National Wildlife Refuges: Continuing Problems With Incompatible Uses Call for Bold Action
RCED-89-196
Published: Sep 08, 1989. Publicly Released: Sep 13, 1989.
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Highlights
Pursuant to a congressional request, GAO evaluated the Fish and Wildlife Service's (FWS) management of the secondary uses of national wildlife refuges, focusing on whether FWS met the purposes for which the refuges were established.
Recommendations
Recommendations for Executive Action
| Agency Affected | Recommendation | Status |
|---|---|---|
| Department of the Interior | To ensure that secondary uses of national wildlife refuges are compatible with the primary purposes for which the refuges were established, the Secretary of the Interior should direct the Director, FWS, to: (1) base compatibility decisions on biological criteria to prevent nonbiological considerations from influencing such decisions; (2) compile financial data on the cost of managing secondary uses to determine their impact on refuges' limited resources; (3) comply with the requirement in its Refuge Manual to reevaluate the compatibility of ongoing secondary uses on a periodic basis; and (4) eliminate all uses deemed, on biological grounds, to detract materially from the refuges' primary purposes. |
Closed – Implemented
The Director issued a memorandum to all regions in December 1990 directing them to begin addressing incompatible uses found in the survey. FWS submitted a report on incompatible uses with the Director's testimony in March 1991 during oversight hearings. Other issues will be dealt with on a refuge-by-refuge basis.
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| Department of the Interior | To ensure that available resources are used effectively, the Secretary of the Interior should direct the Director, FWS, to: (1) identify refuges where less than full ownership and control of necessary resources adversely affect the refuges' primary purposes; (2) establish guidance for determining whether refuges can effectively accomplish their primary wildlife resource purposes; and (3) determine whether these refuges should be improved through the acquisition of needed property rights or other steps, or be removed from the system on the basis of the above guidance, thus freeing limited resources for use at other wildlife refuges. |
Closed – Implemented
The Director, FWS, issued a memorandum to all regions in December 1990 directing them to begin addressing issues found in the GAO survey. FWS issued a report on incompatible uses in March 1991. The Director will deal with other issues on a refuge-by-refuge basis.
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