The United States’ Implementation of the Montréal Process Indicator of Forest Fragmentation

Abstract

The United States’ implementation of the Montréal Process indicator of forest fragmentation presents a case study in the development and application of science within a criteria and indicator framework to evaluate forest sustainability. Here, we review the historical evolution and status of the indicator and summarize the latest empirical results. While forest cover fragmentation is increasing, the rate of increase has slowed since 2006. Most of the fragmentation in the western United States is associated with changes in semi-natural land cover (e.g., shrub and grass) while most of the eastern fragmentation is associated with changes in agriculture and developed (including roads) land covers. Research conducted pursuant to indicator implementation exemplifies the role of a criteria and indicator framework in identifying policy-relevant questions and then focusing research on those questions, and subsequent indicator reporting exemplifies the value of a common language and developed set of metrics to help bridge the gaps between science and policy at national and international scales.

Cross-Boundary Sustainability: Assessment across Forest Ownership Categories in the Conterminous USA Using the Montréal Process Criteria and Indicators Framework

“…Assessing sustainability is fraught with challenges from how to define it, to how to measure it, to how to interpret the results. The Montréal Process C&I while imperfect, as are all systems designed to assess abstract concepts, have been developed by a broad coalition, have been widely applied, and have been periodically revised [7,53]. For objectives like those of this paper, a comparison across ownership groups, the C&I provide an objective means of assessing commonalities and differences through syntheses of data that are often complex and disparate.…”

“…Forest area density was used as a proxy for forest fragmentation (C&I 1.1.c) [7]. The proportion of the 15.2 ha area around each FIA inventory plot that was forested was calculated based on data from the US National Land Cover Database (NLCD) [17].…”

“…An assessment of the sustainability of Family forests in the USA also found that most indicators were positive, but loss of forestland was flagged as a major concern [5]. Additional analyses have been conducted in the USA focusing on forest governance [6], forest fragmentation [7], and other specific C&I. Studies have also been published on the application of the Montréal Process C&I in Australia [8], Canada [9], and the tropical islands of the politically associated territories and protectorates of the USA [10], among other countries and regions.…”