The Problem of Scale

• Author: Rebecca L. Kihslinger/James M. McElfish Jr.
• Position: Ph.D., is a Science and Policy Analyst at the Environmental Law Institute/Directs the Sustainable Use of Land Program at ELI
• Pages: 26-36

Page 26 ❧ THE ENVIRONMENTAL FORUM Copyright © 2010, Environmental Law Institute®, Washington, D.C. www.eli.org.

Reprinted by permission from The Environmental Forum®, July/August 2010

e Problem

of Scale

Communities, public agencies, and

developers that make habitat conservation

an important objective of their plans,

policies, and projects will be increasingly

important conservation agents

Habitat loss, fragmentation, and deg-

radation are the major causes of im-

perilment for most threatened and

endangered species, as well as the

most signif‌icant threats to ecological

systems and the natural services they provide.1 As

the U.S. population grows, development associ-

ated with urbanization and exurbanization will

continue to be signif‌icant threats to these systems.

Indeed, two million new housing units may be

built annually to meet the demand of the next 100

million U.S. residents that are expected over the

next 35 years.2 is new development is likely to

hit imperiled species and habitats especially hard,

as areas, such as California and Florida with high

numbers of endangered species are likely to expe-

rience disproportionate population growth.3 Cali-

fornia’s population is expected, by some estimates,

to increase by as much as 46 percent by 2025.4

Development associated with that population in-

crease could add 185 species to that state’s list of

imperiled species — an increase of nearly 10 per-

cent.5

Communities, public agencies, and develop-

ers that make habitat conservation an important

objective of their plans, policies, and projects will

be increasingly important conservation agents.

rough their planning and regulatory activities,

local governments have the ability to inf‌luence the

pattern and extent of development on private lands

and the amount and pattern of land conserved for

wildlife. Local decisionmakers set the overall vision

for types of development and future land uses in a

community through master planning, green infra-

structure planning, and comprehensive planning.

Local resource regulations and zoning ordinances

can limit development in sensitive ecosystems such

as wetlands, riparian corridors, and critical habitat.

Further, locally implemented state and federal pro-

grams not principally focused on habitat conserva-

tion, such as source water protection and wetland

mitigation programs, can have ancillary benef‌its

for the conservation of ecosystems.

Nature-friendly developers can also make sub-

stantial contributions to land conservation in the

context of development. Green development plans

can preserve open space and protect critical habi-

tat, while improving overall environmental qual-

ity by reducing motor vehicle use, promoting re-

development of older industrial and commercial

sites, and reducing impervious surfaces.6 Private

development can also provide habitat corridors,

Rebecca L. Kih slinger, Ph.D., is a

Science and Policy Ana lyst at the Envi-

ronmental Law Institu te. She is the lead

editor of ELI’s 2007 publication “Lasting

Land scapes:

Re fle ct ion s

on th e Role

of Conserva -

tion Sci ence in L and Use Plannin g.”

Senior Attorney James M. McEl sh

Jr. dir ects the Sustainable Us e of Land

Program at ELI. He is the author of ELI

Press’s 20 04 book “Nature-Friendly Ordinances.” This artic le is

adapted from “Nature Friendly Land Use Practices at Multiple

Scales,” published by ELI P ress.

eli Pr e s s