WHAT IS WILDERNESS MANAGED FOR?

“The purpose of the Wilderness Act is to preserve the wilderness character of the

areas to be included in the wilderness system, not to establish any particular use.”

“The purpose of the Wilderness Act is to preserve the wilderness character of the

areas to be included in the wilderness system, not to establish any particular use.”

WHAT IS WILDERNESS MANAGED FOR?WHAT IS WILDERNESS MANAGED FOR?

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IS THERE A PROBLEM? IS THERE A PROBLEM?

• Many wilderness managers are concerned about: wilderness character is degrading a traditional primary focus on recreation shifting baselines with new staff

• Many wilderness managers are concerned about: wilderness character is degrading a traditional primary focus on recreation shifting baselines with new staff

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• Statement of Policy, Section 2(a):

“a National Wilderness Preservation System...shall be administered...so as to provide for the protection of these areas, the preservation of their wilderness character”

It’s the law: Wilderness Act of 1964

• Use of Wilderness Areas, Section 4(b):

“each agency administering any area designated as wilderness shall be responsible for preserving the wilderness character of the area”

WHY WILDERNESS CHARACTER?

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It’s the policy of all four wilderness managing agencies to preserve wilderness character


USDA Forest Service: Forest Service Manual Chapter 2320—Wilderness Management

DOI Bureau of Land Management: Manual 8560—Management of Designated Wilderness Areas

DOI Fish and Wildlife Service: Natural and Cultural Resources Management, Part 610 Wilderness Stewardship

DOI National Park Service: Chapter 6: Wilderness Preservation and Management; Director’s Orders #41

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To Improve On-the-ground Stewardship:

• Understand consequences of decisions and actions using a systematic framework and language

• Provide legacy information that will endure over time when personnel change

• Guard against legal vulnerability

• Communicate a positive and tangible vision for what wilderness is within the agency and with the public

• Provide accountability


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“…an improper evaluation of the wilderness character of the area….”

Barnes v. Babbitt (D. Ariz.) (2004)

“‘Natural conditions’…are part of the ‘wilderness character’ to be preserved.”

Wilderness Soc. v. USFWS (9th Cir. En banc) (2003)

“…that action degrades the wilderness character….”

Izaak Walton League v. Kimbell (D. Minn.) (2007)

“[The decision] is in direct contradiction of the mandate to preserve the wilderness character.”

OLYM Park Assoc. v. Mainella (West. D. WA) (2005)

WILDERNESS CHARACTER IN COURT

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WILDERNESS CHARACTER IN COURT

• When plaintiffs claim the agency protects wilderness “too much” the agency wins 90%

• When plaintiffs claim the agency protects wilderness “too little” the agency wins 46%

All recent court cases confirm agency responsibility for preserving wilderness character

From all 287 cases involving “wilderness character” (2010, Peter Appel, Stanford Env Law Journal):

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THE STEWARDSHIP TASK:

PRESERVE WILDERNESS CHARACTER

THE STEWARDSHIP TASK:

PRESERVE WILDERNESS CHARACTER

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Please enter into the Q & A pane any questions you have about the legislative and policy

mandate to preserve wilderness character

Please enter into the Q & A pane any questions you have about the legislative and policy

mandate to preserve wilderness character

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DEFINING WILDERNESS CHARACTER:A BRIEF HISTORY

1964 Wilderness Act: “each agency … shall be responsible for preserving the wilderness character of the area”

2001 to 2005: Forest Service team builds and publishes wilderness character monitoring framework

2005 to 2009: Forest Service team builds, pilot tests, and publishes wilderness character monitoring protocols

2006 to 2009: Interagency team builds, pilot tests, and publishes “Keeping It Wild” monitoring strategy

2009: BLM implements wilderness character monitoring

2010: NPS charters “Wilderness Character Integration Team”

2011: FWS implements wilderness character monitoring10

Developed by the “Interagency Wilderness Character Monitoring Team” (2006 – 2008)

• Why preserve it?

• What is it?

• How to monitor it?

WILDERNESS CHARACTER

Proof-of-concept tested (2009)

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WHAT IS WILDERNESS CHARACTER?WHAT IS WILDERNESS CHARACTER?

No definition in the Wilderness Act and no legislative history on the meaning of this phraseNo definition in the Wilderness Act and no legislative history on the meaning of this phrase

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Wilderness Act of 1964

Wilderness Character

Section 2(c) Definition of Wilderness

Qualities of Wilderness Character• Tangible, practical

• Link management actions directly to the language of law and policy

• Applies to EVERY wilderness and agency

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Wilderness ecological systems are substantially free from the effects of modern civilization

QUALITIES OF WILDERNESS CHARACTER

1. “Natural”

• Preserve indigenous species, patterns, and ecological and evolutionary processes

• Understand and learn from natural systems

WHY:

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EXAMPLES OF WHAT DEGRADES THIS QUALITY

• Altered water flow

• Altered disturbance regimes

• Air pollutants

• Extirpated or extinct native animals and plants

• Occurrence of non-indigenous species

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Wilderness provides outstanding opportunities for solitude or primitive and unconfined recreation


2. “Solitude or primitive and unconfined recreation”

• Personal challenge and self-discovery

• Primitive recreation and the use of traditional skills

• Freedom from the constraints of culture

WHY:

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• The sights and sounds of occupied and modified areas outside the wilderness

• Agency-provided facilities that decrease self-reliant recreation

• Management restrictions on visitor behavior

• The sights and sounds of people inside wilderness

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Wilderness retains its primeval character and influence, and is essentially without permanent improvement or modern human occupation


3. “Undeveloped”

• Preserve places from “expanding settlement and growing mechanization”

• Allow people to feel a part of “the community of life”

WHY:

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• Non-recreational structures or installations

• Inholdings

• Use of motor vehicles, motorized equipment, or mechanical transport

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4. “Untrammeled”Wilderness is essentially unhindered and free from the actions of modern human control or manipulation

• To manage with the utmost humility and restraint

• To respect the autonomy of nature, to let a place be wild and free

WHY:

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• Authorized actions that manipulate, control, or hinder the “community of life”

Lighting fire

Suppressing fire

Collaring wildlife

Stocking fish/wildlife

Killing predators

Spraying weeds

• Unauthorized actions that manipulate, control, or hinder the “community of life”

“Bucket brigade”21


5. “Other features”WHAT: wilderness “may also contain ecological, geological, or other features of scientific, educational, scenic, or historical value.” (Wilderness Act, Sec 2c)

• To protect the tangible features that are unique to the wilderness

WHY:

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Wilderness character is more than the sum

of its parts…

…and if one of those parts is taken away or degraded, the whole doesn’t work the way

it’s supposed to

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IMPLICATION:

Example: installing a barrier to restrict nonnative fish movement to improve the natural quality, AND…

• The decision and action to install the structure degrades the untrammeled quality

• Modified water flow degrades the natural quality

• The presence of the structure degrades the undeveloped quality

A SINGLE DECISION OR ACTION MAY AFFECT MORE THAN ONE QUALITY

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IMPLICATION:

Example: installing scientific equipment to understand the effects of climate change may benefit the natural quality, AND…

A SINGLE DECISION OR ACTION MAY AFFECT MORE THAN ONE QUALITY

• The installation degrades the undeveloped quality

• The sight and sound of the equipment and its use degrades the solitude quality

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KEY POINTS ABOUT WILDERNESS CHARACTER

KEY POINTS ABOUT WILDERNESS CHARACTER

• Wilderness character is composed of four qualities that uniquely apply to every wilderness

• There may also be an “other features” quality that is part of wilderness character

• All qualities of wilderness character are equally important and inter-related

• Stewardship decisions to take or not take action affect these qualities

• Wilderness character is composed of four qualities that uniquely apply to every wilderness

• There may also be an “other features” quality that is part of wilderness character

• All qualities of wilderness character are equally important and inter-related

• Stewardship decisions to take or not take action affect these qualities

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Please enter into the Q & A pane any questions you have about the definition of

wilderness character

Please enter into the Q & A pane any questions you have about the definition of

wilderness character

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USING WILDERNESS CHARACTER IN PROJECT PLANNING

NEPA compliance

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Wilderness character was used to analyze the impacts from the action alternatives

Results reported in terms of degradation of wilderness character

USING WILDERNESS CHARACTER IN PROJECT PLANNING

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Spatial model or map of wilderness character for the Death Valley Wilderness in Death Valley National Park

Composed of the four equally weighted qualities, built from 41 weighted input variables

USING WILDERNESS CHARACTER IN WILDERNESS

PLANNING

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EFFECTS OF PLANNING ALTERNATIVESRemoteness in the Racetrack area, Death Valley Wilderness

Dirt road Paved Road

The darker the green the better the remotenessThe darker the brown the bigger the adverse impact on

remoteness31

USING WILDERNESS CHARACTER IN MANAGEMENT AND OPERATIONS

• Minimum Requirements Analysis

• Evaluating proposals for science activities

• Fire resource advising

• Information needs assessment

• Interpretation and education planning

• Exotic species management

• Climbing management

• Commercial services assessment

• Maintenance operations

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• Hierarchically organized

USING WILDERNESS CHARACTER IN MONITORING

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HIERARCHICAL ORGANIZATION

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• Hierarchically organized

• Trend is assessed from change within a wilderness because every wilderness is unique

• Balances local flexibility and relevance with national consistency because every wilderness is part of the National Wilderness Preservation System

USING WILDERNESS CHARACTER IN MONITORING

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BALANCING NATIONAL CONSISTENCY WITH LOCAL FLEXIBILITY

National Consistency: every wilderness uses the same

• 5 qualities

• 8 monitoring questions

• 12 indicators

• Process for synthesizing trends of the measures to assess trend at levels higher than the measure

Local Flexibility: every wilderness uses one of the recommended measures OR a locally derived measure that has an established protocol

Applying wilderness character to stewardship, planning, and monitoring:

Applying wilderness character to stewardship, planning, and monitoring:

• Is relatively new yet simple

• Allows discussion about the tradeoffs in proposed actions

• Allows transparent and defensible decisions

• Provides the language to improve internal and external communication

• Is relatively new yet simple

• Allows discussion about the tradeoffs in proposed actions

• Allows transparent and defensible decisions

• Provides the language to improve internal and external communication

FOR MORE INFORMATION: Wilderness.net > Management Tools > Toolboxes > Wilderness CharacterFOR MORE INFORMATION: Wilderness.net > Management Tools > Toolboxes > Wilderness Character

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• Learn more about wilderness character

YOUR EXPECTATIONS FOR THIS WEBINAR

• What is it?• How do I describe it?• How do I preserve it?

• Applying wilderness character to monitoring• What are the current monitoring efforts?• How do I identify indicators to monitor?

• Applying wilderness character to planning

• How does wilderness character impact management ability?

• Applying wilderness character to stewardship of small eastern wildernesses

• How can I use wilderness character to foster better communication about wilderness?

Using wilderness character to help solve YOUR stewardship problems and challenges

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Documents

WHAT IS WILDERNESS MANAGED FOR?