Sustainable Resource Management: Federal Commitment

The Federal commitment to sustainable forest and resource management is increasing. A Federal interagency Memorandum of Understanding on Sustainable Forest Management Data (MOU), initially signed on October 16, 2000, now includes eleven signatories. The MOU focuses on data responsibilities related to the Montreal Process Criteria and Indicators for the Conservation and Management of Temperate and Boreal Forests (C&I). The enclosed MOU provides for:

• An interagency forum for Federal coordination to resolve issues related to collecting, monitoring, analyzing, reporting, and making data available on an ongoing basis.
• A process for helping Federal agencies develop a national report by 2003 on the state of the Nation's forests and progress towards sustainable forest management.

The interagency forum for ongoing Federal coordination is a new Sustainable Forest Data Working Group of the Federal Geographic Data Committee (FGDC) officially chartered on February 6, 2001. Check the FGDC website for more information.

• MOU - Cover Letter
• Memorandum of Understanding
• Sustainable Forest Data Working Group