Overall Rating	Gold
Overall Score	83.37
Liaison	Ruairi O'Mahony
Submission Date	Feb. 11, 2022

STARS v2.2

University of Massachusetts Lowell
OP-10: Biodiversity

Status	Score	Responsible Party
	2.00 / 2.00 This credit is weighted more heavily for institutions that own or manage land that includes or is adjacent to any of the following: Legally protected areas (e.g., IUCN Category I-VI) Internationally recognized areas (e.g., World Heritage, Ramsar, Natura 2000) Priority sites for biodiversity (e.g., Key Biodiversity Areas, Alliance for Zero Extinction sites) Regions of conservation importance (e.g., Endemic Bird Areas, Biodiversity Hotspots, High Biodiversity Wilderness Areas) 2 points are available for this credit if the institution owns or manages land that includes or is adjacent to any of the above. 1 point is available for this credit for all other institutions. Close	Meaghan Healy Associate Director of Operations and Services Facilities

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Does the institution own or manage land that includes or is adjacent to legally protected areas, internationally recognized areas, priority sites for biodiversity, or regions of conservation importance?:

Yes

A brief description of the legally protected areas, internationally recognized areas, priority sites for biodiversity, and/or regions of conservation importance:

UMass Lowell's campus is adjacent to the Merrimack River. The Merrimack River is one of the three most important large rivers on the East Coast in its conservation value to migratory river herring and one of the six most important for 12 migratory fish species. The Merrimack watershed also supports at least 75 state and federally-listed endangered species, numerous pairs of bald eagles, the largest tidal marsh habitat in New England, and a portion of the Atlantic Flyway bird migration route.

Endangered and vulnerable species

Has the institution conducted an assessment to identify endangered and vulnerable species (including migratory species) with habitats on land owned or managed by the institution?:

Yes

A list of endangered and vulnerable species with habitats on land owned or managed by the institution, by level of extinction risk:

Per MassAudubon Report

Areas of biodiversity importance

Has the institution conducted an assessment to identify areas of biodiversity importance on land owned or managed by the institution?:

Yes

A brief description of areas of biodiversity importance on land owned or managed by the institution:

Please see attached Report from MassAudubon

Methodologies

If yes to either of the above, provide the following:

The methodologies used to identify endangered and vulnerable species and/or areas of biodiversity importance and any ongoing assessment and monitoring mechanisms:

In 2019 UMass Lowell worked with the Ecological Extension Service (EES) of Mass Audubon to perform a campus biodiversity assessment and to identify endangered and vulnerable species (including migratory species) with habitats on institution owned or managed land.

A brief description of the scope of the assessment(s):

Per MassAudubon Report

A brief description of the plans or programs in place to protect or positively affect identified species, habitats, and/or ecosystems:

Since the plan was adopted at UMass Lowell the Office of Sustainability have worked closely with Facilities Management and various student environmental groups on campus to implement recommendations from the report. For example, the UMass Lowell College Young Republican student group completed extensive work on campus in 2020 to remove invasive Japanese Knotweed. The plan has been continuously updated since 2019 as projects have been completed and new initiatives identified.

Optional Fields

Estimated percentage of areas of biodiversity importance that are also protected areas :

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Website URL where information about the institution’s biodiversity initiatives is available:

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Additional documentation to support the submission:

UMass Lowell Management Plan Final Draft.pdf

Data source(s) and notes about the submission:

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