Collaborative Native Seeds and Plants Propagation Program through a National Parks and Protected Areas Cooperative Studies Program
Project ID: P22AC01719
Federal Agency: National Park Service
Partner Institution: Oregon State University
Fiscal Year: 2022
Initial Funding: $322,175
Total Funding: $1,229,822
Project Type: Technical Assistance
Project Disciplines: Biological
National Park: Upper Columbia Network Inventory & Monitoring
Principal Investigator: Shinderman, Matt
Agreement Technical Representative: Dicus, Gordon
Abstract: This agreement will support the continued development and operation of a collaborative native seed and plant propagation program called the East Cascades Native Plants Hub, operated by the Oregon State University-Cascades Campus (OSU-C) Human and Ecosystem Resilience and Sustainability Lab (HERS Lab), and initiated by a previous CESU agreement, P18AC01347.
The current project funded through this agreement is entitled “Collaborative Native Seeds and Plants Propagation Program through a National Parks and Protected Areas Cooperative Studies Program”. The purpose of this program is to support integrated fire and weed management planning, fuels mitigation, and vegetation restoration in park units across the Western US by developing a steady supply of native seed and plant materials for NPS and partners. A particular emphasis of this program is to support conservation of endangered sagebrush steppe and shrubland ecosystems and sagebrush-obligate species including greater sage grouse, songbirds such as sage sparrow, and pollinators such as western bumblebee.
Research conducted through P18AC01347 and ongoing NPS vital signs monitoring has established that 1) over 40 NPS units contain substantial amounts of sagebrush ecosystems and all face existential threats from drought and fire-driven conversion to exotic invasive annual grasslands; 2) the supply of native plant materials is insufficient to support NPS and partners to proactively address this urgent problem; and 3) a comprehensive conceptual framework and geospatial planning foundation can guide strategic seed collection, plant propagation, and out-planting necessary to reduce fire risks, to adapt to rapid climate change, and to protect individual rare plants at risk of extirpation. The work established through this agreement will be highly collaborative with NPS and adjacent land management agencies and property owners and will contribute meaningfully to an emerging National Seed Strategy. Specific collaborators may include the Bureau of Land Management, US Forest Service, US Fish and Wildlife Service, US Geological Survey, Confederated Tribes of Warm Springs, and private conservation organizations and landowners. The OSU-C campus is ideally suited geographically and organizationally to fulfill the collaborative “center of gravity” role required to build and sustain a collaborative native plant propagation program.
Students and faculty will participate in work force development because the campus Natural Resources degree curriculum is closely aligned with the goals of this native plant propagation program. The OSU-C operates the HERS Lab that has a long and successful record of leading collaborative work, including what was conducted as part of P18AC01347 and through the Northwestern Bat Hub, in contribution to the North American Bat Monitoring Program, through P19AC00823.