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Special Note: Online registration for this event is NOW CLOSED. You may register onsite in Park City.

Special Note: The Park City Marriot Hotel room block for the ESD workshop is FULL as is the remainder of the hotel rooms, except for 10 concierge rooms, which do include a continental breakfast, at a rate of $129 per night. For a list of alternative hotels offering the honor government rate by phone reservations only ... Click Here.

Understanding and improving applications for wildlife habitat management in sagebrush ecosystems

October 23-25, 2007
Park City Marriott Hotel
Park City UT

Online Registration is now closed
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Printable Program (pdf)
Hotel Information

We are pleased to announce that Governor Huntsman will be one of our featured Luncheon speakers on October 23, 2007.

Arlen Lancaster, NRCS Chief, will be speaking during the Opening Session on October 23, 2007.

Sponsors: Society for Range Management, Western Governor's Association, Western Association of Fish and Wildlife Agencies, The Wildlife Society

Background and Purpose: Widespread loss, alteration and degradation of sagebrush ecosystems have created complex challenges for managers seeking to conserve sagebrush-dependent wildlife species. A half century of research has created a diverse and extensive base of information upon which to plan and implement land management decisions. However, this mass of highly variable technical information has exposed a critical need to develop and use transparent tools for organization and communication of this information in conservation decision-making. Ecological Site Descriptions are one such management tool that potentially could improve our ability to describe and manage sagebrush ecosystems.

The purposes of this workshop are to:

Introduce habitat managers, planners and policy makers to the use and development of Ecological Site Descriptions.
Encourage interdisciplinary improvement of wildlife interpretations in Ecological Site Descriptions and enhance the utility of this tool for managing sagebrush ecosystems.
Identify information gaps and define priorities for research and development.

Audience: Western North American land and wildlife/habitat managers, biologists, range ecologists and soil scientists, technical assistance professionals, local sage-grouse working group members, consultants, and petroleum industry land managers.

Agenda (Updated October 15, 2007)

October 23, 2007 Moderator: Wendell Gilgert
8:00	Welcome and Charge to Participants WGA - John Brenner, NRCS Liaison to WGA BLM - Bob Bolton, Range Program Lead WO-DC FS - Wayne Padgett, USFS, WO-DC NRCS - Arlen Lancaster, Chief NRCS WAFWA - Jim Karpowitz, Utah Division of Wildlife Resources FWS - Greg Watson, Energy & Science Coordinator, Mtn. Prairie Region
8:50	Plenary Session - Setting the Stage Part 1: The Sage-grouse Biome Moderator: Wendell Gilgert, USDA NRCS
9:00	Using Ecological Site Descriptions to Manage Sagebrush Ecosystems - History, Overview and Applications of Ecological Site Descriptions (ESDs) for Management - Dr. Fee Busby, Utah State University
9:30	The Sagebrush Biome - Dr. Rick Miller, Oregon State University
10:00	Evolution and Taxonomy of Sagebrush - Dr. Durant McArthur, USDA FS
10:30	Break
11:00	The Sagebrush Wildlife - Kent McAdoo, University Nevada-Reno
11:30	Sage-grouse Ecology - Dr. Alan Sands, Idaho Dept Fish and Game
12:00 - 1:45	Lunch (Provided in Registration) Luncheon Speakers: Moderator John Brenner Welcome to Utah - Governor Huntsman, Introduced by John Brenner Moving Sage Grouse Conservation Forward: The Human Factor - Dr. Mark Brunson, Utah State University

Plenary Session 2: Current State of Sagebrush Ecosystems Moderator: Joel Brown This session will have an emphasis on current activities in the sagebrush ecosystem and how those activities are altering important ecological processes
1:50	The Sage Grouse Rangewide Conservation Assessment Strategy - San Stiver, WAFWA
2:20	Fragmentation and Energy Development: Land Use and Management Changes in the Sagebrush Landscape - Dr. Kevin Doherty, University of Montana
3:00	Ecological Basis for Restoration Applications in the Sagebrush Ecosystem - Dr. Roger Sheley, USDA ARS Burns OR
3:30	Break
4:00	Livestock Grazing and Sage-grouse: Separating Fact from Fiction - Dr. Karen Launchbaugh, University of Idaho
4:30	Fire and Invasive Species in Sagebrush Landscapes - Dr. Rick Miller, Oregon State University
5:00	Vegetation Dynamics in Sagebrush Grasslands - Dr. Alma Winward

Plenary Session 3: Using Ecological Site Descriptions to Organize Information and Help in Making Decisions This session will review the current state of ESDs and cover some basic steps in constructing useful ESDs as well as charge the participants for the following day
5:30	Application to Management - Developing and Refining Models for Sagebrush Steppe - Dr. Joel Brown USDA-NRCS
5:50	Interagency Ecological Site Description Manual - Dr. Sherm Karl, NOC, BLM, Denver
6:00	Adjourn
6:30 - 8:00	Evening Social - cash bar and hors d'oeuvres

October 24, 2007
8:00	Introductions and Ground Rules - Facilitator
8:30	Presentation on ESDs, State & Transition Models (STMs) and Objectives and Significance Local Working Groups - ESD Leader
10:00	Break
10:30	Discussion of State & Transition Models for Region
12:00 - 1:30	Lunch
1:30	Discussion of Interpretation Section of ESD
3:00	Break
3:30	Discussion of Tests for STMs and ESDs
4:30	Summary by Leaders
ESD Leaders Kris Havstad, ARS New Mexico Brad Schultz, Univ of Nevada Ginger Paige, Univ of Wyoming Amy Ganguli, EMRI, Montana Cindy Salo, Sage Ecosystem Science, Idaho

October 25, 2007 Moderator: Linda Coates-Markle, BLM-SRM Liaison
8:00	Working Group Reports (20 min each) Display state and transition model and brief discussion Interpretations of habitat values for states Identify needs to improve ESDs for desired applications
10:00	Break
10:30	Summary of What We Learned - Dr. Terry Messmer, Utah State University
11:00	Concluding Remarks/What Should We do from Here - Panel Discussion SRM - Dennis Phillipi WAFWA - Jim Karpowitz, Utah Division of Wildlife Resources TWS - WGA - John Brenner NRCS- Joel Brown BLM - Bob Bolton FS - Wayne Padgett FWS - Greg Watson
12:00	Adjourn
1:00	Field Trip to local site - Utah Section SRM and others A lekking area near Echo and Henefer, roughly 25 miles east of Park City with most of the trip on I-80. The idea is to bring folks to just one place, but have people talk about the location both as sage grouse habitat and as an ecological site. I'm hoping this would help attendees better visualize the relationships between soils, other physical site characteristics, vegetation and bird habitat. Leave Park City a little after 1 p.m., get to the site by 1:45, spend a couple of hours out there, and we can have everyone back to the hotel by 4:30 -- 5 at the latest. Sunset is supposed to be at 6:30 p.m. but temperatures could be anything from 25 to 70.