The purpose of this section is for the county to express its desired future condition for resource management. This should be done in terms of the broad issues identified in the previous, "existing management," section.
This section addresses the following:
Desired Future Management Condition
Steps & Considerations in Compiling the Desired Management Setting
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-Brian Cottam, GOPB
Desired Resource Management Setting
Desired Future Management Condition
County plans need to describe the management setting and conditions that “should” exist according to the county's perspective. Special emphasis should be given to the role and level of involvement the county desires in planning and decision making activities of the federal agencies.
The statements developed in this section will establish the context for monitoring the management setting, particularly progress toward the desired setting.. It is important to remember that the more specific resource elements and specific sites will be addressed separately in the CRMP.
Steps & Considerations in Compiling the Desired Future Management Setting
Desired future condition statements should be tied directly to the existing management condition statements, and should be expressed in a future tense.
Sample statements can be found in the Counterfeit County example plan, but actual statements should be formulated by county officials and administration only after a careful assessment of administrative resources (e.g., personnel, time, funds, expertise, etc.) and priorities.
When formulating a county's desired future management setting, a county should consider the following:
- “Cooperation”: The term cooperation is used in a number of contexts, but it is generally accepted that a cooperative process is one that involves a combining of efforts — the opposite of working in isolation. A county that desires to work cooperatively with land management agency would do so from the beginning of the project, and would be committed to assisting until a management decision or plan is completed. Counties should keep in mind that cooperative planning is not collaborative - or shared - decision-making. Federal land management entities are constrained by many regulations and rules that can't be compromised for the sake of collaboration and shared authority.
- “Cooperating Agency Status”: A county desiring a greater degree of involvement in public land planning will likely be asked to enter into an agreement that grants them cooperating agency status. Counties should be aware that this is both an opportunity and a responsibility to be involved in the process. Federal agencies are developing guidelines that clarify roles of both the agency and co-operator in these special-status relationships.
- “Adaptive Management”: Adaptive management is characterized by natural resource management that monitors the results of policies and/or management actions, and integrates this new learning, adapting policy and management actions as necessary. It involves the integration of multiple knowledges (scientific, local, and indigenous) in the exploration of a management "problem," in management planning and determining management objectives, and in implementation actions.
