Title
Management Recommendations for Balancing Public Access and Species Conservation on Protected Lands
Author(s)
H. E. Kretser; A. D’Antonio; J. Burger; B. Largay; A. Merenlender; T. Nelson; S.E. Reed
Published
2019
Abstract
Most protected lands, including increasing numbers of properties owned or managed by land trusts, have a dual or multiple-use mandate to provide public access for outdoor recreation and other human activities, while also protecting wildlife species and habitats. Access for outdoor recreation plays an essential role in generating political support and revenue for land conservation and management, and it provides important human health and economic benefits for local communities. Globally, protected areas receive an estimated eight billion visits per year, and in the United States, outdoor recreation activity increased by 40% in the last decade. A growing body of research demonstrates that even quiet, non-consumptive recreation activities (e.g., hiking and wildlife viewing) can negatively affect the behavior, habitat use, reproduction, and survival of individual animals and persistence of wildlife populations. To successfully balance the public access and species conservation goals of protected lands, and to increase support for management decisions and compliance by recreationists, managers need science based guidance for decisions regarding recreation access and permitted uses. The Wildlife Conservation Society and Sonoma Land Trust hosted a meeting June 11-12, 2018 at Pepperwood Preserve in Sonoma County, CA with a goal to collaboratively generate science based recommendations for how to balance objectives for public access and wildlife conservation in protected lands. The co-authors, three scientists and three managers with expertise on recreation and wildlife and one facilitator, spent two days deliberating the challenges and opportunities for achieving the dual mandate of many protected lands (Appendix I). We offer this summary of management recommendations as a tool for opening a conversation about balancing visitation and protection of natural resources. We collaboratively decided to tailor our recommendations for land managers. These include individuals who make decisions about land management in federal, state, or local resource management agencies, land trusts, or as private landowners. Land managers are important because they regulate public access to protected lands and make stewardship decisions about wildlife habitats and working lands. Managers can establish thresholds for the location and timing of visitor use and set expectations for the balance of access and protection. Additionally, managers are often charged with the enforcement of rules and communication to user groups. Importantly, managers must prioritize how to invest their limited resources, to protect and enhance habitat, while providing safe and sustainable recreational opportunities. In a pre-workshop survey, the co-authors identified three promising strategies for balancing public access and wildlife conservation: 1) zoning, 2) conservation planning, and 3) collaboration and inclusion. In this document, we share recommendations within those categories, and we conclude with a discussion of the need for more specific and locally-relevant scientific evidence to guide protected land planning and management decisions. In the absence of strong data, we encourage managers to use adaptive management, a structured approach to decision-making that combines management guidelines with a monitoring design to promote scientific understanding and improve subsequent decisions (Salafsky et al. 2001). Under adaptive management of recreation access, we recommend that the burden of proof should be to demonstrate that multiple uses are compatible with resource protection. Where wildlife habitat is an important conservation value, we encourage managers to use the precautionary principle, consider physical separation of uses, and direct the most impactful uses farthest away from the most sensitive areas. We further recommend that land managers monitor human access as well as wildlife and habitat responses to track success of management actions. The strategies and recommendations in this document provide managers with initial guidance for identifying locally-relevant information needs and making decisions about public access and wildlife conservation on protected lands. We highlight important considerations for managers who are facing decisions about this issue, often in the absence of conclusive scientific evidence specific to their management area and conservation values. Given the relatively small body of research examining the specific impacts of recreation on wildlife, and the trade-offs associated with meeting demands for access and conservation, we encourage managers to partner with universities, conservation organizations, and other research institutions to undertake some of the research and monitoring steps recommended throughout this document. Much work is yet to be accomplished to address the growing demands for access on protected lands. This document is a starting point designed to foster dialogue at management agencies about what steps could be taken to thoughtfully consider the trade-offs of visitation and conservation while taking steps to monitor impacts and strive for outcomes that balance multiple demands on protected lands. We hope this work will inspire managers to engage in adaptive management to generate and refine best practices for balancing public access and species conservation.
Full Citation
Kretser, H.E., A. D’Antonio, J. Burger, B. Largay, A. Merenlender, T. Nelson and S.E. Reed (2019). Management Recommendations for Balancing Public Access and Species Conservation on Protected Lands. Bronx, NY: Wildlife Conservation Society.

Access Full Text


Back

DMX4312500000