Monitoring

Predators, fire, air, water, plants, bugs, fish, the feelings of someone camped out in the middle of an electric storm. All need to be monitored in wilderness. Why? Because the Wilderness Act states that the purpose of the National Wilderness Preservation System is “. . . to secure for the American people of present and future generations the benefits of an enduring resource of wilderness.” But what are these benefits and how will the managing agencies know if the “enduring resource of wilderness” is providing these benefits? And if not, why not and what actions can be taken to improve wilderness stewardship? The only way to answer these questions is through a broad program of monitoring that continually collects information about ecological and social conditions inside wilderness, and compares current conditions with a baseline condition. The Leopold Institute is actively engaged in developing monitoring programs to understand the condition of these enduring ecological and social resources.