Conserving Plant Diversity in New England

Abstract

This report is the result of a two-year collaboration between Native Plant Trust and The Nature Conservancy.  The goal of the study was to assess the region’s status in meeting targets in the Global Strategy for Plant Conservation (CBD 2012).  As a step towards reaching those goals we develop time-bound New England targets based on representation and resilience, and we defined conservation as a specific mixture of areas permanently securement against conversion, embedded with core areas of protection for nature.  

To determine progress toward these goals, the team:

• delineated the regional distribution of New England characteristic forests, wetlands, and other unique habitats.
• identified 234 Important Plant Areas (IPAs) - climate-resilient areas with a relative abundance of rare and endangered plant species.
• assessed the current protection status and likely losses to development for those habitats and IPAs, and identified the areas and acreage needed to meet the targets

The Native Plant Trust is an organization devoted to “conserving and promoting New England’s native plants to ensure healthy, biologically diverse landscapes”.

Explore the Data in an interactive mapping tool.

Citation

Anderson, M., Piantedosi, M., Brumback, W. (2021). Conserving Plant Diversity in New England. The Nature Conservancy and Native Plant Trust.