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EOS, TRANSACTIONS AMERICAN GEOPHYSICAL UNION, VOL. 89, NO. 37, doi:10.1029/2008EO370004, 2008

Land Management in the Anthropocene: Is History Still Relevant?

Hugh D. Safford

Forest Service, U.S. Department of Agriculture, Vallejo, Calif., USA


Julio L. Betancourt

U.S. Geological Survey, Tucson, Ariz., USA


Gregory D. Hayward

Forest Service, U.S. Department of Agriculture, Denver, Colo., USA


John A. Wiens

The Nature Conservancy, Arlington, Va., USA


Claudia M. Regan

Forest Service, U.S. Department of Agriculture, Denver, Colo., USA


Abstract

Incorporating Historical Ecology and Climate Change Into Land Management; Lansdowne, Virginia, 22–25 April 2008; Ecological restoration, conservation, and land management are often based on comparisons with reference sites or time periods, which are assumed to represent “natural” or “properly functioning” conditions. Such reference conditions can provide a vision of the conservation or management goal and a means to measure progress toward that vision. Although historical ecology has been used successfully to guide resource management in many parts of the world, the continuing relevance of history is now being questioned. Some scientists doubt that lessons from the past can inform management in what may be a dramatically different future, given profound climate change, accelerated land use, and an onslaught of plant and animal invasions.

Published 9 September 2008.

Index Terms: 6309 Policy Sciences: Decision making under uncertainty; 1630 Global Change: Impacts of global change (1225); 1616 Global Change: Climate variability (1635, 3305, 3309, 4215, 4513).

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Citation: Safford, H. D., J. L. Betancourt, G. D. Hayward, J. A. Wiens, and C. M. Regan (2008), Land Management in the Anthropocene: Is History Still Relevant?, Eos Trans. AGU, 89(37), doi:10.1029/2008EO370004.