Biodiversity Audit & Management Plan

10 Points School

The goal of the Biodiversity Audit & Management Plan action is to enable schools to identify and assess the abundance
and distribution of animal species and plant life surrounding the school in order to develop a biodiversity management
plan. To earn points for this action, the school must complete a biodiversity survey using the audit tool developed by the
National Wildlife Federation's Eco Schools program (or similar tool). Using this audit information, the school next develops
an action plan to incorporate or expand biodiversity on the school grounds.

The audit starts by quantifying the area of the school grounds covered by vegetation, impervious surfaces and buildings,
and assessing the location and diversity of wildlife habitats which could support a variety of flora and fauna. Students will
catalogue trees, shrubs, smaller plants, and grasses, as well as birds, mammals, and small invertebrates, such as
spiders and insects, present on the school property. Students will then explore strategies to increase the level of
biodiversity on the school grounds through the development of a biodiversity management plan. With support and
guidance from the classroom teachers, school administration, facilities staff, and state, federal, and nonprofit wildlife
experts, students will learn what wildlife species need from their habitat and how to fulfill those needs through schoolyard
habitat projects.

To earn points under this action, schools must involve students in the biodiversity audit and management plan process.
The audit and plan may be incorporated into the science curriculum or undertaken as a special project.The biodiversity
audit and plan must be completed within the past three years to be eligible for points. Schools can also earn points for
implementing schoolyard habitat projects under the Biodiversity Project actions.

Why is it important?
A fundamental component of science education is to provide students with an understanding of the ecological building
blocks that support life on the planet. A large part of this education comes through a cross-curricular approach applying
scientific, mathematical, and technological skills to deepen student learning.

Eco-Schools USA noted that by completing the Biodiversity Audit and Plan action, schools will touch upon the following
learning objectives:

Raise awareness about biodiversity and its essential role in the overall health of the planet; specifically, within and
around the school community.
Investigate the native biodiversity of the school and surrounding community, including species classified as
threatened or endangered by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.
Identify key aspects of local habitats and the local ecosystem that promote biodiversity.
Make connections between human actions and the level of biodiversity found within a habitat and/or ecosystem.
Improve the biodiversity found on school grounds.
Research and develop partnerships with local, regional, and/or state organizations to build relationships and support
for your world.
Provide tools for ways to increase biodiversity at home, in businesses, and throughout the community.

Completing this action may also count towards Eco-Schools Biodiversity Pathway, National Wildlife Federation's
Schoolyard Wildlife Habitat, and NJ DEP's Fish and Wildlife Wild School Sites certifications. This action also compliments

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the Project Learning Tree and Bridges to the Natural World environmental education programs. Schools applying for the
US Department of Education Green Ribbon School Award may also use this action to receive credit under the "Effective
Environmental and Sustainability Education" pillar.

Who should lead and be involved with this action?

This action could be led by the school green team, a particular class or club, or integrated as an activity across a specific
grade level. The Biodiversity Audit and Plan is a particularly good project for environmental science or biology classes to
take on as part of the curriculum. Students will work in teams, when possible, to cover the entire school grounds to
identify the flora and fauna. The school's facilities and buildings and grounds staff will be important team members when
devising workable long-term maintenance plans. Excellent technical resources are available from nonprofit organizations,
as well as state and federal agencies committed to wildlife, land stewardship, and conservation issues (see the Resource
Organizations and Program listing in the resource section of this action). Community members and consulting
professionals could also be invited to provide expertise and guidance.

Timeframe
There are multiple steps required for the successful completion of this action: forming the audit team, completing the
biodiversity audit, developing an action plan, and communicating the plan to the school community. This may take a few
months or more, depending on the time the team has to work on the project.

Timeframes will vary depending on the size of the school grounds and the number of students involved. Collecting the
data could take a few days to several weeks. Processing the data, making maps and calculating the biodiversity index
may then take a few days to compute. Creating the action plan is the largest time commitment and requires a team
meeting to develop strategies to address the results of the audit. The biodiversity plan could be shared with the broader
school community on the school's website, or with the school community via poster presentation of a map, report, and
statistical data analysis.

Project costs and resource needs

The biodiversity audit and plan can be completed at little or no cost and mainly requires the time and effort of those staff
and students involved in completing the audit and plan. A wealth of online resources, mapping programs, downloadable
field guides, and free web-based plant and animal identification applications provide great classroom resources.

Extensive free or low-cost technical assistance from wildlife and conservation professionals in county, state, or federal
government agencies or through nonprofit organizations are widely available to assist with the assessment and plan
development phase. Schools could also reach out to the Municipal Environmental Commission or private environmental
consultants for free advice and support.

What to do, and how to do it ("How to")

This section provides guidance and recommendations for implementing the action. A school does not need to follow this
guidance exactly as long as it meets the requirements for earning points for this action.

To earn points for this action, the school must complete a biodiversity survey using theaudit tool developed by the
National Wildlife Federation's Eco Schools program (or similar tool). Then, using the audit information, schools develop
an action plan to incorporate or expand biodiversity on the school grounds. Schools can use other survey methods as
long as a site map and site data collection process is similar to that noted in the sample audit and a final site biodiversity
index is calculated. The Biodiversity Action Plan template provided is considered the minimum standard for the
development of an action plan, and schools are welcome to develop more detailed implementation documents.

A biodiversity audit and plan is a systematic collection, review, and analysis of information about school grounds for the
purpose of improving conditions for wildlife habitat and species diversity on school grounds. Biodiversity audits give
schools a snapshot in time that addresses key aspects of local habitats and ecosystems that promote biodiversity. From
this picture, the audit team can move forward with creating an action plan, monitoring activities, and identifying future
biodiversity projects.

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Please note that the program also has the Green Infrastructure Assessment and Plan and Green Infrastructure
Installation actions, whose primary focus is on addressing water quality, flooding, and stormwater runoff issues on the
school campus. It should be noted that some green infrastructure projects (like raingardens) also provide wildlife habitat
benefits, but points for the installation of a specific practice will only be earned under one action.

Completing a Biodiversity Audit and Plan

To start, consider creating a biodiversity team comprised of students, teachers, building and grounds staff, and
administrators, as well as technical experts from state, federal, and nonprofit organizations, businesses, and parent-
teacher organizations that can assist with project implementation.

A. Create a base map of the school grounds

Areas of hard spaces, buildings, green spaces, gardens, and forested areas should all be clearly marked. The map
should include X and Y coordinates and grid lines for better calculations of the schoolyard's percentage of buildings, hard
surfaces, and green space. Create a map key that includes symbols for site features, such as areas prone to flood,
streams, turf areas, forests, bare soil and existing garden. Estimate the proportion of the school grounds in hard surfaces
(sidewalks, manmade playground surfaces, etc.), school buildings, grasslands or lawn areas, forested areas, vegetable
garden beds, or other areas using area estimates developed from the site map.

B. Gather materials for data collection

The Green Team, class, or grade level leading this project should collect field guides, measuring tapes, or any other
materials necessary for data collection. The school, municipal, or county library could be a good source for field guides
that will help with tree, shrub and invasive plants, mammal, reptile, and amphibian species identification. See the
resources section for an extensive list of resources available online.

C. Survey School Grounds

Working in teams, students will cover the entire school grounds to complete Table1: Habitat Health Observation Survey;
Table 2: Tree Survey; and Table 3: School Grounds Vertebrate Animal Observation Survey in the Eco-Schools
Biodiversity Audit template. When surveying the school property it is important to note the weather conditions, season,
and temperature. For the areas surveyed, students should make note of the general level of habitat variety that support
biodiversity. Highlight areas of the school campus that already support increased biodiversity, and include any features
that are in place. After completing Tables 1, 2, and 3, use the data to calculate the Biodiversity Index using the approach
described on page six of the audit tool. Finally, summarize the results of the data collection in a short narrative that
describes the survey data findings. Update the site map to include the survey areas and site features (trees, shrubs,
existing habitats, etc.).

D. Analyze Results

The Green Team, a class, or a series of classes should analyses the results and report the findings to the school
community. Students can present their findings to the Biodiversity team using the resources included in this action to
assist with the analysis.

E. Develop Biodiversity Management Plan

In its simplest form, a Biodiversity Management Plan identifies opportunities to improve a habitat that ultimately will
support greater biodiversity. Creating an action plan for expanding wildlife habitat, including goals, task assignments,
resource inventory, and tracking progress, will help the project run smoothly. Having monitoring data available will also
be useful when presenting results to the school community and media.

1. At a minimum, the plan needs to include specific biodiversity issues, as well as answers to the following questions:

What action will take place to address the issue?

Who will do it?
When will it be done?

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 How will we monitor progress?
How will we know if we succeeded?
What will it cost?
2. Extensive and detailed guidance on creating schoolyard habitats are available from the National Wildlife Federation's
"How-To Guide" for Schoolyard Habitats®, which walks through the steps to create a successful and sustainable
wildlife garden, provides information on teaching in an outdoor classroom, and offers resources to help create and
maintain your habitat.

The guide is broken into seven sections that walk through the process and provide lesson plans. Topics include

background on the schoolyard habitats program;

gardening for wildlife;
teaching with schoolyard habitat sites;
gathering information (site assessment and planning);
assembling the elements (covers topics from design to fundraising);
ensuring continued success (covers the development of a maintenance plan and monitoring);
appendix and resources.
Other resource guidance can be found in the Resources section of this action.

Choose a site or sites for a potential native species garden, birdhouses, ponds, or any other habitat elements
necessary to support specific species. It is important to consider the physical elements (soil, water sources, drainage
patterns, and sun and wind exposure), ecological components (animal, insect. and plant populations) human
influences (buildings, sidewalks, playgrounds, hard spaces) and accessibility when planning a site.

3. Convene members of the biodiversity team as well as school and community members to gather ideas and identify
resources available to support future project implementation. This will create a vision for a shared space and be an
enriching experience for students and community members alike. Schools may find assistance from a variety of
sources such as landscape architects, conservation organizations, and local business willing to donate their technical
expertise, equipment, and supplies to support the project installation.

4. Determine how the plan implementation will be monitored and reviewed. A regular biodiversity audit of the school's
grounds (every three years) that is supported by good recordkeeping will allow students to document changes in the
school biodiversity index as more schoolyard habitat projects are initiated over time.
5. Develop a process for integrating the action plan goals with facility management guidelines.
6. Conduct a school-wide awareness campaign to inform students, faculty, and the broader school community of the
school's efforts to expand site biodiversity. Progress on the biodiversity plan should be shared, as well as, potentially,
educating students of local habitats, native and endangered species, and the history of the school ground's land.
School assemblies, bulletin boards, morning announcements, newsletters, and the school website could be utilized
for publicizing progress.
7. Document that the school administration has agreed to support the long-term implementation of the Biodiversity Plan
recommendations. A letter from the school principal expressing a willingness to support incremental implementation
of the plan (as funding permits) along with a copy of the Biodiversity Assessment and Plan will need to be submitted
to earn points for this action. The assessment and plan will need to be completed or updated at least every three
years. Previously completed school biodiversity plans that meet the submission standards and were completed (or
updated) in the past three years are eligible to receive points for this action.
8. Evaluate the measures identified in the plan to determine how well its goals and objectives are being achieved.
Schools are encouraged to share with the school community successes and challenges of the plan through regular
updates.

What to submit to earn points for this action

In order to earn points for this action, the following documentation must be submitted as part of the online certification
application in order to verify that the action requirements have been met.

1. In the text box provided on the submission page for this action provide a short narrative (about 300 words or less)
describing the approach used to complete the Biodiversity Audit and prepare the Biodiversity Plan.

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2. Upload: A copy of the biodiversity audit report (or similar survey report) and evidence of student involvement in
conducting the audit. Include curriculum or lesson plans used to incorporate the audit, if applicable. The biodiversity
audit report must include a school site map, site survey information that includes tree and shrub, habitat data (plants
and habitat areas) and a mammal, reptile, and amphibian species observation. The audit must also include the
documentation of the site biodiversity index.

3. Upload: A letter from the school principal expressing a willingness to support incremental implementation of the plan
(as funding permits) along with a copy of the Biodiversity Plan will need to be submitted to earn points for this action.
The plan should include the components in the What to Do, and How to Do It section's bulleted list (Step E., number
1). The letter and plan also has to have been completed or updated from within three years of the submission
deadline.

4. Upload samples of how the results of the biodiversity audit and plan were communicated to the school community.
This can include meeting agendas/presentations, articles, posts, emails, flyers, etc. Please assemble the examples
into one PDF document.

IMPORTANT NOTES
There is a limit of six uploaded documents per action and individual files must not exceed 20 MB. Excerpts of relevant
information from large documents are recommended.

All action documentation is available for public viewing after an action is approved. Action submissions should not include
any information or documents that are not intended for public viewing.

Spotlight: What New Jersey Schools are doing

BIODIVERSITY AUDIT
Mr. Kling's AP Environmental Science classes' biodiversity audit field study: West Morris High School, Chester,
NJ
Students in Mr. Kling's AP Environmental Science class conducted some great field work in the 2013-2014 school year.
While they were studying the "Evolution of Biodiversity" chapter of their textbook, they examined the biodiversity of their
school's soil, as well as used the Shannon Weiner Diversity Index to compare the biodiversity to the data at another
school, Project Adventure. http://www.wmchs.org/cms/One.aspx?portalId=65638&pageId=8081721

Ben Franklin Elementary School, Lawrenceville NJ

Green Flag School in the EcoSchools program, Benjamin Franklin Elementary School, is very committed to sustainability
on its campus and in involving students in the process. Towards earning their highly-acclaimed award, they conducted a
biodiversity audit and found out that their school's biodiversity index is 0.85, which is very high.
http://www.nwf.org/EcoSchools/Dashboard.aspx?visitor=true&sid=1402

MANAGEMENT PLAN
Galloway Township, NJ: Mr. B's
Three neighboring schools in Galloway Township—the township's middle school, and Reeds Road and Roland Rogers
Elementary Schools—are partnering with the New Jersey Field Office to encourage their students to greater appreciation
of the natural world and environmental concerns. The initial impetus for the program was the desire to honor a teacher,
Mr. Guy Buckelew, who had been particularly influential in championing environmental education. The three schools are
fortunate to have two retention ponds adjacent to their campuses. The New Jersey Field Office's Partners Program
began to help the schools in developing the ponds and their surrounding area into an outdoor classroom that the schools
named "Mr. B's Backyard Classroom." A grant from the External Affairs of the Service's Region 5 funded much of the
equipment for establishing the site.
http://www.fws.gov/northeast/njfieldoffice/GallowayNOL.html

Resources
The following resources may be helpful in completing this action.

RESOURCE ORGANIZATIONS AND PROGRAMS

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RESOURCE ORGANIZATIONS AND PROGRAMS
Association of NJ Environmental Educators provides a leaning network for formal and informal environmental
educators in NJ. PALS grants are available environmental education for students and teachers in grades K-5.
http://www.anjee.net

Conserve Wildlife Foundation of NJ works to preserve rare and imperiled species of wildlife that live, breed in, and
migrate through New Jersey. Their Species on the Edge Art & Essay Contest is a great way to engage and excite fifth
graders in learning about New Jersey's 82 endangered and threatened wildlife species.
http://www.conservewildlifenj.org/protecting/backyard

Native Plant Society of New Jersey is a statewide non-profit organization dedicated to the appreciation, protection, and
study of the native flora of New Jersey. http://www.npsnj.org/

New Jersey Audubon fosters environmental awareness and a conservation ethic among New Jersey's citizens; protects
New Jersey's birds, mammals, other animals, and plants, especially endangered and threatened species; and promotes
preservation of New Jersey's valuable natural habitats. Exceptional programming and educational resources are
available for schools.
http://www.njaudubon.org

NJ Department of Environmental Protection, Division of Fish Game and Wildlife

- Endangered and Non Game Species Program http://www.state.nj.us/dep/fgw/ensphome.htm - WILD Schools Program
(K-12): The WILD School Sites program is an offshoot ofProject WILD. The goal of WILD School Sites is to assist
educators and their students in taking responsible action to improve their communities for people and wildlife—beginning
on school or educational grounds. This program highlights an A-to-Z process of understanding the basic steps involved in
creating or enhancing schoolyard habitats and outdoor classrooms. http://www.state.nj.us/dep/fgw/pwsites.htm - WILD
Schools Sites Photos http://www.nj.gov/dep/seeds/wssfoto.htm - Growing up WILD (pre-K)
http://www.state.nj.us/dep/fgw/growupwild.htm

National Wildlife Federation has the premier "How-To Guide" for schoolyard habitats that walks through the steps to
creating a successful and sustainable wildlife garden, provides information on teaching in an outdoor classroom, and
offers resources to help create and maintain your habitat.
https://www.nwf.org/sitecore/content/Home/Garden-for-Wildlife/Create/Schoolyards/Resources

National Wildlife Federation Eco-Schools USA program via the Biodiversity Pathway has excellent guidance on
completing a biodiversity audit and plan.

Biodiversity Pathway Guidance http://www.nwf.org/Eco-Schools-USA/Become-an-Eco-

School/Pathways/Biodiversity.aspx
Biodiversity Audit Sample https://www.nwf.org/Eco-Schools-USA/Become-an-Eco-
School/Pathways/Biodiversity/Audit.aspx
Biodiversity Plan Sample https://www.nwf.org/Eco-Schools-USA/Become-an-Eco-
School/Pathways/Biodiversity/Audit.aspx and Template http://www.nwf.org/~/media/PDFs/Eco-
schools/Biodiversity_ActionPlan_blank.ashx

New Jersey Eco-Schools in Partnership with NJ Audubon contains NJ specific resources and program information.
http://www.njaudubon.org/SectionEducation/ProvidingfortheEducationCommunity/NWFEco-SchoolsUSA.aspx

NJ Conservation Foundation can assist with habitat and wildlife management and land conservation issues.
http://www.njconservation.org

NJ Environmental Digital Library maintains a list of NJ environmental organizations.

http://njedl.rutgers.edu/environmental_organizations

NJ Department of Environmental Protection: Outdoor Classroom Network website has extensive resources ranging
from wildlife and plan listings, grant opportunities, PowerPoint presentations, outdoor classroom links, and links to training
opportunities. http://www.nj.gov/dep/seeds/syhart/index.htm

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NJ Department of Environmental Protection Landscape Project is a pro-active, ecosystem-level approach for the
long-term protection of imperiled species and their important habitats in New Jersey. The NJ Division of Fish and
Wildlife's Endangered and Nongame Species Program (ENSP) began the project in 1994 to protect New Jersey's
biological diversity by maintaining and enhancing imperiled wildlife populations within healthy, functioning ecosystems.
http://www.state.nj.us/dep/fgw/ensp/landscape/index.htm

NJ Department of Environmental Protection: State Environmental Education Directory website

(http://www.nj.gov/dep/seeds/topical.htm) contains extensive information and includes program links to Project WET,
Project WILD, Project WILD Aquatic, and Project Learning Tree.
www.teachnjenv.org

Rutgers Cooperative Extension: Master Gardeners Programoperates in many counties in NJ and can offer free
technical assistance when developing wildlife habitat projects. A complete list of NJ counties offer the Rutgers Master
Gardener program can be found at http://njaes.rutgers.edu/mastergardeners/counties.asp.

USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service: This page contains information on how to create pollinator habitat
and food source recommendations in NJ. http://www.nrcs.usda.gov/wps/portal/nrcs/detail/nj/newsroom/features/?
cid=nrcs141p2_018986

Additional resources on pollinators can be found at

http://www.nrcs.usda.gov/wps/portal/nrcs/main/national/plantsanimals/pollinate

US Fish and Wildlife Service is charged with protecting and restoring plants and animals that the federal government
classifies as endangered or threatened. They also work with private landowners as well as schools and municipalities to
enhance the habitat value of specific sites.
http://www.fws.gov/northeast/njfieldoffice

BIODIVERSITY AUDIT
National Wildlife Federation Eco-Schools

What is Biodiversity? http://www.nwf.org/Eco-Schools-USA/Become-an-Eco-School/Pathways/Biodiversity.aspx

Sample Biodiversity Audit: http://www.nwf.org/Eco-Schools-USA/Become-an-Eco-
School/Pathways/Biodiversity/Audit.aspx
Biodiversity resources: http://www.nwf.org/Eco-Schools-USA/Become-an-Eco-
School/Pathways/Biodiversity/Resources.aspx

Rumbalara School District-A Simple Guide to Conducting a School Biodiversity Audit provides a step-by-step
process of how to conduct a Biodiversity Audit as part of a class project; includes tally sheets and identification
resources. Best suited for K-4.
http://www.rumbalarae.schools.nsw.edu.au/documents/230888/231169/biodiv_final_nov_08_1323141671567.pdf

Species Diversity guides you through using the Simpson Index and the Shannon-Weiner Index for calculating
community diversity. Best suited for 4-12. Saved as PDF in Folder.

IDENTIFICATION
Native Species

Leafsnap: An Electronic Field Guide to Trees in the Northeast http://leafsnap.com/species/

NJ Division of Fish and Wildlife's Field Guide for Reptiles and Amphibians is an online source for identification and
facts of all 71 species of New Jersey's amphibians and reptiles.
http://www.nj.gov/dep/fgw/ensp/fieldguide_herps.htm

NJ Division of Fish and Wildlife, Endangered and Nongame Species Program's Endangered and Threatened
Wildlife website contains a list of all the endangered wildlife of New Jersey, what habitats they are suited for, how to
identify them, and conservation efforts.

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http://www.nj.gov/dep/fgw/tandespp.htm
Additional resources are available at [http:// www.nj.gov/dep/fgw/ensphome.htm](http://www.nj.gov/
dep/fgw/ensphome.htm).

New Jersey's Special Concern Species Status Listing includes a list of species that require special attention due to
their inherent vulnerability to environmental deterioration or habitat modification that would threaten the species if the
conditions were to continue.
http://www.njfishandwildlife.com/ensp/pdf/spclspp.pdf

Wildlife Resources for Students contains a species glossary of terms used in identification, a field guide on
endangered species of NJ, and a gallery of photos of rare species. Appropriate for students K-12.
http://www.conservewildlifenj.org/education/students/

Invasive Species

New Jersey Invasive Species Strike Team: The Strike Team is a statewide nonprofit- led cooperative effort to prevent
the spread of emerging invasive species across the state of New Jersey. The site includes great resources (videos,
guides, links) on all types of invasive species that impact NJ (http://www.njisst.org). They also offer NJ Invasives, a free
a web-based smartphone/tablet app that enables people to identify, collect, inventory, use, track, and transmit digitized
data on invasive species of concern. The app is available in two platforms—one for Apple and one for Android—and is
being made available to all users free of charge.
http://www.njisst.org/NRCSGrant.htm

NJ Department of Environmental Protection Invasive Species Council website has two reports: NJ Strategic
Management Plan for Invasive Species and An Overview of Nonindigenous Plant Species in New Jersey. They both
contain factsheets for identification.
http://www.nj.gov/dep/njisc/

Rutgers Cooperative Extension, Weed Photo Gallery.

WILDLIFE MANAGEMENT
Northeast Wildlife Damage Management Coop guide to Human-Wildlife Conflict Management
https://pdfs.semanticscholar.org/2661/5c307de7797ca81b712e6357e5e4082e8099.pdf is a good resource on best
practices for engaging stakeholders to address human-wildlife conflicts in local communities.

Rutgers Cooperative Extension Wildlife Management Publications range from geese to deer management.
http://njaes.rutgers.edu/pubs/subcategory.asp?cat=6&sub=51

US Fish and Wildlife Service is charged with protecting and restoring plants and animals that the federal government
classifies as endangered or threatened. They also work with private landowners as well as schools and municipalities to
enhance the habitat value of specific sites.
http://www.fws.gov/northeast/njfieldoffice

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