Progress 07/01/08 to 12/31/10
Outputs
OUTPUTS: The University of Washington's Olympic Natural Resources Center (ONRC) supplied the Willapa Refuge with geographic information systems (GIS) products and services to support the spartina eradication program throughout the project period. The following services were rendered: ONRC GIS Laboratory assisted with planning and execution of field surveys to assess the efficacy of treatments. Following the collection of field data, ONRC integrated datasets into baselayer maps and conducted analyses to determine the scope of infested saltmarshes. ONRC devised a method for depicting the decline in Spartina, as the program reached the point when little visible infestation remained. The method develop was based on the use of a global positioning system (GPS) and compass-enabled camera to take photos of all the live Spartina plants discovered by experienced crew during a 4-week period searching throughout the Bay. The 3,200 patches or plants depicted in the photos were analyzed and values were assigned indicating the size of the plant or patch. A calculation was done of the overall net acreage identified in the Bay. Maps were generated that showed where plants of various sizes were found. These maps were distributed to agencies involved in Spartina control, local stakeholders, political leaders, and the public (in local newsletters). PARTICIPANTS: Miranda Wecker, University of Washington Olympic Natural Resources Center (UW ONRC), Mwecker@wwest.net. Keven Bennett, UW ONRC, k2ebennett@q.com Tim Crose & Ed Darcher, Pacific County Vegetation Management, darcher@wwest.net Conducted field work for surveys. Charles Stenvall, Willapa National Wildlife Refuge, US Fish and Wildlife Service, Charlie_Stenvall@fws.gov Assisted in development of the methodology and review of the results. Supervises the federal Spartina control program and utilized the results. Kim Patten, Washington State University, Long Beach Research Station, pattenk@wsu.edu Assisted in development of the methodology and review of the results. Dick Sheldon, Willapa Bay - Grays Harbor Oyster Growers Association, oysters@willapabay.org Assisted in development of the methodology and review of the results. Utilized the results in private eradication program. TARGET AUDIENCES: The target audiences included the public, the agencies responsible for Spartina eradication, the political leadership, and the scientific community engaged in control of invasive species. The project generated a credible picture of the significant and widely-scattered infestation, despite the absence of large very visible infestations. Agencies were provided with a status assessment that was used to plan future treatments and supplied metrics for determining continued progress. The project also targeted the research community that is following the history and evolution of the Spartina eradication effort. Researchers are interested in developing new methods for monitoring and measuring progress in relation to multi-year large-scale eradication programs. PROJECT MODIFICATIONS: There were no major changes in approaches used. The project period was extended to allow follow-up analyses and review of this monitoring method in subsequent years.
Impacts
Over 90% of the invasive exotic cordgrass, Spartina alterniflora, in Willapa was eliminated by 2008. In 1995, the Washington Legislature set nothing less than complete eradication as the goal for the program. Much of the less than 10% that remained was located in the difficult to traverse and complex terrain of the 25,000 acres of saltmarshes found in Willapa Bay. The University of Washington's Olympic Natural Resources Center Geographic Information Systems Laboratory (ONRC GIS) devised a practical way to conduct fine-scale monitoring of the final phase of the Spartina eradication effort. This work is crucial to assure that progress continues as the remaining plants become more difficult to locate. No method for such fine scale monitoring had been developed for the challenging environment of the intertidal marshes. The method proved useful in determining that thousands of plants remain throughout the bay, hundreds of small to medium size patches were left, but few large infestation sites still exist. The survey generated a portrait of the status of the overall infestation that helped guide development of plans for the eradication program in the following year. It also was a useful test of this approach to monitoring. Adjustments were made in subsequent years to continue to build a picture of the progress of eradication over time.
Publications
- Bennett, K. 2009. Willapa Bay Spartina: Fall Survey 2008. ONRC Update, v.7:no.3(2009:May/June), p.2-5. Available online at: http://www.onrc.washington.edu/educationoutreach/Newsletters/2009/May June2009.pdf, link verified 8/17/2011.
- Wecker, M., Darcher, E., Crose, T., and Bennett, K. 2009. Willapa Bay Spartina: Fall Survey 2008: Experiences, Lessons, and Conclusions in Application of New Technologies for Inventory Surveys of Spartina alterniflora Infestations. Available online at: http://www.onrc.washington.edu/mdai/Data/docs/Willapa%20Bay%20Spartin a%20Survey%20FALL%202008%20FINAL.pdf, link verified 8/17/2011.
- Bennett, K. 2009. ONRC GIS Team Provides Innovative Support for Olympic Region Projects. ONRC Update, v.7:no.5(2009:Sept./Oct.), p.2-4. Available online at: http://www.onrc.washington.edu/educationoutreach/Newsletters/2009/Sep tOct2009.pdf, link verified 8/17/2011.
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