Kristina Schenck's Interactive Media

Sometimes, going ‘global’ isn’t always a good thing. In fact, globalization wreaks havoc on the natural community.

Recently, a land manager told me that some places in Austin look more like China than Central Texas.

The sad thing is, he’s right. There’s a hoard of invasive species overtaking the landscape in Austin, especially on public lands, and it’s a huge beast to tackle. Plants like Japanese privet, Chinaberry and Chinese privet are all native to Asia, but came here after people decided that they looked pretty in their yards. These plants are known as ornamentals, and people plant them because they look nice. They also thrive in Austin’s winterless and favorable climate.

This tree is probably the great-grandmother of all ligustrum trees within a mile radius or so. It’s huge. It’s hard to tell, but that tree is full of luscious berries. Birds love that stuff.

The university is working to increase academic involvement in and public awareness of Wild Basin Wilderness Preserve, a nature preserve managed by St. Edward’s University in west Austin. Part of the initiative included renovations to infrastructure and changing the name of the building at the preserve to Wild Basin Creative Research Center.

Over the course of the last 30 years, snowmobiles have become a popular sight–and sound–in Yellowstone National Park, perhaps the last place one would expect to see crowds like the one on the picture below.

Wilderness or highway? Photo by Craig Moore / Associated Press

The legal and political battle surrounding the issue of banning snowmobile use in Yellowstone National Park is a prime example of the challenges government agencies face when managing land for multiple use. On the one hand, snowmobiling is the foundation of the local economy in West Yellowstone, Montana, a small town of about 1000 people and a gateway to Yellowstone. There are multiple companies that rent out snowmobiles, give snowmobile tours, and service snowmobiles. However, supporters of the ban cite air and noise pollution as well as wildlife disturbance as reasons for regulating snowmobile use in the park.

Allowing hundreds of snowmobiles to drive freely through a national gem is contradictory to the National Park Service’s mission to preserve land for future generations. However, banning snowmobiles all together is inconsistent with the idea of managing for different users and would hurt the local economy.

If you’re in Texas, the idea of public land may seem like a foreign concept. Ninety eight percent of all land in Texas is private property. However, this is not the norm, and public lands and the American West are inseparable, as much of the land in western states is owned by the federal government.

And this extends way beyond just the National Park system. While National Parks are certainly one of America’s best ideas, and can be considered the poster child of land in the public trust due to the familiarity with places like Yosemite, the Grand Canyon and Yellowstone, there are many other types of public lands managed by different agencies for various uses. Though there is one thing these places have in common – public lands are owned by the taxpayers, managed by the federal government and available for all to use within the regulations of the respective policy that distinguishes the use of the land.

Crazy people BASE jumping off of Half Dome in Yosemite National Park.
Photo Credit: Lyndsey Dyer

The single most important part of land management in the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness is limiting the impact people have on the resource and making sure there are facilities that encourage users to concentrate their impact in a designated area.

This includes human waste. Over 200,000 people visit the Boundary Waters each year, and it’s a safe bet that all of them have to relieve themselves at some point in time during their stay. Essentially, it’s a wilderness ranger’s job to potty train visitors. No, we don’t hold anyone’s hand, nor do we guard the toilets.

Throne fit for a king. Photo credit: BWCA.com

Over the summer, my morning commute to the office was a quick paddle into the wilderness. Life jackets replaced seatbelts and wind conditions were more of a concern than traffic jams. Parallel parking along the lakeshore was a dream.

Ok, the term office is relative—in this case, the office is a million-plus acres of wilderness, known as the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness in northern Minnesota. There are more than 3,000 lakes in this area, which straddles the U.S.-Canadian border, and it’s just a hop-skip away from Lake Superior, the largest freshwater lake in the world. Needless to say, the landscape is enchantingly beautiful.

Duncan Lake in the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness, just a few miles from the Canadian border.

Not to mention that it is nearly impossible to travel without a canoe in the Boundary Waters—which is what makes this area so unique. And this summer, I called this place both my office and my home.

As a student worker for the U.S. Forest Service, the government agency that manages the Boundary Waters, I work alongside Wilderness Rangers in the Superior National Forest. You could say I was a Wilderness Ranger-in-training, no big deal.

The Boundary Waters is a protected wilderness area that lies within the forest, and it’s also the most visited wilderness in the country. That means there are over 200,000 visitors each year—most of them come in the summer, and nearly all of them paddle in via canoe to camp, fish and enjoy the mysterious allure of the Boundary Waters.