Posted on 01/04/2003 1:26:35 PM PST by farmfriend
Ecologist to lead BLM effort to restore Great Basin
By Karl Horeis, Appeal staff writer
Mike Pellant, a rangeland ecologist from Boise, Idaho, will head the Bureau of Land Management's effort to restore ecological health to the Great Basin -- an area which includes five states.
"Mike is one of the smartest guys I know, when it comes to rangeland," said John Singlaub, manager of BLM's Carson City field office. "I've known him for years. He's got some great ideas on how we can do things better both in the Great Basin and throughout the West."
The BLM effort, formally called the "Great Basin Restoration Initiative," is aimed largely at slowing the expansion of invasive weed species, such as cheat grass. The initiative will target all Great Basin areas, including land in Nevada, Idaho, Utah, Oregon and California.
Pellant, who has worked for BLM since 1976 in rangeland conservation and rehabilitation, was appointed to the post by the BLM's Nevada State Director Bob Abbey.
"We can't eliminate the invasive species," Pellant said. "But we can develop strategies to maintain land that is healthy and restore degraded land. We need to reduce the ecological and economic consequences of these disturbances."
According to BLM, the ecological health of the Great Basin has deteriorated at an alarming rate over the last 30 years as weed species from outside the United States have come to dominate some 25 million acres.
"Some research says that we may be losing up to 4,000 acres a day to invasive species," Pellant said.
Singlaub of the Carson City BLM office refers to the expansion of weeds as "an explosion in slow motion."
"The weeds that we're seeing expand throughout the West -- more exotics -- they're a serious problem."
Part of the problem is that cheat grass dries early, burns readily, and carries fire. Singlaub said the wildfires of 1999 and 2000 were so devastating to the Great Basin that reseeding efforts depleted national seed supplies.
"We used up every native seed that was available in the United States," he said.
He described the situation in one area that was hit especially hard, the Birds of River area along the Snake River in Idaho. There, cheat grass has replaced original shrubbery, leaving no place for small rodents too hide from raptors. After the rodents were all consumed, the birds were left with no food.
"From our perspective, it's reached crises point," Singlaub said. "And that's another good reason to bring Mike on board."
Pellant has a bachelor's degree in biology and a master's degree in range science from Fort Hays State University in Kansas. He is the co-author of more than 20 restoration-related publications and is an adjunct faculty member at Boise State University. He will direct the project from BLM's state office in Boise, to Singlaub's dismay.
"I wish we could get him up here to Nevada, but I guess this is the best we can do," he said.
ON THE NET
Western Great Basin Coordination Center:
http://www.nv.blm.gov/wgbcc/
Perhaps it's just a coincidence, but that timeframe pretty much parallels expansion of the environut movement. Maybe I'm just being cynical.
No, you are right. I think Carry_Okie has been collecting the evidence to prove it. It's quite possible that the cutback in grazing has played a big part in the rapid deterioration.
The key to understanding what has happened in the Great Basin is sage brush, the dominant species in the entire region. The plant puts out a pre-emergent hormone, preventing germination of competing plants. Now, that's just great for sage brush, but it's deadly to annual grasses. Once the grasses are gone, there is a MASSIVE change in the hydrological characteristics of the area, and to appreciate what has been done one has to remember the enormous scale of influence that government policy has exerted. When the grasses leave, several things happen. First, the surface of the soil adsorbs far more infra red light, because grasses are a nearly perfect infra-red reflector while the emissivity of mineral soils is higher. That raises surface temperature and dries out other competing species as well. What you get is a nearly perfect monoculture of mature sage brush. Now that grazing has been cut back, the sage has become an over mature and woody bush with appreciable fuel value. The range will burn and provide prime germination habitat for whatever comes first, and it's usually cheat grass (a weed).
It gets worse. Grasses have a enormous influence on the hydrological cycle. They transpire moisture in the day and condense it on their blades at night, retaining more water near the surface of the soil. They adsorb and hold more rainfall. I have half a hunch that the West might get more rainfall if they were there (higher relative humidity with all that water held at the surface). Without them we get more erosion, and fill those expensive dams with mud more quickly (oh, but the urban interests get more runoff). They retain organic matter and improve soil mechanics and support a vast range of other species: flowers, birds, cattle, predators... essentially forming the base of an entire food pyramid.
In that regard, cattle, by browsing off the sage, keep it fresh and green while still supporting the rest of that biodiversity. Between grazing policy and converting our forests into a charred moonscape, the United States government has effectively converted the American West from a savannah that supported millions of animals, into a desert in the name of supporting foriegn investors, international bankers, midwestern corporate agribusiness, meatpackers, ranchette developers, and feedlot operators, most of whom will support which ever party is craven enough to cut biggest subsidy check (and we all know who that is).
Zauschnerias are wonderful, especially for how late and how long they bloom. The offer on iris seed is open to you as well. Do I get a cut? :-)
WRT Emery, here's a reference from you know where:
183. Emery, Dara E.; Seed Propagation of California Native Plants; Santa Barbara Botanical Garden, 1988. The other book I use is:
Hartmann, Hudson, Thomas; Plant Propagation: Principles and Practice, 5th Ed.;Regents Prentice Hall, 1990; ISBN 0-13-681016-0.
I believe the beauty and diversity, (God, I hate that word), the majority of new plant introductions bring to the landscape is worth the trouble 5% of unruly species brings to the table. Just think how theraputic 500 hours of weeding annually is to your mental health.
I respectfully disagree, but I think in both our cases the distinction is one of emphasis. It may be OK where you are, but IMO, not here. The current estimate by Ric Standiford at UC (he's credible) is that we stand to lose 70% of all native broadleaf trees on the entire Pacific Coast to this phytophthora infestation.
Is that worth it? I don't think so. You have yet to see what broom and knapweed can do, especially after a fire.
My guess is that if you were part of the risk pool to pay for it you wouldn't think it was worth it either. I just guess I'm a little more cautious than you. The same goes for GM. I just think we should be working on the low risk projects for now until we know more about the technology. Sterile seed at the base of human food production in the hands of global corporation gives me the creeps.
I'm planning a speaking tour Northward for late next month. So far, I'm getting as far North as Medford, which is a long way from where you are. Is there any way you could get George Gilder to be there? He needs to read this.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.