Physical Sciences and Mathematics Commons^™

A Statewide Evaluation Of Fuel Treatment Effectiveness In Altering Wildfire Outcomes On Public Lands In Utah, Jamela Charmaine Thompson

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

Fuel treatments are land management activities that reduce living and dead flammable materials on the landscape to mitigate undesirable wildfire behavior and effects. Common treatments in the western United States include mechanical methods such as thinning and mastication, prescribed burns, and chemical methods, such as herbicide application. Treatments usually have multiple objectives, including reducing fire intensity, protecting natural and cultural resources, slowing or disrupting a potential future fire’s path, supporting ecosystem health, and reestablishing low to mid severity fire cycles in ecosystems. Although treatments can potentially modify fire behavior and ecological health, they generally cannot prevent fires from igniting, eliminate …

Addressing Barriers To Proactive Restoration Of At-Risk Sagebrush Communities: A Causal Layered Analysis, Carmen Calzado-Martinez, Mark W. Brunson, Sofia Koutzoukis, Jacobo Baggio, Kari E. Veblen

Environment and Society Faculty Publications

Restoration success in degraded rangelands often depends on a site's resilience to disturbance and resistance to invasive plants. Because it is more difficult to restore plant communities after they are dominated by invasive species, a potential approach is proactive restoration in sites at risk of crossing degradation thresholds (e.g. initiating restoration prior to invasive grass dominance). When developing a new restoration approach, it is important to consider operational feasibility, including social, budgetary, and environmental factors. Accordingly, we studied influences within land management agencies on the adoption of a specific proactive restoration approach: out-planting native grass and forb seedlings into sagebrush …

Disturbance, Vegetation Co-Occurrence, And Human Intervention As Drivers Of Plant Species Distributions In The Sagebrush Steppe, Fiona Claire Schaus Noonan

Boise State University Theses and Dissertations

Changes in fire regimes, invasive species dynamics, human land use, and drought conditions have shifted important plant species in the Northern Great Basin (NGB)—including big sagebrush (Artemisia tridentata ssp.), conifers (e.g., Juniperus spp.) and invasive annual grasses (e.g., Bromus tectorum). Characterizing how these overlapping disturbances influence species distributions is critical for land management decision-making. Previous research has explored the individual effects of drought, wildfire, restoration, and invasive species on sagebrush steppe communities, but the specific effects of these disturbances in context with one another remain poorly understood at a landscape scale. To address this …

Fire Effects On Soil Properties: Amending Post-Fire Soils With Native Microbial Communities And Biochar To Improve Sagebrush Performance, Sabrina Marie Schuler

Boise State University Theses and Dissertations

Within the sagebrush steppe, fire has been shown to affect biogeochemical properties and the microbial community composition in soils. However, there is uncertainty about the magnitude and direction of these effects, since they vary by sites that differ in abiotic and biotic conditions. Moreover, differences in post-fire management strategies are likely to mediate the effect of fire on soil properties, thus further compounding this uncertainty. Any changes in soil biogeochemical properties following fire can prevent successful restoration of Artemisia tridentata sp. wyomingensis (sagebrush), leading to variable outcomes of restoration success in the sagebrush steppe. Previous research has shown that addition …

Assessment Of Unmanned Aerial Systems (Uas) Surveys In Dryland Ecosystems: Estimates Of Fractional Photosynthetic Cover And Plant Functional Types, Anna V. Roser

Boise State University Theses and Dissertations

Drylands cover 41% of the global land surface and provide ecosystem services to 38% of the world’s population. Dryland ecosystems have already been degraded or threatened by the increased rates of wildfire and invasive annual grasses, as well as changes in precipitation patterns. We cannot protect, mitigate, or restore drylands without comprehensive vegetation surveys. To understand ecosystem processes, we need to know the composition of vegetation at the patch and plant scales. Field observations are limited in coverage, and are expensive and time intensive. Data from Unmanned Aircraft Systems (UAS) will fill the niche between field data and medium scale …

Impact Of Grazing On Vegetation Of Artemisia--Annuals Rangelands In Semi Desert Of Uzbekistan, Toshpulot F. Rajabov, Bakhtiyor K. Mardonov, Wolfgang Pittroff, F. N. Bobodjanov

IGC Proceedings (1997-2023)

No abstract provided.

Drought Effects On Germination Rate Of Two Sagebrush Species, Artemisia Cana And Artemisia Arbusula, And Comparison Of Seed Counts Using A Photography App And Weighing, Sam S. Kelly, Cessair E. Mckinney

Environmental Science & Management Senior Capstones

Sagebrush steppe ecosystems have been impacted by climate change, grazing, and invasive plants. While some widespread sagebrush species have been well-studied, including big sagebrush (Artemisia tridentata), others like silver sagebrush (Artemisia cana) and low sagebrush (Artemisia arbuscula) are understudied. To learn more about how to restore these important ecosystems, we conducted a germination study of two sagebrush species. We germinated seeds from A. cana in petri plates and in soil to compare the rates of germination in both methods, while A. arbuscula seeds were germinated only in petri plates. We also tested the efficiency …

Estimating Abiotic Thresholds For Sagebrush Condition Class In The Western United States, Stephen Boyte, Bruce K. Wylie, Yingxin Gu, Donald J. Major

United States Geological Survey: Staff Publications

Sagebrush ecosystems of the western United States can transition from extended periods of relatively stable conditions to rapid ecological change if acute disturbances occur. Areas dominated by native sagebrush can transition from species-rich native systems to altered states where non-native annual grasses dominate, if resistance to annual grasses is low. The non-native annual grasses provide relatively little value to wildlife, livestock, and humans and function as fuel that increases fire frequency. The more land area covered by annual grasses, the higher the potential for fire, thus reducing the potential for native vegetation to reestablish, even when applying restoration treatments. Mapping …

A Synthesis Of The Effects Of Cheatgrass Invasion On The Us Great Basin Carbon Storage, R. Chelsea Nagy, Emily J. Fusco, Jennifer K. Balch, John T. Finn, Adam Mahood, Jenica M. Allen, Bethany A. Bradley

Environmental Conservation Faculty Publication Series

1. Non‐native, invasive Bromus tectorum (cheatgrass) is pervasive in sagebrush ecosystems in the Great Basin ecoregion of the western United States, competing with native plants and promoting more frequent fires. As a result, cheatgrass invasion likely alters carbon (C) storage in the region. Many studies have measured C pools in one or more common vegetation types: native sagebrush, invaded sagebrush and cheatgrass‐dominated (often burned) sites, but these results have yet to be synthesized.
2. We performed a literature review to identify studies assessing the consequences of invasion on C storage in above‐ground biomass (AGB), below‐ground biomass (BGB), litter, organic soil and total …

Vegetation Responses To Sagebrush-Reduction Treatments Measured By Satellites, Aaron N. Johnston, Erik A. Beever, Jerod A. Merkle, Geneva Chong

United States Geological Survey: Staff Publications

Time series of vegetative indices derived from satellite imagery constitute tools to measure ecological effects of natural and management-induced disturbances to ecosystems. Over the past century, sagebrush-reduction treatments have been applied widely throughout western North America to increase herbaceous vegetation for livestock and wildlife. We used indices from satellite imagery to 1) quantify effects of prescribed-fire, herbicide, and mechanical treatments on vegetative cover, productivity, and phenology, and 2) describe how vegetation changed over time following these treatments. We hypothesized that treatments would increase herbaceous cover and accordingly shift phenologies towards those typical of grass-dominated systems. We expected prescribed burns would …

Two Post-Glacial Sagebrush Steppe Fire Records At The Wildland-Urban Interface, Eastern Cascades, Washington, Dusty Pilkington

All Master's Theses

Recent increases in large fires in the rapidly developing wildland-urban interface (WUI) areas of central Washington, where development intermixes with wildland fuels, contribute to federal firefighting costs exceeding of $1 billion annually. In addition, cheatgrass (Bromus tectorum) invasion and anthropogenic-caused warming shorten fire return intervals while lengthening fire seasons. These climatic, ecological, economic, and social factors combine with fuel accumulation resulting from historic fire suppression to threaten lives and property in the WUI. To plan for safe growth in WUI areas, long-term fire histories are needed to expand understanding of past fire regimes in an understudied ecosystem, sagebrush …

Deriving Landscape-Scale Vegetation Cover And Aboveground Biomass In A Semi-Arid Ecosystem Using Imaging Spectroscopy, Andrew Poley

Boise State University Theses and Dissertations

Environmental disturbances in semi-arid ecosystems have highlighted the need to monitor current and future vegetation conditions across the landscape. Imaging spectroscopy provide the necessary information to derive vegetation characteristics at high-spatial resolutions across large geographic areas. The work of this thesis is divided into two sections focused on using imaging spectroscopy to estimate and classify vegetation cover, and approximate aboveground biomass in a semi-arid ecosystem.

The first half of this thesis assesses the ability of imaging spectroscopy to derive vegetation classes and their respective cover across large environmental gradients and ecotones often associated with semi-arid ecosystems. Optimal endmember selection and …

Sagebrush Ecology Of Parker Mountain, Utah, Nathan E. Dulfon

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

On Parker Mountain located in south central Utah, management actions such as controlling mountain big sagebrush (Artemisia tridentata Nutt. subsp. vaseyana), with mechanical and chemical treatments can increase forage for livestock and benefit wildlife such as greater sage-grouse (Centrocercus urophasianus). Tebuthiuron treatments were applied on Parker Mountain from 2000-2012 with assistance from the Utah School and Institutional Trust Lands Administration, the Utah Department of Food and Agriculture, and the Natural Resources Conservation Service. Treatments applied to mountain big sagebrush on Parker Mountain provide an important opportunity to evaluate the value of mountain big sagebrush treatments in …

The Carbon Budget Impact Of Sagebrush Degradation, Andrew Connor Austreng

Boise State University Theses and Dissertations

More than 20,000 km2 of sagebrush (Artemesia spp.) ecosystems within the Great Basin have been replaced, often following wildfire, by the nonnative winter annual cheatgrass (Bromus tectorum). At a field site in the central Snake River Plain of southern Idaho, the impact of this invasion on the soil carbon (C) reservoir has been evaluated and the potential soil C benefits of bunchgrass (Agropyron cristatum) seeding was assessed. Using a large soil C dataset (n = 850), differences in total organic carbon and root biomass were quantified in immediately-adjacent sagebrush, cheatgrass, and bunchgrass communities. Statistical …

Slides: Bmps For Reclamation: Do We Know What Is Effective?, Peter Stahl

Best Management Practices (BMPs): What? How? And Why? (May 26)

Presenter: Pete Stahl, Wyoming Reclamation and Restoration Center

19 slides

Slides: Disappearing Roads--An Efd Project: An Exploration Into Low Impact And Efficient Gas Field Drilling, Charles Dolan

Best Practices for Community and Environmental Protection (October 14)

Presenter: Rich Haut, Houston Advanced Research Center (HARC), for Dr. Charles Dolan, University of Wyoming, Environmentally Friendly Drilling Program

25 slides

Slides: The Monumental Legacy Of The Antiquities Act Of 1906: The Rainbow Bridge National Monument In Context, Mark Squillace

Celebrating the Centennial of the Antiquities Act (October 9)

Presenter: Professor Mark Squillace, Director, Natural Resources Law Center, University of Colorado School of Law

35 slides

Conservation Assessment Of Greater Sage-Grouse And Sagebrush Habitats, J. W. Connelly, S. T. Knick, M. A. Schroeder, S. J. Stiver, Western Association Of Fish And Wildlife Agencies

All U.S. Government Documents (Utah Regional Depository)

No abstract provided.

Maps Of The Klamath Basin And Key Water-Related Events In The Upper Klamath Basin, University Of Colorado Boulder. Natural Resources Law Center

Water Negotiation Workshop (June 4-5)

5 pages.

Contents:

Maps of Klamath Basin -- Key water-related events in the Upper Klamath Basin

Excerpted from: Ron Hathaway & Teresa Welch, Water Allocation in the Klamath Reclamation Project, 2001: An Assessment of Natural Resource, Economic, Social, and Institutional Issues with a Focus on the Upper Klamath Basin 31-34, 43 (Oregon State University, University of California, reprinted May 2003). Full report available in Klamath Waters Digital Library at http://digitallib.oit.edu/cdm/ref/collection/kwl/id/9442.

Management Guidelines For Sage Grouse And Sagebrush Ecosystems In Nevada, Bureau Of Land Management

All U.S. Government Documents (Utah Regional Depository)

These management guidelines and supportive background information promote the conservation of sage grouse (Centrocercus urophasianus) and their sagebrush (Artemisia spp) habitats on Nevada public lands administered by Bureau of Land Management (BLM). The guidelines are intended to provide interim guidance to field managers, without restricting options currently being explored for regional, state, and local sage grouse/sagebrush conservation planning. The guidelines are a Nevada BLM, habitat-specific, adaptation of the recently updated, and soon to be finalized, Western Association of Wildlife Agencies (WAFWA) Draft Guidelines. The Nevada BLM guidelines apply the most current sage grouse science to BLM activities, within the context …

Sagebrush (Artemisia Tridentata) Restoration In Altered Sage Grouse (Centrocercus Urophasianus) Habitat Of The Yakima Training Center In Central Washington, Margaret Ann Pounds

All Master's Theses

The restoration of sagebrush at the Yakima Training Center was studied because it was determined that military training was altering the condition of sage grouse habitat, potentially having a negative impact on the sage grouse population of the installation. The management of sage grouse and its habitat on YTC are a priority for the U.S. Army. The objectives of this study were to identify the issues relevant to sage grouse and the restoration of its habitat on the training facility, to investigate sagebrush restoration techniques, and to make management recommendations based upon this study. Results of this study indicate that …

Integrated Pest Management On Rangeland: State Of The Art In The Sagebrush Ecosystem, Jerome A. Onsager, Usda, Agricultural Research Service

All U.S. Government Documents (Utah Regional Depository)

Several sagebrush communities represent optimum levels of negative development plant productivity for certain peculiar sites, and therefore should be managed for their preservation. Other sagebrush communities may be profitably modified to favor forage species that are more palatable to domestic livestock. Modification techniques can range from subtle (i.e., grazing strategies) to tracematic (i.e., brush removal and revegetation), and an associated spectrum of management tactics are described. Interrelationships between and problems associated with management of forage resources, management of weeds, and management of insects (including grasshoppers, black grass bugs, and beneficial insects) are discussed. Economical analyses, the role of modeling as …

'Hobble Creek' - A Superior Selection Of Low-Elevation Mountain Big Sagebrush, United States Department Of Agriculture, Forest Service

Forestry

This is the foundation document for the release of the 'Hobble Creek' selection of big sagebrush. It is a low-elevation mountain big sagebrush (Artemisia tridentata ssp. vaseyana). 'Hobble Creek' is needed to increase the nutrient content of winter diets of mule deer (Odocoileus hemionus hemionus) and domestic sheep (Ovis aries). This sagebrush exceeds the typical winter forage values in amount of energy-producing compounds, crude protein, phosphorus, and carotene. Of the 186 big sagebrush selections tested. 'Hobble Creek' is the most preferred by wintering mule deer and ranks high in preference by wintering domestic sheep. 'Hobble Creek' does not contain substances …

Biogeochemical Processes In Sagebrush Ecosystems: Interactions With Terrain, United States, National Aeronautics And Space Administration

Plants

Field data collection to support analysis of TM data was accomplished from June 22 to August 28th. Color infrared aerial photography acquired by a U2 on June 12, 1985 was used to locate and identify several vegetation communities. Forty sites where the USFS has collected long term ground cover were located in the field, delineated on aerial photos and ground photos of current conditions taken.

Winter Injury Of Sagebrush And Other Wildland Shrubs In The Western United States, United States Department Of Agriculture, Forest Service

Forestry

The objective of this paper is to briefly review winter injury of plants and shrubs in particular, document the observed winter injury of 1976-77, and correlate the occurrence with weather records.

The Effect Of Grass Reseeding In Sagebrush Lands On Sage Grouse Populations, Richard W. Trueblood

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

The particular purpose of this study was to determine the effects of large-scale sagebrush reseeding projects on sage grouse populations and whether such effects were partly or entirely beneficial, neutral, or detrimental to the survival of such populations.

During two seasons of field work, the studies initiated on a short-time basis had the following specific objectives:

1. To compare the utilization by sage grouse of reseeded and non-reseeded lands for the seasonal activities of mating, nesting, raising a brood, fall coveying, and wintering.
2. To compare the utilization by sage grouse of reseeded and non-reseeded lands for daily activities of feeding, watering, …

Pellet Seeding On Sagebrush Range, Gordon E. Gatherum

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

Seeding deteriorated range lands efficiently and economically has become one of the most promising means of improving the agricultural economy of the western range states. By providing the most rapid means of increasing the quantity and improving the quality of forage for livestock, and aiding in the prevention of soil erosion, artificial seeding contributes directly to the stability of agriculture.

Although many successful methods of artificial revegetation have been developed by experience and through research, there is still a great need for refinement in techniques to insure better overall success and greater economy of operation. Improper methods often result in …