Monitoring
Few regions in the world offer the environmental monitoring opportunity that is possible in the parklands of the Central Alaska Network. The relatively untouched nature of these vast and remote areas can provide important baselines from which to measure and evaluate the direction and magnitude of changes brought about by human influences on both regional and global scales.
Ecological monitoring has been conducted in Central Alaska Network parks historically - most notably in Denali, where a separate long-term ecological monitoring program has been conducted since 1992, and where a few data streams (e.g., weather monitoring and wolf research) have been continuously collected for over 60 years. In 2004, Denali's long-term ecological monitoring program was incorporated into the Central Alaska Network to improve programmatic efficiency.
The Central Alaska Network Inventory and Monitoring Program will augment these historic projects by monitoring certain carefully selected elements, or "vital signs." These vital signs are critical indicators of long-term, system-wide trends. The Central Alaska Network has recently identified and ranked these vital signs based on a holistic conceptual model which depicts significant ecosystem components and their relationships, and the dynamic interactions they have with one another. To better prepare for program implemention, several pilot projects were conducted to determine the feasability of vital signs monitoring.
Monitoring Reports:
- Vital Signs Monitoring Plan (2005) (3.1Mb pdf)
- Vital Signs Monitoring Plan, Phase II Report (2003) (1.5Mb pdf)
- Vital Signs Monitoring Plan, Phase I Report (2002) (2.1Mb pdf)