Wildlife Refuges : Factors and Concerns about Future Sustainability.

Intro -- WILDLIFE REFUGES: FACTORSAND CONCERNS ABOUT FUTURESUSTAINABILITY -- CONTENTS -- PREFACE -- WILDLIFE REFUGES: CHANGES IN FUNDING,STAFFING AND OTHER FACTORS CREATECONCERNS ABOUT FUTURE SUSTAINABILITY -- WHY GAO DID THIS STUDY -- WHAT GAO FOUND -- RESULTS IN BRIEF -- BACKGROUND -- REFUGE FUNDING AND STAFFING LEVELS FLUCTUATED,NEW POLICIES WERE INTRODUCED, AND THE INFLUENCEOF VARIOUS EXTERNAL FACTORS AFFECTING REFUGESINCREASED FROM FISCAL YEARS 2002 THROUGH 2007 -- Inflation-Adjusted Core Refuge Funding Peaked in Fiscal Year2003 Then Decreased, but Ended the Period above Fiscal Year2002 Levels -- Staffing Levels Increased through Fiscal Year 2004, ThenDeclined More Slowly Than Funding and Ended the Periodbelow Peak Levels -- Several Policy Initiatives Were Implemented from Fiscal Years2002 through 2007 -- Workforce Management Planning -- Conservation Planning -- Visitor Service Facility Construction -- Law Enforcement Modifications -- New Administrative Work -- The Influence of Various External Factors That ComplicateRefuges' Abilities to Manage Habitats and Provide ServicesIncreased from Fiscal Years 2002 through 2007 -- SEVERAL CHANGES IN HABITAT MANAGEMENT ANDVISITOR SERVICES OCCURRED AT REFUGES FROMFISCAL YEARS 2002 THROUGH 2007, RAISINGMANAGERS' CONCERNS ABOUT FUTURE SUSTAINABILITY -- While Habitats on Refuges for Key Types of Species ImprovedMore Often Than They Worsened between Fiscal Years 2002and 2007, Others are in Poor Condition and Many RefugeManagers Are Concerned about Maintaining HabitatConditions -- Between Fiscal Years 2002 and 2007, Habitat Conditions on Refuges forKey Types of Species Improved More Often Than They Worsened,Although Some Refuges Have Poor Quality Habitat -- Habitat Problems and External Threats Are Increasingly AffectingRefuges -- Time Spent on Certain Habitat Management Activities Increased atMany Refuges.

Refuge Managers are Concerned about Their Ability to MaintainHabitat Conditions -- The Quality of Visitor Service Programs Improved More OftenThan Worsened between Fiscal Years 2002 and 2007, but SomePrograms were Poor Quality in 2007 and Refuge Managers areConcerned about the Quality of Visitor Services in the Future -- Quality of Visitor Service Programs Varied within the Refuge Systembetween Fiscal Years 2002 and 2007 -- Change in Time Spent on Visitor Service Activities Varied across theRefuge System -- Refuge Officials Are Concerned about Maintaining High-Quality VisitorServices into the Future -- CONCLUDING OBSERVATIONS -- APPENDIX I: SCOPE AND METHODOLOGY -- APPENDIX II: STATISTICAL ANALYSIS OF HABITATCHANGE -- Data Used in Our Analysis -- Cross-Tabulations between Habitat Change and RefugeCharacteristics -- Formulation of Statistical Models -- Results of Statistical Models -- Limitations of Our Analysis -- APPENDIX III: DEFERRED MAINTENANCE -- APPENDIX IV: REFUGE OPERATING NEEDS SYSTEM -- APPENDIX V: TOTAL CORE OBLIGATIONS, NOMINAL ANDINFLATION-ADJUSTED (IN 2002 DOLLARS), AND COREFTES,FISCAL YEARS 2002 THROUGH 2007 -- APPENDIX VI: COMMENTS FROM THE DEPARTMENT OFTHE INTERIOR -- END NOTES -- WILDLIFE REFUGES: TRENDS IN FUNDING,STAFFING, HABITAT MANAGEMENT, ANDVISITOR SERVICES FOR FISCAL YEARS 2002THROUGH 2007 -- WHY GAO DID THIS STUDY -- WHAT GAO FOUND -- NUMEROUS CHANGES AFFECTED REFUGE MANAGEMENT -- CHANGES IN HABITAT MANAGEMENT AND VISITORSERVICES -- END NOTES -- CHAPTER SOURCES -- INDEX.

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