Best Management Practices can be adopted by landowners, natural resource agencies, and forestry industries to optimally manage their natural resources. Best management practices for vernal pools address the pool itself and the surrounding habitat. The first step to managing vernal pools at a site is to develop a management plan. If possible work with a biologist to locate vernal pools and inventory the plants and animals present. This will help determine the measures that will benefit the vernal pool and specific conservation targets such as rare species. Develop a simple monitoring program to evaluate the health of the pool and it’s wildlife over time. Maintenance of vernal pool communities is largely dependent upon protecting the pools and the surrounding uplands from disturbances that would degrade water quality, change how water flows and gathers on the surface, or physically harm animals as they move between pool and upland habitats. This guide includes recommendations that have been designed to protect vernal pool habitats and the plants and animals that use them.