Setting Priorities for Land Conservation (1993) / Chapter Skim
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9 Conclusions and Recommendations
9 Conclusions and Recommendations
Pages 197-212
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From page 197... ...
for preparing Me land-acquisition portion of the president's annual budget. The committee found Mat the various approaches used by each agency to rate potential land acquisitions generally are based on systematic criteria that reflect Me agencies' basic missions.
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From page 198... ...
The committee believes that the agencies can benefit from review and understaIlding of the nongovernmental groups' programs, but Me nongovernmental criteria are not directly transferable to the federal land-acquisition programs. Criteria for federal land-acquisition programs must change from time to time to keep pace with evolving agency missions.
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From page 199... ...
The recommendations Mat follow are intended to improve Be current system for setting land-acquisition priorities and Be use of various means of acquiring ownership in conservation lands. GOALS Structuring OMB and Agency Criteria OMB, UPS, Bow, USES, and USES should separate the current national ranking system for finding acquisition priorities into at least three categories: outdoor recreation resources, natural resources protection, and cultural heritage protection the three major purposes offederal law]
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From page 200... ...
For example, alI-terrain vehicles and motorized trail bikes, as well as hunting, are permitted on large parts of the national forests and BEM lands, but usually not in He national parks. The same sort of distinction applies to wetlands should USFWS acquisition of prairie potholes to support migratory waterfowl be afforded He same priority as BEM acquisition in a wild and scenic river corridor to meet ecosystem management objectives?
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From page 201... ...
As a result, opportunities for meeting broad recreation and resource conservation goals with the current mix of federal, state, and private lands often are overlooked, and expansion of the federal land base is seen as Be only solution. For example, meeting landscape-level habitat needs of wide-ranging wildlife species requires attention from all four of the federal agencies.
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From page 202... ...
1716~; · Development of regulations and procedures to facilitate and encourage three-party exchanges among nonfederal landowners and more Han one federal agency; · Improvement in the ability of federal agencies to accomplish exchanges Hat cross state lines; · Strengthening of He training and development of land-exchange specialists within He federal agencies and assignment of He most experienced individuals to He agencies' top-priority larld-exchange projects; · Examination of ways to supplement local government or school district revenues on a one-time basis when Here is a change in federal landownership; · Recommendations from USES and BEM for ways in which the
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From page 203... ...
Future public land acquisitions must be sensitive to the dynamics of landscape patterns and uses. One approach for interagency cooperation might be to develop criteria for land uses in an entire watershed.
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From page 204... ...
The federal land-acquisition process does not adequately address the need for protecting natural areas as scientifically credible baselines to measure the effects human use has on resources. Of the four land-management agencies, USES has been the leader in developing a scientif~cally credible system; it has established a system of more than 250 natural research areas in the national forests.
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From page 205... ...
Some of Be negative effects are lost tax revenues, disrupted traditional community patterns and dislocated human activities. Positive effects include increased revenues from tourism, more recreational opportunities, increased adjacent property values, and protection of the renewable resource base.
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From page 206... ...
Furthermore, a multiyear perspective seems to be lacking, as are signs of a systematic overview of acquisition needs other than at the field level. The OMB criteria assign no special weight to congressionally designated areas, such as wilderness areas, wild and scenic rivers, and national trails.
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From page 207... ...
A four-agency information base for a conservation land-acquisition program should be drawn from existing information bases, such as the Environmental Protection Agency's Environmental Monitoring and Assessment Program, state natural history surveys, state GAS programs, and Me NPS biosphere reserve program. Such an information base could be similar to one proposed by Me Conservation Foundation (1985)
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From page 208... ...
If a systematic approach to setting priorities for federal conservation land acquisition is to be accomplished, it is clear that some private lands must be identified and information collected on their suitability for meeting specific needs. The committee believes that the experience of agencies identifying such lands in land-use plans can be used to guide collection of information necessary for useful inventories for further land acquisition without interfering with the privacy of landowners.
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From page 209... ...
The rise of nonprofit organizations and Me active role Congress takes is evidence of ~at. The objections to emergency acquisitions, such as unaccountable and ad hoc actions, can be met by requiring stringent after-the-fact explanation and accounting.
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From page 210... ...
UPS, BUM, USES, and USERS should consider the needs and resources of state, local government, and Indian tribal lands in federal land-use plans, as wed as the role of state and local governments in providing outdoor recreation, especially as these are defined in statewide comprehensive outdoor recreation plans. The potential role for state and local government lands in providing outdoor recreation is given too little attention in sewing priorities for federal land acquisition.
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From page 211... ...
The program should be merit- and goaldriven. Development of a clear set of recreation guidelines to meet national recreation needs would focus federal land acquisitions on highpriority national needs.
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From page 212... ...
As early as 1970, the Public Land Law Review Commission recommended that the federal agencies use alternative acquisition techniques to combat the price escalation of lands required for federal programs. The federal agencies have developed guidelines for transactions wig nonprofit conservation organizations that emphasize the need to ensure that federal priorities guide federal acquisitions.
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