Using GAP Products in Oregon for Assessments, Programs and Statewide Environmental Benchmarks

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Using GAP Products in Oregon for Assessments,
Programs and Statewide Environmental Benchmarks

• Jimmy Kagan
• Institute for Natural Resources
• 2007 Gap Analysis Conference

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GAP Products

• 1992 Oregon GAP Vegetation Map
• 1999 GAP 1 Landcover Map
• 1999 GAP Historic Vegetation Map (1851)
• 2000 Species Distribution Maps (for historic and
  current distributions)
• 2005 Updated Vegetation Map (current historic)
• 2005 Updated Species Distribution / Habitat
  Suitability Models (for ODFW)
• Management/Stewardship Coverage 1999/2005

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GAP Data Has Been the Basis of Most Assessments
in Oregon
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State Programs using GAP Data

• Forest Legacy Program AON
• Oregon Watershed Enhancement Board Acquisition
  Priorities
• Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife
  Conservation Strategy
• Oregon Progress Board Environmental Benchmarks

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Forest Legacy

• Because Oregon had effective land use planning
  for many years, commercial forest lands were
  protected, and Oregon did not seek federal legacy
  funds.
• In 2002, Oregon Forestry (ODF) used GAP Data (and
  other ODF data) to develop an Assessment of Need
  (AON, or Forest Legacy Plan).
• The plan is being updated, with new GAP
  information, right now.

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Priority Forest Habitats

• Oak savannas and woodlands
• Cottonwood and forested riparian
• Ponderosa pine woodlands and forests

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Pacific Fisher Distribution
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Top 20 PRIORITY SPECIES (based on habitat
protected vs. lost formulas)
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OWEB Acquisition Priorities
Background

• Oregon Watershed Enhancement Board (OWEB) is a
  state agency created by Ballot Measure 66 to
  help create and maintain healthy watersheds and
  natural habitats that support thriving
  communities and strong economies.
• Measure 66 identified acquisition of property
  as a tool for OWEB.
• OWEB funded various acquisitions for 3 years
  without criteria or priorities.

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OWEB Basins
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Framework for Identifying Basin Priorities

• Step 1 Identify all potential priority
  attributes (ecological systems, species and rare
  plant communities) based on a synthesis of
  existing information (most of which is from GAP)
• Step 2 Screen out those systems, species and
  plant communities already adequately addressed
  in that basin or more appropriately addressed
  elsewhere, or better conserved through the
  application of other restoration/protection
  tools.
• Step 3 Expert and stakeholder review.

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Step 1. Priority habitats and ecological systems
in each basin include

• Statewide habitat priorities, based on the Oregon
  GAP analysis
• Ecoregional priorities for habitats,
  characterized according to the NatureServe
  ecological system classification system
• Riparian Areas and Wetlands.
• Other priority habitats identified by
  scientifically credible research and planning
  initiatives, including but not limited to the
  following
• Oregon Biodiversity Project
• State of the Environment Report
• Conservation plans developed by The Nature
  Conservancy
• Aquatic diversity areas identified by the
  American Fisheries Society
• Landscape reports of the Independent
  Multidisciplinary Science Team
• Sub-basin watershed assessments and action plans.
  
• Other habitat and system types, not represented
  above, that are critical for watershed function
  in a particular basin.

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Step 1. Priority Species ineach Basin included

• State and federally listed threatened and
  endangered species
• Candidate and proposed species under the state
  and federal Endangered Species Acts
• Sensitive (Critical) Species from ODWF
• At-risk species ranked as G1, G2, T1, T2 and S1
  
• Other key fish or wildlife species
• Widespread but declining taxa or species
• Poorly Protected Taxa which have lost significant
  habitat based on changes since European
  settlement (the Gap Analysis priority index)
• Taxa identified by other assessments

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Plant Communities Black cottonwood/creek
dogwood/ touch-me-not Creeping
spikerush-water purslane marsh
Crowberry-salal oceanfront shrubland Douglas
spiraea-bog blueberry/slough sedge wetland
Martindale lomatium rock garden Pacific
reedgrass-blue wildrye grassland Western
Labrador tea-salal/slough sedge bog Western
Labrador tea-sweet gale heath Western Labrador
tea/burnet/sphagnum bog Western Labrador
tea/Darlingtonia/ sphagnum bog Western
Labrador tea/slough sedge/ sphagnum bog White
oak/Idaho fescue savanna
Priority Ecological Systems for North
Coast Chaparral and north coast
shrublands Eelgrass beds Fens Floodplain/outwash
lowland riparian, linear, wetlands Freshwater
marsh and aquatic beds Intertidal
mudflats Intertidal salt marsh Lowland
depressional shrub wetlands and wet
prairies Lowland non-linear forested wetlands
(swamps) Lowland riparian woodland and
shrubland Mesic herbaceous wetlands Montane
non-linear forested depressional wetlands
(swamps) Montane riparian Mudflats Noble fir Oak
woodlandsSitka spruce forest Tidally-influenced
freshwater wetlands Western Oregon upland prairie
and oak savanna
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the Oregon Conservation Strategy -healthy
habitats for wildlife and people
Introducing the Oregon Conservation trategy

• Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife

Gap Analysis Conference September 2007
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Oregon Conservation Strategy (CWCS) Background

• Federal program established in 2001 to provide
  funding to states to advance proactive fish and
  wildlife conservation
• Oregons current share is 1,000,000 annually
• Required States to develop a Comprehensive
  Wildlife Conservation Strategy by October 2005
• prevent decline of species
• reduce costs of litigation and recovery
• State Strategies had 8 Required Elements

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Summary of Required Elements

• Identify species at risk and their habitats
• Describe threats or problems
• Describe needed research and survey efforts
• Describe needed conservation actions
• Propose monitoring plans
• Coordinate with agencies and tribes
• Provide opportunities for public participation
• Review at least every 10 years

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ODFW worked with OR-GAP to

• Update GAP Vegetation grids
• Used Ecological Systems and Ecoregions
• Update Species Models
• Moved from EMAP Hexagons to 6th field watersheds
  for Wildlife Species Distributions
• Used Habitat Suitability
• Update Management/Stewardship Map database
• Update the GAP analysis
• How well species their habitats were protected
• How much historic loss they have experienced

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Evaluate Change to define and Plan Restoration
for Strategy Habitats
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Strategy Habitats

• 11 Strategy Habitats
• Statewide aquatic, riparian, wetland
• Ecoregions aspen, coastal dunes, estuaries,
  sagebrush, grasslands, LS conifer, oak, ponderosa
  pine
• Clusters of habitat captured in COAs

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Strategy Species

• 286 Strategy Species
• Some are statewide, others strategy species in
  one or more ecoregion
• Vertebrates, invertebrates, plants
• Limiting factors, special needs, data gaps and
  recommended actions listed for each species

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Species data sources for the Strategy

• Oregon Natural Heritage Information Center and
  OR-GAP
• Steward information about wildlife species
• Model animal distribution, using occurrence
  records

Example modeled distribution of the Columbia
spotted frog, Blue Mountains ecoregion
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How Did We Identify Conservation Opportunity
Areas?

• Three step process
• Site Selection Computer Model
• Incorporates locations of species and habitats
• Considers factors that affect the conservation
  potential of an area
• Human population density
• Road density
• Stream quality
• Habitat conversion
• Distance to areas managed for conservation
• Validate identification of COAs with
• Other plans
• ODFW field biologists
• Peer Review

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Columbia Plateau Ecoregion

• Important Attributes
• Habitats grasslands sagebrush large tract of
  riparian
• Species sage sparrow (23 of habitat in
  ecoregion) grasshopper sparrow burrowing owl
  sagebrush lizard WA ground squirrel
• Important Bird Area

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State Environmental Benchmarks
Background

• Oregon has a small independent state planning and
  oversight agency, the Oregon Progress Board,
  created to monitor the state's 20-year strategic
  vision, Oregon Shines.
• 90 benchmarks were created to evaluate the
  states progress.
• 16 of these are related to the Environment. Many
  of these do or will rely on GAP data.

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Environmental Benchmarks

• LAND80. Agricultural Lands Percent of Oregon
  agricultural land in 1982 not converted to urban
  or rural development a. cropland b. other ag
  lands81. Forest Land Percent of Oregons
  non-federal forest land in 1974 still preserved
  for forest use
• 82. Timber Harvest Actual timber harvest as a
  of potential harvest levels under current plans
  policies a. public lands b. private lands
• 83 84 (Hazardous Municipal Waste)
• PLANTS AND WILDLIFE85. Freshwater Species
  Percent of monitored freshwater species not at
  risk (state, fed listing) a. salmonids b.
  other fish c. other organisms (amphibians,
  mollusks)86. Marine Species Percent of 
  monitored marine species not at risk a. fish b.
  shellfish c. other (mammals)
• 87. Terrestrial Species Percent of monitored
  terrestrial species not at risk a. plants b.
  vertebrates c. invertebrates
• 88. Protected Species Species populations that
  are protected in dedicated conservation areas a.
  species found in streams or rivers b. other
• 89. Invasive Species Number of most threatening
  invasive species not successfully excluded or
  contained since 2000

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New Biodiversity Benchmark

• Benchmark 88 ( of at-risk species included
  within reserves) is being replaced by
• Area of native habitats remaining
• Forests, Shrublands, Grasslands Wetland/
  Riparian areas
• Reported statewide and by ecoregion
• Updated every 5 years (if possible)
• Defining Native Habitats was not easy

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Extent of Natural Habitat in Oregon

• Natural Habitats are those which
• Are dominated primarily by native species and
• Represent portions of the Oregon landscape that
• Contain habitat types present at the beginning of
  European Settlement circa 1850, or
• Have habitats created and/or maintained by
  natural factors, or
• Have natural disturbance events that proceed
  without major interference or are mimicked
  through management or
• Are managed or conserved primarily for native
  ecosystems, plant communities and species.

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Oregon Progress Board Wants More

• The current Oregon species benchmarks are not
  very meaningful.
• Can GAP, Heritage or anyone else provide
  meaningful information on how all native species
  are doing in Oregon (or in the US)?
• Can this be done for aquatic species and
  habitats, as well as terrestrial species and
  habitats?

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GAP Data is Critical

• There is a major, continuous need for vegetation
  protected areas information for multiple
  purposes.
• In spite of being uneven and sometimes
  inconsistent, GAP data is critical for large
  scale assessments.
• Increasing consistency between programs (as in
  ReGAP) will make GAP data more useful and expand
  the customer base.
• Environmental Benchmarks require data that can be
  updated, and compared to previous versions.
  Developing methods to assure that CHANGE in
  habitats protected areas species ranges can
  be measured is essential for these uses.

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Questions?

• Contact information
• Jimmy Kagan, Information Program Manager and
  Natural Heritage Information Center Director
• Institute for Natural Resources
• 1322 SE Morrison St.
• Portland, OR 97214
• jimmy.kagan_at_oregonstate.edu
• 503.731.3070 ext 111
• http//oregonstate.edu/ornhic
• http//inr.oregonstate.edu
• http//oregonexplorer.info