Management Guidelines For Forestry and Resource-Based Tourism

Management Guidelines for Forestry and Resource-Based Tourism – ADVICE TO PRACTITIONERStools and approaches for every value. Local circumstanceswill determine the appropriate range of toolsand techniques to utilise.Any operational prescription which proposes to reservean area from forest harvesting, when coupled withactivities which would also prevent natural disturbance(i.e. active fire suppression), should be made with theknowledge of potential future impacts on the naturalforest condition.Similarly, any operational prescription which proposesselection harvest or partial removal should only bemade after evaluation of the characteristics of the foresttrees on the site and an analysis of potential futurevegetative conditions. Certainly these are effective prescriptionsin some situations.The plant and wildlife species have evolved to respondto natural cycles of disturbance, which creates theoverall forest structure.Solutions proposed by individual stakeholders or smallgroups of stakeholders must ultimately be shown to beconsiderate of issues such as habitat, diversity, ecosystemrelationships and soil/site capabilities.Forested ecosystems are very complex relationships ofsoil, moisture, nutrients, bacteria, fungi, plants, invertebratewildlife species and vertebrate wildlife species.These natural complexities are further complicated byour desire to achieve economic and social objectivesfrom the use of our forested and aquatic areas.Vegetation communities will change on every site overtime. It is necessary to consider an overall strategy tomanage this change as you consider the operationalprescriptions that will be used within a forest managementplan.2.1.3 Contacts And CommunicationsThe preparation of a forest management plan requiresa significant commitment of resources to ensuresuccessful completion.In simplified terms the tasks include:• Assembling a multi-disciplinary planning team andlocal citizen committee;• Assembling data and background information(i.e. forest stand information, resource values);• Identifying and verifying tourism values ;• Modelling for future tree and wildlife species;• Analysis of management alternatives;• Identifying potential forest operating areas;• Identifying and meeting with stakeholders;• Developing prescriptions to protect values;• Documentation of decisions and writing plandetails;• Preparation of maps and display material;• Public consultation.The plan author and other members of the planningteam must identify, early in the plan preparation period,the resource values, the values of stakeholders, the stakeholderidentities, preferred and optional operating areas.All participants must recognize that there are timing andavailability constraints upon both resource-based tourismoperators (busy seasons, marketing shows, etc.) and planauthors (information centres, data updates). It is oftennecessary to establish individual strategies to maintaineffective communications between participants.The plan author and other members of the planningteam must also learn about the factors that influenceguests of the resource-based tourism facilities whenselecting a holiday package.In the development of a RSA the plan author willcontact each resource-based tourism stakeholder in thelicence area to begin discussions that will allow:• A sharing of information;• The establishment of a working relationship;• The identification of values of each party;• A proactive approach to resolving issues that arise;• Maximum flexibility to plan operations and prescriptionsto minimize and mitigate impacts;• Avoidance of "last minute" issues that delay planproduction and cause conflict with stakeholders.Participation in the planning process also requiresa significant commitment from other resourcestakeholders.7