Survey and Manage

Survey and Manage are a set of standards and guidelines associated with the 1994 Record of Decision (ROD) for Amendments to Forest Service (FS) and Bureau of Land Management (BLM) Planning Documents within the Range of the Northwest Spotted Owl (called the Northwest Forest Plan). They are documented in the January 2001 Record of Decision and Standards and Guidelines for Amendments to the Survey and Manage, Protection Buffer, and other Mitigation Measures Standards and Guidelines. These standards and guidelines are applicable to Forest Service and Bureau of Land Management lands in western Washington, western Oregon, and north-western California and are intended to reduce or eliminate (mitigate) potential effects from agency actions to just over 300 flora and fauna species including mosses, liverworts, fungi, lichens, vascular plants, slugs, snails, salamanders, great gray owl, and red tree voles. These Survey and Manage species are assigned to one of six categories based upon the relative rarity of the species, the practicality to conduct pre-disturbance surveys, and the understanding of association with late-successional or old growth forests.

Three basic criteria must be met for species to be included in the standards and guidelines:

1. The species must occur within the Northwest Forest Plan (NFP) area, or occur close to the NFP area and have potentially suitable habitat within the NFP area.
2. The species must be closely associated with late-successional or old-growth forest.
3. The reserve system and other Standards and Guidelines of the Northwest Forest Plan do not appear to provide for a reasonable assurance of species persistence.

For more details on the history of and changes to the Survey and Manage standards and guidelines since 1994, please see the History page.

Page last updated: September 2013