This is the point at which the planner describes what will be done to move toward the goal, while avoiding constraints. Objectives should be written, and to be most effective, should meet at least the following four criteria:
Clear and specific
Flexible, e.g., do not include how the effect will be accomplished
Measurable
Attainable
There is no one way to develop objectives, but here are some suggestions that others have used successfully:
1. Visualize and write a paragraph or two describing the future condition. Describe the land and water cover, its pattern, and the condition of any surface or groundwater. Itemize the ecological processes that will be most important, and the functions that the system will produce. Describe the human use of the site, its type and magnitude. Explain how the area in question relates to its neighbors, i.e., its regional and local context. Consider the significant resources and place them into context.
2. Step 2 of the Objective / Constraint Profile on page 117 of the Planning Manual (reproduced here) is a useful format to follow in analyzing problems or opportunities and desired effects. Please note that it includes a place for measurement of outputs (step 2e), which just means that for the most efficient planning, the evaluation tool to be used later in the process should be identified here. Pages 112-127 of the Planning Manual provide excellent reading on planning objectives.
To more realistically define future conditions and actions for restoration, it is often important to know what the prior conditions were.
How do I determine what the future condition should look like?
Sometimes the desired future condition is driven directly by the problem to be solved. For example the problem is a reduction in water flow on a local stream because of an upstream diversion; the desired future condition is restored water flow so that instream flows that existed prior to the diversion are present.
At other times, a broader opportunity occurs and a selection of desired future conditions is present. That selection can be derived by answering one of three questions.
The desired future condition can be described by:
What Was There (to return to that condition)
What is Present someplace else (a similar site without the negative changes or degraded conditions, i.e., contemporary unimpacted scenes)