Progress 07/01/10 to 06/30/15
Outputs
Target Audience:Target Audience The primary audience for this work is federal, state, and municipal managers of forests and rangelands, especially those whose duties involve management of invasive weeds, reducing wildfire hazard, and/or restoring burned or invaded landscapes. A secondary audience is forest, rangeland, fire, and restoration scientists, as well as social scientists whose work focuses on natural resource management. Changes/Problems:Changes/Problems One study that was projected to occur when the project was approved was an experiment where we measured impacts of vehicle-generated dust on plant fitness and soil physical and chemical properties. A greenhouse experiment was conducted as planned. However, when we implemented the field experiment on public land in southern Utah, it was unsuccessful because it was damaged either accidentally or deliberately by recreation visitors. We did not have funds to repeat the field study. What opportunities for training and professional development has the project provided?Opportunities Four doctoral students were trained with support from this project. One now works as an environmental manager in southern Nevada, another is research and education director at a science museum in Pittsburgh, a third is a faculty member in Thailand, and the fourth is writing her dissertation as this is written. In 2014-15 I presented results and implications of this work as a keynote speaker at: a regional restoration conference in central Oregon, the annual meeting of the Society for Range Management in Sacramento; the Great Basin Climate Forum in Reno; the Idaho Rangeland Forum in Boise; and the International Sage-Grouse Forum in Salt Lake City. How have the results been disseminated to communities of interest?Dissemination Results have been disseminated at various regional and international meetings (see Opportunities above). With support from the Joint Fire Science Program acquired as a result of a Secretarial Order on sage grouse, we will be able to host and maintain the weather-restoration planning tool being created as part of another NIFA-sponsored project. Results from this project are part of chapters in two books designed for academic audiences, and papers are being prepared for publication outlets used mainly by agency managers. Results of the wildfire hazard mitigation study will also be included in a fact sheet to be made available through the Great Basin Fire Science Exchange. What do you plan to do during the next reporting period to accomplish the goals?Plan of Work This is a final report. Additional activities will consist solely of publishing results from work completed as a result of this project.
Impacts
What was accomplished under these goals?
Accomplishments Objective 1 (practice changes by private landowners): We completed a study of factors that influence adoption of homeowners' adoption of wildfire risk-reduction practices at the Wildland-Urban Interface. Results show that cultural factors, local environmental and social contexts, and personal experience with wildfire all interact to influence decisions whether and how to mitigate wildfire risk. People have to believe a practice will work and that they can effectively use it, but they also are influenced by what neighbors do. They often are unrealistically optimistic about risk, believing a fire is less likely than it actually is. A doctoral dissertation was successfully defended, one manuscript was submitted for publication and another is currently in preparation. Objective 2 (landowner beliefs about environmental change): All work specifically designed to address this objective was completed by 2013. We found that simply creating a weed management zone did not lead to increased awareness of weed issues or beliefs about the need for or effectiveness of practices to reduce weed invasions in northern Utah and southern Idaho. Some results will be included in a chapter of a forthcoming book (December 2015) on invasive brome grasses. Objective 3 (top-down vs. bottom-up influence on beliefs and behaviors): We completed analysis of results from surveys of managers and citizens about post-fire restoration practices and the role of local social and environmental conditions (bottom-up processes) and policy (top-down) in influencing management decisions. Results suggest that managers' decisions are largely driven by top-down factors (policy, budget, time allowed to plan restoration activities, as well as concern that the public will not support new initiatives. Conversely, the public believes managers should have more freedom to operate by local knowledge and they tend to support new initiatives. A doctoral dissertation will be defended in Fall 2015 and results will appear in a book chapter. Objective 4 (how behaviors of managers and users influence disturbance and invasion processes): We completed focus groups to learn about decision processes of restoration decision-makers and the potential influence of better long-term weather information. A tool designed to help managers gain and use that information is under development. A beta version of the tool will become available later in 2015 through the Great Basin Fire Science Exchange.
Publications
- Type:
Conference Papers and Presentations
Status:
Other
Year Published:
2015
Citation:
Brunson, M. W., Great Basin Climate Forum, "Can We Fit Drought Adaptation into a Natural Resource Managers Tight Decision Space?," Desert Research Institute, Reno, NV. (April 8, 2015)
- Type:
Conference Papers and Presentations
Status:
Other
Year Published:
2015
Citation:
Brunson, M. W., 3rd Rustici Symposium, "Public Lands Grazing and Conservation: Citizen Perspectives and Attitudes," Rangeland Watershed Laboratory, University of California, Davis, CA. (March 3, 2015 - March 4, 2015)
- Type:
Conference Papers and Presentations
Status:
Other
Year Published:
2015
Citation:
Brunson, M. W. (Presenter & Author), Whitcomb, H. (Author Only), 68th annual meeting, Society for Range Management, "Social and Political Sources of Uncertainty Affecting Public Land Restoration Decisions," Society for Range Management, Sacramento, CA. (February 1, 2015 - February 6, 2015)
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Progress 10/01/13 to 09/30/14
Outputs
Target Audience: Target Audience Public land managers (Forest Service, National Park Service, Bureau of Land Management); invasive species biologists and managers; fire prevention and management officials in state, federal, and local agencies. Changes/Problems:
Nothing Reported
What opportunities for training and professional development has the project provided? Opportunities As a result of McIntire-Stennis-supported work I was asked to speak at a major conference on management of large wildfires, where I was able to engage with fire managers at state and local levels to discuss citizen perceptions of wildfire risk-reduction practices. Also I have been asked to be the new Principal Investigator for the Great Basin Fire Science Exchange, a cooperative entity that disseminates fire science findings and implications mainly to federal land managers in the region. How have the results been disseminated to communities of interest? Dissemination Results of McIntire-Stennis-supported research have been disseminated via the Great Basin Fire Science Exchange (formerly Delivery) program and the Sagebrush Steppe Treatment Evaluation Project (SageSTEP). I helped organize and am co-author of three articles in a special issue of Rangeland Ecology & Management published in September 2014 about SageSTEP research. A paper was prepared, submitted, and published in Rangelands, a journal read primarily by rangeland managers, about how to engage stakeholders in conceptual modeling of socio-environmental systems in order to maintain and enhance ecosystem services from degraded shrublands. What do you plan to do during the next reporting period to accomplish the goals? Plan of Work We are entering the final year for this project. No new activities are planned. Efforts will focus on completing analysis of the last two studies (wildfire risk reduction practices and weather tool for restoration planning), preparing publications and otherwise disseminating data from various studies.
Impacts
What was accomplished under these goals?
Accomplishments Objective 1 (practice changes by private landowners): We have launched a new study of factors that influence adoption of homeowners' adoption of wildfire risk-reduction practices at the Wildland-Urban Interface. Survey data have been collected and analysis has begun. Objective 2 (landowner beliefs about environmental change): There are no new accomplishments to report for this objective in FY 2014. Objective 3 (top-down vs. bottom-up influence on beliefs and behaviors): A paper was published about the role of trust in influencing change in beliefs about sagebrush restoration. We analyzed data from surveys conducted in spring/summer 2013 comparing citizens' and managers beliefs about post-wildfire restoration practices. In FY14 we analyzed these data and have begun sharing results with key audiences. Results show managers underestimate public support for their restoration activities. We see greater opportunities for engaging citizens in efforts to rehabilitate and restore disturbed wildlands. Objective 4 (how behaviors of managers and users influence disturbance and invasion processes): We have begun a study of restoration planners' decision processes as preparation for developing an online tool that will allow incorporation of advanced weather predictions to aid reseeding decisions. A paper was prepared, submitted, and accepted for publication demonstrating how exposure to invasive species (in this case a non-native frog in Hawaii) can lead to citizens' habituation to that species, hampering efforts to control or eradicate it.
Publications
- Type:
Journal Articles
Status:
Published
Year Published:
2014
Citation:
Gordon, R., Shindler, B., Brunson, M. W. (2014). Acceptance, Acceptability, and Trust for Sagebrush Restoration Options in the Great Basin: A Longitudinal Perspective. To appear in Rangeland Ecology & Management.
- Type:
Journal Articles
Status:
Published
Year Published:
2014
Citation:
McIver, J., Brunson, M. W., Bunting, S., Chambers, J., Doescher, P., Grace, J., Hulet, A., Knick, S., Miller, R., Pierson, F., Pyke, D., Rau, B., Rollins, K., Roundy, B., Schupp, E. W., Tausch, R., Williams, J. (2014). A synopsis of short-term response to alternative restoration treatments in sagebrush steppe: the SageSTEP project. Rangeland Ecology & Management, 67(5).
- Type:
Journal Articles
Status:
Published
Year Published:
2014
Citation:
McIver, J., Brunson, M. W. (2014). Multi-disciplinary, multi-site evaluation of alternative sagebrush steppe restoration treatments: The SageSTEP project. Rangeland Ecology & Management, 67(5).
- Type:
Conference Papers and Presentations
Status:
Other
Year Published:
2014
Citation:
Brunson, M. W., International Sage-Grouse Forum, "Stakeholder Perceptions of Sagebrush Management," Salt Lake City, UT. (November 13, 2014 - November 14, 2014)
- Type:
Conference Papers and Presentations
Status:
Other
Year Published:
2014
Citation:
Brunson, M. W., Idaho Rangeland Fall Forum, "Living on Changing Landscapes: Is it Time to Change our Approach to Cheatgrass?," University of Idaho Rangelands Center, Boise, ID. (October 22, 2014)
- Type:
Conference Papers and Presentations
Status:
Other
Year Published:
2014
Citation:
Brunson, M. W., 99th annual meeting, "Invader, Encroacher, or Does it Matter? Ecological and Psychological Influences on Beliefs about Unwanted Conifers," Ecological Society of America, Sacramento, CA. (August 12, 2014)
- Type:
Conference Papers and Presentations
Status:
Other
Year Published:
2014
Citation:
Brunson, M. W., Large Wildfires Conference, "Managing Invasive Species and Wildfire: Social and Political Considerations in the Public Lands States," International Association of Wildland Fire, Missoula, MT. (May 22, 2014)
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Progress 01/01/13 to 09/30/13
Outputs
Target Audience: Public land managers (Forest Service, National Park Service, Bureau of Land Management); invasive species biologists and managers. Changes/Problems:
Nothing Reported
What opportunities for training and professional development has the project provided? As a result of the project, I was able to engage in professional development activities that include participation in the Society for Range Management's annual meeting; the Ecological Society of America's annual meeting (where I took part in a workshop to improve ecologists' understanding of how to engage with policy processes), and I helped organize and lead a workshop for land managers on interactions between wildfire and biological invasion processes in western deserts. How have the results been disseminated to communities of interest? A monitoring guide was published online for use by land managers concerned about the effects of road dust and/or dust-abatement practices on roadside soils and plant communities. I joined the leadership team for the Great Basin Fire Science Delivery Project, which provides information on human-environment impacts and other topics for wildfire and wildland fuels managers. I moderated a session on juniper management for land and wildlife managers in California. And I presented a social-ecological systems model developed as a result of this project and explained its potential uses as part of the annual Restoring the West conference at Utah State. What do you plan to do during the next reporting period to accomplish the goals? In a study that addresses all four objectives, we will combine remote sensing and a landowner questionnaire to understand how environmental and social factors such as land cover, fire history, owners' knowledge of and attitudes toward management options, adjacent landowners' practices, and ethnic/cultural background interact to affect a landowner's decisions about fire-hazard reduction. We also will publish additional papers from the completed study of how habitat dynamics and social factors influence invasive frog populations. For objective 1: Work on this objective has been completed. A publication on landowners' manipulation of forest structure to manage non-native frog invasions is in preparation and will be submitted for publication in 2014. For objective 2: We will complete analysis of the repeat weed survey and submit results for publication. For objective 3: A paper will be appear describing results of the work assessing the effects of trust on beliefs about rangeland management practices. We will conduct one more survey using a conjoint choice approach to model land managers' post-wildfire seeding decisions, and complete analysis of 2013 studies. For objective 4: We will complete analysis of data on dust impacts and prepare manuscripts for submission.
Impacts
What was accomplished under these goals?
Objective 1 (practice changes by private landowners): No new accomplishments in 2013. Objective 2 (landowner beliefs about environmental change): A questionnaire of landowner attitudes and knowledge about weeds was completed in 2013. This was a follow-up to a 2010 survey and was intended to measure effects of an outreach effort on willingness to control invasive plants. Analysis continues, but preliminary results show little change. Objective 3 (top-down vs. bottom-up influence on beliefs and behaviors): Analysis of a prior survey showed that local conditions had less influence on beliefs about wildland fuels management than general trust in the government to manage wildfire risk (a top-down influence). New surveys were conducted of land managers and stakeholders to assess beliefs about post-wildfire restoration practices. Preliminary analysis shows that decisions regarding post-fire re-seeding are driven primarily by constraints imposed by federal policy, leaving little room to account for local environmental conditions after the fire when planning restoration activities. Objective 4 (how behaviors of managers and users influence disturbance and invasion processes): We published a paper showing how landowners' actions can reduce invasion by non-native frogs in Hawaii. We also published a monitoring protocol to help land managers measure impacts of gravel road traffic on roadside plants and soils via dust deposition.
Publications
- Type:
Other
Status:
Other
Year Published:
2013
Citation:
Hoffmann, S., Brunson, M. W. (2013). Monitoring Road Dust Emission and Related Dust Effects in National Parks. extension.usu.edu/iort/files/uploads/pdfs/road_dust_monitoring_protocol.pdf
- Type:
Conference Papers and Presentations
Status:
Other
Year Published:
2013
Citation:
Brunson, M. W., Restoring the West 2013, "Managing for social-ecological resilience: a dimly lit path to a bright future?," Utah State University Extension, Logan, UT. (October 16, 2013 - October 17, 2013)
- Type:
Conference Papers and Presentations
Status:
Other
Year Published:
2013
Citation:
Brunson, M. W., Landscape Management of a Native Invader, Western Juniper, "Reaction and synthesis," University of California-Davis, Davis, CA. (September 10, 2013)
- Type:
Conference Papers and Presentations
Status:
Other
Year Published:
2013
Citation:
Brunson, M. W., 98th Annual Meeting, Ecological Society of America, "Production and management of dust from gravel roads: potential effects on desert roadside plant communities," Ecological Society of America, Minneapolis, MN. (August 8, 2013)
- Type:
Conference Papers and Presentations
Status:
Other
Year Published:
2013
Citation:
Brunson, M. W., 98th Annual Meeting, Ecological Society of America, "Engaging Ecologists in Public Policy: Revisiting ESA Recommendations," Ecological Society of America, Minneapolis, MN. (August 5, 2013)
- Type:
Conference Papers and Presentations
Status:
Other
Year Published:
2013
Citation:
Brunson, M. W., Mojave Desert Fire Ecology Workshop, "Post-fire management decision making - research and observations," Desert-FMP (BYU-USU research collaboration), Lytle Ranch, Washington County, UT. (April 17, 2013)
- Type:
Conference Papers and Presentations
Status:
Other
Year Published:
2013
Citation:
Brunson, M. W. (Guest Speaker), Hoffmann, S. (Author Only), Society for Range Management annual meeting, "Effects of Fugitive Dust from Roads Crossing Arid Rangelands," Society for Range Management, Oklahoma City, OK. (February 7, 2013)
- Type:
Conference Papers and Presentations
Status:
Other
Year Published:
2013
Citation:
Brunson, M. W., Great Basin Consortium annual meeting, "NEPA-phobia and the "trust gap": Impediments to rangeland resilience?," Boise, ID. (January 15, 2013)
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Progress 01/01/12 to 12/31/12
Outputs
OUTPUTS: "Objective 1: Because horses are viewed as a significant change agent on small private forest and rangeland holdings, a new study was begun using existing data to learn more about Utah's horse owners - who they are, how they may differ from other landowners, how they obtain information, and what information they need. Objective 2: Preparations are almost complete for a repeat of a 2009 weed survey, sent to the same landowners, in order to measure whether establishment of a Weed Prevention Area influences awareness of weed issues or adoption of practices intended to reduce invasion. Objective 3: Research interviews were conducted with rangeland and fuels managers responsible for making post-fire rehabilitation decisions. In addition, we are midway through an analysis of public comments to range rehabilitation projects on federal land. These will be used to develop a conjoint-choice experiment that can measure the relative importance of various ecological and social-political factors in influencing reseeding decisions. We organized a field tour at one of our SageSTEP research plots on BLM land near Idaho Falls, ID, to help managers understand factors that influence rehabilitation success after wildfire. A model of coupled human and natural systems interactions, incorporating considerations of scale and top-down/bottom-up processes, was published in Rangeland Ecology & Management. Objective 4: Greenhouse work and most analysis was completed (except for soil sample analysis) for the southeast Utah recreation impact study. We completed a monitoring guide for wildland managers wishing to measure the impacts of recreation-generated dust on the environment. Objectives 2 & 4: We have begun development of a spatial model that can evaluate the relationship between forest characteristics, wildfire risk at the wildland-urban interface, and homeowners' attitudes and beliefs about wildfire hazard reduction practices." PARTICIPANTS: "PI Mark Brunson supervised all research. Student researchers contributing to the project in 2012 were: Heidi Anderson (MS), Courtney Buchanan (undergraduate Honors student), Voravee Chakreeyarat (PhD), Scott Hoffmann (PhD), Katie Stoker (MS), and Hilary Whitcomb (PhD). Utah State University research collaborators are: Janis Boettinger and Corey Ransom (Plants, Soils & Climate), and Eugene Schupp (WIldland Resources). Cooperating organizations include universities and federal research organizations with whose researchers I have collaborated on these projects (Brigham Young, Oregon State, Univ. of Idaho, US Geological Survey, USDA-Agricultural Research Service). The Bureau of Land Management and National Park Service have provided land for research activities." TARGET AUDIENCES: "Target audiences for all studies include scientific researchers, especially those interested in the intersection between ecology and social science. Target audience for the new private landowner study (characteristics and information needs/preferences of Utah horse owners) is Extension agents and other outreach professionals. Specific audiences for the tree frog work are landowners, especially on the Big Island, and pest control professionals. For the fuels-reduction and recreation work, public land agency managers are an important audience." PROJECT MODIFICATIONS: Nothing significant to report during this reporting period.
Impacts
It is too soon to demonstrate impacts from this project. We have strong evidence that outreach from our study of sagebrush ecosystem restoration is used and actively sought by our target audience, but have not yet been able to measure behavior change directly attributable to our work.
Publications
- No publications reported this period
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Progress 01/01/11 to 12/31/11
Outputs
OUTPUTS: We began a new experiment to measure effects of motor vehicle recreation in southern Utah, with data analysis to begin early in 2012. We monitored recreation-generated dust and its impacts in Arches National Park, and began greenhouse studies to assess effects of dust on plants found in forest as well as range environments of southeastern Utah. Analysis was completed of data on habitat use and landowner beliefs/behaviors regarding non-native tree frogs in Hawaii, and the student's doctoral dissertation was defended successfully in December. In addition, the student researcher has completed newspaper interviews in Hawaii describing her work and its implications. A workshop in Boise and field day in the Owyhee Mountains of southwestern Idaho were conducted to share insights on socio-economic and ecological implications of fuels-reduction practices in areas prone to exotic grass invasion. A web-based guide to institutional and legal resources for persons planning fuels reduction was completed and made available on the SageSTEP (www.sagestep.org) site. We continue to develop and improve the SageSTEP website and to disseminate an e-newsletter for land managers interested in wildland fuels reduction and invasive plant management. PARTICIPANTS: Mark Brunson, principal investigator, supervised all research. Graduate student researchers: Emily Kalnicky, PhD researcher, completed her Hawaii work; Scott Hoffmann, PhD researcher, conducted the southeast Utah dust and recreation impact studies. Undergraduate researcher: Sara Hunt was lead compiler of the legal/institutional resource guide. Staff: Summer Olsen is outreach coordinator for SageSTEP, which conducted outreach activities that included discussion of results from this project. Partner organizations: In southern Utah, the Nature Conservancy and Bureau of Land Management. The USDA-ARS provided leadership assistance for the Idaho field tour. TARGET AUDIENCES: Target audiences for all studies include scientific researchers, especially those interested in the intersection between ecology and social science. Specific audiences for the tree frog work are landowners, especially on the Big Island, and pest control professionals. For the fuels-reduction and recreation work, public land agency managers are an important audience. PROJECT MODIFICATIONS: Nothing significant to report during this reporting period.
Impacts
Change in knowledge from the tree frog study: Local dislike of coqui frogs has spurred efforts to eliminate the frogs from the island of Hawaii at considerable cost to taxpayers. In analyzing survey data we found that attitudes are more negative among property owners who do not have frogs at their homes but fear they soon might than among those who already host frogs, suggesting people can learn to live with them. Experimental data show reducing understory and regularly removing leaf litter from properties can lead to a reduction in coqui density. Thus it may be more cost-effective on Hawaii to encourage efforts to reduce coqui density to tolerable levels, while continuing to pursue eradication on other islands. While we cannot measure a change in actions yet, it is likely that a new comprehensive review of the effects of NRCS conservation practices (including a chapter supported by this project) will lead to a shift in agency emphasis toward those practices shown to have the clearest conservation benefits.
Publications
- UTAO+1014 Tanaka, J. A., Brunson, M. W., & Torell, L. A., 2011. Conservation Benefits of Rangeland Practices: Assessment, Recommendations, and Knowledge Gaps, In David D. Briske (Ed.), A social and economic assessment of rangeland conservation practices. Allen Press, Lawrence, KS, p. 371-422. (Published).
- UTAO+1014 Hunt, S., Olsen, S. C., Brunson, M. W. (2011). Guide to legal and institutional resources for restoration and management of Great Basin rangelands. Sagebrush Steppe Treatment Evaluation Project (SageSTEP):. (Published).
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Progress 01/01/10 to 12/31/10
Outputs
OUTPUTS: The first phase was completed of a two-phase study of how establishing a Weed Prevention Area (WPA) affects private landowner knowledge and behaviors. Initial results are recorded in a chapter of a M.S. thesis that was successfully defended in November 2010. We plan to submit for publication in more accessible media in 2011. Projects to address other study objectives are in early stages of development or implementation. Work during the first months of this project has been mainly limited to securing funding and setting up study sites. Outside funding was secured for a study of how beliefs about social and environmental contexts affect post-wildfire rehabilitation decisions. Initial work was begun on studies of feedbacks between recreation use and environmental change in southeastern Utah. A survey was completed of forest owners in Hawaii about how vegetation management decisions are related to population dynamics of a nuisance species, the non-native coqui frog. PARTICIPANTS: Weed research is being conducted in cooperation with the USDA-Agricultural Research Service (Ecologically Based Invasive Plant Management program). Partners in post-fire decision research are Brigham Young University and the Bureau of Land Management. The recreation studies are in partnership with the USDA Forest Service, BLM, National Park Service, Nature Conservancy and US Geological Survey. The Hawaii Division of Forestry and Wildlife and USDA-APHIS Wildlife Services assisted with research in Hawaii. TARGET AUDIENCES: Invasive species managers in federal, state, and local agencies; private landowners (via Cooperative Extension and USDA-NRCS); public forest and rangeland managers; state and federal recreation managers; ecological and social scientists. PROJECT MODIFICATIONS: Nothing significant to report during this reporting period.
Impacts
No impacts can yet be reported from these studies, however we can report knowledge gained from the first phase of the WPA study: Decisions about weed management were related to landowners' knowledge, access to resources, and ability to observe positive results after enacting a practice. This need for landowners to see results poses a significant challenge to weed prevention, as often it is difficult to know if prevention actually kept weeds out or if they would never have invaded to begin with. Education efforts must be devised with this aspect in mind.
Publications
- No publications reported this period
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