Because of administrative boundary issues and resource constraints, federal and state land agencies have customarily worked on a small project-by-project basis. While this type of management may be conventional, it isn’t necessarily optimal. It can lead to problems such as managing vegetation for a single use, failing to monitor and learn from mistakes, or working against natural processes. If ecosystems function as a whole irrespective of administrative or land ownership boundaries, so too should our management efforts. Based on this, the UP Partners have committed to a systems-based approach for developing coordinated watershed restoration projects across jurisdictional boundaries.
By working on a landscape- or watershed-scale, the focus is broadened from single-issue management to overall land health and ecosystem restoration. This large-scale approach allows agencies to assess resources, quantify impacts, identify thresholds, and make informed decisions. Issues of concern such as threatened or endangered species, fuels management, recreation, wildlife habitat, and ecosystem health can be addressed simultaneously. A broader vision provides an opportunity for projects that simulate natural systems, have greater cumulative effects, and meet multiple needs. Our knowledge increases and vital management objectives are met in spite of limited budgets and personnel. Landscape-scale monitoring of projects also becomes possible leading to more credibility, more adaptive management, and a better understanding of the environment and the effect we have on it. The result is a healthier landscape.
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