Restoration and Land Management
Overview
Land management and restoration activities benefit from a science-based approach. Research at the CCB includes development of such broadly applicable management and restoration tools. Our activities in this arena naturally overlap with efforts in biodiversity conservation and environmental policy. Here we highlight two activities.
Case Studies
The CCB participates in the Nevada Biodiversity Initiative (NBI). NBI is a partnership among universities (Stanford and University of Nevada, Reno), federal and state resource agencies (USFWS, USFS, BLM, Nevada Division of Wildlife, Nevada Division of Water Planning, and Nevada Natural Heritage Program), and private organizations (The Nature Conservancy) that promotes scientifically-informed management of Nevada's public lands. Our research includes development of techniques to rapidly assess species richness, evaluate habitat quality, and understand the effects of disturbance including fire. These techniques are then used to understand the processes driving community composition, informing management.
The Great Basin Invasive Species and Remote Sensing Network facilitates communication and collaboration among researchers and land managers who are interested in integrating remote sensing with land cover and land use mapping to address the threats that invasive species pose to ecological status and trend in the Great Basin. The network currently includes some 50 individuals representing an array of universities, federal and state resource agencies, and private organizations.
In our own backyard at Stanford, we have evaluated several restoration methodologies, developed new metrics to determine the success or failure of restoration projects, and clarified the theories and hypotheses implicit in most approaches to restoration. Our restoration work was done in the foothills region of Stanford's main campus. This area is a mix of coastal grassland, oak woodland, riparian, and wetland habitats that span a range of habitat degradation. Given this mix, the region is an excellent model system with which to evaluate restoration hypotheses.
