Ecosystem Restoration Partnerships Allegheny Highlands of Virginia Sam Lindblom Land Management Director Fire Program Manager

Goals of the talk Overview of the Allegheny Highlands The partnership mandate Partnership milestones and mechanics Benefits/accomplishments Challenges Suggestions for building a good partnership Issues of scale Discussion/Questions

Allegheny Highlands, VA Overview Where?

Allegheny Highlands, VA Overview George Washington, Jefferson, Monongahela National Forests VA Dept. of Conservation and Recreation VA Dept. of Forestry VA Dept. of Game and Inland Fisheries The Nature Conservancy National Weather Service Fish and Wildlife Service National Park Service

Allegheny Highlands Ecological Components Dry pine-oak ridges These are located on SW slopes, exposed ridges, and are the driest places in our landscapes

Allegheny Highlands Ecological Components Oak dominated dry forests Going down the slopes, these forest are what we refer to as our “matrix forests”, the vast majority of our landscape

Theories and Questions What we know (or believe) Fire has been a part of this landscape for thousands of years Our forest are altered Most species in the Central Appalachians are well adapted to fire; many are dependent Our pine and oak communities are declining

The Partnership need Big vision from a handful of partners Limited resources Land ownership patterns demand cooperation The recognition that no one organization could shift the tide alone

Partnership Milestones TNC acquires a critical tract that includes some of the most fire dependent habitat in the landscape, 2002 TNC adopts NWCG standards for fire management, 2003-4 and utilizes IQCS for tracking FS R8 / TNC-SE fire MOU signed 2005 TNC-VA and GW-Jeff NF began fire discussions in 2005 FLN used as a planning/organizing tool 2006-current

Partnership Milestones Cost-share agreement signed, 2007 USFS leads landscape level planning and NEPA work-cooperatively completed on core 23,000 acres, 2007-8 First cooperative Rx fire (1100 acres) 2008 on TNC property includes many partners. (ultimately Rx burned >3000 acres in 2008), ~7-8000 to date. GW-Jeff NF adopts standard monitoring protocol for all burns on the forest (2008) Planning, implementation and monitoring continues

Partnership Mechanics TNC / FS Region 8 MOU facilitates cooperation on fires TNC / USFWS MOU TNC / VA DCR MOU Interagency agreements in place Cost-share agreement provides funding (funds for cost-share have come from R8, primarily) FLN provides framework, momentum, and accountability

Benefits and accomplishments Ecology and planning Monitoring Fire history research Mapping Forest plan revision Fire prioritization model

Benefits and accomplishments Operations Fire ops and aviation Cost sharing Other land management

Benefits and accomplishments Other Outreach to other NGO’s Consolidated voice Intangible benefits Regional and national attention to our project

Partnership Challenges Eating your vegetables (Doing things you might not do otherwise) Meetings and coordination Commitment Resolving differences without alienating partners

Dr. Phil A suite of strategies: boots>science>policy Develop “champions” within the organizations Commit resources (including money) Be willing to compromise Be up front about your abilities and your limitations Understand your partner’s priorities if they’re different than yours (but don’t shy from trying to influence them) Show up and work (even when you don’t really want to) Be Nice. Always.

The Scale Problem and Potential Strategies Partners “The Border Project”, includes additional partners, Region 9 Funding and capacity are and will be our biggest challenge Restoration at scale Currently planning the largest (season long event) Rx Fire in VA history (~6000 acres) Using TNC/FS 23,000 acres as a demonstration landscape (close to DC, state parks, high public visibility)

The Scale Problem and Potential Strategies Changing a culture Lots of outreach, “fire is good for our Appalachian forests” Fire in VA is not often like fire “out West” Managing all ignitions instead of fighting them all Monitoring change and communicating that change

The Nature Conservancy in VA Discussion, Questions? Sam Lindblom The Nature Conservancy in VA 434-950-0580 slindblom@tnc.org