Triage Law Enforcement: Societal Impacts on National Forests in the West

In the summer and fall of 1998, selected managers in the western US were interviewed to assess the impacts of criminal activities on the use of national forests. The main challenges reported by all sites were arson, criminal damage, domestic violence, dumping of household trash, marijuana cultivation, satanic cult activity, and thefts. Not much difference was found based on whether the sites were urban-proximate or rural, although some differences were found in the assaults category. Most managers felt that users of outdoor recreation sites were either unaware of these activities or were unaffected. Almost all of the managers, however, noted the increasing prevalence of criminal activities and domestic terrorism activities and the costs to management in terms of time and personnel.