4.5.2 Location and Design 



Before construction, the site should have already been properly 

 selected to help avoid the vital ecological areas, flood-prone areas, 

 aquifer recharge areas, and similarly sensitive sites, which if modi- 

 fied, could adversely affect coastal ecosystems. This assumes that 

 local soil and groundwater conditions and other limitations have been 

 considered. 



Drainage : Assuming that the trees and other plant materials removed 

 during site preparation are properly disposed of and surface watercourses 

 avoided, the major problems of the clearing process itself are the loss 

 of wildlife habitat associated with vegetative cover. Vital breeding, 

 resting, and feeding areas should be identified, spared and surrounded 

 with a suitable natural buffer area. The habitats of endangered species 

 should, of course, be identified, preserved intact and buffered. 



Scheduling of site preparation activities, especially clearing 

 and grading, should avoid sensitive intervals of the seasonal fish and 

 wildlife cycles, such as mating, rearing, spawning or migration. Also 

 further benefits can be afforded by fencing off or posting "off limits" 

 on the preserved habitat areas of the site. 



Artificial land drainage requires careful control to ensure 

 coastal ecosystem protection. 



The following estuarine disturbances could be caused by runoff 

 that is short-circuited by artificial drainage [67]. 



1. Abrupt changes in salinity. 



2. Increases in turbidity. 



3. Increases in nutrients (nitrogen). 



4. Increases in biochemical oxygen demand (BOD). 



5. Increases in col i form and other bacterial counts. 



6. Decreases in dissolved oxygen. 



Because of these potential adverse ecological consequences, projects 

 that require the drainage of areas with high water tables for development 

 should generally be avoided and more appropriate alternatives should be 

 explored. 



Wetlands : Site preparation activities must be controlled so that 

 wetlands and other vital areas will not be altered in ways that will 

 degrade their natural functions. In general, development activities in 

 wetlands should be avoided that would obliterate the vegetation, disrupt 

 the natural water flow, destroy the soil layers, or cause the drainage, 

 pollution or drying out of wetlands. 



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