Wilderness Character
Monitoring in the NWRS
July 18, 2012
NWRS
Wilderness Character Monitoring Initiative

Interagency Wilderness Policy Council agreed that
all 4 agencies would complete Wilderness Character
Baseline Assessments by 2014
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Team chartered by the Chief, NWRS
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Endorsed by Regional NWRS Chiefs
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Partnering with Aldo Leopold Wilderness Research
Institute, NPS, and FS
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Funded by the NWRS Natural Resources Program
Center
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Now on second year of funding
NWRS
Wilderness Character Monitoring Team
Dr. Peter Landres
Sarah Aicher
Mitch Ellis
Steve Henry
Dr. Peter Dratch
Brian Anderson
Steve Hicks
Nancy Roeper
Dr. Pat Heglund
Andrew Gude
Elaine Johnson
Jill Webster
Karen Lindsey
NWRS
Wilderness Character Monitoring Initiative

Interagency Framework: Keeping It Wild

USFS Technical Guide for Monitoring
Selected Conditions Related to Wilderness
Character; BLM Implementation Guide

Wilderness Fellows do the work
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Recruit and select
Hired by SCA
3-Day interagency training – NRPC
Wilderness Fellows - Tasks
3 months per refuge (16)
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Identify and prioritize measures
Gather pre-existing data; new information
Enter data
Prepare report
Wilderness Fellows - Tasks
Prepare report
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History of refuge wilderness
Purposes of the refuge
Measures used (and not used)
Describe data source(s) and protocols
Conclusions about measures and trends
Effort expended
Wilderness Fellows – Resources and Support

Thumb Drive

Sharepoint site

List of contacts

Weekly phone calls

Facebook, Blogspot, Tumblr
Cabeza Prieta Measures
 Quality: Untrammeled

Indicator #1: Actions authorized by the federal land
manager that manipulate the biophysical environment
Cabeza Prieta Measures
 Quality: Natural

Indicator #3: Plant and animal species and communities
And That’s Not All……
Wilderness Stewardship Guidance
 Wilderness Act (P.L. 88-577)
 Wilderness Regulations (50 CFR 35)
 Wilderness Stewardship Policy
(610 FW 1 - 5)
What’s Different This Year
 American Conservation Experience

6 Fellows – 12 refuges; 1 National Seashore
 Two FWS biologists conducting assessments
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5 refuges
 Interagency training and wilderness character
assessments
 2011 WF assistant
What’s Different This Year
Wilderness Character Monitoring Initiative
Future Steps and
Adaptive Management

Complete Baseline Assessments by 2014 –
Designated Wilderness

Complete Baseline Assessments by 2015 –
Proposed Wilderness

Refuges incorporate Wilderness Character
Monitoring into monitoring plans

Refuges develop monitoring schedules
Wilderness Character Monitoring Initiative
Future Steps and
Adaptive Management

Use combination of Wilderness Fellows and
Refuge staff to monitor trends

Trend analysis used to design Management
Response

Increase efforts to bring the best of the WFs
into the NWRS

Interagency database moved to an online
application
Questions?