Protect and Support Diverse and Sustainable Agriculture.
The project corridor supports extensive farmlands. In
accordance with the preliminary findings and recommendations
of the Miami-Dade
County Agriculture & Rural Area Study, the Team,
in coordination with FDOT, the U.S. Natural Resources
Conservation Service
(NRCS)
and the farming community, will carefully evaluate
potential positive and negative effects of the project
on regional agriculture.
Ensure Close Coordination with Regional Environmental Initiatives.
Through continuous coordination, the project team will
ensure that proposed alternatives are compatible with
ongoing and
future regional
environmental
studies,
including but not limited to the Miami-Dade County
Agriculture & Rural Area Study, the South Miami-Dade
Watershed Study and Plan, and CERP.
Protect
the Pine Rocklands, Hammocks, Freshwater Wetlands and Other
Sensitive Habitats.
The project team will delineate the existing Natural
Forest Community, Pine Rockland/ Hammock area near
Bauer Drive as well as wetlands and identify potentially
endangered species
habitats
to avoid impacts to these areas. Additionally, the
team will develop a mitigation plan if necessary and use sensitive
roadway alignment
analysis to balance the public safety benefit against
these habitats’ healthy existence. Moreover, an increased
emphasis will be placed on protecting these habitats
during construction.
Determine any Potentially Contaminated Sites.
The determination
of potentially contaminated sites will be performed by field
review
and research of existing records to determine any potentially
contaminated sites.
Establish an Early Coordination Process with the Permitting Agencies.
Coordination
with appropriate permitting agencies is essential
from the inception of the study to ensure a successful implementation
of the project at the design phase. Not only
is the URS
Team
aware of the agencies with jurisdiction, but
will work in close coordination
with them to facilitate and expedite the permitting process.
Potential Business Impacts in the Area.
Land Use changes as a result
of this project
could bring potential secondary and cumulative impacts.
Visual Impacts and Aesthetics.
It
has been identified that the preservation of
the area’s agricultural
and rural character shall be maintained.
The project corridor supports extensive farmlands. In
accordance with the preliminary findings and recommendations
of the Miami-Dade
County Agriculture & Rural Area Study, the Team,
in coordination with FDOT, the U.S. Natural Resources
Conservation Service
(NRCS)
and the farming community, will carefully evaluate
potential positive and negative effects of the project
on regional agriculture. 
Rockland/ Hammock area near
Bauer Drive as well as wetlands and identify potentially
endangered species
habitats
to avoid impacts to these areas. Additionally, the
team will develop a mitigation plan if necessary and use sensitive
roadway alignment
analysis to balance the public safety benefit against
these habitats’ healthy existence. Moreover, an increased
emphasis will be placed on protecting these habitats
during construction.
