Part 1: Overview of the County NRI and its Uses
Presentations by Gretchen Stevens, Director, Biodiversity Resources Center, Hudsonia
Ingrid Haeckel, Conservation and Land Use Specialist, Hudson River Estuary Program/Cornell University
This session offers an overview of the Columbia County Natural Resources Inventory, its content and uses, and will include practice in using the document. The Natural Resources Inventory (or NRI) is a reference document that summarizes and analyzes information about the physical, biological, and cultural aspects of the natural environment that shape Columbia County’s landscape.
Who should attend? This is a land-use training workshop for municipal officials, including members of town boards, planning boards, zoning boards of appeals, Conservation Advisory Councils, and other committees involved in planning or zoning. These sessions will be most useful to those seeking an introduction to the contents of the County NRI, ways to use the document in local land-use planning and environmental reviews of projects, and an overview of the online data and map viewer. To get the most out of this opportunity, we recommend attending both sessions. Certificates of participation will be provided for municipal training credits.
Columbia County Environmental Management Council
Columbia County Planning Department
Columbia Land Conservancy
NYS DEC Hudson River Estuary Program