USFS Inventory and Monitoring Review

Final Observations and Recommendations

John Moser Frank SapioSteve Prisley Bill StewartJanette Kaiser Mette Loyche WilkieCatherine Jesch Mike Clutter

The Participants Dr. John Moser (Panel Chair) – Professor Emeritus,

Purdue University Dr. Mike Clutter (Panel Co-Chair) – Professor, Warnell

School of Forestry, University of Georgia Ms. Janette Kaiser – Director of Rangeland Resources,

USFS Dr. Steven Prisley – Associate Professor, College of

Natural Resources, Virginia Tech Mr. Frank Sapio – Head, Forest Health Monitoring,

USFS Mr. Bill Stewart – Public Service Professor, College of

Natural Resources, University of California at Berkeley Ms. Mette Loyche-Wilkie – Forester, FAO, Rome Italy Ms. Katherine Jesch – Facilitator, Portland Oregon

Executive Summary Conducted the SPA Review July 22-25 outside of

Portland Oregon – a great location The review team spent about 2.5 days visiting with

a wide range of I&M staff and other stakeholders We are quite impressed with the breadth, depth,

and recent progress of the FIA program We struggled with understanding the other

objectives and implementation of the I&M program The completed the OMB quantitative measures and

they clearly document that FIA is performing quite well

Executive Summary We reviewed each of the four portfolios under

FIA mission and objectives Data collection Analysis and Reporting New and Emerging Issues and Opportunities New Research and Technology Development

The SPA team also reviewed Budgets and the budgeting function Computer resources and technology management Human resources and personnel management

And a bunch of other stuff . . .

FIA vs. Inventory & Monitoring

We struggled with understanding the scope, organization, and justification of the Inventory and Monitoring projects outside of the FIA program. From our perspective we do not have enough

specific information to make quantitative judgments on the Inventory and Monitoring portion of the program

While the team was somewhat uncomfortable with these projects and how they are evaluated, we recognize the need to fund such opportunities at the regional level

A Conceptual Diagram FIA core missions and

objectives are reasonably well understood by our review panel

The Inventory and Monitoring portion of the mission was not as clearly defined and somewhat amorphous by Research Station

The relationship of these projects to the overall mission is still, at best, fuzzy

Opportunities to expand the FIA core into some of these areas clearly exist

Portfolios We will focus our comments on the four

portfolios used during the review to split up the program (however we do believe that significant overlap exists among portfolios)

Portfolio 1. Data Collection and functions that support data collection

Portfolio 2. Analysis and Reporting

Portfolio 3. New and emerging issues and opportunities

Portfolio 4. New research and technology development

Portfolio 1 Accomplishments National field manual with regional options Annual System in 48 states plus all

territories Substantial cooperation with states and

contractors in executing field work – particularly in the east

National compilation system developed and implemented in 3 of 4 regions

National data recorder system – MIDAS Outstanding recent implementation and

performance on field based activities

Portfolio 1 Issues / Challenges

Complete the charge in the 1998 Farm Bill – annual system in all states

Transparency of procedures, documentation, etc. is primary to the mission

Explore differences in field work execution between the east and the west (year around data collection and state partnerships)

Managing the expectation of expanding the grid into rangeland, urban, etc. and adding additional variables

Quantitative measures of field performance for use in program management and review (cost / plot; etc.)

Denied access and its impact on the program

Portfolio 1 Recommendations Continue progress toward high quality and

efficient data collection and those activities that support it.

Continue and expand improvement on phase 1 remote sensing opportunities.

Do not mess with the grid and do not change the basic sampling design

Maintain control of the QA / QC functions and training of field crews

Expand where appropriate the use of State and contract crews in the west along with expanding the field season

Outstanding recent implementation and performance on field based activities

Portfolio 2 Accomplishments State reports; NRS on-time; SRS 75% complete;

PNW complete; RMS catching up State reports are now issue driven. Better

integration with States and State issues Tools for ad hoc query and reporting developed

and in place Addressing emerging issues on biomass and

carbon Reports contain both current estimates and

projections Many other reports and reporting tools developed

and supported (regional, national, and global reporting)

Portfolio 2 Issues Fully deploy delivery of Forest Health Indicator science

Continue to standardize volume, biomass, and carbon estimation

Continue development of a national carbon accounting system

Develop biomass GRM estimates for all trees on all forest land

Producing faster, better, and less expensive reports

Tension between the core and other activities . . . Defining objectives and priorities

Portfolio 2 Recommendations Continue to pursue transparency and

documentation of analysis procedures Develop a national project for consistent

biomass and carbon estimation for all species / species groups

Insure that FIA participates in and provides input to State Forest Sustainability Reports

Develop communications plans to better disseminate information

Portfolio 3 Accomplishments Synchronized P2 and P3 Increased Analytical Capacity Improved Techniques Research Increased use of Remote Sensing &

Spatial Techniques Improved Land Cover & Use Change

Analysis

Portfolio 3 Issues / Challenges More Aggressive Remote Sensing Approaches Enhanced NFS Support Rapid Assessment Teams Urban Forest Inventory Rangeland Inventory Water quantity and quality monitoring Other Treed and Riparian Land Inventory Wildlife Habitat Monitoring Climate Change Quantification and valuation of ecosystems

services

Portfolio 3 Recommendations Expansion into these emerging areas has to be funded

over and above current core programs. Do not put these core programs at risk due to expansion into new areas.

Coordinate the implementation of rapid assessment teams with other agencies / departments

Expand the use and understanding of carbon accounting across the full range of carbon stocks and flows (wood, coal, etc.) Need a more robust view of TPO studies and their use in carbon accounting

Expand into urban areas, and other land with trees given that funding from appropriate sources is forthcoming

Develop methods to assess changes due to climate fluctuations

Increase capacity to address inventory and monitoring of various emerging issues (see issues list)

Portfolio 4 Accomplishments Developed estimators for the annual

system (means, totals, standard errors) Developed small area estimation methods Exploring new and innovative uses on

remote sensing techniques for use in Inventory and Monitoring

Developed methods for urban and rangelands

Developed methods for spatial data analysis and visualization (maps)

Portfolio 4 Issues How to expand regional processes /

techniques to a national scale Coordination of regional R & D across

regions in an efficient and effective manner Best source, avoiding duplication

Encourage continued development of estimation methodologies for the FIA sampling design

Portfolio 4 Recommendations Where appropriate take successful regional

work and expand to a national scale Encourage continued development of estimation

methodologies for the FIA sampling design (workshop, funding, etc.)

Expand remote sensing methodologies / techniques for application in a wide array of analysis and reporting situations

Improve coordination and sharpen focus among R&D Units in all Inventory and Monitoring efforts

Program Observations Control of computers and information systems (CIO) Human Resources issues in the work force (retirements,

loss of institutional knowledge, succession planning, etc.) Inventory & Monitoring should be in compliance with

Forest Service aviation safety policies Participation of FIA (and the US) in development and

implementation of global reporting of natural resources Apparent lack of coordination and prioritization between

regional I&M projects across a national program Opportunities for expanding the breadth of partnerships Some disconnects between the strategic planning process

and individual project selection and implementation

Program Assessment The I&M program is in great shape from

our perspective. Substantial progress has been made toward most of the primary objectives identified by the review team. We have been impressed by the breadth, depth and quality of the programs we have reviewed.

Questions ??