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| To Tree or Not to Tree | | Posted: Monday, March 6, 2006 | by Jerry Abboud
The Policy Analysis and Science Assistance Branch (PASA) of the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) Fort Collins Science Center (FORT) hosted a national workshop February 21-23, 2006, in Fort Collins, Colorado. The workshop addressed the issues of transportation systems on public lands, including research, collaboration, and management approaches to inform decision making, focus on conflicts, policy, social values, and changing demographics of recreation users.
So much for the who, what, where…… This was primarily about the use of a data based evaluation tree marketed by Advanced Resource Solutions that identifies and evaluates roads and trails for travel management decisions. It has real promise, if still dealing with a few bugs. Those are mostly related to software support.
This Evaluation Tree is the cause of great consternation among the environmental Community—that in and of itself is usually an defacto endorsement from the motorized community, but we will set aside the axes for the moment and focus on the value of an important concept that may well assist in uniformity of decisions.
This product is, like all tools as good as the data that goes in and the individuals who will interpret the data to make the final travel management decisions. Having said that, the evaluation tree has a number of very attractive elements to it. First, it is an effort to bring objectivity and consistency to the evaluation process. Want to know the criteria that went into route evaluation? Look at the parameters of the tree and how any single route was assigned characteristics per the evaluation process.
Second, from an agency perspective, the element of protection of the administrative record becomes an important issue. Once this process is upheld by an appellate court as an element of a specific decision, relief from constant legal challenges and re-dos is anticipated. Finally, the tool helps reduce the workload as travel management decisions loom large on the horizon.
Remember, the OHV Rule and the BLM Directive from a practical standpoint, require designations of system roads and trails in the near future. This is a monumental task within diminishing budgets and small staffs. If the agencies can afford the cost of the tree, there may also be a net savings to some units carrying out the designation process.
Time will tell, but the tool has already been used in several travel management decisions with varying success, although poor results may once again point back to the garbage in problem or poor decision making. A tool is once again only as valuable as the one who wields it.
Special thanks to Greg Mumm, Blue Ribbon Executive Director and John Bongiovani, for joining me and providing excellent comments as part of a balanced panel discussion.
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