QiH tW il Guidelines for Coordinated Management of Noxious Weeds in *TEM HAS BEEN DIGITIZED Section I Introduction and Acknowledgments Weeds in the Greater Yellowstone Area Undesirable plants are spreading into the Greater Yellowstone Area. Exotic plants and noxious weeds infest, the native plant communities in increasing numbers throughout the area. Public concern increases about the existing and potential harm¬ ful effects of unmanaged weeds. Unacceptable levels adversely affect crop and forage production, wilderness, wildlife habitat, visual quality, recreation opportunities, and land value. Land managers face the challenge to develop and conduct an effective program for controlling the spread of noxious weeds. Seven National Forests and two National Parks comprise the GYA. The entire GYA encompasses 20 million acres that include the National Forests and the National Parks, federal reservations, plus state lands and parks. National Wildlife Refuges, Bureau of Land Management, Bureau of Reclamation, and private lands. World renowned for its re¬ newable resources, this area offers outdoor recreation op¬ portunities, scenery, geologic and thermal features, and it attracts millions of people annually. This area lies within three states-Montana, Idaho, and Wyo¬ ming-and includes all or part of 16 counties. World renowned for its renewable resources, this area offers outdoor recreation opportunities, scenery, geologic and thermal features, and it attracts millions of people annually. A Memorandum of Understanding (Appendix 1) for Noxious Weed Management was signed by all entities within the GYA to encourage and formalize the coop eratlve relationship necessary for effective manage¬ ment and coordination of Noxious Weed programs among the land managers. This agreement will result in increased sharing of expertise, information, resources, and provide a process to improve the efficiency and ef fectlveness of all weed management programs. These guidelines provide a unified effort in developing a public awareness program; a prevention program; and a common inventory, mapping, monitoring, and reporting procedure. An overall Management Plan and specific action plans can be developed for logical units of land called Weed Management Areas. The GYA can be divided into Weed Management Areas that have common characteristics and become the land unit for the Section II A WMA may be weed-free and organized to quarantine an area from importation of weeds. The landowners may agree not to allow the use of hay from outside areas. They may agree to require that any construction, utility, logging equipment, etc., coming into the area be weed-free. Always include county weed boards in the WMA even it only federal land is involved. The WMA does not supplant the county weed board, but insures that cooperation extends across county, state, and federal boundaries within the Greater Yellowstone Area.