Transcript Toward a Landscape Approach for Managing Public Lands

BLM’s Landscape Approach
REAs and Related Landscape Initiatives
Karen Prentice, BLM, Healthy Landscapes Coordinator, [email protected], 202-912-7223
Gordon Toevs, BLM, Assessment Inventory and Monitoring Coordinator, [email protected], 202-912-7202
Purpose of Today’s Discussion
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
Overview of the BLM’s Landscape Approach


Rapid Ecoregional Assessments
Monitoring and adaptive management
Vision for BLM’s Landscape Approach
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Vision for BLM’s Landscape Approach
Develop3 business practices to manage resources and uses at multiple scales in the face of
compounding stressors. These practices will help the BLM and partners identify what to
sustain, at what scale, and the associated trade-offs.
Traditional Practice
Landscape Approach
Project and Site Focused
Stove piped
Tends to authorize uses and
mitigate ecological values
Ecological Component (Individual
Species)
Landscape Focus
Develop new business
practices to support this
transition
Frame the issue: Build
conceptual models with
conservation elements and
change agents.
Integrated
Considers ecological
values and use
authorizations equally
Ecological Function and
Service
BLM’s Landscape Approach
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The Landscape
Approach is based
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on management questions and an
understanding of the system
(represented here by the blue circle)
Monitoring for
Adaptive Mgmt.
Scale Appropriate
Assessments
Science
Integration
(CSCs & LCCs)
Field Implementation
Scale
Appropriate
Direction
BLM’s Landscape Approach
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Rapid Ecoregional Assessments
are the first step in the
Landscape Approach
Monitoring for
Adaptive Mgmt.
Rapid Ecoregional
Assessments
Science
Integration
(CSCs & LCCs)
Field Implementation
Ecoregional
Direction
Rapid Ecoregional Assessments Underway
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


10 REAs initiated to
date
7 REAs covering
more than 370
million acres will be
completed in 2012
Negotiations in
progress for
additional REAs this
year
Three Components of REAs
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Conservation Elements +
EX: Species
Habitat
Soils
“what we want to
conserve”
Change Agents
EX: Invasive Species
Fire
Climate Change
Human Development
“what is threatening our
resources”
=
Management Questions
EX: Where is intact sagegrouse habitat threatened
by climate change?
“what land managers need
to know”
Current and Historic Greater Sage Grouse Distribution
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Current (dark blue) and historic distribution
of Greater sage grouse (light blue)
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Terrestrial Landscape Intactness
Potential for Climate Related Change
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Colorado Plateau:
Terrestrial Intactness within Current Distribution of
Greater and Gunnison Sage Grouse
Gunnison Sage
Grouse
This map shows terrestrial intactness
“clipped” to currently occupied habitat of
GSG and GUSG.
This map shows projected climate change
for 2060 “clipped” to currently occupied
GSG habitat.
Monitoring and Adaptive Management
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CHANGE
AGENTS
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CONSERVATION ELEMENTS & STRESSOR
INTERACTIONS
(Vegetation, Wildlife, Soil Resources, Soil-Plant-Water Interface)
Foundations
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
Broadly applicable, cross-program indicators
“Program” Indicators
“Core” Indicators
Grazing
/ Range
Core Terrestrial
Indicators/Methods
Core Aquatic
Indicators/Methods
Wildlife
Energy
Rec.
Sample Design
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

Low-intensity,
“extensive” national
sampling effort
Higher-intensity,
“intensive” local
sampling effort
(driven by local
management
questions)
Sample Design
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Extensive Sampling*
• Low density network of
sampling locations
Intensive Sampling*
• Higher-density sampling for
local management needs
Integrated Sampling
• Intensive data combined with
extensive network
• Increases precision of
extensive sampling resource
estimates
• Comparability of resource
values across scales and
jurisdictions
*Hypothetical points for illustration only
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BLM’s Landscape Approach
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Scale Appropriate
Assessments
Monitoring for
Adaptive Mgmt.
Science
Integration
(CSCs & LCCs)
Field Implementation
Scale Appropriate
Direction