Barr developed a natural-resources management plan for Thompson County Park in Dakota County, Minnesota. We conducted a natural resources inventory to assess the park’s native plant communities and wildlife habitat as well as the water quality of Thompson Lake. We also documented tree diseases and invasive species. After mapping existing plant communities within the park and ranking their ecological quality, we used that information to develop a plan for restoring native plant communities and managing the park’s water, soil, and wildlife resources.
The final plan provides an overall strategy for managing the park’s natural lands, including phased native-plant-community implementation, invasive-species control, and lake-water-quality improvement as well as monitoring recommendations, cost estimates, and funding sources. The document is used by park managers and the county's planning commission to prioritize and budget for activities, and it can be used by the public to understand and preserve the park's natural resources.