Green Infrastructure in Southwest Michigan

Connecting

Is

The

Key

Southwest Michigan is known for its beauty and many opportunities for outdoor recreation.  Therefore the protection and incorporationof these natural features into a Green Infrastructure initiative is essential to the continued success of our region and enviornment.  

Green Infrastructure Inventory

Throughout this project the SWMPC will be gathering and creating digital maps to begin an inventory of all green infrastructure elements in Berrien, Cass and Van Buren counties.  The maps will include elements such as:

·         Trails & greenways

·         State and local parks 

·         Lakes, streams, rivers, wetlands & floodplains

·         Sand dunes

·         Forests

·         Endangered species

·         Critical agricultural lands

·         Privately protected lands (conservation easements)

Potential Conservation Areas

The mapping effort also includes Potential Conservation Areas.  These maps were developed by MNFI.  A report explaining the criteria and methodology used to create these maps can be downloaded by clicking here:

Berrien, Cass, Van Buren Counties Potential Conservation Areas:  Providing Ecological Information for a Green Infrastructure Plan 

Note:  On these maps, the higher the number, the higher the rank as a potential conservation area.

·         Potential Area Conservation Areas in Southwest Michigan 

·         Potential Area Conservation Areas in Berrien County

·         Potential Area Conservation Areas in Cass County

·         Potential Area Conservation Areas in Van Buren County 

Green Infrastructure in Southwest Michigan Looks Like?

·         18,310 acres of water

·         765 lakes that are greater than or equal to 1 acre

·         1,023 miles of river and streams

·         55 miles of Lake Michigan shoreline

·         14 public beaches

·         6 state parks

·         19 wineries  

Learning about how other areas are working towards Green Infrastructure is a great way to better educate ourselves.  Check out the examples below to learn how areas in Michigan and around the country are implementing their Green Infrastructure Initiative! 

Here are 3 great examples from Michigan  

1.  GreenLinks

Genesee, Lapeer and Shiawassee Counties  

2.  West Michigan Strategic Alliance

Grand Rapids, Muskegon and Holland   

3.  Oakland County’s Green Infrastructure Vision https://www.co.oakland.mi.us/peds/assets/docs/es_docs/gi_vision.pdf  

4.  Macomb County

www.macombcountymi.gov/gis/news.htm

5.  Saginaw Bay Greenways

www.saginawbaywin.org/projectforms.html

6.  WildLink-Northwest Michigan

www.rivercare.org