Aiding Forest Adaption to Ecological Change

Aiding Forest Adaptation to Ecological Change Kent Reid and Bob Lineback New Mexico Watershed Forum September 2012 Las Vegas New Mexico Forest and Watershed Restoration Institute

Three sister Institutes make up SWERI

New Mexico Forest & Watershed Restoration Institute at New Mexico Highlands University

New Mexico Forest and Watershed Restoration Institute

Activity Areas

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Prescriptions Mechanics GIS Monitoring

New Mexico Forest and Watershed Restoration Institute

Why do we need restoration?

New Mexico Forest and Watershed Restoration Institute

Why do we need restoration?

1. Grazing removed fine fuels 2. Wildfire suppression allowed growth

New Mexico Forest and Watershed Restoration Institute

Why do we need restoration?

New Mexico Forest and Watershed Restoration Institute

Restoration and Climate Change?

Society needs to invest in good forest management.

In general, this means restoration of structure and composition to a point where ecological processes can proceed as they were meant to.

Among these processes is the ability of the plants and animals in the ecosystem to express the variability in their genes that will enable them to adapt to a changing climate, an expression that is more difficult under existing conditions.

New Mexico Forest and Watershed Restoration Institute

Restoration and Climate Change?

In the face of changing climate, if you want to roll with the punches, then a restored forest is the best way to go.

New Mexico Forest and Watershed Restoration Institute

What is forest restoration?

The re-creation of historic structure (principally through the removal of smalldiameter trees) in forests and woodlands, and maintenance of the structure and other ecological processes by reintroduction of an historic fire regime.

New Mexico Forest and Watershed Restoration Institute

Economics as an ultimate driver

“We can’t grant our way to forest health.”

- Las Vegas flooring producer Behind every restored forest is a restored forest industry.

- after an idea of the former head of NMFIA

New Mexico Forest and Watershed Restoration Institute

NM FOREST RESTORATION PRINCIPLES

www.fs.fed.us/r3/spf/ nm-restor-principles122006 New Mexico Forest and Watershed Restoration Institute

NM FOREST RESTORATION PRINCIPLES Collaborate Reduce the threat of unnatural crown fire Prioritize and strategically target treatment areas Develop site-specific reference conditions Use low-impact techniques Utilize existing forest structure Restore ecosystem composition Protect and maintain watershed and soil integrity Preserve old or large trees while maintaining structural diversity and resilience 10. Manage to restore historic tree species composition 1.

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New Mexico Forest and Watershed Restoration Institute

NM FOREST RESTORATION PRINCIPLES (cont.)

Integrate process and structure Control and avoid using exotic species Foster regional heterogeneity Protect sensitive communities Plan for restoration using a landscape perspective that recognizes cumulative effects 16. Manage grazing 17. Establish monitoring and research programs and implement adaptive management 18. Exercise caution and use site-specific knowledge in managing grasslands and piĂąon-juniper savannas, woodlands, and forests 11.

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New Mexico Forest and Watershed Restoration Institute

Prescription Guidelines

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Forest Service NGH ERI Evidence-based DoF Clumpy 40 Genetic

• One size does not fit all

New Mexico Forest and Watershed Restoration Institute

Historic Structure

Studies show for Southwest ponderosa pine: • Trees were in groups • Groups were 0.1-0.7 acre in size • Space without trees separated groups • All sizes and ages were in the landscape See www.eri.nau.edu/en/the-ecological-restoration-process/ establishing-reference-conditions New Mexico Forest and Watershed Restoration Institute

Take-Home Message

Groups and Openings

New Mexico Forest and Watershed Restoration Institute

Northern Goshawk – Accipiter gentilis

New Mexico Forest and Watershed Restoration Institute

NGH Guidelines not for Goshawks “Goshawk Guidelines� is a name for a method that restores ecological function to ponderosa pine stands. The resulting forest structure mimics the diversity of historic tree stands, allowing many natural processes to continue, and creates resiliency in the forest.

It is not single-species management, or even wildlife habitat management.

New Mexico Forest and Watershed Restoration Institute

Northern Goshawk guidelines These guidelines improve habitat for about eight prey species of the NGH. A group or clump consists of trees that are close enough together that a squirrel can travel from one to the other without having to go to the ground. True for all sets of guidelines.

New Mexico Forest and Watershed Restoration Institute

Northern Goshawk guidelines Reynolds, Richard T.; Graham, Russell T.; Reiser, M. Hildegard; and others.

1992.

Management recommendations for the northern goshawk in the southwestern United States.

Gen. Tech. Rep. RM-217, Ft. Collins, CO: U.S. Department of Agriculture, Forest Service, Rocky Mountain Forest and Range Experiment Station. 90 p.

New Mexico Forest and Watershed Restoration Institute

Northern Goshawk guidelines Vegetation Structural Stages • VSS1 – grass/ forb/ shrub, 0-1” dbh • VSS2 – seedling/ sapling, 1-4.9” dbh • VSS3 – young, 5-11.9” dbh • VSS4 – mid-age, 12-17.9” dbh • VSS5 – mature, 18-23.9” dbh • VSS6 – old, 24+” dbh

New Mexico Forest and Watershed Restoration Institute

Northern Goshawk guidelines Group 3

Group 1

Group 2

Canopy zone spacing

Between Group Interspace

Group

Boundary Canopy Zone 1/10 acre

Primary Rooting Zone

New Mexico Forest and Watershed Restoration Institute

Northern Goshawk guidelines

Proportion of clumps on the landscape • VSS1 – 10% • VSS2 – 10% • VSS3 – 20% • VSS4 – 20% • VSS5 – 20% • VSS6 – 20%

New Mexico Forest and Watershed Restoration Institute

Northern Goshawk guidelines

New Mexico Forest and Watershed Restoration Institute

ERI “Evidence“ guidelines

• Retain all “big” trees • Replace all evidence with 3 trees (< 16-in dbh) • Replacement trees are best and closest to evidence

See www.eri.nau.edu/en/restoration-treatments/presettlement-model

New Mexico Forest and Watershed Restoration Institute

New Mexico Forest and Watershed Restoration Institute

ERI â&#x20AC;&#x153;Evidenceâ&#x20AC;&#x153; guidelines

New Mexico Forest and Watershed Restoration Institute

“Clumpy 40” guidelines

• Basal area = 40 sq ft / acre • Residual stand with trees in groups and openings between the groups • Poorest trees are cut

New Mexico Forest and Watershed Restoration Institute

Phenotype “Lean Wolf” guidelines • Lean • Wolf • • • • •

Leaner Wolfy/ undesirable branch structure

2Two or split topped Low - Low vigor/ sickly DDiseased/ unhealthy OOvertopped/ suppressed C - Crooked/ sweep

New Mexico Forest and Watershed Restoration Institute

Take-Home Message II: Summary To help ponderosa pine forests adapt: • Keep the largest trees and the smallest trees; • Remove 65-90% of the standing trees, leaving some in all diameters; • Leave tight groups of various sizes; • Leave openings – not just spaces between groups, but group-size areas with no or very young trees; • Burn it as soon as a low-intensity fire will carry through the area.

New Mexico Forest and Watershed Restoration Institute

Key to 5 P-J Types 1a. Deep soils (>14 inches deep), surface generally free of large rock fragments or large amounts of gravel, and capable of producing continuous fine fuels under normal precipitation 2 1b. Shallow or transitional soils, surface may be eroded and often is rocky or droughty, and usually not capable of producing continuous fine fuels under normal precipitation – 3 2a. Most precipitation falls during summer. The oldest trees (possibly >150 years) are older and usually taller than those found in Grasslands – PJ Savanna or Juniper Savanna 2b. Season of greatest precipitation can vary. Old trees are very rare and found on microsites that historically would have allowed escape from fire – Grassland 3a. Generally on shallow, coarse-textured soils. Most precipitation falls during winter. Piñon and juniper are the dominant species – PJ Persistent Woodland 3b. Soil transitional between deep Savanna soils and shallow Persistent Woodland soils – 4 4a. Bi-modal precipitation pattern. Uneven-aged stands on rolling uplands with persistent, taller trees.

Probably common historically, but rare under current conditions – PJ Open Woodland 4b. Most precipitation falls during winter. Sagebrush or oak co-dominate with the P-J, but the shrub species may be crowded out under current conditions. This type often found in small patches that can be difficult to map on a statewide scale – PJ Shrub Woodland

New Mexico Forest and Watershed Restoration Institute

One size does not fit all

New Mexico Forest and Watershed Restoration Institute

Consult your local professional

New Mexico Forest and Watershed Restoration Institute

Prescribed Fire

New Mexico Forest and Watershed Restoration Institute

Prescribed Fire

New Mexico Forest and Watershed Restoration Institute

Prescribed Fire

New Mexico Forest and Watershed Restoration Institute

Prescribed Fire

New Mexico Forest and Watershed Restoration Institute

New Mexico Forest and Watershed Restoration Institute

Prescribed Fire

New Mexico Forest and Watershed Restoration Institute

Prescribed Fire

New Mexico Prescribed Fire Council will hold its annual meeting in early November

New Mexico Forest and Watershed Restoration Institute

Prescribed Fire

New Mexico Forest and Watershed Restoration Institute

Prescribed Fire

New Mexico Forest and Watershed Restoration Institute

Contacts

Kent • 505-426-2145 • rkreid@nmhu.edu • http://www.nmfwri.org Bob • 505-231-1574 • lineback@cybermesa.com

New Mexico Forest and Watershed Restoration Institute