Criterion 4Conservation of Soil and Water Resources

• Soils

–Kathy O’Neill, Mike Amacher, Ken Stolte

• Water

–Dave Chojnacky, Ken Stolte

Conservation and maintenance of soil and water resources

18 Area and percent of forest land with significant soil erosion.

19 Area and percent of forest land managed primarily for protective functions. e.g. watersheds, flood protection, avalanche protection, riparian zones.

20 Percent of stream kilometers in forested catchments in which stream flow and timing has significantly deviated from the historic range of variation.

21 Area and percent of forest land with significantly diminished soil organic matter and/or changes in other soil chemical properties.

22 Area and percent of forest land with significant compaction or change in soil physical properties resulting from human activities.

23 Percent of water bodies in forest areas (e.g. stream kilometers, lake hectares) with significant variance of biological diversity from the historic range of variability.

24 Percent of water bodies in forest areas (e.g. stream kilometers, lake hectares) with significant variation from the historic range of variability in pH, dissolved oxygen, levels of chemicals (electrical conductivity), sedimentation or temperature change.

25 Area and percent of forest land experiencing an accumulation of persistent toxic substances.

18. Area and percent of forest land with significant soil erosion

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0.1 0.5 5 1 10 20 > 20

.00%

20.00%

40.00%

60.00%

80.00%

100.00%

Frequency

Cumulative %

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0.1 0.5 5 1 10 20 > 20

.00%

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100.00%

Frequency

Cumulative %

Frequency

Cumulative %

Erosion (tons/acre)

CT

IL

WA

WV

MA

CA

MD

VA

PA

NJ

OR

VT

CO

WY

NH

SC

ID

DE

WI

RI

NC

MN

MI

ME

IN

GA

AL

0 10 20 30 40

WV

CA

CT

WA

IL

MA

MD

WY

VA

ID

OR

CO

NJ

PA

VT

NH

DE

SC

WI

RI

NC

MN

MI

ME

IN

GA

AL

0 10 20 30 40

CT

IL

WA

WV

MA

CA

WY

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CO

MD

PA

VA

NJ

NH

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ID

DE

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GA

IN

ME

MI

MN

NC

RI

WI

0 1 2 3 4 5

CT

IL

WA

WV

MA

CA

MD

VA

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NJ

OR

VT

CO

WY

NH

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ID

DE

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IN

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CT

IL

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MD

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WY

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ID

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NC

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MI

ME

IN

GA

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0 10 20 30 40

CT

IL

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MD

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CO

WY

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SC

ID

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NC

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0 10 20 30 40

WV

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CT

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IL

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0 10 20 30 40

WV

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0 10 20 30 40

WV

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CT

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NH

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SC

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0 10 20 30 40

CT

IL

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WY

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CO

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0 1 2 3 4 5

CT

IL

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CT

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0 1 2 3 4 5

WEPP Predicted Erosion (tons acre-1) for Three Disturbance Regimes

Table 25.4: Soil adsorption and persistence characteristics for pesticides commonly applied in forest management.

Common Name 1 Pesticide Movement Rating Soil Half-lifeWater

SolubilitySorption

Coefficient Persistence

    (days) (mg/L) (Koc)  

2,4 D (acid) Moderate 10 890 20 Nonpersistent

Chlordane Extremely Low 350 0.06 20,000 Persistent

Chlorothalonil Low 30 0.6 1380 Nonpersistent

Chlorpyrifos Very Low 30 0.4 6070 Moderately persistent

Chlorsulfuron High 40 7000 40 Moderately persistent

Clopyralid Very High 40 300,000 6 Moderately persistent

Diazinon Low 40 60 1000 Moderately persistent

Dicamba Very High 14 400,000 2 Nonpersistent

Glyphosate Extremely Low 47 900,000 24,000 Moderately persistent

Hexazinone Very High 90 33,000 54 Moderately persistent

Imazapyr (acid) High 90 11,000 100 Moderately persistent

Methyl bromide Very High 55 13,400 22 Moderately persistent

Metsulfuron-methyl High 30 9500 35 Moderately persistent

Oxyfluorfen Extremely Low 35 0.1 100,000 Moderately persistent

Picloram Very High 90 200,000 16 Moderately persistent

Propiconazole Moderate 110 110 650 Moderately persistent

Sulfometuron-methyl Moderate 20 70 78 Nonpersistent

Tebuthiuron Very High 360 2500 80 Persistent

Triclopyr amine salt Very High 46 2,100,000 20 Moderately persistent

 

         

Source: P.A. Vogue, E.A. Kerle, and J.J. Jenkins. The Oregon State University Extension Pesticide Properties Database

http://ace.orst.edu/info/npic/ppdmove.htm

1 Mention of trade names does not constitute endorsement by the U.S. Department of Agriculture.

pH Thresholds: South & East

pH: county-scale

7.88.1

7.3

Summer Temp (0C): county-scale

25

22

20

pH: HUC-6 scale

Plains/Midwest

WestSouth/East

Std. dev. below mean nonforest < 1 > 1 > 2

NAWQA Results for Forested Counties

S=sedimentT=tempE=elect condO=oxygenP=pHs=summerw=winter

s s s s s sww w www

Std. dev.> 1> 2

N

o. o

f C

ou

nti

es

0

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100

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300

South North West

S T E OOP T T T E P OOS T OT P SOE

C & I Worded Good Not Ideal Add/ Delete/ Change

Research Needs

C4 / 18 Area and percent forest with soil erosion Data collected by FIA on national scale

Estimates of soil erosion based on MUSLE and WEPP models

ADD: ..erosion levels that degrade aquatic systems or reduce productivity…

Add erosion stakes and digital photography to actually measure soil erosion, rather than estimate based on erosion factors

C4 / 19 Area and percent of forest land managed primarily for protective functions, e.g. watersheds, flood protection, avalanche protection, riparian zones-(a);

Protecting watershed integrity eliminates most of problems associated with aquatic systems—air pollution is exception, except in Class I areas

Wording makes it difficult to discern units where management objectives are focused on watershed integrity

Delete: “primarily for” Change: …management that leads to protection of watersheds…

Search of public records that gives enabling legislation for forested units. Identify what lands are protected in a manner that will protect watershed integrity

C4 / 20 Percent of stream kilometres in forested catchments in which stream flow and timing has significantly deviated from the historic range of variation-(b);

NAWQA measures flow and timing of most problem areas in US.

Not all forested watersheds are monitored by NAWQA

ADD: …historic or reference range of variation or means…

Continue to sieve NAWQA databases for info. about historic levels. Bring in EPA and State databases.

C4 / 21 Area and percent of forest land with significantly diminished soil organic matter and/or changes in other soil chemical properties-(b)

Data collected by FIA on national scale

Analysis not available at stand scale—only larger ecoregion scales.“Significantly diminished” is in eye of beholder….

ADD: …sig. diminished or ecologically meaningful…

Comb EFR, ISM, and other eco-process datasets to try to set biological meaning to SOM levels.

C4 / 22 Area and percent of forest land with significant compaction or change in soil physical properties resulting from human activities-(b)

Data collected by FIA on national scale

Again, “Significant”?? ADD: …sig. diminished or ecologically meaningful

Comb EFR, LTSP, ISM, and other databases to put ecological meaning to compaction levels for different soil types

C4 / 23 Percent of water bodies in forest areas (e.g. stream kilometres, lake hectares) with significant variance of biological diversity from the historic range of variability-(b)

Conceptual model enables estimation of percent of water bodies with changes in biology

Biological diversity not measured in all forested catchments

ADD: …historic or reference range of variation or means…..

Continue to sieve NAWQA databases for info. about historic levels. Bring in EPA and State databases.

C4 / 24 Percent of water bodies in forest areas (e.g. stream kilometres, lake hectares) with significant variation from the historic range of variability in pH, dissolved oxygen, levels of chemicals (electrical conductivity), sedimentation or temperature change-(b)

NAWQA measures chemistry of most problem areas in US. Can estimate condition using EPA models of pollution deposition and water quality, and Criteria frag. data

Not all forested catchments are monitored.

ADD: …sig. variation or ecologically meaningful variation……

Continue to sieve NAWQA databases for info. about historic levels. Bring in EPA and State databases.

C4 / 25 Area and percent of forest land experiencing an accumulation of persistent toxic substances-(b)

FIA collects soil data in all forests

Current analysis might not screen for toxics, and there are a lot of them

ADD: …toxic substances that are ecologically meaningful….

Explore feasibility of adding ICP screen or other method to FIA soils

18 Area and percent of forest land with significant soil erosion.

19 Area and percent of forest land managed primarily for protective functions. e.g. watersheds, flood protection, avalanche protection, riparian zones.

20 Percent of stream kilometers in forested catchments in which stream flow and timing has significantly deviated from the historic range of variation.

21 Area and percent of forest land with significantly diminished soil organic matter and/or changes in other soil chemical properties.

22 Area and percent of forest land with significant compaction or change in soil physical properties resulting from human activities.

23 Percent of water bodies in forest areas (e.g. stream kilometers, lake hectares) with significant variance of biological diversity from the historic range of variability.

24 Percent of water bodies in forest areas (e.g. stream kilometers, lake hectares) with significant variation from the historic range of variability in pH, dissolved oxygen, levels of chemicals (electrical conductivity), sedimentation or temperature change.

25 Area and percent of forest land experiencing an accumulation of persistent toxic substances.

Conservation and maintenance of soil and water resources-Suggested Modifications--

Ind Current Wording Suggested Changes

18 Area and percent of forest land with significant soil erosion. Area and percent of forest land with significant soil erosion.

19 Area and percent of forest land managed primarily for protective functions. e.g. watersheds, flood protection, avalanche protection, riparian zones.

Area and percent of forest land managed for protective functions. e.g. watersheds, flood protection, avalanche protection, riparian zones. Report as primary or secondeary management use.

20 Percent of stream kilometers in forested catchments in which stream flow and timing has significantly deviated from the historic range of variation.

Percent of stream kilometers in forested catchments in which stream flow and timing has significantly deviated from the historic range of variation.

21 Area and percent of forest land with significantly diminished soil organic matter and/or changes in other soil chemical properties.

Area and percent of forest land with significantly diminished soil organic matter and/or changes in other soil chemical properties.

22 Area and percent of forest land with significant compaction or change in soil physical properties resulting from human activities.

Area and percent of forest land with significant compaction or change in soil physical properties resulting from human activities.

23 Percent of water bodies in forest areas (e.g. stream kilometers, lake hectares) with significant variance of biological diversity from the historic range of variability.

Percent of water bodies in forest areas (e.g. stream kilometers, lake hectares) with significant variance of biological diversity from the historic range of variability.

24 Percent of water bodies in forest areas (e.g. stream kilometers, lake hectares) with significant variation from the historic range of variability in pH, dissolved oxygen, levels of chemicals (electrical conductivity), sedimentation or temperature change.

Percent of water bodies in forest areas (e.g. stream kilometers, lake hectares) with significant variation from the historic range of variability in pH, dissolved oxygen, levels of chemicals (electrical conductivity), sedimentation or temperature change.

25 Area and percent of forest land experiencing an accumulation of persistent toxic substances.

Area and percent of forest land experiencing an accumulation of persistent toxic substances.