Author: John Edward MitchellPublisher:
ISBN:
Category : Range management
Languages : en
Pages : 98
Book Description
Rangeland Resource Trends in the United States
Author: John Edward MitchellPublisher:
ISBN:
Category : Range management
Languages : en
Pages : 98
Book Description
Rangeland Resource Trends in the United States
Author: John E. MitchellRangeland Resource Trends in the United States: a Technical Document Supporting the 2000 USDA Forest Service RPA Assessment
Author: John E. MitchellPublisher: Createspace Independent Pub
ISBN: 9781480146884
Category : Nature
Languages : en
Pages : 86
Book Description
The status of rangelands in the United States has been of continual interest to the Congress and American people since the western states were occupied by Europeans. Until 1854, the issue for the federal government was one of acquisition. A decade later, however, the Homestead Act of 1862 marked the beginning of an era of land disposal. This western expansion for minerals, forage, and timber was considered our country's “manifest destiny” (Clawson 1983).During the 100 years following the Civil War, U.S. rangelands were almost exclusively used for livestock grazing. During the 1880's, the number of cattle in the 17 western states proliferated almost six-fold from 4.5 million head to nearly 27 million head (Poling 1991). This was the high water mark of the prominent cattle barons financed by European capital (Mitchell and Hart 1987). At the same time, the number of domestic sheep was also multiplying—from less than one million head in 1850 to 20 million head by 1890 (Stoddart and Smith 1943). The first national problem involving rangelands originated from the joint effects of land disposal and rapidly increasing livestock numbers. Large cumulative areas were awarded for railroad expansion and to states when they jointed the Union. Counting Alaska, 17 percent of the total state land area of the 30 states receiving land grants was obtained from the federal government; for the 16 western states (Texas received no land), the figure was more than 91 million acres or almost 10 percent of their cumulative area (Public Land Law Review Commission 1970). The Homestead Act of 1862 was followed by the Enlarged Homestead Act of 1909 (which allowed settlers to claim 320 acres) and the Stock Raising Homestead Act of 1916 (which provided 640 acres). In total, about 285 million acres were claimed under the Homestead Acts (Ross 1984). All lands containing water and good grazing were occupied during this era. Even a section of land was insufficient for homesteaders to make a living through-out much of the West, however, so grazing started on the public domain (Carpenter 1981). This Range Assessment, like those preceding it, addresses contemporary topics while continuing a baseline appraisal of the central theme for all range assessments: the demand for and supply of forage in the United States. It examines both anticipated supply and future demand from a different perspective, however. The U.S. Department of Agriculture no longer maintains a model system with a 50-year outlook like that used in the previous two rangeland assessments. Therefore, an alternative approach, scenario analysis, was selected to project forage demand, and is described in a separate report (Van Tassell et al. 1999). Supply projections are still tied to land use changes, but increases in rangeland resulting from conservation programs are no longer anticipated (Chapter 2: Extent of Rangelands). Advances in technology are not expected to significantly change the overall forage supply (Chapter 4: Maintenance of Productive Capacity), although this opinion is not unanimous. Van Tassell et al. (1999) concluded that changes in forage production technology would enhance the use of some grazing lands, especially in the South. Four Assessment Regions are used to describe data and other information on U.S. rangelands: the Pacific Coast (PC), Rocky Mountain (RM), Northern (NO), and Southern (SO).
2000 RPA Assessment of Forest and Range Lands
Author: Wildlife Resource Trends in the United States
Author: Curtis H. FlatherPublisher:
ISBN:
Category : Government publications
Languages : en
Pages : 88
Book Description
This report documents trends in wildlife resources for the nation as required by the Renewable Resources Planning Act (RPA) of 1974. The report focuses on recent historical trends in wildlife as one indicator of ecosystem health across the United States and updates wildlife trends presented in previous RPA Assessments. The report also shows short- and long-term projections of some wildlife for documenting expected trajectories of resource change. National trends in four attributes of wildlife resources, including habitat, population, harvest, and users, set the context within which region-specific trends are presented. The data for this analysis came largely from information that currently exists within Forest Service and cooperating state and federal agency inventories. The report concludes with a synthesis of these trends as they relate to the concept of resource health. We highlight those trends that appear to indicate favorable, uncertain, or degraded resource conditions in an attempt to identify resource situations that warrant policy and management attention.
Rangeland Resource Trends in the United States
Author: John Edward MitchellPublisher:
ISBN:
Category : Forests and forestry
Languages : en
Pages : 92
Book Description
Introduction to Forests and Renewable Resources
Author: Chad P. DawsonPublisher: Waveland Press
ISBN: 1478640073
Category : Technology & Engineering
Languages : en
Pages : 504
Book Description
The introductory course in natural resources is broader and more diverse than ever. Today's students need to know how to manage forest, wildlife, watershed, and range resources in a variety of environments and serving the needs of myriad stakeholders. To that end, Chad Dawson has built on the foundation established by him and the late John Hendee to bring Introduction to Forests and Renewable Resources thoroughly up to date. The Ninth Edition has been reorganized to better address content—for example, policy and the differences between managing federal, state, and private land—that applies to all resources. While forests continue to be emphasized, more coverage is provided to other resources and to achieving management goals for multiple resources when considering topics like fire and recreation.
General Technical Report RMRS
Author: General Technical Report PNW-GTR
Author: Publisher:
ISBN:
Category : Forests and forestry
Languages : en
Pages : 624
Book Description
Indicators of Rangeland Health and Functionality in the Intermountain West
Author: Renee O'BrienPublisher:
ISBN:
Category : Ecosystem health
Languages : en
Pages : 20
Book Description
Rangelands comprise about 42 percent of the land area of the United States and provide vital land functions such as watershed, multiple-use, recreation, and other amenities. Currently, we do not know the status and trends of many of our nation's rangelands, and consistent protocols for describing rangeland system dynamics across land management agencies are lacking. Various Federal land management agencies have responsibility for rangeland inventory and assessments that characterize the health of the nation's rangelands. Many efforts have been initiated to standardize an approach to large-scale monitoring and assessment of rangelands, but none are universally accepted. This paper describes four rangeland health indicators and interpretation criteria that can be used to characterize rangeland health and functionality. The four indicators tested in this study-noxious weeds, ground cover, species composition, and shrub cover-proved to be viable indicators of rangeland health and functionality. The paper recommends that these indicators can be used at many scales, from the site level for local planning, to State and national levels for strategic planning.