Creating a shared conservation vision for the Pine Barrens Ecoregion

For 50 years, Manomet has been a part of the community in southeastern Massachusetts. We have observed the changes to the species that also call this area home and seen firsthand the impacts that climate change has had on habitats across the region. Working with our partners, we feel it is critical to establish a plan for how to protect the biodiversity here and establish resiliency to climate impacts.

Manomet and project partners Cape Cod Commission and Southeastern Massachusetts Pine Barrens Alliance hosted a regional conservation workshop on July 10, 2019, in the Carver Public Library. The workshop focused on review and critique of a conservation vision map for the Pine Barrens Ecoregion in southeastern Massachusetts. Manomet developed the draft map (Figure 1) using an approach that links protection of biodiversity and resiliency to climate change impacts. Inputs to the green infrastructure map include current intact habitat as represented through Biomap2, a framework for protection and stewardship of lands and waters that are most important for conserving biological diversity in Massachusetts. The identified areas are likely to support high biodiversity as the climate warms as represented through the Resilient Landscapes analysis, and areas that are vulnerable to increased freshwater and storm surge flooding as represented through Manomet’s geospatial analysis.