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The National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) of 1970 required public input in any federal planning process or action. Consequently, natural resource planning can be characterized as more of a complex situation in recent years due to the increasing involvement of the number of constituents who want to be heard. Likewise, the public wants to know their ideas have been heard and considered. Unfortunately, there is very little information available which identifies how the BLM handles and analyzes public scoping comments that are required under NEPA. The purpose of this research is to identify the handling and analysis methodology used by BLM employees in large-scale natural resource plans, as well as gain insight into the experience and satisfaction of BLM employees in recent planning processes. The information gleaned from this study illustrates that through adjustments to the handling and analysis process, it is possible to maintain a supportive and accommodating relationship with the public by listening to their concerns and encouraging continued participation in natural resource planning, as well as adding credibility to the planning process overall through consistent handling and analysis.

This research develops a plausible interpretation of NEPA's intent based on a thorough review and synthesis of NEPA documents and the literature. From this synthesis, NEPA goals and criteria are developed to evaluate a sample of Forest Service Forest Plans and their corresponding EISs. Next, ecosystem management is defined based on a review and synthesis of the literature. Ecosystem management evaluation goals and criteria are similarly developed to evaluate the Forest Plans and EISs. Based on NEPA and ecosystem management criteria, evaluation questions are formulated for assessing the Forest Plans in order: (1) to evaluate the extent the Forest Service has implemented ecosystem management; (2) to ascertain whether and to what degree Forest Service implementation of ecosystem management has moved its EIS process closer to NEPA's intent; and (3) to assess the extent ecosystem management implementation has influenced agency planning and decisionmaking processes. Throughout, the literature is used extensively to support conclusions reached on the basis of the case findings. Forest Service EISs and Forest Plans used for the case analyses are: 1) The 1986 George Washington National Forest Final EIS and Forest Plan (pre-ecosystem management) and the 1993 George Washington National Forest Final EIS and Revised Forest Plan (post-ecosystem management). 2) The 1985 Francis Marion National Forest Final EIS and Forest Plan (pre-ecosystem management) and the 1996 Francis Marion National Forest Final EIS and Revised Forest Plan (post-ecosystem management). Trends based on the post-ecosystem management evaluations that evidence the agency's implementation of ecosystem management principles include: maintenance of biodiversity of all species; adoption of measures to sustain ecosystem health; acknowledgment of ecosystem patterns and processes; increased integration of scientific research and technology; incorporation of adaptive management; and increased integration of ecological, economic and social considerations. There were several practices, however, in the post-ecosystem management cases that did not support ecosystem management principles: limited incorporation of different geologic or long-term time scales; continued delineation of boundaries along political lines; no integrative, interdisciplinary approach to planning; and no or minimal educational programs. Post-ecosystem management Forest Service practices that support NEPA's intent include: earlier identification of critical impacts; better management of critical impacts; increased integration of ecological information and a broader understanding of sustainability; increased provisions for monitoring and evaluation; better reflection of reviewing agency and public comments and concerns; more influence of environmental data on project decisions; increased consideration of unquantifiable issues; and better integration of ecological, economic and social considerations through a decisionmaking framework. There were several practices, however, in the post-ecosystem management cases that did not support NEPA's intent: EISs had a lower estimation of the magnitude or significance of impacts than the earlier EISs; no evidence supporting a broad, integrative, interdisciplinary approach to planning process; and no evidence of two-way, consensus building stakeholder involvement in the EIS process. Overall, the case analyses provide evidence that the Forest Service's EIS process had, in fact, moved closer to NEPA's intent. This improved output is primarily the result of the agency's incorporation of many of the principles of ecosystem management into its decisionmaking process. Although, NEPA did not figure into the integration of an ecosystem management approach into the Forest Service's decisionmaking process, this research showed that the goals of NEPA and ecosystem management are essentially the same. The agency came to advocate ecosystem management as the outcome of a voluntary decision and an incremental process to improve its overall planning and management process. Implementation of ecosystem management led to a more substantive response to NEPA's intent. Forest Service decisionmaking is a political process that involves balancing competing agency, private industry, and public interests. "Change agents" come from diverse sources-from within the agency's institutional structure (both top-down and bottom-up); from within the federal governmental framework (e.g., other agency policies, Congressional decisions, budgetary constraints); from outside the federal government (state and local governmental agencies, public and private interest groups); and from an uncertain and dynamic political and economic environment. Therefore, forest planning and its associated NEPA analyses must be considered a part of a never-ending and evolving process. Consequently, the Forest Service would do well to take an adaptive approach in its decisionmaking process-an approach compatible with ecosystem management. / Ph. D.

It this study morphometric characteristics and the growth of univoltine predatory water scorpion - Nepa cinerea were studied on the basis of data measured on freshly killed individuals, the same ethanol - fixed individuals and dried individuals. The growth of this species has an exponential character. By comparing the morphometric characteristics of freshly killed and fixed individuals was found that the ethanol fixation influenced mainly weight of all developmental stages and total abdominal ventral length of adults. The same was found for the comparison of morphometric characteristics of freshly killed individuals and dried individuals. Other studied dimensions were not significantly deformed even by fixation or drying. Reducing of individula demensions by the influence of fixation and drying was uneven at different developmental stages. Reliable dimension for differentiating of individual developmental stages fixed material and the collected dried material is especially the media length of the body. Dimensions of fixed individuals and dried individuals is not significantly different from dimensions of freshly killed individuals. This project was supported by grant GA CR P505/10/0096.

博士(法学) / Doctor of Laws / 同志社大学 / Doshisha University

This dissertation examines how federal land management agencies implement group work processes to meet land management objectives focused on natural resource-dependent outdoor recreation management. This dissertation is composed of two separate studies, one focused on the U.S Forest Service interdisciplinary teams implementing environmental analyses in support of the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) to comply with the 2005 Travel Management Rule and one focused on U.S. Forest Service and National Park Service management of partnerships to support recreational trails. These studies help answer the question "what factors lead to more or less successful group work in federal land management?" The first study is primarily informed by qualitative analysis and the second study is informed by quantitative and qualitative analyses. Chapter two reports the results and analyses of semi-structured interviews with 49 U.S. Forest Service employees on ten NEPA interdisciplinary teams. Chapter two examines interdisciplinary teams at the US Forest Service that had recently completed environmental analyses for recreational travel management plans in support of the 2005 Travel Management Rule. This study develops typologies of teamwork processes and how teams may change how collaborative they are over time and examines how external context and leadership approaches may influence process outcomes. Chapters three and four report the results of an online survey completed by 89 government and non-government points of contact for trail partnerships. Chapter three explores the factors that influence success in partnerships to support trail work at the U.S. Forest Service and the National Park Service. Chapter three analyzes the survey responses of 89 federal land managers and non-government persons involved in 69 partnerships to work on trails on U.S. Forest Service and National Park Service lands. This analysis uses linear regression to develop a model of the factors that are important to the success of these trail partnerships. The chapter reveals that trust, interdependence, and capacity are the most important factors to the success of trail partnerships. Chapter four compares the survey responses for 28 partnerships where both the government and non-government point of contact provided complete survey responses. Through comparison of these responses, chapter four explores the concept of agreement in partnerships and how agreement on key factors related to partnership success may relate to ratings of overall partnership success. The final chapter synthesizes the findings of the two studies to examine group work across contexts. Group work that is more collaborative and has higher levels of group interdependence lead to more positive outcomes across both contexts. I conclude by proposing a framework that could incorporate the principles of liberal education and transdisciplinary learning into individual and group training to help federal land managers internalize the findings of this research into their work. / Doctor of Philosophy / This dissertation delves into how federal agencies manage group collaboration to achieve their goals in natural resource-based outdoor recreation. The study consists of two main parts: one focuses on U.S. Forest Service teams working on environmental analyses under the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) to adhere to the 2005 Travel Management Rule, while the other examines how both the U.S. Forest Service and the National Park Service manage partnerships to enhance recreational trails. The research seeks to answer the question: what makes group work in federal land management more or less successful? The first part relies on qualitative analysis, examining interdisciplinary teams at the U.S. Forest Service that had recently completed environmental analyses for recreational travel plans. This part identifies teamwork processes, explores how teams evolve in their collaboration, and considers the impact of external factors and leadership styles on their performance. The second part combines both quantitative and qualitative methods, focusing on the factors influencing successful partnerships for trail management within the U.S. Forest Service and the National Park Service. The study reveals that trust, interdependence, and capacity are key factors contributing to the success of these partnerships. By comparing survey responses from both government and non-governmental partners, the research also explores the relationship between agency-partner agreement on key success indicators and perceptions of overall partnership success. Overall, the findings highlight that collaborative group work with a high level of interdependence leads to better outcomes across different contexts. The dissertation concludes by suggesting a framework that incorporates transdisciplinary learning principles into training programs for federal land managers, helping them apply these research insights in their work.

At the time of its construction (1971-1985), the Tennessee-Tombigbee Waterway was a highly scrutinized public works project, but the years after its construction have remained largely unexplored. Research in the John C. Stennis Collection, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and Tennessee-Tombigbee Waterway Development Authority archives, and local newspapers, revealed that despite developers’ promise the waterway’s economic impact failed to live up to expectations, while its environmental influence more than exceeded them. Though rural southerners failed to benefit economically from the waterway, they embraced the environmental changes forced upon the project by the National Environmental Policy Act. Built as a promise of economic development, the Tenn-Tom offers a model of how economics and environmental forces intersected within the rural South. The waterway’s history as an economic and environmental force demands a reconsideration of the role of public works projects in southern environmental history.

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