1. Preserving Nature
Chapter 15

2. Outline:
Parks and Nature Preserves
History
Problems
Size and Design
Wilderness Areas
Wildlife Refuges
Wetlands
Values
Destruction

3. PARKS AND NATURE PRESERVES
Origins and History
Historically, sacred groves were set aside for religious purposes, and grounds preserved for royalty.
Natural landscaping became popular in England during the eighteenth century.
Rejected symmetry for illusion of nature.

4. Central Park
New York’s Central Park - Promoted in 1844 by newspaper editor William Cullen Bryant.
Provide healthful open space.
Designed by Frederick Law Olmstead.
Became known as father of landscape architecture.
Became original commissioner of Yosemite park in California.

5. Yellowstone
First US area set aside to protect wild nature.
Authorized by President Abraham Lincoln.
Designated the first National Park by President Ulysses S. Grant in 1872.
Also first National Park in the world.
Guarded by the army until the National Park Service was founded in 1916.

7. North American Parks
US national park system has grown to 280,000 km2 in 376 parks, monuments, historic sites and recreation areas.
300 million visitors annually.
State and local parks occupy one-sixteenth as much area as national parks, yet have twice as many visitors.
Canada has 1,471 protected areas occupying about 150,000 km2.

8. Park Problems
Many parks have become islands of nature surrounded and threatened by destructive land uses stemming from growing human populations crowding park boundaries.
While number of visitors has increased by one-third over the past decade, park budgets have decreased by twenty-five percent.
Estimated $6-8 billion for overdue repairs and restoration alone.

9. Park Problems
Air Pollution
Acid Rain
Photochemical Smog
Mining and Oil Interests
Conversion of inholdings to incompatible uses.

10. Wildlife
Historically, parks killed “bad” animals (wolves) in favor of “good” animals (elk).
Critics contend this policy unbalanced ecosystems, and created a false illusion of a natural system.
Park Service now maintains a policy of “natural regulation.”
Bison populations
Hunted off park property
Brucellosis and domestic cattle

11. New Directions
Several parks have removed facilities that conflict with natural values.
Proposals exist to close a number of parks to tourists altogether to protect ecosystems.
Airsheds, watersheds, and animal territories and migration routes often extend far beyond official boundaries.
Biogeographical area must be managed as a unit.

12. New Parks and Monuments
One solution to congestion and overuse is to create new parks.
Grand Staircase-Escalante
Desert canyonlands in southern Utah.
Sits atop potentially trillions of dollars worth on natural resources.

13. World Parks and Preserves
North and Central America have the largest fraction (10% of their land area - 33% of total protected area), designated for protection of any continent.
Former Soviet Union only has 3% of total.
Currently about 300 world biosphere reserves in 75 countries.

14. Size and Design of Nature Preserves
Single Large or Several Small (SLOSS)
Ideally, a reserve should be large enough to support viable populations of endangered species, keep ecosystems intact, and isolate critical core areas from external forces.

15. Size and Design of Nature Preserves
For some species with small territories, several small isolated refuges can support viable populations.
But cannot support species requiring large amounts of space.
Corridors of natural habitat to allow movement of species from one area to another can help maintain genetic exchange in fragmented areas.

17. Conservation and Economic Development
Tropics are suffering the greatest destruction and species loss in the world.
Ecotourism can be more beneficial to many countries over the long-term than extractive industries.
Wildlife watching and outdoor recreation can be a welcome source of income for underdeveloped countries.

18. Indigenous Communities and Reserves
Areas chosen for nature preservation are often traditional lands of indigenous people.
1986 UNESCO initiated its Man and Biosphere Program (MAB).
Encourages division of protected areas into zones with different purposes.

19. WILDERNESS AREAS
A belief that wilderness is a source of wealth and the origin of strength, self-reliance, wisdom, and character, is deeply embedded in our culture.
Wilderness Act defined wilderness:
“An area of undeveloped land affected primarily by the forces of nature, where man is a visitor who does not remain…”

20. Wilderness Areas
Most of areas meeting these standards are in the Western US and Alaska.
If the USFS uses a “pure” interpretation of wilderness that excludes all lands with any history of roads or development, only about one-fourth of its 23 million ha of roadless areas qualify for protection.
Prolonged battle has been waged over de-facto wilderness areas.

21. Wilderness Areas
Arguments for preservation:
Refuge for endangered wildlife.
Solitude and primitive recreation.
Baseline for ecological research.
Area left in natural state.
For many people in developing countries, the idea of pristine wilderness is neither important or interesting.

22. WILDLIFE REFUGES
President Teddy Roosevelt established 51 national wildlife refuges.
Now 511 refuges encompassing 40 million ha representing every major biome in NA.
Refuge Management
Originally intended to be sanctuaries in which wildlife would be protected from hunting or other disturbances.
Hunting allowed in refuges.
Duck Stamps - Wetland protection

23. Wildlife Refuges
Over the years, a number of other uses have been allowed to operate within wildlife refuge boundaries.
Oil and Gas Drilling
Cattle Grazing
Motor-boating, Camping
Refuges also face threats from external sources - expanding human populations.
Water Pollution

24. WETLANDS
Wetland - Shallow water body or an area where the ground is wet long enough to support plants specialized to grow under saturated soil conditions.
Wetland Values
Highly productive habitat for wildlife.
Occupy 5% of land in US, but at least one-third of all endangered species use wetlands.

25. Wetland Values
Storage of flood waters.
Natural water purification systems.
Coastal Wetlands
Used by nearly two-thirds of all marine fish and shellfish.
Stabilize shorelines and help reduce flood damage.
Recreational Opportunities.

26. Wetland Destruction
Throughout much of history, wetlands have been considered disagreeable and useless.
US Swamp Lands Act (1850) - Allowed individuals to purchase swamps and marshes for as little as 10 cents per acre.
Until recently, governments encouraged wetland drainage.
Consequently, sixty-six percent of original wetlands were destroyed.

27. Wetlands Destruction

28. Wetland Destruction
Clean Water Act (1972) protected wetlands by requiring discharge permits.
Farm Bill (1985) blocked agricultural subsidies to farmers who drain or damage wetlands.
These laws are not necessarily effectively enforced.

29. Floods and Flood Control
Floodplains - Low lands along riverbanks, lakes, and coastlines subjected to periodic inundation.
Valuable due to rich soil, level topography, convenient water supply, access to shipping, and recreational potential.
River control systems have protected communities, but tend to channelize rivers, speeding flow of water and exacerbating flooding downstream.

30. Beaches, Barrier Islands, and Estuaries
Estuary - Bay or drowned valley where a river empties into the sea.
Mingling of fresh and saltwater brings in rich sediment - Very productive.
Where continental shelf is relatively shallow, river sediments form beaches, sandbars, and barrier islands parallel to shore.

31. Beaches, Barrier Islands, and Estuaries
Construction can damage vegetation holding sand in place.
Cities and property owners often spend millions of dollars to protect beaches from erosion.
Coastal Barrier Resources Act (1982) prohibited federal support, including flood insurance for development of sensitive areas.

32. Summary:
Parks and Nature Preserves
History
Problems
Size and Design
Wilderness Areas
Wildlife Refuges
Wetlands
Values
Destruction