USDA Forest Service

The Built Environment Image Guide

For the National Forests and Grasslands

Summary

The built environment, as used in this guide, refers to the administrative and recreation buildings, landscape structures, site furnishings, structures on roads and trails, and signs installed or operated by the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) Forest Service, its cooperators, and permittees.

Overview

The elements of the built environment constructed on national forest lands and grasslands, or those used for administrative purposes in rural areas, towns, and cities, shall—to the extent practicable—incorporate the principles of sustainability, reflect their place within the natural and cultural landscape, and provide optimal service to our customers and cooperators.

These elements will:

• Be located, planned, and designed with respect for the natural systems in which they reside.
• Aesthetically integrate their natural, cultural, and experiential context.
• Contain design elements, including appropriate signs, that reinforce a national agency identity.
• Emphasize efficiency of energy and materials consumption in construction and operation.
• Serve as premier examples to interpret conservation of natural resources and sustainable development.
• Create environments for people to enjoy and gain increased appreciation for the natural environment, and in which employees work productively, experiencing the connection to the resources they manage.

In so doing, the USDA Forest Service built environment will strengthen and reinforce the image of the agency as an international conservation leader.

Trail Types Covered

General. All trail types are relevant.