 acres Forest Canopy 59,396 acres (36%) Impervious Surfaces 8,567 acres (5%)
Critical Forest Cover Critical Areas Assessment Scores 3 or less 33,708 acres (57%) 4 and 5 22,308 acres (38%) 6 or greater 3,289 acres (6%)
Recommendations • Legislation • Tree Ordinances • Tree Preservation Ordinances • Riparian Setbacks and Easements • Conservation Development • Management Tools • Tree Inventories • Forest Canopy Inventories • Urban Forest Management Plans • Countywide Rural Forest Management Plans
Recommendations • Conservation Easements and Land Donations • Reforestation • Open Space and Greenways • Educational Tools
Conclusion Trees Are The Answer
Contacts Jenny Gulick Davey Resource Group 962 Summit Avenue Cincinnati, Ohio 45246 (513) 772-3159 jgulick@davey.com Northern Kentucky Urban and Community Forestry Council John Volz, Chairman Boone County Extension Service PO Box 876 Burlington, Kentucky 41005 www.nkyurbanforestry.org