Abstract
Public land management agencies, such as the US Forest Service (USFS), confront challenges in leveraging limited administrative capacity to effectively manage landscape-scale, cross-boundary disturbances. Using case study methods, we investigated the ~1996–2016 outbreak of mountain pine beetle (Dendroctonus ponderosae Hopkins) in the Black Hills, a 1.5 million acre region in South Dakota and Wyoming. We identified four practices that can promote the leveraging of administrative capacity: (1) establishing multilevel governance networks; (2) performing both distinct and shared (“redundant”) partner roles; (3) maximizing the collaborative toolbox: drawing upon the variety of policy tools (older, newer) and modes of use (conventional, experimental); and (4) engaging a multilevel, multiorganizational network, with attention to the ways that a variety of network linkages can deploy a variety of policy tool types. This case demonstrates how the government-led model of network governance can be applied to leverage administrative capacity. These findings point to strategies to promote landscape-scale, cross-boundary management.
Study Implications
Public land managers, partners, and scientists can learn from the case of the Black Hills about practices to leverage administrative capacity to manage landscape-level, cross-boundary disturbances. Such practices involve governance networks, partner roles, and use of a collaborative toolbox from which policy tools are selected. Convening overlapping, multilevel networks (national forest, ranger district) can maximize consideration of various partner roles and collaborative toolbox options, including both tool type (older, newer) and mode of use (conventional, experimental). Attention to the variety of network linkages (federal, state, local, industry, NGO) can promote opportunities to deploy a variety of policy tools, thereby leveraging capacity.
Corrigendum to: Leveraging administrative capacity to manage landscape-scale, cross-boundary disturbance in the Black Hills: What roles for federal, state, local, and non-governmental partners?
