southwest regional gap analysis project: an overview of project goals and organization
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Southwest Regional Gap Analysis Project: An Overview of Project Goals and Organization. Julie Prior-Magee USGS - Biological Resources Discipline. Southwest Regional Gap Analysis Project Arizona, Colorado, Nevada, New Mexico, Utah. - PowerPoint PPT PresentationTRANSCRIPT
Southwest Regional Gap Analysis Project: Southwest Regional Gap Analysis Project: An Overview of Project Goals and An Overview of Project Goals and
OrganizationOrganization
Southwest Regional Gap Analysis ProjectArizona, Colorado, Nevada, New Mexico, Utah
US-IALE 2004, Las Vegas, Nevada: Transdisciplinary Challenges in Landscape Ecology
Julie Prior-MageeJulie Prior-MageeUSGS - Biological Resources Discipline
The Southwest RegionalThe Southwest Regional Gap Analysis ProjectGap Analysis Project
A Multi-agency InitiativeA Multi-agency InitiativeSWReGAP
USGS BRDUSGS EDC
US EPABLM
CDOWUSU
NMSUNAUCSU
The Gap Analysis ProgramThe Gap Analysis Programhttp://www.gap.uidaho.edu/gaphttp://www.gap.uidaho.edu/gap
SWReGAPSWReGAP
Presentation TopicsPresentation Topics
What is GAP – mission, objectives, and What is GAP – mission, objectives, and productsproducts
SWReGAP – SWReGAP – project organization, project organization, responsibilities, and timelineresponsibilities, and timeline
Benefits of a regional approachBenefits of a regional approach
What Is GAP?
A “gap” is the lack of representation or under-representation of an element of biodiversity (plant community or animal species) in an area intended for its long term maintenance.
Gap analysis is a process to keep common species common by plugging the gaps in our network of lands managed for biodiversity.
The Gap Analysis ProgramThe Gap Analysis Programhttp://www.gap.uidaho.edu/gaphttp://www.gap.uidaho.edu/gap
SWReGAPSWReGAP
Mission Statement
“To promote conservation of biodiversity through information...
by providing conservation assessments of natural communities and native species,..
and to facilitate the application of this information to land management.”
The Gap Analysis ProgramThe Gap Analysis Programhttp://www.gap.uidaho.edu/gaphttp://www.gap.uidaho.edu/gap
SWReGAPSWReGAP
GAP Objectives1) map the distributions of natural communities using NVCS –
LAND COVER MAPPING
2) map predicted habitat of native animal species – ANIMAL HABITAT MODELING
3) map the degree of management for biodiversity maintenance of land tracts and water bodies focusing on intent – STEWARDSHIP MAPPING
4) analyze the representation of biotic elements in the conservation network to identify “gaps” in long-term security – GAP ANALYSIS
5) provide this information to the public and those entities charged with land use research, policy, planning, and management.
The Gap Analysis ProgramThe Gap Analysis Programhttp://www.gap.uidaho.edu/gaphttp://www.gap.uidaho.edu/gap
SWReGAPSWReGAP
Analyses: Animals
Who are the land stewards and how well is the animal species protected?
% USFS: 53.0%% BLM: 0.85%% Protected: 7.3%
The Gap Analysis ProgramThe Gap Analysis Programhttp://www.gap.uidaho.edu/gaphttp://www.gap.uidaho.edu/gap
SWReGAPSWReGAP
Products of GAP
Digital products on CD-ROM and the Internet: Land Cover GIS Coverage Animal Habitat GIS Coverages Stewardship/Ownership GIS Coverages Analyses of “gaps” and general
representation Areas of species richness Ancillary data used in modeling A report of methods and results
The Gap Analysis ProgramThe Gap Analysis Programhttp://www.gap.uidaho.edu/gaphttp://www.gap.uidaho.edu/gap
SWReGAPSWReGAP
The Southwest Regional Gap Analysis Project (SWReGAP) maps according to biogeographic zones rather than state boundaries to achieve a regional seamless biotic data set.
Work is coordinated as a regional effort among 5 state-based institutions, NatureServe, and other cooperators.
NMCFWRULas Cruces
USULogan
EPALas Vegas
CPFSFlagstaff
CDOW &BLM NSTC
DenverNREL/CSU
The Gap Analysis ProgramThe Gap Analysis Programhttp://www.gap.uidaho.edu/gaphttp://www.gap.uidaho.edu/gap
SWReGAPSWReGAP
State Project Principle Investigators and NatureServe Cooperator:
AZ: Kathryn Thomas, USGS Colorado Plateau Field Station, Northern Arizona
University, Flagstaff.
CO: Don Schrupp, Colorado Division of Wildlife; Lee O’Brien, NREL, Colorado
State University; Dianne Osborne, BLM-NSTC.
NV: William Kepner and David Bradford, EPA – National Exposure Research Lab,
Las Vegas.
NM: Ken Boykin, USGS Cooperative Fish and Wildlife Research Unit, New
Mexico State University, Las Cruces.
UT: Doug Ramsey and John Lowry, Utah State University;
Collin Homer, USGS EROS Data Center.
NatureServe: Regional plant ecology coordination – Pat Comer and Keith Schulz
Who is SWReGAP?
The Gap Analysis ProgramThe Gap Analysis Programhttp://www.gap.uidaho.edu/gaphttp://www.gap.uidaho.edu/gap
SWReGAPSWReGAP
Project Components and Responsibilities Land cover mapping is coordinated by the RS/GIS
Lab at Utah State University. Animal habitat modeling is coordinated by the
NMCFWRU at New Mexico State University. Stewardship mapping and analysis are also
coordinated by the NMCFWRU. Individual state labs work cooperatively
through the regional labs to produce regionally consistent and seamless data sets for the Southwest.
The Gap Analysis ProgramThe Gap Analysis Programhttp://www.gap.uidaho.edu/gaphttp://www.gap.uidaho.edu/gap
SWReGAPSWReGAPProject Timeline
1998 First organizational workshops held.
1999 Planning workshop held and initial GAP funds distributed. Regional and State coordinators hired.
2000-1 Primary landsat imagery acquired along with field data. Regional animal habitat modeling methods established. Land cover mapping and animal habitat modeling work ongoing.
2002-3 Land cover mapping and animal modeling continues. Stewardship mapping begins in 2003.
2004 Land cover mapping and stewardship mapping will be complete in September 2004.
2005 Animal modeling will be complete in March 2005. Analysis completed, report written, and data published by fall 2005.
The Gap Analysis ProgramThe Gap Analysis Programhttp://www.gap.uidaho.edu/gaphttp://www.gap.uidaho.edu/gap
SWReGAPSWReGAP
Some SWReGAP Vital Statistics
Project area: 530, 415 sq mi, 339,465,600 ac
- 93% of the size of Alaska BLM lands: 31% of area USFS lands: 14% of area State lands: 7% of area Tribal lands: 9% of area
The Gap Analysis ProgramThe Gap Analysis Programhttp://www.gap.uidaho.edu/gaphttp://www.gap.uidaho.edu/gap
SWReGAPSWReGAPBenefits of Regional SWReGAP
Partnership Consistent data provides a common base for interagency
analysis (regional consistency spatially and thematically with NVCS).
Regional data will allow regional planning as a context for site-level management and NEPA compliance.
A high quality data set will permit regional assessments of landscape health and trends and reveal patterns only visible at that scale.
It provides a sampling frame for finer-scale data collection and study.
The Gap Analysis ProgramThe Gap Analysis Programhttp://www.gap.uidaho.edu/gaphttp://www.gap.uidaho.edu/gap
SWReGAPSWReGAP
ContactsContacts Regional Coordinator: Regional Coordinator:
Julie Prior-Magee [email protected] Prior-Magee [email protected]
SWReGAP website:SWReGAP website: http://leopold.nmsu.edu/fwscoop/swregap/default.htmhttp://leopold.nmsu.edu/fwscoop/swregap/default.htm
National GAP website: National GAP website: http://www.gap.uidaho.eduhttp://www.gap.uidaho.edu or or search “gap analysis”search “gap analysis”
Contains all GAP contacts, state project status and links, and Contains all GAP contacts, state project status and links, and state data.state data.
The National GAP Office: 208/885-3555The National GAP Office: 208/885-3555