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Five Projects Funded to Increase Understanding of the Great Basin

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BLM Nevada State Office

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The Great Basin Landscape Conservation Cooperative (GBLCC) is providing more than $198,000 from the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service to fund five projects within the Great Basin. The projects were selected from 16 proposals based on their ability to support the GBLCC's mission of enhancing understanding of the effects of climate change and other natural and human impacts across the region and promoting coordination of science-based actions to enable communities to response and adapt to those conditions.The projects selected for funding include the following:

  • $48,222 awarded to Dr. Elizabeth Leger, University of Nevada, Reno: "Understanding the causes and consequences of cheatgrass die-offs in the Great Basin. The project will use satellite imagery to provide information on the size and extent of historic die-offs in the Winnemucca area and determine if the die-offs are restoration opportunities by planting native grasses.
  • $44,795 awarded to Dr. Eric Beever, U.S. Geological Survey: “Characterization of montane ecosystems, their microclimates, and wildlife distribution and abundance across the hydrographic Great Basin. The project will retrieve four years of data from over 200 temperature sensors located on over 100 million acres of the Great Basin to help quantify the variability of climate across varying landscape levels and time periods.
  • $38,855 awarded to Dr. Elisabeth Ammon, Great Basin Bird Observatory: “Evaluating species management guidance and monitoring programs for the Great Basin. The project will provide an online, open source document that summarizes the current knowledge on the value of different species management practices, important gaps in knowledge about priority species and current status of monitoring coverage.
  • $35,000 awarded to Dr. Bryce Richardson, USDA Forest Service: “Development of tools and technology to improve the success and planning of big sagebrush ecosystems. The project creates a knowledge base and tools to assist resource managers by informing them of the most appropriate seed sources to plant to enhance the success of restoration under current and future climates.
  • $31,356 awarded to Dr. Matt Germino, U.S. Geological Survey: “Effects of genotype and management treatments of native and invasive herbs on success of sagebrush restoration. The research will evaluate how initial establishment of sagebrush is influenced by management treatments and to determine how the effects are varied under different climate conditions. The Great Basin LCC was established in 2011 and is one of 22 LCCs nationwide established by the Department of the Interior to better integrate science and management to address climate change and related issues. The Great Basin LCC is a self-directed partnership among bureaus and others involved in natural resource management and conservation.

For more information on the Great Basin LCC contact Todd Hopkins, Great Basin LCC Science Coordinator at todd_hopkins@fws.gov or go to https://greatbasinlcc.org

The BLM manages more than 245 million acres of public land located primarily in 12 western states, including Alaska, on behalf of the American people. The BLM also administers 700 million acres of sub-surface mineral estate throughout the nation. Our mission is to sustain the health, diversity, and productivity of America’s public lands for the use and enjoyment of present and future generations.