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Wyoming Landscape Conservation Initiative USGS Science Team Anna Chalfoun / UWY Anna B Wilson / GD Bradley Fedy / CSU Cameron Aldridge / USGS-CSU Christopher J Potter / GD Collin Homer / GEOG Constance J Nutt / GD Daniel Manier / BRD David B Smith / GD Douglas A. Keinath / UWY Geneva W Chong / BRD Hall Sawyer / UWY James E Diffendorfer / GEOG Jessica Montag / BRD JoAnn M Holloway / GD Kirk A Miller / WRD Matthew J Kauffman / BRD Michele L Tuttle / GD Natalie Latysh / RGIO Natasha B Carr / BRD Pat Anderson / BRD Richard I Grauch / GD Sarah Shafer / GD Sky Bristol / RGIO Spencer Schell / BRD Stephen Germaine / BRD Steven L Garman / GEOG Timothy Assal / BRD Zachary H Bowen / BRD

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Integrated Assessment in WY Uses? To answer simple and complex where questions As a science-based framework for conservation planning and evaluation To address specific management questions As a foundation for monitoring As a data resource and analytical backbone for additional research and technical applications 2

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places with high resource value scores, in a Local Project Development Team area, with low or no potential for oil and gas development. Need Data for resources of interest Common data format Rationale and methods for scoring resources Analytical approaches for developing summary indices Where are some logical locations across the WLCI area for habitat improvement projects? 3

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Focal Communities of the WLCI 4

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Special Management Areas BLM Wilderness Study Areas BLM Areas of Critical Environmental Concern Wild and Scenic Rivers USFS Wilderness areas FWS Refuge lands NPS National Monument 5

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Agricultural Interests Stock driveways Water wells from RFO (artesian and trough) Guzzlers from RSFO and PFO Irrigated lands 6

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Rare Plant Species Richness BLM Data USFS Data Wyoming Natural Diversity Database Report 7

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Big Game Habitat and Migration 8 Big Game Crucial Winter Habitat Big Game Parturition Areas Density of Big Game Migration Corridors

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Non-Energy Mineral Resources 9 Potentially exploitable areas (medium/high) of limestone, bentonite, zeolite, and metals. Note, vertical integration not conducted yet (simple overlay). Phosphorus and Trona not displayed because majority of WLCI is potentially exploitable for those minerals.

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Multi-Criteria Index Figure 10. Multi-criteria index created by adding the ecological index (Fig. 1) with the index based on other terrestrial resources (Fig. 9). Green= 1 st quantile, light green = 2 nd quantile, orange=3 rd quantile, red= 4 th quantile. 10 Priority Areas WLCI Focal Communities Species of Concern and Rare Plants Sage Grouse Stipulations Big Game Habitat and Migration Special Management Areas Agricultural Interest Priority Species Water Resources

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Change Agent - Road Density Figure 3. Road density (km/km 2 ).

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Multi-Criteria Index modified by Road Density Figure 11. Multi-criteria index (Fig. 10) modified by road density. The color scheme corresponds to the quantiles used in Fig. 10. Figure 10 scores were reduced by 25% where road density was >5 km/km 2, by 15% where road density was >4-5 km/km 2, by 10% where road density was 1 -

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places with high resource value scores, in a Local Project Development Team area, with low or no potential for oil and gas development. Landscape IndexLPDT Areas of InterestRFD Conventional O&G RFD CBM Where are some logical locations across the WLCI area for habitat improvement projects? 13

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Areas with high resource value scores (red), in a LPDT area (diagonal lines), with low or no potential for oil and gas development (no grey) 14

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Sharing and serving Pixel vs. Watershed? and 100 other decisions 15

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Management Example requires access to individual data resources 17 How many BLM grazing allotments in the WLCI have authorized or pending wind leases (as of 3/8/11)? = 122 Where are these allotments located?

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Cooperative, Interdisciplinary, Multi-agency, Long-term Monitoring GeezIm never gonna get this done alone

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Sagebrush change Red = decrease Green = increase 2006 1988 USGS Long-term Monitoring Vegetation

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Vegetation Monitoring Wildlife Monitoring Wildlife Habitat Models Habitat Monitoring Habitat Monitoring Effectiveness Monitoring Mechanistic Studies Mechanistic Studies Energy Infrastructure Mapping Remote Sensing

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Roles for USGS include: Serving as a hub for monitoring data (in and out)Serving as a hub for monitoring data (in and out) Remote sensing based status and trend monitoringRemote sensing based status and trend monitoring Supporting cooperative data development, data sharing, cooperative analysesSupporting cooperative data development, data sharing, cooperative analyses Developing regional and local (specialized) monitoring designsDeveloping regional and local (specialized) monitoring designs USGS can support WLCI with information retention and disseminationUSGS can support WLCI with information retention and dissemination

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Abundance index Year Wyoming Sage-grouse - Cycles WYG&F Data analyzed to answer questions on: Sample size requirements Sampling frequency Quantified cycling

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Sage-grouse and Rabbits WYG&F Data + curious Brad = New discovery

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Water Analysis and Tools Vegetation WLCI Long-term Monitoring USGS Soils

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25 HYDRAULIC FRACTURING AND WATER RESOURCES: AN ASSESSMENT OF THE POTENTIAL EFFECTS OF SHALE GAS DEVELOPMENT ON WATER RESOURCES IN THE UNITED STATES USGS Powell Center Study What do we know from existing data/studies?

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Thank You 26 Photo by H. Sawyer