05-29-2003 Bayport Expansion Review Committee Meeting

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~t. ii ~ ! !.UUJ Port of Houston Authority Wetland Mitigation Plan Port of Houston Authority N~1520(Revised) _Galveston Bay, along the Baypo""'ip Channel, City of Pasadena, Harris County, Texas. Attachment 1, Sheet 11 of 3't(Revised May 2003) Management Plan, and where possible coordinated with Nature Center personnel. Sprigging areas will be planted with densities of 1 sprig/20 feet. Habitat Protection The entire 173.5 project. area will be placed under a permanent conservation easement. Protection features afforded by the permanent conservation easement will include protection of 173.5 acres of coastal habitat, including more than 12.0 acres of existing wetlands, 66.8 acres of created wetland, 71 acres of coastal prairie, and the remaining 23.7 acres of upland forest and shrublands from development. The habitats preserved under the conservation easement will provide valuable wildlife habitat for numerous resident and migratory species. The benefits will include the immediate on-site benefits as well as the following benefits to the estuarine environment within Taylor Bayou and Galveston Bay: · Increased nutrient binding within the upland and wetland habitats. · Decreased sediment load due to reduced erosion and increased filtration. · Increased dissolved and particulate carbon (organic detritus). To insure permanent protection for the Mitigation Site, the PHA will transfer ownership and management of the property to a non-profit organization or a state resource management agency. By agreement, the entire mitigation site will be protected and managed to protect the existing and created weUand resources. The PHA will provide copies of the written agreement with the new owner (subject to 'USACE review and approval) clearly describing the mitigation site and all restrictions. Benchmark Ecological Services, Inc. May 2003 . . .