THE BENCHMARK MOUNTAIN STUDIES INSTITUTE RESEARCHES CLIMATE CHANGE IMPACTS IN FRAGILE ALPINE ECOSYSTEMS INSIDE THIS ISSUE Mission and Leadership...............................2 Mountain Research Program.......................4 Facilitated Research; Mini-Grant Program...6 Community-Based Planning, Science, and Training; San Juan Climate Change......8 Collaboration with Fort Lewis College......10 ro Progress Through Partnerships...................12 New Staff, Board Members, Supporters.....14 Become a Member; MSI Merchandise.......16 In August 2006, Koren Nydick (right), MSI director of research and education, and Michael Kelrick (left), professor at Truman State University, collected vegetation data in one of 64 grids spread across four peaks above Lake City, in the San Juan Mountains of southwestern Colorado. The Mountain Studies Institute has joined research teams around the globe in a long- term study of climate change impacts in fragile alpine ecosystems with the installation this summer of a GLORIA (Global Observation Research Initiative in Alpine Environments) site high in the San Juan Mountains. The GLORIA network, conceived by an international group of ecologists in 1996, is composed of over 30 sites in the world’s highest mountain ranges, including the Alps (Switzerland and France), Urals (Russia), Southern Andes (Chile), Mt. Burns (New Zealand), and Caucasus (Georgia). MSI’s site is one of only a handful in the United States – others are located in Glacier National Park (Montana), the Sierra Nevada (California), and the White/Inyo Mountains (California). The strength of GLORlA is an eloquent, yet simple, design which enables the establishment of a large number of sites within and across continents. MSI’s Koren Nydick began planning the project more than a year prior to field work and considered several locations before choosing a site near Lake City in Hinsdale County. The methods require four summits along an elevation gradient beginning just above treeline – the summits in the San Juan Botanists Peggy Lyon and Julie Crawford examine study range from 12,200 to 13,800 feet in elevation. The mountain tops must be conically- plants in a GLORIA study plot as part of an shaped so that plots can be located on all four aspects – north, south, east, and west. international effort to monitor whether plants Geology and climate must be similar and impacts from recreation and mining minimal. are migrating to higher elevations as a result of The MSI team set up the study plots, collected detailed vegetation data, and installed global warming. The San Juan GLORIA project sensors to monitor soil temperature. The plots will be revisited for new data collection will be showcased in an exhibit on “Mountain every two to five years. The research team was composed of botanist Peggy Lyon of the Environments: Global Resources” in the new Colorado Natural Heritage Program; Julie Crawford, plant ecologist with Grand Canyon Bradford Washburn American Mountaineering National Park and doctoral student from the University of Pavia, Italy; professor Michael Museum, founded by the American Alpine and Kelrick and students from Truman State University, Missouri; MSI field technician Kyle Colorado Mountain Clubs. The Museum, the Skaggs; Fort Lewis College biology major Lindsey Lennek; and MSI staff members Koren first of its kind in the United States, is scheduled Nydick and Ellen Stein. The project has benefited from generous financial support from to open in Golden, Colorado, in late 2007 or the San Juan Public Lands/US Forest Service/BLM, Colorado Native Plant Society, The early 2008. Nature Conservancy, Colorado Mountain Club, and the American Alpine Club. SUMMARY REPORT OF ACCOMPLISHMENts MOUMNountainTAIN S StudiesTUDIE InstituteS INstitut + WinterE 2005-2006 2006 THE BENCHMARK THE BENCHMARK MISSION The Mountain Studies Institute (MSI) is an independent, non-advocacy, not-for-profit 501(c)(3) mountain research and education institution and high-altitute field station. MSI’s mission is to enhance understanding and sustainable use of the San Juan Mountains through research and education. Silverton Field Station Fort Lewis College campus Mountain Studies Institute Mountain Studies Institute at the Historic Avon Hotel Fort Lewis College 144 East 10th Street Durango, Colorado 81301-3999 Post Office Box 426 Phone: 970.247.7071 Silverton, Colorado 81433 Facsimile: 970.247.6053 Phone: 970.387.5161 [email protected] Facsimile: 970.387.5226 www.mountainstudies.org boARD OF DIRECtoRS Donald Friend, PhD – Associate Professor of Geography, Minnesota EXECUTIVE OFFICERS State University; Director, Earth Sciences Program; Mankato, MN Robert H. Delves, President – Executive Director, San Miguel Andy Gleason, PhD – Geologist, Colorado Geologic Survey; Watershed Coalition; Mountain Village Town Council Member; Durango, CO Telluride Mountain Village, CO Andy Gulliford, PhD – Fort Lewis College; Durango, CO Jonathan Overpeck, PhD, Vice-President – Director, Institute for Jack Ives, PhD – Honorary Research Professor, Department of the Study of Planet Earth; Professor of Geosciences and Atmospheric Geography and Environmental Studies, Carleton University, Sciences, University of Arizona; Tucson, AZ Ottawa, Canada; Professor emeritus, UC-Davis; Senior Advisor, Charles Burnham, PhD, Secretary – Professor of Mineralogy, Mountain Ecology and Sustainable Development, United Nations emeritus, Harvard University; Adjunct Professor of Geology, Fort University; Tokyo, Japan Lewis College; Durango, CO Richard Marston, PhD – President, Association of American MEMBERS Geographers; Professor and Head of Department of Geography, Jill Baron, PhD – Research Ecologist, USGS; Fort Collins, CO Kansas State University; Manhattan, KS Rob Blair, PhD – Consulting Geologist, Professor emeritus, Fort David McGinnis, PhD – Adjunct Professor of Environmental Lewis College; Durango, CO Studies, Montana State University; Adjunct Faculty, University George Bracksieck – Founder/Publisher, Rock and Ice Magazine; of Iowa (Geography), Idaho State University (Geosciences), and Durango, CO University of Arizona (Institute for the Study of Planet Earth); Bill Dodge – Principal, Regional Excellence Consulting; Silverton, CO Billings, MT Gary Gianniny, PhD – Associate Professor of Geology, Fort Lewis Art McKee, PhD – Research Scientist, Forest Ecology, Flathead Lake College; Durango, CO Biological Station, University of Montana; Polson, MT Janet Potter, PhD, MD – Member Lake Fork Watershed Stakeholders John Ninnemann, PhD – Dean of Arts and Sciences, Professor of Group; Chairman, Hinsdale Trail Workgroup; Lake City, CO Biology, Fort Lewis College; Durango, CO Catherine Ortega, PhD – Associate Professor of Biology, Fort Lewis College; Coordinator Southwest Wetlands Focus Area Working ADVISORY BOARD MEMBERS Group; Durango, CO Don Bachman, Consultant – Member Board of Directors, Center Steve Schwartz – Vice-President, Business and Finance, Fort Lewis for Snow and Avalanche Studies; Public Land-use Policy and Snow College; Durango, CO Safety Specialist; Bozeman, MT Mark Williams, PhD – Fellow of INSTAAR; Associate Professor of Jeffrey Brame – Owner and Chief Geoscientist, Brame Geoscience; Geography, University of Colorado at Boulder; Boulder, CO Durango, CO Thurman Wilson – Assistant Center Manager, Planning and Public Alton Byers, PhD – Director of Research and Education, The Services, San Juan Public Lands/USFS/BLM; MSI founding Board Mountain Institute; Washington, DC Member, emeritus; Durango, CO Tom Casadevall, PhD – Central Regional Director, US Geological Mike Wireman, PhD – Hydrologist, US EPA Region VIII; Denver, CO Survey; Denver, CO Daniel Dawson, PhD – Director, Sierra Nevada Aquatic Research Advisor affiliations are listed for identification only, not for representative purposes. Lab; Mammoth Lakes, CA Lee Dexter, PhD – Member Board of Directors, Center for Snow stAFF and Avalanche Studies; Associate Professor of Geography, Northern Koren Nydick – Executive Director, [email protected] Arizona University; Flagstaff, AZ Bill Ball – Data and GIS Services Director, [email protected] Daniel B. Fagre, PhD – Ecologist/Global Change Research Debra Childers – Finance Director, [email protected] Coordinator, USGS-NRMSC; West Glacier, MT Blake Meneken – Operations and Special Projects Manager, Brian K. Fowler – Engineering Geologist and President, North [email protected] American Reserve; Past President, Mt. Washington Observatory; Ellen R. Stein – Former Executive Director 2002-06 Laconia, NH Ken Francis – Director, Office of Community Services, Fort Lewis Printed by Basin Printing and Imaging, Durango. College; Durango, CO 2 Mountain Studies Institute + Winter 2006 Mountain Studies Institute + Winter 2006 THE BENCHMARK THE BENCHMARK MISSION FROM THE PRESIDENT It has been my pleasure to serve as MSI board president for 2006, an exciting year for MSI. As you will see in the articles in this Benchmark, we are successfully bringing science to the San Juan Mountains, and the communities of the region are benefiting. MSI is advancing science and related education on our own and through extensive collaboration with others. Our relationships with key research and education organizations, most notably Fort Lewis College and the University of Colorado, have solidified. Similarly, our relationship with the local stakeholders of the San Juan Mountain region continue to mature and grow. We are in an excellent position to deliver on our promise of stakeholder science