The Sierra Nevada Ecosystem Project mapped 945 areas in the Sierra Nevada of ecological, cultural, and geological significance. These areas contain outstanding features of unusual rarity, diversity, and representativeness on national forest and national park lands. More than 70 % of the areas were newly recognized during the SNEP project. Local agency specialists familiar with local areas mapped 553 ecological areas (average size 1,359 ha [3,349 acres]), 198 cultural areas (average size 2,371 ha [5,804 acres]), and 194 geological areas (average size 3,822 ha [9,443 acres]) during workshops held throughout the Sierra Nevada. Ecological and cultural areas are concentrated primarily in the southern Sierra, especially in the national parks, and secondarily in the northern and eastern Sierra. Geological areas concentrate somewhat at high elevations and along river corridors. Although more than a third of these areas are in “protected”