Vegetation Management Plan Bandelier National Monument

Bandelier National Monument

Vegetation management is a component of many diverse activities planned or on-going at Bandelier National Monument. A variety of routine activities such as road and trail maintenance, hazard tree mitigation and developed landscape maintenance can be considered vegetation management actions. Prescribed fire, exotic plant control, rare plant management, ruins stabilization and disturbed site revegetation are other management actions which can affect vegetation. Since vegetative systems are dynamic, changes occur in the absence of management actions as well; no action or alternatively suppression of 'natural forces' such as wildfire can allow significant changes to occur. A vegetation management plan provides a context for these diverse activities, prescribes actions and assigns responsibilities. It also enables park managers to assess the cumulative effects of vegetation management actions parkwide. Vegetation is dynamic, changing whether or not it is actively managed. Through vegetation management planning, managers can understand the vegetation dynamics within their park and coordinate short-term actions to achieve long-term goals.