|
Riparian Corridor Planning
Shiawassee River Corridor
Landscape Overview
Threats & Opportunities
Planning Activities
Contact
Map: Shiawassee River Watershed Map  (1.0 mb)
You will need to download Adobe Acrobat Reader if it is not already installed on your system.
Landscape Overview
The Shiawassee River Corridor comprises the headwaters of the Shiawassee River watershed in Oakland County (download pdf). The landscape is characterized by gently rolling topography and many depressional and riparian wetlands. This corridor contains sensitive, globally rare ecosystems including prairie fens (Figure 1). The Michigan Natural Features Inventory has identified a high concentration of high priority natural areas within the watershed and along the river corridor. The land use is rural with significant residential development occurring over the past 15 years.
Figure 1: Rattalee Lake in Rose Township
Threats & Opportunities
Threats within the Shiawassee River Corridor include fragmentation of existing high-quality natural areas due to current and future development activities. Such development may also threaten water quality by contributing to erosion and sedimentation as well as impairment of functional wetland values. Invasive species such as purple loosestrife pose a threat to these pristine ecosystems.
The unique opportunity within the river corridor is the ability to protect significant natural areas before they are destroyed- an opportunity that no longer exists in other river corridors of Oakland County. The relatively rural character also affords other opportunities- such as trail development and natural areas management using techniques not well-tolerated in more urban areas such as fire management.
Planning Activities
The Shiawassee River Task Force had its beginnings in 2000 with a Great Lakes Matching Grant from the Land Trust Alliance to Oakland Land Conservancy and North Oakland Headwaters Land Conservancy. The Task Force coordinates four conservancies in land protection and stewardship activities throughout the Shiawassee River watershed in Oakland County. Key partners include Oakland County Planning & Economic Development Services, Michigan Chapter of The Nature Conservancy, Michigan Nature Association, North Oakland Headwaters Land Conservancy, the Townships of Holly, Rose, and Springfield, and the Village of Holly. The local communities in the area have adopted innovative approaches to planning and zoning, such as cluster developments and resource overlay zones, to protect these sensitive features. Current activities include land and water trail development and continued protection and stewardship activities.
Contact
For More information please contact:
Shiawassee River Task Force
P.O. Box 51
Holly, MI 48442
Contact: Sue Julian, Coordinator
248-634-3513
sjulian@provide.net
|
