Given what you have learned from the management factors blog
begin discussing the degree to which the VCNT has and is currently satisfying
the mandates. Include your own perceptions,
any evidence you have (both academic and public… e.g. news), and reasons for
successes and failures. You can’t know
everything about what’s going on and will possibly have to make educated
guesses but at least try to use logic and/or documentation (with references in
APA style) to support your statements.
In short, try to avoid undocumented or illogical opinion. This blog should spawn some lively
discussion. Please remember to be good
to each other and stick to the posts and not the people. If you disagree, explain why and see if you
can persuade rather than bully the other person into your way of thinking.
I agree with Mr. Funk. The Valles Caldera Trust may or may not reach financial stability. I think a large prospect going against them is that their public access is all donations. Since the Trust is a nonprofit organization they cannot force the public who use the land for recreational purposes to donate money. Even with the increase in visitation by 13% although with the fire in July impacted and caused shut down of various activities throughout the summer which impacted several donation opportunities.
ReplyDeleteWith all of these negatives in mind, there has been a huge amount of revenue made from store sales which is equipment based and education programs that are ran at the Science and Education center. For 2011 these two services brought the revenue up to $795,000 for the year which is outstanding.
With both of these points made it will be interesting to see if the Trust can sustain itself financially which is as Mr. Funk said what it boils down to in a society where money is the most important key to success. I do hope that the Trust can find a way to maintain revenue and keep increasing. Maybe people would be more generous with donations if the word got out.
Annual report to congress. (2011). Retrieved April, 2012, from http://www.vallescaldera.gov/newsmedia/news/news_12-01-25RTC.pdf
I agree that with these financial problems the Trust is facing in the years to come leaves it to a good chance that the caldera will be moved over to the Forest Services. Although mentioned by other people that yes this would be easier, but also presents many dangers of change. The Trust has worked very hard with the goals they have come up with and they fight for the caldera's best interest. If the land gets pushed over to Forest Services because of money, what would happen to the Caldera? What are your thoughts?
DeleteThe Caldera could reach it's goal of financial independence but it will take a lot of work to reach that goal. There have been some revenue that was made through educational purposes. The Caldera needs big donations to fullfil it's goals of finacial independence by 2015 that although difficult is the less problematic of there mandates. The problem of management is the bigger issue here.
ReplyDeleteI like how you mention educational purposes because this area will be significantly important for future generations if it is allowed to be kept as a preserve. Where do you think large donations can be acquired from, as in private donations possibly? Maybe you can elaborate more on why management is the bigger issue. What are your ideas towards managing the area? Overall I really enjoy the different dynamics that you're bringing up, I think if you add a bit more you'll have a good argument on your hands.
DeleteI too also agree with Alexis and Carlos post that the area will be significantly important to future generations if allowed to be kepth as a preserve. The question as well arise about how/where large donations can be acquired from?. Carlos, I like your approach.
DeleteI think some of the money could come from bonds, fundraisers, you get a few rock musicians together kind of like a free tibet thing and you could come up w/some revenue pretty fast is it doesn't bomb. That is why I think getting a good managerial team together is the more problematic issue.
DeleteI completely agree about the management issue. It appears that so many people are involved with this project that there is no way that all parties concerned could ever come to a conclusion that is satisfactory to all.
DeleteAs I see it, the Valles Caldera National Preserve has a really broad set of mandates. With this in mind, I think that it's a pretty tall order to meet all of these and be held accountable in any way for doing so. However, I do believe that things are moving in the right direction even though they may be in their infancy with regards to this process. Visitation is on the rise and that is bound to play a huge part in their success. As people mentioned above, fiscal independence is a big challenge but they seem to be doing well with revenue eclipsing expenditures. It's interesting to note that the majority of their revenue comes from hunting and fishing programs which account for almost 1/2 of their revenue. The only other thing that comes close is store sales. Grant projects and other science projects have also both been on the rise over the past five years. These will serve to increase money coming into the preserve, further expose the preserve to new visitors, and uncover new opportunities for future visitation. All in all, I'm fairly impressed by their ability to operate at this level. (1)
ReplyDeleteLooking at their 2011 Annual Visitor Summary, it seems like they are being forced to figure a lot out on their own. They invested in some automated counting systems and extrapolated the data to estimate just under 100,000 visitors last year (2). This is great and helps them with the resources necessary to meet their goals.
At the same time, many of their goals are not directly related to visitation. Many of these goals deal with preservation and maintaining the natural harmony of the area. While this type of thing is impossible without the revenue generated by the visitation, an increased visitation has a direct and possible negative impact on some of these objectives.
With all of this in mind, though, it seems to me that the biggest obstacle to achieving their goals and mandates may be the varied and fragmented nature of them. It's difficult to focus on such a broad area, especially with limited staff and resources. All in all, they seem to be moving in the right direction and doing a surprisingly good job. Way to go VCNP!!!
1~~Valles Caldera Trust, 2011 Report to Congress, http://www.vallescaldera.gov/about/trust/docs/AnnualReportCongress2011.pdf
2~~FY 2011 VCNM Annual FY Visitor Summary Report. http://www.vallescaldera.gov/about/trust/docs/VCNPVisitorCountReport.pdf
I agree with what others have said above: The Valles Caldera Trust was set a nearly impossible task in creating a Preserve that functioned both as an operational ranch and what is essentially a national park that was financially self-sustaining, while also conserving the natural assets of the park. Because of this, as of 2009, the Trust was five years behind plan according to the Government Accountability Office report (GOA-10-84). Specifically, the GAO report criticizes the lack of a strategic plan, performance plans, and progress reports. In his response to the GAO report, Gary Bratcher, the Executive Director of the Trust, claims that the Preservation Act is “unworkable” and the idea of the trust becoming financially self-sustaining in fifteen years “naïve at best.” As he points out, the Trust is required to create an entire federal agency from scratch, but he is optimistic that with some modifications to the Act, the Trust will be successful.
ReplyDeleteI do wonder if, perhaps, starting this project under the Forest Service or Park Service would not have made the job easier and less ambitious. However, given the very high, and possibly unrealistic, goals originally set out the Trust has accomplish a lot. As mentioned above in 2011, the Preserve saw a 13% increase in visitation despite the catastrophic Las Conchas Fire. They also have plans to create a Strategic Management Plan for the Preserve through 2018. As such, I believe it is wise to for the government to continue to support the Trust, and to allow it to experiment with different ways of becoming self-sustainable. It will take both support and patience from the government and public, and a lot of hard work and innovative thinking by the Trust, but I do believe that have a Preserve that can financial support itself is an accomplishable goal.
Bratcher, G. D. November 11, 2009. Letter to Delegation. 2012. Available from http://www.vallescaldera.gov/about/trust/docs/VCT_Letter%20to%20Delegation.pdf.
McDermott, T. 2012. Valles Caldera Trust Recaps 2011 Challenges. January 25, 2012. Available from www.vallescaldera.gov/newsmedia/news/news_12-01-25RTC.pdf.
US Government Accountability Office. October, 2009. GAO-10-84: Valles Caldera: The Trust Has Made Progress but Faces Significant Challenges to Achieve Goals of Preservation Act. Available from: www.gao.gov/new.items/d1084.pdf.
I do agree with your statement about maybe having the project start under the Forest Service or Park Service would have/ may made the job easier and less ambitious.
DeleteI like your thoughts on if the Forest Service would have been in charge if the job would be easier or less ambitious. I think it would be less ambitious. Although it is difficult for the Trust to reach these goals they are still fighting for them which is inspirational and reminds the public that there is something worth preserving. What do you think?
Deletethe last thing you want is have the forest services in there, they will quickly commercialize timbering in the valles caldera
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ReplyDeleteValles Caldera National Preserve Blog Questions Part III
ReplyDeleteOn March 24, 2012 during spring break I visited the Valles Caldera to see and get a feel for what is going on there. I interviewed the manager of the Visitors Center and got her permission for its use in the blog, her name is Brenda Montoya she is from Cuba, NM and has lived in the town of Jemez for 23 years. My question to her was how she and the other people running the Preserve feel about the pending legislation to turn the trust over to the federal government for operation. She stated they feel the trust should be allowed to run the trust the time allotted, till 2015, and then evaluated for possible changes or continuing with the trust.
Later in the afternoon I stopped at The Giggling Springs Hot Springs and Gift Shop/Gallery in the town of Jemez and interviewed the owner Tanya who has lived here 17 years, asking her the same question. Tanya her friends and a group of business associates in town feel the preserve should be turned over to the federal government. They feel the Board of Trustees turnover is too quick. Meaning when one group of Board Members implemented ideas and plans start to take off new members come in and change things not allowing programs to operate long enough to see if they will be successful. This constant flux of Board Members is what the locals see as the problem.
Both interviewees want the Preserve to succeed; I believe the question is how? I agree with both of them, 2015 is not that far away to see how much the Trust can get accomplished and there have been 14 Board Members and 7 Ex-Officio Board Members (21 total) not including the current Board since its inception. That’s a lot of change in 11-12 years.
In my opinion the Valles Caldera Board of Trustees made a good move in the appointment of Dennis Trujillo to the position of Executive Director. He has been with the Trust from the beginning serving as Interim Executive Director, Preserve Manager and led them through the Las Conchas fire.
www.vallescaldera.gov/index.aspx
I think you make a really good point Robert, especially discussing Dennis Trujillo's longest involvement with the board. I also think the constant turn over of board members is not allowing them to implement the ideas they have for bringing revenue towards the preserve. What ideas do you think the board should implement before 2015 if any are possible could sway congress to keep this area going or turning it over to be private land again?
DeleteI also agree with everyone else, the Valles Caldera Trust is making great attempts to accomplish their mandated goals, however it may become impossible to complete. Even though the Trust has a lot to do, I believe the Trust has a chance of becoming self-sustainable with more time. As many others have mentioned, there has been an increase in visitation despite the Las Conchas Fire. According to the Annual Report to Congress 2011 (Valles Caldera National Preserve(a), 2011) and News Release (Valles Caldera National Preserve(b), 2012); there has been visitation increase of 13 percent with approximation of 97,552 visitors for the year of 2011. This report was successfully conducted through the use of a visitor counting system, (Valles Caldera National Preserve(c), 2011). I think it’s a good thing there has been an increase in visitors every year which has brought an increase in revenue and will probably continue to grow with more visitation; however, there is one major point that Lee mentioned. That is, a continuation of increase visitation may bring a possible negative impact with the Trust’s main objectives which is: preserving and protecting the land. With that being said, I believe that there has to be a balance of some sort to increase the number of visitors and still be able to provide a way to continue protecting and preserving the Valles Caldera National Preserve which is what the trust is trying to do. As I mentioned before, it may be possible for the Valles Caldera to become self sustainable if they continue to work as hard as they are now.
ReplyDeleteValles Caldera National Preserve(a). (2011). Valles Caldera Trust 2011 Report to Congress Fiscal Year 2011. Retrieved April 21, 2012, from Valles Caldera National Preserve: http://www.vallescaldera.gov/newsmedia/news/news_12-01-25RTC.pdf
alles Caldera National Preserve(b). (2012, January 25). Valles Caldera Trust Recaps 2011 Challenges Transition, Fire and Surprising Numbers Highlight Annual Report to Congress. Retrieved April 21, 2012, from Valles Caldera National Preserve: http://www.vallescaldera.gov/newsmedia/news/news_12-01-25RTC.pdf
Valles Caldera National Preserve(c). (2011). VCNP Annual FY Visitor Summary Report. Retrieved April 21, 2012, from Valles Caldera National Preserve: http://www.vallescaldera.gov/about/trust/docs/VCNPVisitorCountReport.pdf
The Valle Caldera Trust has implemented management principles to meet the goals discussed in the previous blog. For instance they installed counters to keep track of the number of visitors of each gate; having these statistics will allow the trust to make decisions concerning improving public access. The trust has also worked to improve the preserve with future plans which satisfies its management goal of having the preserve benefit future generations.
ReplyDeleteThe 2012-2018 management plans includes a design to incorporate a visitor center for the preserve. This would increase the attraction to the preserve as well as enable more educational information to be presented to the public. Other future plans include improving public access, and financially independent. This will be hard to meet in the short term because of the site development that are going to require large amounts of the trust’s funds, but in the long term should prove to be good investments.
Financial stability for the trust is a necessity within the next few years because as of FY 2015 the trust will no longer receive appropriated funds. And by 2018 congress will make the decision to allow the trust to maintain management or to transfer the preserve to the National Park Service.
Even though the trust has made appropriate plans for the preserve I think that it would be better off under the NPS. This would open the Caldera to access to more resources and receive more public attention. In principal the trust has developed successful management plans but without the financial resources to realize all of the plans after 2015, the trust will not be able to realize these plans.
Valle Caldera Trust. “Strategic Management Plan for the Valle Caldera National Preserve”: Fiscal Year 2012-2018
Valle Caldera Trust. “Management Principals”: 2001
Do you think the National Park Service would do a better job at preservation?
DeleteIn my opinion, it is highly unlikely that the Valles Caldera will meet its 2015 deadline of making the preserve financially self-sustaining. Moreover, the preserve’s unique governing method may be hindering its ability to flourish. The unusual arrangement that struck the attention of U.S. Senator Pete Domenici seems to be too tall of an order for the trustees of the preserve. For example, the preserve took in about $776,000 from fees and other sources in 2008, which is only about 21 percent of what the preserve spent. Although gains are being made through fees and other sources, the compounding costs of managing the preserve leaves the trustees helpless without the authority to initiate business transactions. Solutions to the inadequate income of the preserve seem to lead back to the implementation of heavy development of the area, which is undesirable with the goal of keeping preserve a tranquil sanctuary. The current tug-of-war of wanting to keep the current arrangement but also to avoid having it to be a public property is at a standstill with the hope of there being a sudden influx of visitors. In reading several articles of the preserves supporters, I agree with many others on the issue, that it would be of great benefit for the intervention of the National Park Service (NPS). Not only will the NPS provide sufficient funding for the Valles Caldera in the wake of maintaining costs associated with its recent increase in visitors, it also will boost the economy in surrounding towns. In addition, I think the preserve is more than worthy to be included as one of our country’s national parks. As is, the management of the Valles Caldera will not be able to match the productivity that the NPS could fetch.
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ReplyDeleteThis comment has been removed by the author.
ReplyDeleteI agree with everybody else above who commented. There is no doubt that the Trust has made significant progress in the Valles Caldera project but they are a long way from being financially self-sustaining. The Trust has made significant progress especially concerning meeting its goals to preserve and protect the Caldera for future generations as well as to provide for public recreation and sustained yield management (Valles Caldera, 2005). As I indicated in my last blog the specific overall progress thus far from the Trust includes:
ReplyDelete(1) established a basic organization with about 25 staff;
(2) Drafted policy and procedures and contracted with the Department of the Interior’s National Business Center for accounting services;
(3) Begun engineering and construction efforts to address infrastructure problems—roads, water systems, fences, and buildings;
(4) Established interim grazing and recreation programs; and
(5) Implemented an adaptive management approach that focuses on making management decisions based on scientific data.
The progress so far has made a large impact on moving forward on preserving the Caldera and setting up a system for running it. Though this is a great progress I don’t feel it is a large enough amount of progress towards moving the Caldera towards being financially self-sustaining. It seems that the Trust is trying to get everything done so quickly in such a short amount of time that it’s not going to meet every goal that they have set for themselves. Also what works negatively against the Trust is the constant changing of board members. Each new board member that comes in has their own ideas for generating revenue towards preserving the Caldera but aren’t in term long enough to implement their own ideas. Preserving this large area within the given amount of time is no small task, and I don’t see it passing the boards reviews unless they have solid numerical information that the preserve is moving towards self sustainability. The main things that I have discussed before that need to be addressed consist of:
A. Strategic and performance plans with measurable goals and objectives.
B. Plans to manage program risks.
C. Mechanisms for monitoring progress.
The three issues above are necessary to help the Caldera become not only financially self-sufficient but also to have statistics and visible progress showing the government that this land is worth of preservation. The plans to manage program risk is also very vital to protecting the Caldera as other students have mention the fire that the Caldera dealt with in May of 2005 was a large issue. Since the Trust hasn’t implemented a fire plan outlining a decision making process for responding to naturally occurring fires, this cost the Trust about $338,000 (Valles Caldera, 2005). According to the Forest Service Region 3 Fire Manager the fire could have been left to burn out naturally because it did not threaten key resources or public infrastructure. By not implementing a fire plan there is no liability coverage in the Caldera limiting the full amount of people that can be let it. This is an issue because it’s further limiting potential revenue coming in.
I’m not saying that the Trust won’t be able to get congresses approval for making the Valles Caldera a permanent preserve, it’s just going to take a lot of work. In my opinion the Trust needs to not try to tackle so much at once but one issue at a time. It is going to take a lot to prove to congress that the preserve can become financially self-sufficient. I believe if the Trust shows all that they’ve done so far and the things that need to begin to be implemented that this area can do it and be here for many generations to come and enjoy. Overall the Trust need to have significant documentation of everything that they’ve have done, what can be done to further improve the area, and most importantly that through progress has been made they are going to need more time to show the full potential of the area after each of the above issues are addressed.
I agree that they should take on step at a time and after they complete it put it together in a presentable way. It kind of seems like they are disorganized because they are trying to do many things at one time.
DeleteI don't think there is a lot of time, but it really is worth trying to make it a permanate preserve.
DeleteJazmine I completely agree with you they are taking on way too much when instead they should look at one aspect that needs the most attention first. I feel that even though the Trust members have had so much time to work out their ideas they think of one thing don't follow through and move on to the next thing. I believe if they can somehow resolve this issue a lot more can be done.
DeleteCarlos there isn't a lot of time at all but if they can show congress a lot of the issues that the class has brought up and how to deal with them, congress can extend the amount of time to see if this area is worth preserving. I've never been to the Caldera but what I've seen and read it seems like an amazing area if only its full potential could be shown.
The Valles Caldera Trust was implemented in the year 2000. Since then, the Trust has accomplished so much within the last decade. From the 2005 annual Report: “Specifically, it has (1) established a basic organization with about 25 staff; (2) drafted policy and procedures and contracted with the Department of the Interior's National Business Center for accounting services; (3) begun engineering and construction efforts to address infrastructure problems--roads, water systems, fences, and buildings; (4) established interim grazing and recreation programs; and (5) implemented an adaptive management approach that focuses on making management decisions based on scientific data. The Trust, however, still has much work to do to meet its goals, including achieving a financially self-sustaining operation.” (GAO-06-98, 2005). According to this report and the 2011 reports, the Trust is working on trying to establish itself as a self-sufficient organization. This includes developing a strategic and performance plan, risk management plan, and a monitoring progress plan. These developing methods are long term goals and strategies for sustaining the Vallles Caldera Preserve. In the 2011 annual report, the Trust noted that there was a 13 percent increase in visits to the preserve despite having to cancel 252 events, along with summer events, due to major fire activity in the area, (Valles Caldera Trust, 2012). It was also stated that there was an increase in revenue of 10.8 percent. Another note made in the 2011 report was that the transition to comprehensive management from the initial interim management, which included the development of a Strategic Management Plan (SMP) that will establish long term goals for the Trust through 2018. They will also implement an Annual Performance Plan that will coincide with the SMP) according to the 2011 report. These improvements made since 2005, show gradual progress being made by the Trust. It seems as if there is a slow start, however there is evidence to show that the Trust is attempting to meet the requirement set forth for them by Congress. It is recommended that Trust seek other resources for financial stability, and focus on the long term goals for the Preserve. Once a direction is determined, the process to meet the goals can be implanted. It seems from the reports, that there is a lack of direction and overall purpose for what is to become of the Valles Caldera Project and how it can be financially sustained. From my opinion, it seems as though there is potential for the Trust to complete this, it is just going to take more time.
ReplyDeleteReferences:
GAO-06-98. 2005. Valles Caldera: Trust Has Made Some Progress, But Needs To Do More To Meet Statutory Goals. GAO Highlights, United States Government Accountability Office.
Valles Caldera Trust. 2012. Valles Caldera Trust Recaps 2011 Challenges. Valles Caldera Trust New Release.
By creating the Valles Caldera Trust, the Trust is looked towards to manage the preserve. Therefore, Valles Caldera Preservation Act of 2000 established a 20-year public-private experiment to operate the preserve without continued federal funding. The Trust is charged with achieving a number of goals, including becoming financially self-sustaining by the end of fiscal year 2015. Some goals have been meet while other goal at set way far behind. Currently the Trust (GAO, United States Government Accountability Office, October 2009). The trust has made significant steps and accomplishments in establishing goals set in place by the Trust and Preservation Act. So far the trust has implemented rehabilitation of infrastructure such as road, buildings, and fences, etc. From the rehabilitation the Trust has repaired the preserve’s 54 miles of boundary fences which include adjusting their height to allow for elk movement as well as, installed signs restricting access to the preserve. The Trust also assessed the layout and condition of 64 miles of interior fences, many of which were used to separate pastures for livestock. Other facilities, such as livestock corrals, have also been assessed and rehabilitated and built a temporary visitor center. (GAO, United States Government Accountability Office, October 2009) In the end, all of these accomplishments also go hand in hand with other goals set and help achieve them as well. The Trust has also created science programs, experimented with a variety of grazing options, and taken steps to manage the forests, expanded recreational opportunities, and taken further moves to becoming financially self sustaining. With the expanded recreation opportunities, although there were fires in some parts of the preservation, visitor rates increased by 13 percent and with that an increase in revenue of about 11 percent according to the Valles Caldera Trust. Therefore, there is increase in gross amounts which will enhance the steps to become financially self sustaining if this trend continues. Furthermore, the Trust has also, established a basic organization with about 25 staff as well as drafted policies and procedures and contracted with the Department of the Interior's National Business Center for accounting services. Although these are all major accomplishments, the Trust is still behind schedule and look to not become financially self sufficient as of now. In my opinion, if the Trust continues to work as they have but push to get more smaller goals accomplishment, with more time given and the achievement of become financially self sustaining is within reach.
ReplyDeleteGAO, United States Government Accountability Office Valles Caldera: The Trust has made progress but faces significant challenges to achieve goals of the Preservation Act [Report to Congressional Committees]. Washington : United States Government Accountability Office, October 2009. Vols. 10-94.
Valles Caldera Trust. 2012. Valles Caldera Trust Recaps 2011 Challenges. Valles Caldera Trust New Release.
The resource management of the Trust includes operating the preserve as a working ranch, the protection and preservation of its natural, cultural and recreational resources, implementing multiple uses and sustainable resource yields, public use of Trust lands, renewable resource utilization and management alternative that benefit the local community and coordinate with surrounding lands, as well as the generation of income. These were appointed by congress in the Valles Caldera Preservation Act of 2000 (Valles Caldera Preservation Act 108 (D) 2000). The Act established a twenty year public-private experiment to test the operation of the Preserve without continued federal funding, with the proviso that the Preserve must be self-sustaining by 2015. Though the Preserve has made progress, there is much left to be accomplished.
ReplyDeleteAs of the 2005 report, the Preserve has: (1) established a staff of about 25; (2) drafted policy and procedures and contracted with the Department of the Interior’s National Business Center for accounting services; (3) begun engineering and construction efforts to address infrastructure problems—roads, water systems, fences, and buildings; (4) established interim grazing and recreation programs; and (5) implemented an adaptive management approach that focuses on making management decisions based on scientific data. Despite all of this progress, the Preserve still has a ways to go. Especially important to this is the implementation of a fire management program—the Preserve has yet to implement one, which, had it been in place would have saved the Preserve time, effort, and money (GAO-06-98 2005).
Despite these problems, the 2009 and 2011 annual reports indicated an increase in visitation by 13% over the previous year despite closures and the damage wrought by the Las Cochas fires (Valles Caldera National Preserve(b) 2012), though progress has been gradual. This increase in visitation and revenue is thought to be a result of the new visitor’s center (Valles Caldera National Preserve (c) 2012), which was in the plans for 2005. In addition, the Trust has repaired the preserve’s boundary fences, installed signs restricting access to the preserve, and assessed the layout and condition interior fences as well as the livestock corrals (GAO, United States Government Accountability Office, October 2009).
The 2012 to 2018 strategic management plan’s (SUP) goals include incorporating a new visitor’s center, improving public access, and becoming financially independent. As of 2018, Congress will make the decision whether to turn the Preserve over to the National Park Service (Valles Caldera National Preserve(b) 2012). These are very high goals to meet in such a short time, and personally I don’t think that they will be able to implement them all by the cutoff date. But, as mentioned by several people, the Preserve has made remarkable progress for the short ten years it’s been in business—I’m sure it takes more than I know to implement even a fourth of what they need to accomplish, especially without a set management plan or operation standards or guidelines already in place. In this area at least, I think that the Preserve would have benefited from NPA guidance and support from the start, to avoid the inevitable pitfalls and mistakes and operational snafu’s that result from implementing an entirely new program/operation from the ground up. They have done a wonderful job, and I hope that they make their goals with time to spare.
References Cited
ReplyDeleteGAO-06-98. 2005. Valles Caldera: Trust Has Made Some Progress, But Needs To Do More To Meet Statutory Goals. GAO Highlights, United States Government Accountability Office. www.gao.gov/new.items/d1084.pdf.
GAO-10-94. 2009. United States Government Accountability Office Valles Caldera: The Trust has made progress but faces significant challenges to achieve goals of the Preservation Act [Report to Congressional Committees]. Washington : United States Government Accountability Office, October 2009. Vols. 10-94.
Valles Caldera Preservation Act Section 108 (D) Public Law 106-248. July 25, 2000. Title I—Valles Caldera National Preserve and Trust
Valles Caldera Trust. “Strategic Management Plan for the Valle Caldera National Preserve”: Fiscal Year 2012-2018
Valles Caldera National Preserve(b). (2012, January 25). Valles Caldera Trust Recaps 2011 Challenges Transition, Fire and Surprising Numbers Highlight Annual Report to Congress. Retrieved April 21, 2012, from Valles Caldera National Preserve: http://www.vallescaldera.gov/newsmedia/news/news_12-01-25RTC.pdf
Valles Caldera National Preserve(c). (2012). VCNP Annual FY Visitor Summary Report. Retrieved April 21, 2012, from Valles Caldera National Preserve: http://www.vallescaldera.gov/about/trust/docs/VCNPVisitorCountReport.pdf
I would have to say that although I feel the Valles Caldera would be better for the public as a national preserve rather than a national park, it is showing signs of its inability to become self supporting by 2015. The reason they are having problems seems to be the (many people are noticing) management problems. A federal report said the management isn’t planning well and have been having legal stumbling blocks.
ReplyDeleteAs many people in the Blog have pointed out, this is a pretty hard goal to achieve: The goal of becoming self supporting by 2015. They would have to do everything right and with bad management it will be impossible.
(2009). Management problems at nm’s valles caldera. The Associated Press, Retrieved from http://vallescaldera.com/archives/2001
Hanna Davis:
ReplyDeleteAs it seems the trust provides a multitude of recreational activities, facility rentals and merchandise, as well as special events. In comparison to the rest of the world, America isn’t short on money. Maintaining the preserve is an investment in our future I’m certain we can afford. I agree, there are some management problems, but getting anything accomplished when you’re working with the government is harder than I think we know. Becoming self-sustaining by 2015 is unrealistic, but I think it’s possible in the future if there’s more public involvement. The Las Conchas fire wasn’t as bad as it was portrayed in the news, especially in the caldera and the park. Fire is crucial part of marinating ecological health. The Caldera needs revenue from people like us. So everyone should sign up for the Run for the Caldera on July 9th!!
I agree Hanna I think if the public really sees how great this area is and how vital it is for future generations they will help financially support it. Every parent whats to ensure a great future for their children and this area should be a part of it. There are a substantial amount of management issues but I think if they can get their act together they can show congress this area is worth keeping. I like the way your thinking and getting people involved.
Deletewow hanna you bring up a great point, and your right and i agree with you. we should let the caldera be run by the state and have less government. the best option the caldera project has is to have more awareness and more involvement from people that care about the issue.
DeleteWhile the Trust is succeeding in fulfilling the majority of its mandates, it is failing the biggest, more important one, which is funding. Without finance, this project can never succeed the way it was meant to. There are pros and cons to the current management system of the Caldera. In order to keep the area unspoiled, natural, and in line with the private uses of the area such as tribal access and ranching, the Trust has limited public access in certain ways. For example, according to the National Park Service only 17,000 people visited the Caldera in 2008. There are only 20 Preserves in the system and the Valles Caldera only accounted for 1/10 of 1% of National Preserve visitors (A Tour, 2009). This supports the mission of the Trust but does not seem financially viable in the long run.
ReplyDeleteThe Valles Caldera Trust has stated the goal of self-sufficiency by 2015 but that does not seem feasible without public support. The type of federal funding received by the Trust comes from the Land and Water Conservation Fund which states the Caldera MUST be self-sufficient no later than 2020 but the Caldera incurs operating costs of over $3 million per year (Valles Caldera, n.d.) and only 20% of its operating budget actually comes from Preserve activities (Director Resigns, 2011). It does not seem the Trust can even begin to meet this goal without either an increase in public activity or an increase in private sector activity. Either path seems to violate the reason for the Preserve’s existence in the first place and the idea that there should be a way to balance public and private access and needs. If the Trust chooses one path over the other it will change the nature of the area. If the area becomes a part of the National Park system, maybe a better way can be found to balance needs. On the other hand, if busy national parks like Yellowstone and Yosemite have anything to teach, it is that increased revenues due to increased public access bring its own share of problems. One of the special parts of the Caldera is that one can usually find solitude in which to enjoy the Preserve’s natural beauty and resources. No one really wants to have to fight crowds and traffic while trying to enjoy nature. Increased private access could be just as bad, causing even more restrictions to be put into place. Perhaps a way the Trust can increase revenue might be to allow limited camping by permit while allowing some private sector concession.
Those opposed to the Valles Caldera Trust experiment see the resignation of its executive director in 2011 as the final blow to the project (Director Resigns, 2011). He was an experienced agribusiness manager who admitted during his resignation that the Caldera project just could not function. At the same time, a recommendation was made that the Trust should strive to raise over half its budget from private sources (Director Resigns, 2011). This will not sit well with the public who seem to demand more access to the area, not less. There does not seem to be a way to truly make all who use the Caldera Preserve happy. If it becomes part of the Park System, at least there will still be federal protection for its beauty and resources. There is no guarantee the Private Sector will care for the area the way the original endowment requested.
References:
Published by admin in Future Management of the Valles Caldera (2009). A tour of the Valles Caldera’s potential sister National Park Service preserves, retrieved from
http://vallescaldera.com/archives/1419
http://www.nationalparkstraveler.com/2010/01/missing-system-valles-caldera-national-preserve5178
Valles Caldera, n.d.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Valles_Caldera
Staci Matlock (2011). Valles Caldera Director Resigns. Retrieved from
http://www.santafenewmexican.com/Local%20News/valles-caldera-for-web
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ReplyDeleteBased on the huge job that the Valles Caldera Trust is saddled with, I believe that they are doing a very good job of managing the caldera to this point. The Las Conchas fire provided a "perfect excuse" for the trust to go to congress and admit failure; they did not do that. Instead, the showed an increase in visitation and implementation of a way to count that visitation. They mentioned plans to create a Stratigic Management Plan and they have done so. See the plan at this link http://www.vallescaldera.gov/about/trust/docs/Valles%20Caldera%20Trust%20SMP%202012-2018.pdf
ReplyDeleteThe trust has shown an increase in revenue, which seems to be the big goal in these times of short purse strings. It is a big achievement to bring the cost of managing the caldera down from $45.00 per visitor to just over $6.00. I should note here that this cost reduction is based primarily on the fact that visitors are being counted better.
One of my main concerns is that the verbiage regarding Native American ties to the caldera and our responsibility to honor and respect those ties seems not to have made it into the latest report to congress. Other goals are defined; what happened to principle number six?
I think you bring up some very valid points Karen. The Trust is doing a pretty good job but are lagging behind on certain areas. The Las Conchas Fire would have been and excellent time for them to turn to congress to show them that although they are not exactly where they should be on helping the preserve they are dedicated to it. I honestly believe congress would at least see the effort they are trying to make and realize they need more time to address the preservation of this land. What was the issue with the visitors not being properly counted?
DeleteAccording to the 2011 report to congress:
ReplyDeleteThe first goal to protect and preserve for future generations has been tested given the Las Conchas Fire and the necessary actions to differ all maintenance, due mainly to lack of sufficient funds and the need to re-appropriate funds. One very encouraging project l is the lease of the facilities for a science education center (SEC), which brought in nearly $100,000 in FY 2011.
The second goal to provide public recreation is being met with access to hunting, fishing, hiking, along with various other activities. This appears to be an area that could use improvement and clearer goals and objectives to be targeted.
The third mandated goal for the reserve is to provide sustained yield management of the Baca Ranch appears to have been challenged by the Las Conchas Fire and fighting to recover the efforts to improve the mission of grazing of livestock. This is an area that can be improved upon in the future.
The fourth goal to promote financial sustainability is not meeting its full potential. To date, there has been nearly $38 million in federal funding and the trust has not received an annual gross revenue of even $1 million annual.
There is concern that without newly generated revenue the preserve will never become financially sustainable. Unfortunately, this will require new ideas and a lot of time on the part of the board to generate reachable goals, all the while maintaining the money making projects. It is my opinion that disaster preparedness be taken into consideration. Given the Las Conchas Fire and its impact on the reserve, it is clear that there needs to be response plans in place if something like this were to happen in the future.
Reference:
Valles Caldera Trust 2011 Report to Congress. (2011). Fiscal Year 2011. Retrieved from http://www.vallescaldera.gov/about/trust/docs/AnnualReportCongress2011.pdf
With the management factors discussed in previous blog question we want to see whether the trust is moving in the right direction. A major document that we can rely on to measure trust’s success is the annual reports that trust prepares to the congress. In its 2011 fiscal year report (October 1, 2010 through September 30, 2011) the trust reviews its performance toward the mandate goals during the last five years. Although, the biggest wildfire in history of New Mexico started in June 26, 2011 (Las Conchas Fire) and burned more than one third of the preserve. This incident affected the regular process of the trust but might show high flexible and efficient the trust is in order to respond to this fire accompanied by a drought. Best idea might be to wait until the preparation of the 2012 fiscal year’s report but for now I review the process until the end of 2011.
ReplyDeleteProtecting a working ranch for the future generations was the main goal of the trust. This includes preserving both natural and cultural resources. In this matter the trust has documented cultural surveys for new sites, improved the quality and quantity of infrastructure needed for better access, invested in inventory, monitoring and research, received around $15 million external funding for inventory, monitoring and research since 2007 while around 160 research projects were done on the preserve and several education programs were hosted by the trust during this time, the trust moved towards comprehensive management, and completed several forest thinning missions. Besides, in 2009 the trust has built a science and education center (SEC) with the revenues from the trust and not the tax money.
Another goal of the mandate is to keep public use and recreational opportunities. The trust moved towards this direction during this time providing better access for the public. They also invested in advertising and marketing. Elk hunting licenses are the largest source of revenue for the trust. They also made the access to fishing stream reaches easier and longer. Besides, they increased the number of hiking trails to 14. Las Conchas fire affected recreational activities severely by the end of 2011. some programs like hiking have almost returned to operation but for some programs like fishing and hunting it is still unclear whether they can be operational in full potential.
Preserving multiple use and sustainable yield is another goal of the mandate, especially in timber production and livestock grazing. The biggest effects on trees were due to grazing, the wildfire and logging since 1930’s, so the focus of the trust is on “restoring forest health, reducing the risk of large fires, and protecting watersheds. These efforts have also included identifying the most effective means of reducing hazardous fuels and a potential market for the sale of wood products (poles, mulch, pellets), sometimes in collaboration with local businesses” (Valles Caldera Trust 2011 Report to Congress). The trust also hosted several livestock programs like high altitude bull evaluation program.
The last major goal is optimizing the generation of income based on existing market conditions. Since the trust found out that there is not enough marketable timber in the preserve, they tried to expand their marketing opportunities using recreational and grazing revenues. “Collectively, from 2007 through 2011, the Trust’s grazing, recreation, and other activities generated an annual average of about $711,000 in gross revenues” (the article), but this amount of revenue is still small compared to an average of $3.45 million revenues from the tax money.
Although the fire happened in fiscal year 2011, they accomplished the biggest cultural survey (1485 acres), a preserve-wide inventory, “the 2011 hunts were 100% safe with no reportable accidents with 90% of hunter surveys rating their overall experience as ‘excellent’”, the visitations increased by 13% while its revenue increased by 8%, etc.
References:
DeleteValles Caldera Trust (2011). Valles Caldera Trust 2011 Report to Congress Fiscal Year 2011. Jemez Springs, NM
Valles Caldera National Preserve(2005), Retrieved March 10, 2012, from http://www.vallescaldera.gov/about/trust/trust_ref.aspx
Management effectiveness:
ReplyDeleteEspecially for Valles Caledera
For every project that we have a big challenge with the project we have to develop the effective management in this regard. In any successful organization or project, mission and objectives of the project should be obtained. Effective management skills will help to the engaged organizations or people to develop their efficiency. In effective management, capability of manager and his sucess is representative of the organization. Also, in successful management we have to create an equality between our challenge or project and the environment. In effective management we have to use any tools and human resources efficiently. Also, in some project like Valles Caldera, we are dealing with the project that is related to the humanistic issues and in some cases we have to neglect the economic issues for humanistic values and these values are more important than the economic benefits. For example, in Valles Caldera National Preserve, preserving of these area as a historical and unique area that has a lot of economical, historical, recreational and many other valuable aspects. In some cases, we are investing for future income increasing and maybe in near future, we cannot be provided from income (for example, for making some structures in this area for recreational purposes) but after some years rate of using these area as a recreational way will increased exponentially and this reason can convince the decision makers for long time decision making in some cases like Valles Caldera National Preserve.