Groundwater-Dependent Ecosystems: Level I Inventory Field
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The information contained in this publication has been developed for the guidance of employees of the Forest Service, U.S. Depart- ment of Agriculture, its contractors, and cooperating Federal and State agencies. The Forest Service assumes no responsibility for the interpretation or use of this information by other than its own employees. The use of trade, firm, or corporation names is for the information and convenience of the reader. Such use does not constitute an official evaluation, conclusion, recommendation, endorsement, or approval of any product or service to the exclu- sion of others that may be suitable. Contributors This field guide was developed under the direction of the Groundwater-Dependent Ecosystems (GDE) Protocol Development Core Team with primary contributions from Marc Coles-Ritchie of Management & Engineering Technologies International, Inc. (METI, Inc.) and Joe Gurrieri (Forest Service, an agency of the U.S. Department of Agriculture). Chris Carlson (Forest Service) and Steve Solem (METI, Inc.) provided essential edits and guid- ance in the field guide development process. Other members of the Core Team, who provided detailed edits and recommenda- tions at multiple stages of the field guide development, were (of the Forest Service unless otherwise noted): Allison Aldous (The Nature Conservancy), Devendra Amatya, Trish Carroll, Kate Dwire, Mark Gonzalez (Bureau of Land Management, U.S. Department of the Interior), and Barry Johnston. The GDE Protocol Development Steering Team provided valu- able guidance at multiple stages of the process. That team was made up the following individuals (of the Forest Service unless otherwise noted): Leslie Bach (The Nature Conservancy), Chris Carlson (team leader), Tony Crump, Tony Erba, Russ Lafayette, Bill LeVere, Dan Neary, Mike Nevill, Andy Rorick, Linda Spencer, Cynthia Tait, and Richard Ullrich. Luke Boehnke created the figures, including invertebrate illustrations in appendix 11. Reviews and comments were also provided by members of Technical Advisory Teams for the GDE Protocol Development project. Pilot testing of this field guide involved dedicated individuals from the following units: Black Hills and Nebraska National Forests (Rocky Mountain Region); the Spring Mountains National Recreation Area (on the Humboldt-Toiyabe National Forest) (Intermountain Region); Inyo National Forest (Pacific Southwest Region); the Malheur, Wallowa-Whitman, and Umatilla National Forests (Pacific Northwest Region); Francis Marion and Sumter National Forest (Southern Region), White Mountain National For- est (Eastern Region); and the Fraser Experimental Forest (Rocky Mountain Research Station). GDE: Level I iii Inventory Field Guide Acknowledgments This field guide is a product of a partnership between The Nature Conservancy, Oregon Chapter, and the Forest Service to improve the awareness and management of groundwater- dependent ecosystems. Support for development of this field guide was provided by Anne Zimmermann, Director of Watershed, Fish, Wildlife, Air, and Rare Plants and Tony Ferguson, Former Director of Minerals and Geology Management. Joel Holtrop, Former Deputy Chief for National Forest System, provided encouragement and support along with the Information Resources Decision Board in provid- ing project funding. Operational support was provided by Patrice Janiga, Ecosystem Management Coordination (EMC) Information Assets Portfolio Manager; Mindy Martin, EMC Contracting Officer’s Representative; and Jody Rose, Intermountain Region Webmaster. The project team members and leadership provided by METI, Inc., were essential for successful project management and development of the field guide. GDE: Level I iv Inventory Field Guide Foundations Many questions in the “Pre-Field Survey” and “Field Survey” portions of this field guide are based on the Forest Service Site General: Field Guide (USDA Forest Service 2009). Attributes that are required in Site General are noted as such. Much of this field guide has been influenced by the foundational work of others in the fields of spring and wetland science as represented in the following protocols: • Field and Laboratory Operations Report for the Oregon Wetlands Study (Magee et al. 1995). • Terrestrial Springs Ecosystems Inventory Protocols (Stevens et al. 2006). • National Park Service Mojave Inventory and Monitoring Net- work Spring Survey Protocols: Level I and Level II (Sada and Pohlmann 2006 draft). • Groundwater and Biodiversity Conservation: A Methods Guide for Integrating Groundwater Needs of Ecosystems and Species Into Conservation Plans in the Pacific Northwest (Brown et al. 2007). • Interim Protocol, Ground-Water Resource Inventory and Moni- toring Protocol, Level I Spring Ecosystem Inventory (Gurrieri 2007 draft). • Assessing Proper Functioning Condition for Fen Areas in the Sierra Nevada and Southern Cascade Ranges in California: A User Guide (Weixelman and Cooper 2009). • Study Plan: Sampling of the Polygons Photointerpreted for Possible Fens on the Grand Mesa-Uncompahgre-Gunnison National Forest, Colorado (Johnston et al. 2009 draft). GDE: Level I v Inventory Field Guide GDE: Level I vi Inventory Field Guide Contents Introduction .................................................................................. 1 Business Requirements Addressed by This Field Guide ..... 2 Relationships Between Business Requirements and Field Guide Levels ................................................................ 5 Targeted GDEs ..................................................................... 8 Limitations on Use.............................................................. 15 Using the Level I Field Guide...................................................... 17 Skills and Time Required.................................................... 19 When To Sample ................................................................ 20 Preventing Damage to Sites ............................................... 22 Pre-Field Survey Activities (in office) .......................................... 23 Site Information .................................................................. 23 Geographic Information ..................................................... 26 Mapping ............................................................................. 29 Route .................................................................................. 31 Other Information About the Site ....................................... 32 Field Survey Activities ................................................................ 35 Survey Information ............................................................. 35 Georeferencing ................................................................... 40 Geologic Setting ................................................................. 42 Images ................................................................................ 48 Unusual Sites ..................................................................... 52 Vegetation .......................................................................... 52 Soil ..................................................................................... 55 Hydrology ........................................................................... 64 Aquatic and Terrestrial Fauna ............................................ 76 Natural and Anthropogenic Disturbance ............................ 77 Management Indicator Tool ............................................... 82 GDE: Level I vii Inventory Field Guide Post-Field Survey Activities (in office) ...................................... 105 Obtain or Verify Data ........................................................ 105 Laboratory Analyses ......................................................... 105 Implement Data Management and Interpretation Procedures ....................................................................... 106 Validate and Confirm Management Indicator Tool Entries .............................................................................. 106 Analyze and Evaluate Collected Information .................... 106 Glossary ................................................................................... 107 References ............................................................................... 115 Appendix 1. Order of Data Collection ...................................... 119 Appendix 2. Job Hazard Analysis ............................................ 121 Appendix 3. Field Forms .......................................................... 129 Appendix 4. Site Protection Guidelines...................................