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Biome Based Protection Demonstration Project |
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Abstract. According to the National Park Service,
investigations conducted at the Shenandoah National Park (SHEN) showed that
existing protective techniques, on their own, were not able to detect and
prevent the decline of important natural resources in the park. This
substantiated earlier assessments showing similar protective inadequacies at
the Great Smokey Mountain National Park (GSM). This pilot project, covering
SHEN, GSM and the Blue Ridge Parkway (BLRI) is using scientific methods to
support law enforcement operations for the protection of high-risk plant
species. If this approach proves useful in these Appalachian parks, the
approach could be transferred to other resources in other regions. Our
component of the project is establishing baseline information on four key
species (i.e., ginseng, black cohosh, bloodroot, galax), which includes
basic biology, habitat requirements, identifying characteristics,
distribution and human utilization. We are identifying supply and demand
factors that effect exploitation in the parks and evaluating available
information from the three parks relevant to changes in resource status.
Last Modified:
06/13/07
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