Recreation Planning Resources

This web page provides information, tools, and research on a variety of topics related to planning for sustainable recreation outcomes. Please contact the National Recreation Planner if you have questions.

Benefits and Ecosystem Services

• The flexible recreationist: The adaptability of outdoor recreation benefits to non-ideal outdoor recreation settings (.pdf, 706 KB)
• Changing Relationships with Wilderness (.pdf, 103 KB)
• Addressing Ecosystem Services and Social and Economic Sustainability in Forest Plan Components and Environmental Analysis (.pdf, 397 KB)
• Evaluating Ecosystem Services as Management Outcomes in National Forest and Grassland Planning Assessments PNW-GTR-968 (.pdf, 1.09 MB)
• Links to Tools and information: Benefits and Ecosystem Services (.pdf, 183 KB)
• Federal Outdoor Recreation Trends: Effects on Economic Opportunities PNW-GTR-968 (.pdf, 4.49 MB)
• Recreation Economic Values for Estimating Outdoor Recreation Economic Benefits From the National Forest System PNW-GTR-957 (.pdf, 2.32 MB)
• Recreation Economy Resource Guide (.pdf, 633 KB)
• How to Develop Social, Cultural, and Economic Forest Plan Components (.pdf, 603 KB)
• Community Based Research for an Urban Recreation Application of Benefits-Based Management (.pdf, 47 KB)

Monitoring

• Forest Resources of the United States, 2017 (.pdf, 15.7 MB)
• Inventory, Monitoring ,and Assessment Strategy (.pdf, 573 KB)
• Monitoring Guidebook: Evaluating Effectiveness of Visitor Use Management, Edition 1 (.pdf, 3.14 MB)
• Monitoring Guidebook: Evaluating Effectiveness of Visitor Use Management, Primer (.pdf, 2.16 MB)
• Monitoring Links (.pdf, 117 KB)
• Information Needs Assessment: National Management Questions (.docx, 3.80 MB)
• Sustainable Recreation Information Needs Assessment Recommendations to inform the National Inventory, Monitoring, Assessment Strategy (.pdf, 688 KB)

Place Based Planning

• Place-Based Planning:Innovations and Applications From Four Western Forests (.pdf, 2.76 MB)
• Making Conservation a Part of Placemaking
• New Approaches to Forest Planning: Inventorying and Mapping Place Values in the Pacific Northwest Region (.pdf, 2.38 MB)
• The relationship between place attachment and landscape values: Toward mapping place attachment (.pdf, 859 KB)
• Place and Place-based Planning (.pdf, 102 KB)
• SENSE OF PLACE: Public Use Planning – US Partnership for Protected Area Planning (.pdf, 4.38 MB)

Public Engagement

• A Need for Culturally Responsive Approaches (.pdf, 53 MB)
• A Citizen's Guide to National Forest Planning (.pdf, 39.7 MB)
• A Citizen's Guide for Participating in Forest Planning (.pdf, 309 MB)
• Culturally Responsive Program Planning (.pdf, 469 KB)
• Understanding Your Opportunities for Participating in the Forest Service Planning Process (.pdf, 12.9 MB)
• Public Engagement Update, February 2019 (.pdf, 323 KB)
• Protocol for Social Vulnerability Assessment to Support National Forest Planning and Management: A Technical Manual for Engaging the Public to Understand Ecosystem Service Trade-offs and Drivers of Change (.pdf, 10.7 MB)
• A Reference Guide to Forest Service Public Engagement in a Virtual Environment (.pdf, 752 KB)
• Public Engagement Reference Guide, FS-1117 (.pdf, 8.59 MB)
• Public Engagement Training Catalog (.pdf, 437 KB)
• Recreation Equity: Is the Forest Service Serving Its Diverse Publics? (.pdf, 4.71 MB)
• Elevating Outdoor Recreation Together (.pdf, 3.47 MB)

Recreation and Climate Change

• Climate Change Adaptation Strategies and Approaches for Outdoor Recreation (.pdf, 1.22 MB)
• Climate Change and Social Vulnerability (.pdf, 1.59 MB)
• The Effects of Climate Change on Outdoor Recreation in the United States (.pdf, 6.56 MB)
  • Recorded Webinar
• Regional Example Integrating Recreation with R1 Climate Change Strategy (.pdf, 1.35 MB)
• Socioeconomic Vulnerability to Ecological Changes to National Forests and Grasslands in the Southwest, RMRS-GTR-383 (.pdf, 10.4 MB)
• Potential Effects of Climate on Downhill Skiing and Snowboarding Demand and Value at U.S. National Forests (.pdf, 855 KB)

Emerging Recreation Science

• The Relationship between Amount of Visitor Use and Environmental Impacts by David N. Cole
• The Relationship between Amount of Visitor Use and Social Impacts by Stewart Allen
• Impacts to Wildlife: Managing Visitors and Resources to Protect Wildlife by Jeffrey L. Marion
• Sustaining wildlife with recreation on public lands: a synthesis of research findings, management practices, and research needs
  Miller, Anna B.; King, David; Rowland, Mary; Chapman, Joshua; Tomosy, Monica; Liang, Christina; Abelson, Eric S.; Truex, Richard L. 2020. Sustaining wildlife with recreation on public lands: a synthesis of research findings, management practices, and research needs. Gen. Tech. Rep. PNW-GTR-993. Portland, OR: U.S. Department of Agriculture, Forest Service, Pacific Northwest Research Station. 226 p.
• A research strategy for enhancing sustainable recreation and tourism on public lands.
  Cerveny, Lee K.; Derrien, Monika M.; Miller, Anna B., eds. 2020. A research strategy for enhancing sustainable recreation and tourism on public lands. Gen. Tech. Rep. PNW-GTR-991. Portland, OR: U.S. Department of Agriculture, Forest Service, Pacific Northwest Research Station. 102 p.
• Igniting research for outdoor recreation: linking science, policy, and action.
  Selin, Steven; Cerveny, Lee K.; Blahna, Dale J.; Miller, Anna B., eds. 2020. Igniting research for outdoor recreation: linking science, policy, and action. Gen. Tech. Rep. PNW-GTR-987. Portland, OR: U.S. Department of Agriculture, Forest Service, Pacific Northwest Research Station. 257 p.

Recreation in Land Management Planning

2012 Planning Rule and Directives

• Final Programmatic Environmental Impact Statement (FEIS) (.pdf, 5.49 MB)
• Requirements Cheat Sheet by Topic - March 2015 (.pdf, 495 KB)
• Final Rule - April 9, 2012 (.pdf, 206 KB)
• Final Rule, Preamble - April 9, 2012 (.pdf, 2.25 MB)
• Forest Service Handbook (FSH) 1909.12 - LAND MANAGEMENT PLANNING HANDBOOK
• Forest Service Manual (FSM) 1920 – LAND MANAGEMENT PLANNING (.doc, 316 KB)
• Forest Service Manual (FSM) 2310, Amended 2020 - Sustainable Recreation Planning (.docx, 75 KB)

Tools and Examples

• CHEAT SHEET, Recreation-Related Direction in FSM 1920 and FSH 1909.12 (.pdf, 333 KB)
• Examples of Forest-wide Plan Components by ROS Class (.docx, 23.67 KB)
• Evaluating Ecosystem Services as Management Outcomes in National Forest and Grassland Planning Assessments, PNW-GTR-968 (.pdf, 1.09 MB)
• CHEAT SHEET, 2012 Planning Rule Direction Related to Recreation Programs (.docx, 29.8 KB)
• Technical Guide: How to Develop Social, Cultural, and Economic Forest Plan Components (.pdf, 603 KB)

Training Modules - Sustainable Recreation in LMPs

• Introduction and Overview (.pptx, 79 MB)
• Module 1: History and Foundational Principles of Sustainable Recreation (.pptx, 117 MB)
• Module 2: Land Management Plans (LMPs) (.pptx, 23 MB)
• Module 3: Sustainable Recreation in a LMP (.pptx, 39 MB)
• Module 4: Gathering and Updating Relevant Recreation Data (.pptx, 63 MB)
• Module 4a: ROS Short Course (.pptx, 90 MB)
• Module 4b: SMS Short Course (.pptx, 191 MB)
• Module 4c: NVUM Short Course (.pptx, 122 MB)
• Module 5: Assessment (.pptx, 109 MB)
• Module 6: Part I - Plan Development (.pptx, 74 MB)
• Module 6: Part II - FEIS (.pptx, 25 MB)
• Module 7: Implementation (.pptx, 44 MB)
• Module 8: Monitoring (.pptx, 29 MB)

Recreation Opportunity Spectrum (ROS)

• Definitions by ROS Class (.docx, 14.6 KB)
• Examples of ROS Related Plan Components (.docx, 22.4 KB)
• Mapping Protocol for Existing Summer ROS (.docx, 6.5 MB)
• Mapping Protocol for Existing Winter ROS (.docx, 2.7 MB)
• Setting Characteristics Table (.docx, 19.7 KB)

Scenery Management

Implementation Guide Examples

• R5 SMS Implementation Process (.docx, 472 KB)
• Coronado National Forest Scenery Management System Implementation Guide (.pdf, 3.29 MB)
• IPNF Implementation Guide for Scenery Management (.pdf, 7.76 MB)
• Implementation Guide for Scenery Management under the Kootenai National Forest 2015 Land Management Plan (.pdf, 4.13 MB)
• Restoring and Maintaining a Resilient Scenic Landscape: Ecological (Landscape Ecology) Context for Scenery Management (.docx, 55.66 MB)

Research

• Assessing Forest Scenic Beauty Impacts of Insects and Management, FHTET 98-08 (.pdf, 163 KB)
• Beyond Sustaining Beauty, Elizabeth K. Meyer (.pdf, 10.7 MB)
• Combining Silviculture and Landscape Architecture to Enhance the Roadside View, PSW-RP-235 (.pdf, 4.63 MB)
• An Ecological Aesthetic for Forest Landscape Management, Landscape Journal. 18(1): 54-64 (.pdf, 1.00 MB)
• Forests and Landscapes: Linking Ecology, Sustainability and Aesthetics (.pdf, 576 KB)
• Forest Aesthetic Indicators in Sustainable Forest Management Standards (.pdf, 237 KB)
• Social Science to Improve Fuels Management: A Synthesis of Research on Aesthetics and Fuels Management, GTR-NC-261 (.pdf, 6.38 MB)
• Whither Scenic Beauty? Visual Landscape Quality Assessment in the 21st Century

Scenery Compensation

• Scenery Compensation Approach, Angeles National Forest 2020 (.pptx, 9.98 MB)
• Establishment of Loss of Scenic Integrity Caused by Non-Conforming Project Features (.pdf, 546 KB)

SMS Manual and Handbook

• Forest Service Manual, Chapter 2380 - Landscape Management (.doc, 120 KB)
• Landscape Aesthetics: A Handbook for Scenery Management, AH-701 (.pdf, 9.77 MB)
• Vintage - National Forest Landscape Management, Agricultural Handbook 434
  • Volume 1 - General Concepts
  • Volume 2 - Chapter 1, Big Eye Book (.pdf, 3.05 MB)
  • Volume 2 - Chapter 2, Utilities (.pdf, 21.7 MB)
  • Volume 2 - Chapter 3, Range (.pdf, 9.15 MB)
  • Volume 2 - Chapter 4, Roads (.pdf, 13.8 MB)
  • Volume 2 - Chapter 5, Timber (.pdf, 13.6 MB)
  • Volume 2 - Chapter 6, Fire (.pdf, 5.33 MB)
  • Volume 2 - Chapter 7, Ski Areas (.pdf, 3.96 MB)
  • Volume 2 - Chapter 8, Recreation (.pdf, 6.6 MB)

Tools and Best Practices

• Appendix J, Recommended SMS Refinements (.pdf, 1.21 MB)
• BLM Oil and Gas Best Management Practices, Participant Notebook, Field Reference Guide (.pdf, 4.78 MB)
• Scenic Resource Mitigation Menu & Design Considerations For Vegetation Treatments (.pdf, 481 KB)
• 3-D Visual Overlay Modeling Using Google Earth, ArcMap and Photoshop Software (.pdf, 3.48 MB)

Sustainable Recreation Strategies

• National Sustainable Recreation Framework (.pdf, 131KB)
• The Northern Region Sustainable Recreation, Heritage, Wilderness (RHW) Strategy, 2015-2020 (.pdf, 2.41 MB)
• Southwestern Region Sustainable Recreation Strategy (.pdf, 689KB)
• Coronado National Forest Sustainable Recreation Action Plan 2021-2025
  • Coronado National Forest - Recreation
  • Sustainable Recreation Action Plan (.pdf, 1.54MB)
• Region 6 Sustainable Recreation Strategy Summary (.pdf, 5.45MB)
• Region 8 Sustainable Recreation Strategy Executive Summary (.pdf, 9.71MB)
• Eastern Regional Sustainable Recreation Reimagined
• Leaders' Intent: Recreation, Wilderness and Heritage Program Management in the Alaska Region (.pdf, 768 KB)

Visitor Use Management Planning

• Interagency Visitor Use Management Council (IVUMC) Overview (.pdf, 263KB)
• Overview of the Interagency Visitor Use Council (IVUMC) and Recently Developed Tools, January 2020 (.pptx, 23.25 MB)
• Monitoring Guidebook: Evaluating Effectiveness of Visitor Use Management, Edition 1 (.pdf, 3.14MB)
• Monitoring Guidebook: Evaluating Effectiveness of Visitor Use Management, Primer (.pdf, 2.16MB)
• Visitor Capacity Guidebook, Edition 1 (.pdf, 3.76MB)
• Visitor Capacity Guidebook, Primer (.pdf, 1.29MB)
• Visitor Use Management Framework, Edition 1 (.pdf, 3.14MB)
• Visitor Use Management Framework, Primer (.pdf, 386KB)