Enhancing Natural and Cultural Resources Management by Integrating GIS Capabilities with Park Operations

Anthony L. Gareau, Cuyahoga Valley National Recreation Area

To effectively manage park resources, managers need accurate information to recognize changes in ecosystems and to link trends with causes so that natural and anthropogenic threats may be distinguished. High-quality information is necessary to identify trends and respond to them intelligently and deliberately. Such information is essential to ensure that rational and ecologically sound decisions are made concerning development, mitigation, monitoring, and other management issues. All management is a long-term experiment, and decisions are often made with less-than-complete information. The information is often difficult to retrieve because it is fragmented in different systems and databases. The key is to have quality information that can be easily retrieved. Cuyahoga Valley National Recreation Area (CVNRA) managers recognize that geographic information system (GIS) technology can aid them in effective and efficient park management. To that end we have identified implementation of a GIS as a high-priority objective. To efficiently implement the GIS program at CVNRA, the information to be stored and the system used to manage it must be carefully designed. It is critical to design a data management program to prevent information from becoming fragmented in different systems and databases. A well-designed database can ensure that the data is usable for future resources studies and management. In this paper, we demonstrate the functions of a user-friendly computer interface developed for CVNRA to make access to information timely and easier for managers, researchers, staff, and visitors. The interface consolidates a vast amount of existing natural and cultural resources digital data into a single system supporting park operations in CVNRA. Park personnel and other managers unfamiliar with GIS technology can now evaluate land and resource use alternatives while also considering environmental impacts, economic implications, and potential use conflicts.

The California Biodiversity Project: Linking a GIS Model with the Planning Process

Bruce Goldstein, University of California, Santa Cruz
GIS projects intended to influence land-use planning must take the political process into account, as well as the natural resources, population growth rates, and other scientific measures. This paper describes our efforts to enhance the opportunity for adoption of a GIS combining a biodiversity valuation layer with development scenarios projected to the year 2020 in our three pilot counties of Santa Cruz, Yolo, and Contra Costa. By including county-level expertise in biodiversity assessment, we are enhancing the project's scientific legitimacy at the county-scale. Equally, by involving influential county individuals and institutions in parameter selection for our socioeconomic scenarios, we are enhancing the relevance of our project to county planning and the likelihood that key players will embrace our methodology. The California Biodiversity Project is being conducted by the Center for Biodiversity Analysis and Management (CBAM) at the University of California, Santa Cruz, and is funded by the National Biological Service. Possibly appropriate for these sessions: Conservation and Global Resources Environmental Planning and Assessment Fish and Wildlife Management Note: It would reduce the necessity to introduce our project and enhance overall understanding if you placed this paper together with Chris Cogan's.

The California Biodiversity Project: Selection and Use of Biodiversity Indicators

Christopher Cogan, Environmental Studies Board College 8, Academic University of California
In the search for methods to better understand ecosystem phenomena and dynamics, several researchers have sought to identify a series of indicators which can be used to measure ecosystem health. These measures have included land management status, species richness, landscape metrics, and the presence of threatened and endangered species. This paper discusses an approach which combines several of the above measures, and presents a model designed to predict future biodiversity conflicts, enabling this information to become part of the process of land planning and management. These methods are intended to represent biodiversity at the ecoregional scale, while functionally operating at the county level where many planning decisions take place. The California Biodiversity Project is being conducted by the Center for Biodiversity Analysis and Management (CBAM) at the University of California, Santa Cruz, and is funded by the National Biological Service.

Making GIS Work in a Desert Park

Thomas N. Potter, National Park Service; Phillip D. Guertin and Michael R. Kunzmann, University of Arizona, James J. Barnett

Organ Pipe Cactus National Monument (ORPI) in southwestern Arizona was established in 1937 to preserve the unique vegetation and animal communities of the Sonoran Desert. The home for the endangered Sonoran Desert Tortoise and Organ Pipe Cactus, ORPI encompasses 330,689 acres and together with the adjacent Cabaza Prieta Wildlife Refuge represents one of the most pristine desert wilderness in the world. A cooperative program was initiated in 1991 between the Advanced Resource Technology Group at the University of Arizona, National Biological Service and ORPI to develop GIS capabilities at the Monument. In this era of dwindling resources GIS programs will need to rely on skills and facilities provided by a number of organizations. This paper will stress the importance of the cooperative partnership for the program's success. The paper will review the program's history, including needs assessment, database design and development, and implementation process. Examples of applications, such as Desert Tortoise Habitat Analysis and a Road-Kill Analysis, will be presented. Current efforts to expand the GIS database for regional environmental management will be discussed.



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