Meeting of the Monitoring Committee of the
California Oak Mortality Task Force
Sponsored by and held in the Center for the
Assessment and Monitoring of Forest and Environmental Resources (CAMFER)
111 Mulford Hall
UC Berkeley
August 30, 2001.
10am – 3:00pm
Agenda
1. Welcome and introductions
2. SOD Sampling Protocol
a. Handout of protocol
b. Review of highlights
3. SOD Survey Protocol
a. Need for protocol
b. Role of Field Surveys
c. Role of Remote (incl. aerial surveys)
d. Different Scales of Monitoring
4. New Items
Adjourn
Directions to CAMFER: http://camfer.cnr.berkeley.edu/
Attendees:
Chris States – CalTrans;
Cheryl Blonquist – CDFA; Tim Tidwell- CDFA; Sheila Barry – UCCE; Will Russell –
USGS; Susan Frankel – USDA-FS; Michael Srago – Foister Wheeler Env. Corp.; Tim
Eisler – Pacific Meridian; Nicole Palkovsky – COMTF; Katie Fehring – PRBO;
Mischon Martin – Marin Co. Open Space; Janet Klein – MMWD; Amy Jirka – CalPoly;
Wally Mark – CalPoly; Dean Schlichting – North Coast Resource Mgmt.; Sierra
Cantor – Sotoyome Resource Conservation District; Joan Schimon – CDFA; Ross Meentemeyer
–SSU; Chris Fischer – CDF; Lisa Levien – USDA FS; Stephen Brown – CDFA.
Welcome
and introductions
TT reviewed the existing draft sampling protocol
and answered questions. A new sampling protocol was distributed by SB, and some
changes were noted.
Motion
(MK): COMTF-MC endorse the document in concept with the understanding that
minor changes will be made to contact list etc., “household bleach” to
“commercial bleach” and possible substantive changes to the document in the
form of new hosts added.
Second
(WM).
Document
passes unanimously.
1. Review of existing
efforts (MK)
-
Regional Scale
o
Systematic Survey
(WM) of border counties
§
Contact Oak Wilt
people for more information
§
Can we do this for
the whole area?
§
Chris States mentions
that CalTrans will be getting a photo plane that could be available for use.
o
Change Detection
using TM satellite imagery (CF)
§
Some signatures for
oak mortality, based on Marin County, expanded to larger state.
o
FIA
o
Risk assessment map
(RM)
-
Landscape Scale:
o
Map dead trees in
Marin Co. using IKONOS (Kent Julin)
o
ADAR mapping of study
area in Sonoma Co. (RM)
o
ADAR mapping of study
area in Marin Co. (MK)
o
Risk assessment map
-
Field / Local scale
o
Protocols developed:
§
Presence / Absence
Protocol
§
Open Space Protocol
§
Roadside / Right of
way survey
o
On-going research (SF
has begun a monitoring matrix)
§
Inventory of oaks –
Norm Pilsbury
§
Monitoring Oaks in
Sonoma Co. Swain and Sweiki
§
Symptom Progression
plots in Marin Co. – McPherson and Standiford
§
Transects in Marin
Co. – McPherson and Standiford
§
Barbara Allen-Diaz,
Kevin O’Hara, Don Dahlsten, et al. funded project in Marin, Sonoma, Alameda
(and other) Counties
o
Action Item: UCCE
needs a document that lists criteria that describes a what to look for and what
to ignore when a report of SOD comes to a field office (SB).
2. Development of a Survey
Protocol
Discussion points:
There
are three levels of survey:
1. Incidence of the disease (P/A Counties for
regulatory purpose)
2. Intensity, spread and distribution (Inventory)
3. Individual research plots (Specific research
questions, but not extrapolate across areas)
Each
of these has different objectives.
Certification
Survey. SB says: within areas, there is a survey for certification
-
nursery
-
wood lot
-
timber harvest (want to sell
timber, need a THP. How do you find out SOD on that piece of land?)
Stephen
Brown (CDFA):
Infested:
as designated by UC Berkeley.
Regulated
area: Not infested, but within counties.
Known
not to be infested: from some systematic survey.
For a Survey design, what
are the questions we want answered?
-
Distribution
o
Where is SOD?
o
Where are hosts
(Community type)?
o
Early Detection of
new infestations
-
Intensity
o
What is the %
infection?
o
What is symptomatic /
what is dead
-
Rate of Spread
-
What is the risk? Where
might it be?
What are possible methods
to answer these questions?
LL suggestions:
Baseline
host maps
Annual
change detection
Aerial
surveys
Ground
sampling surveys
Develop
risk maps
RM: Method suggestion:
10
mile grid cells: stratify by host, or risk, randomly pick n sites, and sample.
WM comment:
This
area is too large to only do ground-based surveys. We have to have an extensive
method to stratify efforts.
Method:
1. Stratification methods:
Tree species - Host maps, Remote
sensing, aerial surveys, risk maps.
Note:
Pesticide use reports can be used to screen out tanoak pesticide application.
Timing should be ok with flights.
Understory types will probably be
guided by host maps and risk maps.
2.
Aerial Survey:
-
Survey, videography
o
Looking for dead and
dying hosts.
3.
Ground surveys
-
what are we sampling?
o
Presence or absence:
symptoms -
o
If > 10 individual
hosts exhibit symptoms, sample 10 trees
o
If < 10 individual
hosts exhibit symptoms, sample all trees.
-
Intensity
o
Not yet.
-
How do we do the sampling?
o
Access and ownership
-
Who is doing sampling?
o
Try to pursue
cooperation with rangers.
Action Items:
-
Strategy for surveying
distribution of SOD in California
- MK
-
Monitoring – measurement
over time (long term goal)
-
Open Space survey - MK
-
Sheila’s doct. – NP/GS/SB/KK
-
Timber harvest plan - WM/CS
-
Planning permit process - CS
-
Guidelines for County
delimitation survey – SB/TT