Mike Dombeck's Top Ten

Here are the biggest conservation challenges for this century, according to Mike Dombeck. (He does not rank them in order of importance.)

The 1872 Mining law is the most outdated natural resources law in the U.S. It allows the privatization of public land for $2.50 to $5.00 per acre (even for foreign or multinational mining companies) and allows companies to mine hard-rock minerals (gold, silver, etc.) on public land and pay no royalties. Congress needs to change this law.

Wildland fire. Today we are dealing with the cumulative effects of 100 years of fire suppression, especially in the arid West. It's not if there will be a forest fire, but when. Like wind and water, fire is one of nature's cleansing agents. The challenge is to put fire back on the land and do it in a way that doesn't harm people.

Exotic species are a problem that can be described as an explosion in slow motion. Exotics invade new habitats and take over, displacing many native species. Modern transportation is shipping millions of organisms from around the world to new places every day.

Land fragmentation and sprawl. An average of 8,700 acres per day of farmland, forests, and open space have been developed since 1992. That's double the rate of the decade of the 1980s. How much open space do we want to save for future generations?

Loss of old-growth forests. Virtually all of our old-growth forests in Wisconsin were cut by the end of the big timber era, and the largest portion of them in the U.S. have been cut. Doesn't it make sense to leave some of these majestic forest ecosystems intact for future generations?

Loss of biodiversity. We are losing native species of both plants and animals at an alarming rate as we develop the land. Undisturbed wildlands serve as a refuge and sometimes even the last stronghold for rare and endangered species.

Off-road vehicles. More people are going more places with off-road vehicles on public land than ever before. Many public land field managers feel managing off-road vehicle use is one of their top challenges. There is a place for off-road vehicles on the land, but like all uses, it must take place within the ecological limits of the land.

Private land conservation. Few areas offer more promise for conservation and watershed restoration than private lands. The 60 million acres of urban forests in the U.S. hold tremendous opportunity for increasing the number of trees, making our cities and towns more attractive and saving energy.

Water, I believe, will be the issue of the century. Within the next 25 years some two-thirds of the world population will be dealing with water shortages. Our activities on the land must take restoration of watershed function into account.

Education is the key to success in land conservation. All people must understand and appreciate what the land does for all of us.