BANKS

Lake Wales Ridge Conservation Bank

363.5 Acres | Polk County

Project Details

The Lake Wales Ridge Conservation Bank is a 363.5 acre conservation area established to provide compensatory mitigation for the federally threatened sand skink and blue-tailed mole skink located on the Lake Wales Ridge. The Bank consists of scrub, sandhill, and scrubby flatwoods habitats interspersed with freshwater marshes and wet prairies. The Bank has been degraded by cattle grazing, clearing for pasture, selective logging of pine trees, exotic species invasion, and prolonged fire suppression, resulting in long unburned oak hammocks unsuitable for skinks. The restoration of the Bank consisted of oak thinning, exotic species eradication, supplemental planting, and reintroduction of prescribed fire to restore the habitats to a structure and composition that is optimal for skinks, as well as Florida scrub-jays, gopher tortoises, and many other rare wildlife and plant species endemic to the scrub.

The Lake Wales Ridge Conservation Bank has sand skink and blue-tailed mole skink (skink) credits approved by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (Service). The Bank will have Service-approved Florida scrub-jay credits. In addition, the Bank will soon be approved by the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC) as a Gopher Tortoise recipient site.

GreenSource’s Scope of Services

• Site Identification
• Due Diligence
• Permitting
• Restoration Supervision
• Habitat Management
• Species Monitoring
• Vegetation Monitoring
• Agency Reporting
• Credit Releases
• Credit Sales and Marketing