Joe Arevalo, Taylor Emmons, Sarah Harefa, Ashley Van Wyk, and Jacob Zondag

Calvin CollegeDepartment of Geology, Geography, and Environmental Studies

EVALUATING THE EFFECTIVENESS OF MANAGEMENT TECHNIQUES

USED AT MT. PISGAH

Holland, Michigan – Mt. Pisgah circled in red

STUDY AREA

Trampling impact (Andersen 1995)van Dijk and Vink (2005) study results

Unnaturally angled ramp down bare sand slipface Notch in crest 5 meters lower than surrounding crest Most visitors not local and do not believe the dune has

problemsManagement techniques completed in 2009

BACKGROUND

Have management techniques at Mt. Pisgah been effective?

RESEARCH QUESTION

To measure activity on the dune. To compare extent of activity measured to results of van

Dijk and Vink (2005) study. To map and assess the presence and quality of dune

management techniques implemented. To understand visitors perception of dune management at

Mt. Pisgah.

STUDY OBJECTIVES

Measured sediment activity with erosion pins Compared extent of activity by replicating pictures

taken in 2005Mapped management techniques and human impactsGauged visitor perceptions by distributing

questionnaire

METHODS

MEASURING SEDIMENT ACTIVITY

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11

-20

-15

-10

-5

0

5

10

15

20

25

30

Erosion Pins

October 25-November 1

November 1-November 8

Points

Diffe

renc

es in

Mea

sure

men

ts (m

m)

COMPARING ACTIVITY LEVELS

2005 2012

View along southern arm looking west

COMPARING ACTIVITY LEVELS

2005 2012View from blowout looking toward the crest

COMPARING ACTIVITY LEVELS

View across middle of the blowout looking north

2005 2012

COMPARING ACTIVITY LEVELS

View from base of leeward slope looking west – unnaturally angled slope

2005 2012

COMPARING ACTIVITY LEVELS

View from crest towards Lake Macatawa

2005 2012

MAP OF MANAGEMENT TECHNIQUES

MAP OF HUMAN IMPACTS:UNMANAGED TRAILS

MAP OF HUMAN IMPACTS:LITTER AND DAMAGED FENCES

VISITOR PERCEPTIONS

Where visitors were from

HollandWithin an hour drive

VISITOR PERCEPTIONS

Winter

(Dec-Feb

)

Sprin

g (Mar-

May)

Summer

(June

-Aug)

Fall (S

ept-N

ov)0

306090

When respondents visit Mt. Pisgah

Perc

ent o

f res

pond

ents

VISITOR PERCEPTIONS

Go for

a walk

Walk th

e dog

Climb t

he du

ne

Enjoy

scen

ery

Play g

ames

Run do

wn dun

e on s

and

Observe

wildlife

Other

0306090

Activities visitors participate in while on Mt. Pisgah

20052012

Perc

ent o

f res

pond

ents

VISITOR PERCEPTIONS

Visitors Level of Dune Knowledge

1 - I know almost noth-ing23 - I know a lit-tle45 - I know a lot

Stron

gly op

pose

Oppose

Neutra

lFav

or

Stron

gly Fa

vor0

10

20

30

40

Visitor opinion of dune management and inter-pretation activities

Building a boardwalk to protect dune surfaceLimiting access to protect dune areasPlanting dune grass to stabilize the dunePlacement of sand fencing to stop sand movementInterpretive sign with dune informationEducational programs such as public walks/talks

Num

ber o

f res

pond

ents

VISITOR PERCEPTIONS

VISITOR PERCEPTIONS

No problem Minor problem Moderate problem

Major problem0

10

20

30

40

50

60

Do you consider the following to be problems/an-noyances on the dune?

LitterDune climbersDog waste/noiseDamage to duneManagement efforts

Num

ber o

f res

pond

ents

VISITOR PERCEPTIONS

Strongly Disagree

Disagree Neutral Agree Strongly Agree

05

101520253035

Reaction to the statement: the man-agement efforts have been successful

Management techniques have been effective at limiting and mitigating human impact.

In general, there is public acceptance and cooperation with management techniques.

However, unmanaged trails, litter, and damaged fences indicate an uncooperative segment of visitors.

CONCLUSIONS

WORKS CITEDAndersen, U.V. 1995. “Resistance of Danish coastal vegetation

types to human trampling.” Biological Conservation 71:223–230.Michigan Department of Natural Resources. “Holland State Park.”

Slideshow. <http://www.michigan.gov/documents/dnr/Holland_SP_Slideshow_334712_7.pdf>.

van Dijk, Deanna and D. Robert Vink 2005. “Visiting A Great Lakes Sand Dune: The Example of Mt. Pisgah in Holland, Michigan.” The Great Lakes Geographer 12(2): 45-63.

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS Ottawa County Parks and Recreation Commission who provided

our research site and Calvin College for providing facilities and equipment.

This research was supported by the National Science Foundation Grant 0942344, Melanie Manion and Deanna van Dijk.