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U.S. military training areas can support wildlife conservation when habitat stewardship is built into installation planning and coordinated with surrounding landowners. The strongest model treats conservation as a way to sustain training access, water resources, working lands and resilience—not as an automatic benefit of military activity.
The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) says the Department of Defense manages approximately 27 million acres across 338 installations. Those lands are managed under mission, security and safety constraints, but their natural-resource plans and conservation partnerships can protect habitat while keeping training and testing viable.
How can military training areas support wildlife conservation?
They do so through two connected levels of management:
- Installation-level planning: Each installation can use an Integrated Natural Resources Management Plan (INRMP) to coordinate habitat, fish and wildlife, forestry, land management and recreation with its military mission.
- Landscape-scale partnerships: Programs such as the Sentinel Landscapes Partnership align military needs with conservation, agriculture, forestry, water and wildfire-resilience projects beyond an installation’s fence line.
This distinction matters. A base may manage a wetland, forest or species habitat directly, while a landscape partnership may keep neighboring farms and forests in compatible use so that aircraft corridors, maneuver space and wildlife movement routes remain available. Neither approach means that training itself invariably improves biodiversity. Benefits depend on deliberate stewardship, funding, monitoring and decisions that fit the installation’s mission.
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Why military land can be important for wildlife
Large, relatively undeveloped holdings
USFWS describes the Department of Defense estate as approximately 27 million acres on 338 installations. Because many installations include restricted or otherwise undeveloped land, they can contain native habitat that has been fragmented or converted elsewhere. The acreage figure is an approximate agency description on the Service’s current program page, accessed in 2026; it is not a newly dated statistical survey.
A historical refuge rationale, not a current species count
A 2004 NatureServe report captured the historical rationale for looking at military lands as conservation opportunities. It said, based on earlier work, that military lands were thought to support more federally listed species than any other major federal agency and to harbor more imperiled species than lands managed by the National Park Service or USFWS. That report is useful context for why planners examine bases as habitat, but it is too old to serve as a current inventory or a present-day nationwide comparison.
Mission constraints shape every conservation decision
Training areas are not wildlife refuges by default. Noise, vehicle movement, construction, unexploded ordnance, restricted access and changing operational requirements can affect habitat. Conservation measures must therefore be compatible with safety, security and the timing and location of exercises. A successful project is one that improves ecological conditions without creating an unacceptable risk to personnel or readiness.
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Integrated Natural Resources Management Plans
USFWS describes INRMPs as ecosystem-based plans designed to meet natural-resource stewardship requirements while supporting, and potentially enhancing, military training. The Sikes Act requires most U.S. military installations to develop and implement comprehensive natural-resource plans. An INRMP gives an installation a formal process for deciding what habitat and species work is needed, who will carry it out and how it will be reconciled with mission demands.
A plan can bring several resource areas into one decision framework:
- Habitat condition and restoration priorities
- Fish and wildlife management
- Forest and other vegetation management
- Land-use and erosion considerations
- Outdoor recreation where access is safe and compatible
- Compliance, monitoring and coordination with outside agencies
Cooperative expertise
USFWS provides guidance and field support and describes formal partnerships with the Air Force and Army. That arrangement lets an installation draw on wildlife and habitat expertise without assuming that every base uses the same projects. The plan is specific to the landscape, listed species or other conservation priorities present there, and the military activities that must continue.
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From plan to annual work
Planning becomes meaningful when it produces scheduled work, responsible organizations and measurable checks. An installation can use its INRMP to identify habitat areas that must remain available, coordinate surveys before construction or training changes, and set priorities for forestry, fish and wildlife or land-management actions. The plan also provides a common record for commanders, natural-resource staff and cooperating agencies when mission requirements change.
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The exact project mix varies, but the planning framework supports several recurring types of action:
Habitat and species stewardship
Natural-resource staff can map important habitat, manage it alongside training schedules and address species that require particular conditions. The objective is not to exclude all military use; it is to place activities and timing where they are compatible with habitat needs and safety requirements.
Water and watershed protection
Keeping water sources functioning can serve both wildlife and operations. The 2016 Interior Department description of Camp Ripley connected the installation’s partnership work with water-source protection and the northern long-eared bat. Water-quality and watershed decisions can also reduce erosion or infrastructure problems that would otherwise affect training areas.
Forestry and working-land management
Forestry is included in the natural-resource planning framework and can be coordinated with neighboring working lands. At landscape scale, keeping farms and forests in compatible use can preserve habitat continuity while preventing incompatible development near ranges or flight routes.
Recreation where it is compatible
INRMPs can address recreation, but recreation is subordinate to safety, security and mission requirements. A plan may identify appropriate opportunities without creating a general public-access guarantee.
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Resilience and risk reduction
Conservation partnerships can also address threats that affect both wildlife and readiness. The 2026 Sentinel Landscapes announcement highlights wildfire-risk reduction as a priority in the Pikes Peak landscape. Reducing landscape-scale risk can protect habitat, infrastructure and training availability at the same time.
What is a Sentinel Landscape?
A Sentinel Landscape is a designated area where defense, agriculture, interior, state, local, Tribal, private and conservation partners coordinate land-use goals. The partnership does not transfer an installation into a wildlife refuge. Instead, it aligns voluntary conservation and working-land efforts with military needs such as keeping flight and training corridors open, protecting compatible rural land and reducing risks around installations.
The Sentinel Landscapes Partnership’s June 2026 announcement reported 21 designated landscapes supporting more than 60 installations across the nation and one U.S. territory. It also reported more than $1.75 billion in combined federal, state, local and private investment to date, including $368 million leveraged in fiscal year 2024. These are investment and participation measures, not measurements of species recovery.
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The examples below come from federal announcements and should be read with their dates. The 2016 examples describe the partnerships and priorities at that time; the 2026 examples identify current landscape priorities rather than guaranteeing that every listed project is complete.
| Place and source period | Conservation or land-use focus | Readiness connection |
|---|---|---|
| Camp Ripley, 2016 Interior Department announcement | Water-source protection and northern long-eared bat context | Partnership designed to preserve habitat while supporting the installation’s military role |
| Avon Park Air Force Range, 2016 Interior Department announcement | Gopher tortoise and red-cockaded woodpecker context | Habitat objectives coordinated with an active range |
| Eastern North Carolina, 2016 Interior Department announcement | Habitat and military-related land-use coordination across a working landscape | Keeping compatible land uses aligned with defense needs |
| East Mississippi, 2026 Sentinel Landscapes announcement | Compatible rural land and landscape conservation | Maintaining space and land uses compatible with flight training |
| Pikes Peak, 2026 Sentinel Landscapes announcement | Open training space and wildfire-risk reduction | Protecting maneuver and training capacity while improving resilience |
In 2016, Interior official Michael Bean described the designation as “proof that we can preserve military readiness while also protecting important landscapes and wildlife habitat.” The statement expresses the partnership’s intended balance; it is not a nationwide causal finding that military operations increase wildlife populations.
Installation planning versus landscape partnerships
| Comparison point | Installation-level INRMP | Sentinel Landscapes partnership |
|---|---|---|
| Geographic scope | One military installation and its managed lands | A multi-owner landscape around and beyond installations |
| Lead structure | Installation natural-resource and command organizations with agency coordination | Defense, agriculture, interior, state, local, Tribal, private and conservation partners |
| Main instrument | Integrated Natural Resources Management Plan under the Sikes Act framework | Landscape designation and coordinated conservation and working-land projects |
| Readiness need addressed | Training, testing, safety and land-use decisions inside the installation | Compatible land use, open training or flight corridors and resilience outside the boundary |
| Typical objective | Habitat, fish and wildlife, forestry, land management and compatible recreation | Habitat continuity, working-land stewardship and risk reduction at landscape scale |
| Evidence period in the cited material | Current USFWS program description accessed in 2026 | Sentinel Landscapes announcements from 2016, 2024 and 2026 |
The two approaches reinforce each other but should not be treated as interchangeable. An INRMP supplies the installation’s internal management process. A Sentinel Landscape supplies a coordination structure for landowners and agencies that control land outside the base.
How conservation and readiness can be made compatible
Start with the mission footprint
Planners first need to understand where maneuver, firing, testing, flight paths, access roads and safety buffers are required. Conservation priorities can then be mapped against areas where use is compatible, seasonal or avoidable.
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Use shared objectives instead of separate projects
A water-protection project can be justified for wildlife and operational reliability. Keeping a forest or farm in compatible use can protect habitat and reduce encroachment near a range. Wildfire-risk reduction can protect species, communities and training infrastructure. Framing work around these shared outcomes makes it easier for commanders and civilian partners to support.
Coordinate before land-use decisions are fixed
USFWS guidance and formal Air Force and Army partnerships give installations access to outside expertise. Early coordination helps identify habitat constraints before construction, access changes or neighboring development creates a conflict.
Monitor what matters
Projects should specify what will be checked: habitat condition, water-resource performance, land-use compatibility, risk reduction or species response. Acreage enrolled and dollars invested show program reach, but they do not by themselves demonstrate that a population recovered.
Independent reader supportYour contribution helps us test, update, and keep practical guides available for everyone.A practical implementation sequence
- Define the operational requirement. Map training, testing, flight, safety and access needs, including seasonal or emergency constraints.
- Compile natural-resource information. Use the installation’s INRMP process to identify habitat, fish and wildlife, forestry, water and recreation priorities.
- Identify potential conflicts. Note where proposed activities could affect habitat, listed species, water sources, wildfire exposure or neighboring land uses.
- Bring in technical partners. Coordinate with USFWS and relevant military, state, Tribal, local, agricultural, forestry and conservation organizations.
- Choose shared projects. Prioritize actions that protect habitat while directly supporting training access, safety, water reliability, compatible land use or resilience.
- Set responsibilities and timing. Assign a lead organization, funding source, schedule and conditions for suspending or adjusting work when mission requirements change.
- Track ecological and operational indicators. Record habitat or species measures alongside readiness, access, safety or risk outcomes.
- Update the plan. Use monitoring results and changes in missions, climate, development or species status to revise priorities.
Common pitfalls and how to avoid them
Assuming military activity automatically helps wildlife
Some installations retain valuable habitat because development is limited, but training can also disturb land, create safety hazards or fragment habitat. Attribute benefits to planning and stewardship actions, not to military use in the abstract.
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The NatureServe report is from 2004. It should support historical context only unless a newer, comparable dataset is available.
Equating acreage or investment with recovery
The 2024 Department of Defense announcement reported more than 4.4 million acres enrolled, while the 2026 Sentinel Landscapes announcement reported investment totals and 21 designated landscapes. Those figures describe program scale. The available material does not provide a current, comparable measure of wildlife-population change caused specifically by conservation on military training areas.
Ignoring land outside the fence
Habitat and flight or maneuver corridors often cross ownership boundaries. An installation-only solution may fail if surrounding development removes compatible land uses. Landscape partnerships address that gap.
Treating access as the primary conservation tool
Public access can be appropriate in selected areas, but security and safety come first. Conservation value does not depend on unrestricted visitation, and a closed area may still be important habitat.
What the evidence supports—and what it does not
The federal programs and examples support a clear conclusion: military installations can be effective conservation partners when they use ecosystem-based plans, obtain technical help and coordinate with surrounding landowners and agencies. The materials do not establish a current nationwide causal estimate of biodiversity gains attributable to military training, nor do they show that every installation produces the same ecological outcomes.
For decision-makers, the useful test is therefore specific: Does the installation have an active natural-resource plan? Are conservation actions tied to measurable habitat and readiness objectives? Are neighboring land uses included where corridors or watersheds cross boundaries? And is monitoring strong enough to distinguish program activity from actual ecological change?
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