Delineating conservation areas on the Oak Ridges Moraine using a systematic conservation planning approach

Abstract

Protected lands form an essential component of landscape planning, and often extend beyond protection of existing natural areas to consider enhancement through restoration to improve existing conditions. We tested an automated conservation science-based methodology and systematic approach to delineate conservation and restoration priority areas on the Oak Ridges Moraine (ORM). The methodology comprised: a) preparing and assembling existing spatial (GIS) information and tessellating the study area to 5-ha hexagon planning units; b) conducting a gap analysis to provide a basis for setting conservation targets that protect, or that through future restoration activities might enhance, under-represented biodiversity elements; and c) applying a simulated annealing procedure (i.e., mathematical algorithm) to find solutions that optimize the set biodiversity targets. The final output of our work is a map of conservation priority area that enables the more than 50 conservation partners in this landscape to coordinate various conservation, stewardship and restoration activities by focusing on those areas that have the highest conservation value. Key words: restoration, settled landscapes, conservation planning, mathematical algorithm