Parks and Recreation System Master Plan Update (2016) parks_and_recreation_system_master_plan_update_oct | Page 452

B. Environmental profile
In the Louisville metro area there are five physiographic regions (Figure 2) with
corresponding soils, geology, and ecological communities. Jefferson County is the only county
in Kentucky with five physiographic regions. This unique physiographic feature was likely to
have been a historic home to significant biodiversity of plant and animal communities. Due to
the complex nature of the physiographic regions, identifying all terrestrial ecological
communities would require a detailed ground level inventory of flora. The government and
citizens of the Louisville-Metro County Area have the distinct opportunity to preserve and
restore both historical and unique ecological communities inherent to the region.
On August 30, 2006, a personal interview was conducted with Dr. Tom Barnes, Professor
of Ecology in the Department of Forestry at the University of Kentucky and author of Kentucky’s
Last Great Places, concerning the ecological history of Jefferson County. The following is a
summary of that discussion in narrative form:
In the Limestone Belt, home of Cherokee Park and McNeely Park, there
are three distinct ecological communities: the western mesophytic forest, the
calcareous mesophytic forest, and the limestone dolomitic glades. The western
mesophytic forests had been characterized by Black Maple and White Oak as
dominant species and were likely in pristine conditions. It is unlikely that this
ecological community exists in the present, as much of these trees were logged
during the first wave of European settlement. The calcareous mesophytic forest,
similarly, contained Black Maple and White oaks in addition to Sugar Maple,
walnut, hickory, and White Ash. This community is currently present in Cherokee
Park, due to reintroduction of native species such as Black Maple, White Oak,
Sugar Maple, and others. The limestone dolomitic glades ecological community,
which consists of limestone outcroppings and naturally occurring glens, or glades,
is also still evident in Jefferson County, particularly in McNeely Lake Park. The
limestone dolomitic glades are home to the Kentucky Glade Cress (Levenworthia
exigua var. laciniata) – a federally threatened plant species.
The Floyds Fork physiographic region is a part of the larger Outer
Bluegrass ecoregion, which is characterized by rolling hills with limestone and
shale outcroppings and natural stands of cane, Kentucky Coffeetree, Blue Ash,
Black Walnut, Bur Oak, and locust. It is still possible to see remnants of the
Bluegrass mesophytic cane forest terrestrial community in this physiographic
region as well as riparian forests and bottomland marshes. The Floyds Fork
physiographic region is home to at least two rare plants, including Kentucky
Glade Cress and Eggleston's Violet. In addition, this physiographic region is a
part of the Salt River watershed and Floyds Fork itself is considered one of the
most polluted streams in the state (Kentucky Division of Water, 1998), although
its water quality is higher than any other stream in the Louisville Metro area.
The Slack Water Flats physiographic region was the epicenter of much of
the 20 th Century expansion of Louisville, particularly the Louisville International
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