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suiranarized in Table 3 with a full discussion in the Section of this report 

 entitled "Evaluation Criteria." 



This system gives high priority to the ecologically important factors 

 of the region, and does not consider factors such as cost, availability, 

 use, and other important factors which are necessary in the later 

 procurement phase. 



To avoid the personal bias and ecological ignorance implicit in 

 stating that an osprey nest is more "valuable" than an outlying stand of 

 hemlock or a heronry, equal weights, wherever possible, were placed on 

 equal categories. Thus an area with an oyster bar, an eagle nest, and 

 a tidal marsh would receive 3 points. An area with just a tidal marsh 

 would be awarded 1 point. Two other categories should be considered 

 at this point, isolation and impaction. An ecosystem isolated from 

 similar systems or surrounded by development may be more valuable than is 

 represented by its intrinsic weight alone; e.g. a 100 acre marsh in Anne 

 Arundel County as opposed to 100 acres or perhaps even 1000 acres in 

 Corchester County. To take this under consideration in the weighting 

 scheme, a natural area remote from others of its type or isolated by 

 the destruction of surrounding or adjoining related natural areas, was 

 awarded 2 points. Determinations were made from topographic maps which, 

 except for the eastern shore of Maryland, are reasonably up to date. 

 Impaction of natural areas in the final high priority list was checked 

 in the field as part of the extrinsic factor evaluation. 



