Colorado River Basin Tamarisk and Russian Olive Assessment December 2009
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Colorado River Basin Tamarisk and Russian Olive Assessment December 2009 Prepared by the Tamarisk Coalition for The Parties to the Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) to coordinate activities for tamarisk management in the Colorado River Basin. The Parties to the MOU are the Central Arizona Water Conservation District, Colorado Water Conservation Board, New Mexico Interstate Stream Commission, Six Agency Committee, Southern Nevada Water Authority, Utah Division of Water Resources, and Wyoming State Engineer’s Office. Notice This document was prepared as an account of work sponsored by the Parties to the MOU. Neither the Parties to the MOU nor any employees makes any warranty, express or implied, or assumes any legal liability or responsibility for the accuracy, completeness, or usefulness of any information, apparatus, product, or process disclosed, or represents that its use would not infringe privately owned rights. Reference herein to any specific commercial product, process, or service by trade name, trademark, manufacturer, or otherwise, does not necessarily constitute or imply its endorsement, recommendation, or favoring by the Parties to the MOU. The views and opinions of the authors expressed herein do not necessarily state or reflect those of the Parties to the MOU. Acknowledgements The Tamarisk Coalition wishes to thank the following people and organizations for their input and contributions to this document: Richard Allen, University of Idaho; Dan Bean, Colorado Department of Agriculture; Dan Cooper, Los Alamos National Laboratory; Ed Glenn, University of Arizona; David Groeneveld, Hydrobio Inc.; Ken Lair, H.T. Harvey and Associates; Christopher Neale, Utah State University; Richard Niswonger, U.S. Geological Survey; Anna Sher, University of Denver and Denver Botanic Gardens; Erika Zavaleta, University of California Santa Cruz; Levi Jamison, Colorado Department of Agriculture; Bureau of Land Management; Bureau of Indian Affairs, Western Region Noxious Weed Program; U.S. Bureau of Reclamation; Bio-West, Inc.; Colorado Water Conservation Board; U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service; Grand Canyon Monitoring and Research Center; Grand Canyon Trust; National Institute of Invasive Species Science; National Park Service; San Juan River Restoration Database; Sonoran Institute; Southeastern Utah Tamarisk Partnership; Southwest Exotic Plant Mapping Program; U.S. Army Corps of Engineers; and Utah State University. The staff of the Tamarisk Coalition: Nate Ament, John Heideman, Stacy Kolegas, Jamie Nielsen, Meredith Swett Walker, Clark Tate, and Tim Carlson. A special thanks is given to Tom Ryan, Metropolitan Water District of Southern California, for his assistance in the coordination with representatives of the Colorado River Basin: Chuck Cullom, Central Arizona Water Conservation District; Steve Miller, Colorado Water Conservation Board; Holly Cheong, Southern Nevada Water Authority; Jay Groseclose, New Mexico Interstate Stream Commission; Todd Adams, Utah Division of Water Resources; and John Shields, Wyoming State Engineer’s Office. Cover art by Annie Chappell Photo credits: All photos are by the Tamarisk Coalition, unless noted otherwise. i Table of Contents Colorado River Basin Tamarisk and Russian Olive Assessment December 2009 Executive Summary ..................................................................................................................... iv Introduction ................................................................................................................................... 1 Task 1: Evapotranspiration by Riparian Vegetation ............................................................... 5 Task 2: TRO Management – state-of-the-science ................................................................... 12 Mechanisms of Spread .............................................................................................................. 12 Mapping and Inventory Results ................................................................................................ 19 Wildlife and Sensitive Species .................................................................................................. 23 Salinity and Soil Chemistry ...................................................................................................... 32 Sedimentation ........................................................................................................................... 36 Wildfire Threat .......................................................................................................................... 40 Biological Control ..................................................................................................................... 44 Cultural Resources Impacts ...................................................................................................... 56 Recreational Impacts ................................................................................................................. 60 Biomass Utilization ................................................................................................................... 63 Best Management Practices ...................................................................................................... 67 Task 3: Programmatic Issues and Economics of TRO Management ................................... 68 Costs of TRO management compared to potential water savings ............................................ 68 TRO Control Techniques .......................................................................................................... 69 Biomass Reduction ................................................................................................................... 71 Revegetation ............................................................................................................................. 72 Long-term Monitoring .............................................................................................................. 74 Long-term Maintenance ............................................................................................................ 75 Cost Analysis of TRO Management ......................................................................................... 75 Future Impacts .......................................................................................................................... 81 Other Programmatic Issues ....................................................................................................... 83 Sources of Funding ................................................................................................................... 85 Planned and Ongoing Projects and Research ............................................................................ 86 Research Needs ......................................................................................................................... 93 Task 4: Demonstration Sites ................................................................................................... 100 Conclusions ................................................................................................................................ 108 References .................................................................................................................................. 111 Appendix A ................................................................................................................................ 126 Memorandum of Understanding ...................................................................................................... 126 Appendix B ................................................................................................................................ 127 Public Law 109‐320 Salt Cedar and Russian Olive Control Demonstration Act ................................ 127 Appendix C ................................................................................................................................ 128 Independent Peer Review of Tamarisk & Russian olive Evapotranspiration Colorado River Basin . 128 ii Appendix D ................................................................................................................................ 129 TRO Mapping Data Package and Instructions for Use ...................................................................... 129 Appendix E ................................................................................................................................ 130 Plant Materials List for Revegetation Appropriate for the Colorado River Basin ............................. 130 Appendix F ................................................................................................................................ 131 Tamarisk Control Best Management Practices in Colorado Watersheds ......................................... 131 Appendix G ................................................................................................................................ 132 Best Management Practices for Revegetation after Tamarisk Removal in the Upper Colorado River Basin Handbook ................................................................................................................................ 132 Appendix H ................................................................................................................................ 133 Riparian Restoration Assessment of Alternative Technologies for Tamarisk Control, Biomass Reduction,