What is the worst impact you've ever seen?

Having spent many weeks per year in the out-of-doors over the past several decades, I have seen a lot of recreation-related impacts. Some mild, some horrific. Some due to malicious intent, others due to ignorance. Over the past year I've seen a few impacts that have rivaled anything I've ever seen before. Big fires, serious erosion, invasive species, pet waste and litter. As with all impacts, it's not the one time someone builds a big fire or the one time someone leaves litter behind. It's the cumulative impact of people doing the same things over and over again that begins to add up and create serious problems.

What impacts have you seen?

A few pictures: tamarisk, an invasive species, along a river in Utah; impacts from a beach fire and graffiti carved in a rock slab:

Leave No Trace for Rivers

Floating rivers is a unique way to enjoy the outdoors. From a raft, kayak, or canoe adrift on the water, a river traveler can watch a heron silently flying overhead, observe the record of millions of years of geologic time, or experience the thrill of running a turbulent rapid. River corridors have always provided an ideal channel for exploring America’s wild places. Historically, early river pioneers were searching for furs, precious metals, minerals, and routes to the Pacific Ocean. Modern river runners are searching for beauty, solitude, excitement, and a sense of connection with their surroundings. More of us are traveling on rivers than ever before, making it imperative that we learn how to preserve these waterways and the habitats adjoining them.

Human impact is more concentrated in river corridors than in many other ecosystems. Although we leave little or no impact on the water when we travel over it, our impacts on the riverbanks can be significant. Steep canyon walls or high mountains define some river corridors while others meander through hills and dense forest. These features often offer majestic scenery, but they also confine travelers to narrow strips of land where we cook, eat, sleep, pack, play games, and produce waste. Since different boating parties use the same stretches of river and the same camps night after night, the effects of these activities are multiplied many times over.

In order to minimize our cumulative impact on the rivers we enjoy, we need to practice Leave No Trace. Leave No Trace is an national and international program designed to assist outdoor enthusiasts with their decisions about how to reduce their impacts when they hike, camp, picnic, snowshoe, run, bike, hunt, paddle, ride horses, fish, ski or climb. The program strives to educate all those who enjoy the outdoors about the nature of their recreational impacts as well as techniques to prevent and minimize such impacts. Leave No Trace is best understood as an educational and ethical program, not as a set of rules and regulations. The Leave No Trace program is managed by the Leave No Trace Center for Outdoor Ethics, an educational, nonprofit organization dedicated to the responsible enjoyment and active stewardship of the outdoors by all people, worldwide.

Something about rivers inspires us to contemplate beauty, creation, and the power of nature. Perhaps it is the unrelenting flow of moving water that encourages thoughtfulness. Or perhaps it is the opportunity to witness the story of past epochs, written in the canyon walls, that tempts us to contemplate our roles in the web of life. For some people, the river provides an ideal setting for enjoying time spent with friends and family. For others, it provides a source of challenge and excitement. Something keeps us floating rivers year after year—the pull of moving water is a powerful and irresistible force. On your next outing, be it a day or several weeks, be mindful of your impact and what you leave behind for those who will come after you.

For more information on Leave No Trace, visit www.LNT.org or call 1.800.332.4100

Plan Ahead and Prepare – Learn about river-specific issues, regulations and permits. Know river sills and carry the necessary equipment to enjoy the river safely.

Travel and Camp on Durable Surfaces – Durable surfaces include water, rock, gravel and sand. Focus activity where vegetation is absent. Leave put-ins, take-outs and campsites clean and natural looking.

Dispose of Waste Properly – Pack it in, pack it out. Learn about regulations pertaining to human waste and dispose of it properly. Generally, the best practice is to pack out human waste.

Leave What You Find – Appreciate ancient structures, artifacts, rock art and other natural objects but leave then undisturbed. Avoid introducing non-native or invasive species by cleaning equipment between trips.

Minimize Campfire Impacts – Carry a fire pan or build a mound fire. Consider using stoves for cooking. Learn about local fire regulations.

Respect Wildlife – Observe wildlife from a distance. Avoid feeding wildlife and always properly store food and trash. Control pets or leave them at home.

Be Considerate of Other Visitors – Respect other visitors and the quality of their experience. Communicate with other river users about your floating and camping plans to avoid conflicts.

Is the Leave No Trace Trainer Course Really Effective?

The Leave No Trace Center for Outdoor Ethics has developed a variety of printed educational materials and training programs to communicate Leave No Trace practices and ethics for over a decade. There has been little research, however, to evaluate how well these messages are absorbed and used by outdoor visitors. Dr. Jeff Marion and Melissa Daniels completed and published a study to evaluate the effectiveness of the 2-day Leave No Trace Trainer course in order to document and evaluate participants' gain and retention of knowledge, ethics, and reported behavior.

The questionnaires were developed based on the most current Leave No Trace information available in the Leave No Trace Skills & Ethics booklet series and Trainer course materials. Over a five month period, the researchers advertised their study through the database of Master Educators, contacted those who were offering Trainer courses, and asked if they were interested in participating in the study. In all, there were 20 courses that distributed pre-course and post-course questionnaires to the participants; an additional follow-up survey was conducted with these participants 4-5 months later. The researchers received a total of 166 pre-course, 156 post-course, and 112 follow-up surveys.

The Results:

The knowledge section contained 25 items, each counted as correct or incorrect and scored on a 100-point scale. The mean score for all knowledge test items improved significantly from a mean pre-course score of 70 to a post-course score of 82. There was a slight 3-point drop from post-course to follow-up, but the long-term change, pre to follow-up, remained statistically significant. Of the 25 knowledge questions, 17 showed significant improvement pre to post, with the greatest improvements in items related to repacking food, traveling off-trail, and scattering ashes. There were no significant declines pre to post.

The ethics section contained 16 items for which participants rated their agreement on a seven-point scale. These showed a similar pattern to knowledge for overall mean scores. Ethics scores for the pre-course survey were fairly high—5.8 on a scale of one to seven—and improved significantly on the post-course survey. The follow-up showed a significant decline from the post-course survey, but there was still a significant improvement pre- to follow-up.

Reported behavior was assessed at two points in time—pre-course and follow-up. These ten items had three possible responses and space for comments. Responses were scored as one, two, or three based on use of the most acceptable Leave No Trace practice. All mean scores for the items were above the middle response of 2, indicating that most respondents chose the most appropriate or second-most appropriate behavior, even prior to the course.

Summary:

The evaluation of the Trainer course curriculum indicates that it is successful in promoting Leave No Trace practices to participants. Research results revealed statistically significant improvement in Leave No Trace knowledge, ethics and outdoor practices both immediately following the course and 4-5 months later. Findings support the contention that improved Leave No Trace knowledge and ethics lead to the adoption of low impact practices.

For more information or to download the study and the questionnaire, please visit http://lnt.org/training/lntrelatedresearch.php