Applicability of Montreal Process biological and abiotic indicators to rangeland sustainability: introduction

SUMMARY

The linking of rangeland sustainability at a national scale to the Montreal Process is a logical extension of the protocol fostering sustainable management for countries with temperate forests. The 12 signatory nations to the Santiago Declaration also possess about three-fourths of the world's rangelands. Nearly 75% of all threatened ecosystems in the USA are either grasslands or shrublands. Globally, rangelands are at risk from numerous pressures; thus, the Montreal Process nations would have broad interest in the sustainable management of grazing lands. The first five criteria of the Montreal Process deal with biological and abiotic indicators, while the last two criteria address social, economic and political indicators. The following papers appraise the biological and abiotic indicators. In general, the criteria and indicators do apply to rangelands. The means for appraising specific indicators may differ from those employed for forests; however, the procedures seem to be equally successful in assessing sustainability at a national scale.

Key words:

• criteria
• indicators
• sustainability
• rangeland
• grassland