Managing and Protecting the Richmond Pine Rockland Tract in Miami-Dade County, South Florida

Pine rockland is a globally critically imperiled ecosystem limited to the southern tip of Florida and nearby islands. Miami’s Richmond tract contains the largest American assemblage of pine rockland species. Competing interests challenge management in this fire-dependent ecosystem surrounded by urban development. In 2018, Fairchild Tropical Botanic Garden and Miami-Dade County updated a 1994 management plan, complete with best practices, new developments, current data and learned experiences. An analysis in Richmond indicated non-traditional areas provided habitat for endangered species. Recently, the first private multi-use development in Richmond has triggered public scrutiny, and the goal of this case study was to develop a cohesive vision for management of the Richmond tract that would be supported by stakeholders and would preserve the tract’s unparalleled diversity of plants, animals and habitats.

In a nutshell, this resource offers:

• Insights into how conservation planning can change over time in response to a city's growth or development.
• An approach to stakeholder engagement in a complex stakeholder landscape, with multiple competing interests.

How to use this resource:

• As an example of how to produce a conservation plan for rare, threatened, and endangered species and habitat.
• To help guide renewals or updates on conservation plans in your city.

Authors: Jennifer Possley, James Duncan, Janet Gil, Craig Grossenbacher

Date published: 2020

Point of contact: James Duncan, Miami-Dade County, Department of Regulatory and Economic Resources, duncaj@miamidade.gov 

Citation: Possley, J.; Duncan, J.; Gil, J.; Grossenbacher, C. 2020. Too Precious To Lose: Managing and Protecting the Richmond Pine Rockland Tract (Richmond) in Miami Dade County, South Florida. Cities and the Environment (CATE): Vol. 13: Iss. 1, Article 4. 

Resource available online here.