MANAGEMENT OF WILDERNESS ENVIRONMENTS

1. MANAGEMENT OF WILDERNESS ENVIRONMENTS GEOG3320 GEOG3320 – Management of Wilderness Environments

2. Introduction: the idea of wilderness Lecture outline: • introduction to module • what is wilderness? • the idea of wilderness • spatial patterns: distribution and scale • workshop: your idea of wilderness GEOG3320 – Management of Wilderness Environments

3. 1. Introduction to the module Module outline: 1. The idea of wilderness 2. The importance of wilderness and wildland 3. Wilderness ecosystems 4. The concept of landscape 5. Recreational use of wilderness and wildland 6. Non-recreational use of wilderness and wildland 7. Wild futures? 8. Case studies 1: wild Britain 9. Case studies 2: re-wilding the uplands 10. Case studies 3: re-wilding the lowlands GEOG3320 – Management of Wilderness Environments

4. 1. Introduction to the module (cont’d) Form of teaching: Lectures 10 x 1 hour Workshops 10 x 1 hour Reading and preparation 10 x weekly Assessment: Examination 1 x 2 hours (67%) Group project: 1 x web poster (33%) GEOG3320 – Management of Wilderness Environments

5. 1. Introduction to the module (cont’d) • Workshops: • Discussion: sharing personal experiences of wilderness • Discussion: why is wilderness necessary for global survival? • Guest lecture: Mark Fisher on self-willed land • Video: "The Scottish Highlands - in search of wilderness" • Discussion: developing a wildland policy for England and Wales • Q&A session: web poster development • Guest lecture: Toby Aykroyd on the “Wild Britain” initiative • Discussion: developing a wilderness inventory for Britain • Guest lecture: Alan Watson-Featherstone on Trees for Life • Q&A session: module summary and exam practice GEOG3320 – Management of Wilderness Environments

6. 1. Introduction to the module (cont’d) Aims • introduction to wilderness and wilderness management • develop knowledge and understanding of wilderness: the idea, the reality, the issues and solutions Objectives • examine environmental problems and management issues • focus of human/environment interaction • discussion of issues raised in relation to UK • examine case study material with emphasis on UK, Europe and global examples GEOG3320 – Management of Wilderness Environments

7. Thought:Write down three attributes of wilderness GEOG3320 – Management of Wilderness Environments

8. 2. What is wilderness? Definition: Wild, wild, a. Living in a state of nature; not tame; not cultivated; desert; stormy; furious; frolicsome; rash; extravagant; excited. -n. An uncultivated tract. Wilderness, Wil’der-nes, n. A desert; waste; irregular collection of things. Origins: • early teutonic & Norse languages • Anglo-Saxon • Biblical GEOG3320 – Management of Wilderness Environments

9. 2. What is wilderness (cont’d) Formal definition: • US Forestry Service (1920s & 1930s) Roadless, Primitive, Natural. • Outdoor Recreation Resources Review Committee (1962): areas over 100,000 acres “containing no roads usable by the public” and showing “no significant ecological disturbance from on-site human activity” GEOG3320 – Management of Wilderness Environments

10. 2. What is wilderness (cont’d) The Wilderness Act (1964): “a wilderness, in contrast with those areas where man and his own works dominate the landscape, is hereby recognised as an area where the earth and its community of life are untrammelled by man, where man himself is a visitor who does not remain.” a wilderness should retain “its primeval character and influence” and should be managed in such a way that it “appears to have been affected primarily by the forces of nature.” GEOG3320 – Management of Wilderness Environments

11. Question: What are the four main qualities of “wilderness”? GEOG3320 – Management of Wilderness Environments

12. 3. The idea of wilderness • Formal definition is crucial but difficult • Sociological definition is easier Leopold (1921): “a continuous stretch of country preserved in its natural state, open to lawful hunting and fishing, devoid of roads, artificial trails, cottages and other works of man.” Nash (1982): “to accept as wilderness those places people call wilderness” GEOG3320 – Management of Wilderness Environments

13. 3. The idea of wilderness (cont’d) Problems with definitions: • Formal: • too rigid, lacking flexibility • wilderness is not a formal thing • Sociological: • perhaps too subjective • based on the individual • Romantic: • exaggeratednotions of wild beauty • Poetic and artistic licence GEOG3320 – Management of Wilderness Environments

14. 3. The idea of wilderness (cont’d) The wilderness experience: • Experience and preconceptions help define wilderness • Mood and feeling • Nash (1982): “One man’s wilderness may be another’s roadside picnic ground.” • Three conditions affecting experience: 1. natural 2. social 3. managerial GEOG3320 – Management of Wilderness Environments

15. 3. The idea of wilderness (cont’d) • Natural influences: • human impact • wildlife • ecological and physical processes • Social influences: • behavioural • solitude • Managerial influences: • quality • extent GEOG3320 – Management of Wilderness Environments

16. Thought:What is your own “purest” wilderness experience? GEOG3320 – Management of Wilderness Environments

17. 4. Spatial patterns • Where is wilderness? • anywhere where wilderness conditions persist • de jure or de facto wilderness? • Wild(er)ness as a state of mind • 34% of world land area remains as wilderness on following basis: • areas greater than 1 million acres (404,700ha) • essentially roadless • unaffected by permanent habilitation or structures GEOG3320 – Management of Wilderness Environments

18. Question:Name some of the wildest areas of the world GEOG3320 – Management of Wilderness Environments

19. 4. Spatial patterns (cont’d) • Global distribution of wilderness: • McCloskey and Spalding (1989) • Lesslie (unpublished) • Sanderson et al. (2002) “The Human Footprint” • The US distribution of wilderness: • The 1964 Wilderness Act and the National Wilderness Preservation System (NWPS) GEOG3320 – Management of Wilderness Environments

20. 4. Spatial patterns (cont’d) • Formally protected wilderness areas: • USA and Canada • Australia and New Zealand • South Africa and Zimbabwe • Scandinavia • International wilderness areas: • World Heritage sites • Biosphere Reserves • Ramsar sites GEOG3320 – Management of Wilderness Environments

21. 4. Spatial patterns (cont’d) Attributes of ‘wildness’: • naturalness and natural integrity • opportunity for solitude • opportunity for wilderness recreation • aesthetic/scenic quality • cultural features • bio-physical attributes GEOG3320 – Management of Wilderness Environments

22. Question:How do you measure these attributes? • Naturalness • Solitude • Opportunity for recreation • Aesthetic/scenic quality • Cultural features • Bio-physical attributes GEOG3320 – Management of Wilderness Environments

23. 4. Spatial patterns (cont’d) • Naturalness and natural integrity • presence/absence of human influence • scale of developments • Solitude • size of area • topographic and vegetative screening • distance from perimeter • human intrusion • Recreational opportunity • absence of facilities • challenge • diversity GEOG3320 – Management of Wilderness Environments

24. 4. Spatial patterns (cont’d) • Aesthetic quality • landscape diversity: relief and view distance • physical features (e.g. water, glaciers, etc.) • vegetation • human developments • Cultural value • ancient remains • Bio-physical • flora and fauna (especially if rare) • geological and geomorphological features GEOG3320 – Management of Wilderness Environments

25. 4. Spatial patterns (cont’d) • The Wilderness continuum concept • A range of conditions from the “paved to the primeval” (Nash, 1982) • A range of wilderness types and environments • Wilderness is a relative concept depending strongly on experience and geographical location GEOG3320 – Management of Wilderness Environments

26. Thought:Is there any wilderness left in Britain? GEOG3320 – Management of Wilderness Environments

27. 4. Spatial patterns (cont’d) • Wilderness in the UK? • Thousands of years of change as result of human activity • Secondary wilderness • Remote areas • Example: ‘Cleared’ areas of Scotland • Traditional view as wastelands resulting from English occupation and associated ‘Clearances’ • Contemporary view as areas offering wilderness experience • Knoydart, Cairngorm, Letterewe Forest GEOG3320 – Management of Wilderness Environments

28. Final thought:How important is spatial scale in determining the significance of wilderness or wildland? GEOG3320 – Management of Wilderness Environments

29. Reading Hendee, J.C et al (1990) Wilderness Management. Fulcrum Publishing, Colorado. [Chapter 1] Nash, R (1982) Wilderness and the American mind. Yale University Press, New Haven. Oeschlaeger, M (1991) The idea of wilderness: from prehistory to the age of ecology. Yale University Press, New Haven. GEOG3320 – Management of Wilderness Environments

30. Workshop Discussion: How does our idea of wilderness relate to personal experience? • What are your ideas as to what wilderness is? • Where is the wildest place you have been? • What things made it feel wild to you? • How has this experience shaped your idea of wilderness? GEOG3320 – Management of Wilderness Environments

31. Task • Describe your wildest experience in words and pictures • Use the following headings: • where is the wildest place you have been? • what things made it feel wild to you? • how has this experience shaped your idea of wilderness? • Include a personal photograph: • digital (maximum 640x480 resolution) • use suitable alternative from web if you don’t have one of your own to hand • Submit as Word document using supplied template by Monday GEOG3320 – Management of Wilderness Environments

32. Next week... 2.The importance of wilderness and wildland • Experiencing wilderness • Wilderness values • Sustainability • Workshop: Why is wilderness necessary for global survival GEOG3320 – Management of Wilderness Environments