What Does the Chattooga Conservation Plan Do, And Not Do?

The ultimate objective of conservation planning is to protect endangered and threatened species from becoming extinct, rare species from becoming endangered, and native diversity from being diminished. Ideally, specific targets for key elements of biodiversity (e.g., particular species and populations) are identified and prioritized for conservation, and then monitored to measure the success of the plan. In this way, selected species and communities are used as indicators of the viability of habitat and landscape processes present within the region of interest. The focus on "target elements" has its problems, however, in that records of "element" occurrence typically don't recognize the needs of many organisms. For example, invertebrates and other "primary producers," and wide-ranging, area-sensitive species are generally ignored in favor of conspicuous, more easily monitored species such as flowering plants. In addition, using specific "target elements" as a measure of success presents a significant challenge if the habitat suitabilities of multiple rare species over many sites are to be statistically powerful.

In the Chattooga watershed, basic information on population demography and viability for many species of interest was lacking. Developing a plan based on target elements was not practical for this area (although ecological monitoring planned for some areas will provide an indication of the plan's success). The Chattooga Conservation Plan focuses on unfragmented forests, providing habitat for interior forest species in decline such as black bear, songbirds, salamanders and others, interconnected by corridors--an approach oriented toward ecosystems rather than species. It recognizes what Franklin (1993) calls "the fundamental impossibility of dealing with more than a small fraction of existing diversity on a species basis." We do not contend that species-based efforts should be abandoned, but rather that the immense and urgent work of preserving as much biological diversity as possible presents certain limitations. The logic behind this ecosystem approach is discussed further in the separate section below.

Collection of baseline data on wildlife in several study areas is planned, however. Timber sales approved in the Tuckaluge roadless wild area provide an opportunity for controlled study of the effects of logging. Plans for monitoring water quality, estimating population viability for selected species, and assessing the impact of recreation are also underway. The collaborators of this project welcome input from local citizens, scientists and agency personnel in developing plans for assessment and monitoring.

The Chattooga Conservation Plan proposes three special management areas in the Chattooga River watershed: (1) Core/Wildlife Corridor Protection Areas, (2) Cooperative Ecological Restoration Management Areas; and (3) Sustainable Economic Development Management Areas. The location of these management area designations within the watershed considers three elements: geography (naturally-occuring hydrological units), ownership (location of already protected lands, and their surroundings), and widely accepted principles of conservation biology and watershed management (designing of reserves featuring core, corridor and buffer zones). Management actions prescribed in the watershed's three LRMPs should be coordinated with one another, and be consistent with the Plan's recommended activities in each area (see section IV). The management area designations proposed here can serve as a guide to policy makers and private land owners for specific land management activities, and for the development of incentives for land stewardship to encourage the implementation of conservation management.

The Chattooga Conservation Plan places few restrictions on activities in the Core/Wildlife Corridor Protection Areas which already support legal hunting and fishing and limited trail development. In areas between Core/Wildlife Corridor Protection Areas and more densely populated areas in the watershed (including Clayton and Mountain City in Georgia, Highlands and Cashiers in North Carolina, and Whetstone and Long Creek in South Carolina), Cooperative Ecological Restoration Management Areas are proposed. The Plan encourages these restoration areas to support limited roads, forest, stream and wildlife restoration projects including selective logging, recreational development such as campgrounds and picnic areas, as well as legal hunting and fishing. Finally, in areas of the watershed towns themselves, the Chattooga Conservation Plan proposes Sustainable Economic Development Areas to encourage the development of sustainable and local economic structures. Specific activities promoted for each of these areas are outlined in section IV.

The Chattooga Conservation Plan calls for no heavy-handed regulatory regimes to affect private land owners in the watershed area. Instead, financial incentives (such as tax relief for conservation easements) and other voluntary agreements will benefit landowners who are willing and interested. The majority of private lands lie within the Cooperative Ecological Restoration Management Areas. Owners would have the opportunity to benefit from future educational programs focusing on ways to maintain and enhance their land's natural capital assets. The few private land owners within the Core/Wildlife Corridor Protection Areas would be encouraged to consider the conservation benefits and economic viability of participation in the Chattooga River Watershed Coalition's Private Lands Forest Stewardship Initiative. In addition, we are presently seeking opportunities for environmentally responsible and socially beneficial economic development projects within the watershed towns themselves, such as comprehensive county planning, "greenway" development for enhanced visitation to local businesses, and incentives for sustainable agriculture and local markets development.

In summary, this plan is a first-cut attempt at proposing a more environmentally-friendly forest plan alternative. Baseline data collection, long-term monitoring, and economic development are essential components of a long-term plan to maintain and manage the native forest ecosystems of the Chattooga watershed.

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