❮ Projects page Southeast Alaska Land Trust

Spatial Analysis Project:

The goal of this project is to create a conservation priority analysis of public and private property (non-federal land) within the Baranof-Chichagof Islands hydrologic unit (8-digit Hydrologic Unit Code (HUC) #19010203). This project will identify private, native corporation/tribal, municipal, and state land on which the Southeast Alaska Land Trust (SEAL Trust) could potentially hold conservation easements, deed restrictions, or purchase as fee-simple conservation properties.

This conservation prioritization analysis will enable SEAL Trust to take a strategic approach in exploring additional conservation opportunities within the Baranof-Chichagof Islands hydrologic unit. In addition, SEAL Trust will use this prioritization to quickly and objectively assess the conservation values of potential projects, identify the most significant parcels for conservation, and defend property acquisitions to funders.

The project objectives include:

• Define resource values that contribute to SEAL Trust’s definition of ‘conservation value’
• Use resource values to rank the conservation value of non-federal lands

Data available:

SEAL Trust and the Southeast Alaska GIS Library have many available datasets that could be useful for this project:

• Land Ownership
• Protected Areas
• National Wetlands Inventory
• Hydrography Database
• Floodplains
• Streams (including Anadromous Streams)
• Karst data
• Presence of clear-cut or 2nd growth forest

Maps and Reports that will be created:

The completed project will include a final prioritization shapefile/geodatabase that can be used by SEAL Trust staff when assessing potential conservation projects within the Baranof-Chichagof Islands hydrologic unit.

The shapefile/geodatabase should be accompanied by a final report that includes an overview of the project goals and objectives, methods used, results, discussion, and major conclusions. Report maps could include the following:

• Baranof-Chichagof Islands HUC Context Map
• Baranof-Chichagof Islands HUC Protected Lands Map
• Baranof-Chichagof Islands HUC Land Ownership Map
• Overview of Baranof-Chichagof Islands HUC Prioritization
• Map(s) of Highest Priority Areas

How the maps and reports will be used:

The prioritization data, report, and maps will be used by SEAL Trust staff in order to visualize and assess the conservation potential of private lands in the Baranof-Chichagof Islands hydrologic unit. The products of this project will assist SEAL Trust in taking a more proactive and strategic approach in pursuing conservation opportunities within the Baranof-Chichagof Islands hydrologic unit. The prioritization data, report, and maps will be used to quickly and objectively assess the conservation values of potential projects within the Baranof-Chichagof Islands hydrologic unit, identify the most significant parcels or combinations of parcels for conservation, and present and defend property acquisitions to funders.