Riparian and groundwater-dependent ecosystems of the Bridger-Teton National Forest: An assessment of resources and current conditions

Smith, Douglas M.; Driscoll, Katelyn P.; Warren, Steven D.; Finch, Deborah M.

doi:10.2737/rmrs-gtr-407

Cited by 2 publications

(1 citation statement)

References 139 publications

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“…We integrate widespread, well-documented national or international data with local field data that may have been collected irregularly through space or time but remain valuable as the only available existing information capturing on-the-ground conditions. We use this information to determine whether evidence exists that ecological integrity has been compromised and have published a series of general technical reports summarizing our findings for each National Forest [13][14][15][16][17]. National Forest staff have identified these reports as effective and have used them to directly inform forest planning and management actions on several National Forests.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Development of Riparian and Groundwater-Dependent Ecosystem Assessments for National Forests in the Western U.S.

Driscoll

Smith

2021

Sustainability

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In 2012, the U.S. Department of Agriculture adopted a new planning rule that outlined a process for developing, amending, and revising land management plans for the 155 National Forests, 20 National Grasslands, and one Tallgrass Prairie managed by the U.S. Forest Service. The rule outlines a framework with three phases: assessment, development/amendment/revision, and monitoring. We are assisting National Forests in the western U.S. with the first phase by completing a series of assessments of riparian and groundwater-dependent ecosystems. Here, we describe our methods and the lessons learned over the course of conducting assessments for seven National Forests. Per the requirements of the planning rule, we conduct a rapid assessment of ecological integrity that uses existing data to evaluate drivers, stressors, structure, function, composition, and connectivity. We have collaborated with National Forests, state agencies, and other research groups to obtain datasets representing various wetland landscape features. Our work supports the plan revision process, from assessment through plan approval, and informs future forest and project planning for the restoration and maintenance of structure, function, composition, and connectivity. We developed our assessment methods in collaboration with resource managers at the National Forest and regional level to ensure useful end products such as published technical reports, literature reviews, photo libraries, or collections of datasets related to riparian and groundwater-dependent ecosystems. Our approach and lessons learned throughout the process are relevant to other resource management planning applications, analyses of landscape condition, as well as assessments of other ecosystems, such as forests or grasslands.

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