Planner’s Perspective: Integrating Science and Vital Signs into the Planning Process National Park Service Denver Servic

1. Planner’s Perspective: Integrating Science and Vital Signs into the Planning Process National Park Service Denver Service Center Planning Branch Kerri Cahill

2. Presentation Outline • Why we plan • The planning framework • Integrating planning with science and Vital Signs

3. Why We Plan… Managers make difficult decisions about: • Ways to preserve significant resources, • Priorities for using available funds and staff, and • Differing local and nationwide views about what’s most important.

4. Why We Plan… Need a logical, trackable process to: • Analyze what we know • Interact with the public • Identify goals for protecting resources and visitor experiences • Provide accountability for management actions and decisions

5. Long Range 15-20 years Foreseeable Future 5-Years Current Year Why? Foundation What? General Management Plan Strategic Plan Annual How? Implementation Plans (e.g., FMP, WMP) Performance Plan & Report Park Program Plan (e.g., RSS, LIP) NPS Planning Framework Plan Types

6. Planning needs… • Easily accessible information about fundamental resources and values and major issues • “one stop shopping” for conditions and trends • Synthesized key findings – what do we know and what don’t we know • Face-to-face time with experts to provide context and recommendations – be part of the planning team! • Help with articulating meaningful desired conditions based on current conditions and trends • Aid with presenting technical data to the public

7. Foundation Statement Function:Formal statement about what’s most important about the park • Park Purpose and Significance • Fundamental Resources & Values • Analysis of Resources and Values • Primary Interpretive Themes • Special Mandates • Service-wide Laws and Policies

8. Foundation Statement Fundamental Resources and Values • What features, systems, processes, experiences, stories, etc) are fundamental to achieving the park’s purpose and supporting its significance? Analysis of Fundamental Resources & Values • Importance of the resources and values • Current conditions and trends • Existing and emerging threats and issues • Critical data gaps • Interest of various stakeholders • Laws and policies that apply to these resources and values

9. General Management Plan Function: Sets vision/broad direction for the future in collaboration with the public • Data Analysis • Public Scoping • Desired conditions for resources, visitor experiences and types and levels of management (varying by alternatives) • User capacity indicators and standards • Impact Analysis for Alternatives • Cost Analysis for Alternatives

10. Data Analysis • Understand conditions and issues related to protecting fundamental resources and values • Identify desired conditions/ zone boundaries • What is the range of possible desired resource conditions? • What areas are the most sensitive to use/development? • What areas are the most suitable to use/development? • Analyze potential impacts of alternatives • Document rationale for decisions • Document compliance with laws, regulations, & policy

11. Desired Conditions Proactively manage resources and visitor experiences • Parkwide • Zone-specific • Area-specific GMP desired conditions are basis for resource stewardship strategies and implementation plans

12. Integration of Vital Signs with User Capacity Planning

13. Decision Making Framework Establish Desired Conditions Choose Biophysical and Social Indicators of Change Desired conditions provide a picture of the character and quality of the various settings in a park. Formulate Standards Indicators are measurable variables used to assess progress relative to desired conditions. Standards are management decisions on the minimum acceptable condition for indicators. Monitor Conditions Compare Conditions to Standards Standards Not Exceeded Standards Exceeded Evaluate and Identify Causal Factors Problem analysis is used to identify and evaluate a range of management strategies. Select Appropriate Management Action Implement Management Action

14. Examples of Indicators and Standards • Indicator – Linear feet of visitor created trails per acre • Standard – No more than 15 LF of visitor created trail/acre • Indicator – Amount of key area stream reaches (measured by transects) that are trampled by recreational stock • Standard – No more than 25% of transects may be trampled

15. Benefits of Integration • Monitoring vital signs that may be relevant to user capacity indicators • Knowledge of how visitors impact park resources = user capacity indicators • Expertise in evaluating "effective and efficient" indicators for monitoring • User capacity indicators define the highest priority visitor use impacts – good vital signs? • Monitoring user capacity indicators may be useful data for resource analysis efforts

16. Examples of Collaboration Sonoran Desert Network & Saguaro • Area of disturbance, visitor impacts to the Madrona Pools, trail conditions and visitor encounter rates on trails • Already monitoring trail condition, so baseline data helped with user capacity I&S

17. Examples of Collaboration Upper Columbia Basin Network & John Day Fossil Beds • Conducted initial baseline inventory of visitor created trails to help with the indicator and standard for the GMP

18. Summary • Several steps that can benefit from collaboration • Need summary data with key findings on fundamental resources and values (condition, trends and threats) • Need collaboration for defining meaningful desired conditions • Continue to collaborate on user capacity indicators and standards

19. Planning Sources Park Planning Sourcebook – Park Planning and Special Studies Division on InsideNPS Park Planning Web-Based Training Program – DOI Learn Park Planning In-Class Training Program (must take the web-based training) The Visitor Experience and Resource Protection Handbook – www.planning.nps.gov