2012 WLCI Science Workshop Session Descriptions

Session I. Changing Landscapes: Development and Influence of Energy and Mineral Resources

This session focuses on energy and mineral resource topics that require improved scientific understanding in order to manage and conserve Wyoming’s natural resources. Research and operations activities by Federal, State and local governments, academia, the private sector and others, together provide a landscape-level understanding of emerging issues, and contribute to responsible resource development and management decisions.

Session II. Assessing Landscapes and Monitoring Change (tools, approaches, methodology

This session will focus on the assessment and monitoring of landscape change to understand land-use effects on fish and wildlife habitat and populations, as well as grazing habitat and social values. Assessment and Monitoring of land-use activities by Federal, State and local governments, academia and the private sector provide a landscape-level understanding of treatment effects, status and trends of ecological properties, and emerging patterns over a range of temporal scales that collectively facilitate responsible resource development and management decisions. An emphasis of this session is on the tools, methods, and approaches to assessment and monitoring on focal habitats: sagebrush, mountain shrub, aspen, limber pine, aquatic, and riparian; and also for water quality and focused studies in specific watersheds and drainages. 

Topics include:

·       Focal habitats: aspen, sagebrush including hybrid ecology and big sagebrush, mountain shrub, limber pine communities, aquatic and riparian
·       Focal geographic areas (Muddy Creek Carbon County)
·       Ecological assessments
·       Remote sensing and other approaches to document ecological and social values
·       Water Quality (ground water/surface water)
·       Fish & Wildlife, at risk species, Sage-grouse and other species of concern
·       Monitoring methods/approaches/protocols

Session III. Understanding Habitats Impacts and Resource Status and Trends

As the human footprint on the landscape has increased in the WLCI area, managers and landowners have become increasingly concerned with how land management actions have influenced terrestrial, riparian, and aquatic habitats and the species and livelihoods that depend on them. In this session, we report on scientific research and monitoring results that address how land management actions, ranging from industrial development to habitat improvement projects, influence air quality, water quality and quantity, wildlife populations, sensitive plants and vegetation communities, grazing management and capacity and how to use these data to better project and understand the future status of focal habitats.

Topics include:

·       Water quality/quantity
·       Big game/habitat/movement corridors
·       Fish & Wildlife, at risk species, Sage-grouse and other species of concern
·       Sensitive plants and vegetation communities
·       Geology/minerals (including  relationship to soils and vegetation)
·       Focal habitats: aspen, sagebrush, limber pine, cottonwood communities, aquatic and riparian

Session IV. Addressing Change through Management and Conservation Actions

Many of the WLCI partners are addressing change through management and conservation actions. Some of these actions include the treatment of invasive species, the collection of native seeds for immediate restoration and commercial development for large-scale reclamation and restoration activities, aquatic and terrestrial habitat treatments, wildlife friendly fence conversions and agriculture and grazing management practices that benefit wildlife. This session will focus on research, monitoring, and other assessments associated with some of these management and conservation actions. Lessons learned and the effectiveness of these actions will be presented to improve restoration, reclamation, and habitat treatments and to improve and better implement Adaptive Management practices.

Topics include:

·       Invasive plants species
·       Native plant collections and material development
·       Reclamation of disturbed lands
·       Maintenance and restoration of aquatic and terrestrial habitats
·       Monitoring treatments and conservation actions
·       Partnerships, ecosystem services and other conservation approaches
·       Focal habitats: aspen, sagebrush, limber pine communities, aquatic and riparian
·       Agricultural practices