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Comprehensive Plan Conservation Element <br />Wetlands <br />Wetlands function as important resources to Indian River County in that they provide <br />socioeconomic, as well as environmental quality, benefits. Listed in Table 8.11 are the major <br />benefits generally associated with wetlands in Indian River County. <br />TABLE 8.11 <br />SOCIOECONOMIC AND ENVIRONMENTAL VALUES <br />OF WETLANDS IN INDIAN RIVER COUNTY <br />Socioeconomic Environmental <br />Flood control Water quality maintenance: <br />Wave damage protection Pollution filtration <br />Erosion control Sediment removal <br />Groundwater recharge <br />Livestock grazing <br />Fishing and shellfishing <br />Hunting <br />Recreation <br />On -Water Recreation <br />Aesthetics <br />Aquaculture <br />Education <br />Scientific research <br />Oxygen production <br />Nutrient absorption <br />Aquatic productivity: <br />Juvenile fish habitat <br />Shellfish habitat <br />Water fowl habitat <br />Microclimate regulation <br />(heat sink) <br />As identified earlier in this element, wetlands can be found throughout Indian River County, in all <br />shapes and sizes. In Indian River County, the Upper St. Johns River Basin comprises the largest <br />contiguous palustrine (freshwater) wetland system. The majority of this system is owned by the St. <br />Johns River Water Management District (SJRWMD) and is not threatened by urban or agricultural <br />encroachment. <br />In assessing the functional value of wetlands, a number of criteria can be considered. According to <br />one Florida study (Brown and Starnes, 1983), these criteria should include size, off-site <br />connectedness with other wetlands, landscape diversity, quality of surrounding landscape, intactness, <br />uniqueness, and utilization by endangered species. Another publication on wetlands (Moler and <br />Franz, 1987), however, concludes that size and connectedness, where bigger is better and isolation is <br />a negative, is not necessarily the case when considering the wildlife values of wetlands. For <br />example, at least 15 species of amphibians of the southeastern Coastal Plain are exclusively or <br />primarily dependent on small, isolated wetlands as breeding sites. Additionally, such sites may <br />provide important foraging and nesting habitat for a variety of wading birds. <br />Community Development Department Indian River County 105 <br />