ECOSYSTEM MANAGEMENT: A LANDSCAPE ECOLOGY PERSPECTWE1

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Abstract
Ecosystem management is an evolving philosophy that many government agencies have adopted in the multiple‐use, sustained‐yield management of federal lands. The primary objective of this philosophy is to sustain the integrity of ecosystems (i.e., their function, composition, and structure) for future generations while providing immediate goods and services to an increasingly diverse public. This objective can be achieved through integrated land evaluation and optimal land use planning that promotes the maintenance or development of landscape patterns and processes that meet societal expectations within the limits of the land's ecological potentials. Landscape ecology and conservation biology principles are critical components of this philosophy. This paper describes how some of these principles can be efficiently used in formulating a framework for ecosystem management on federal lands. The role of landscape ecology in ecosystem characterization and description is stressed, and the appropriateness of integrated ecological assessments to ecosystem management is discussed.