The Institute for Natural Resources (INR) moves into the year with several ongoing projects, working in conjunction with Federal, state and regional agencies and the Governor’s office.
Aggregate Mining -- Since the beginning of land use planning in Oregon, conflicts have arisen between mining of sand and gravel and protection of other resource lands, especially farmlands. The Legislature has attempted to resolve these conflicts for many years without being able to satisfy the many competing needs-prime farmland, aggregate for construction and salmon habitat in rivers and streams. Following the 2003 Legislature, the Governor’s Office called on the Oregon Consensus Program (OCP) at Portland State University to bring together the various stakeholders. OCP and the Governor’s Office asked the Institute to provide the research and data needed to facilitate the dispute. Faculty from the Colleges of Engineering and Science at OSU are providing technical assistance to the OCP. The Institute and OCP will provide a final report summarizing the findings and feasibility of stakeholder group recommendations for the 2005 Legislature.
Climate Change -- Now, and in the future, climate change may have important ramifications for Oregon’s environment, economy and the health of Oregonians. In 2003, INR director, Gail Achterman, was appointed to Governor Kulongoski's Advisory Group on Global Warming (GAGGW), a group that was co-chaired by Dr. Jane Lubchenco of OSU’s College of Science. As part of this effort, INR helped organize a June 2004 meeting, “Impacts of Climate Change on the Pacific Northwest” which led to a scientific consensus statement on the likely impacts of climate change on the Pacific Northwest.
Climate Change Science Conference Report (2004)
In fall 2005, INR received a grant from the Energy Foundation to design and implement the first phase of a climate change community outreach initiative. The overarching goals of the project were to: (1) translate the scientific information on the impacts of climate change into formats and presentations accessible to non-professional audiences and, (2) engage leaders who could become "storytellers" about the impact of climate change in their own communities.
Climate Change Outreach Reports (2006)
In 2006, INR began work on another recommendation of the Governor's Advisory Group - to set specific goals for reduction of truck idling at truck and safety stops. An Oregon Solutions Team was convened by INR, at the Governor's request, to guide truck idling reductions in Oregon. As part of this effort, INR was funded by the EPA to study fleet and owner-operator capacity for utilizing idle reduction technology.
Idle Free Truck Stops Report (2006)
In 2006, Gail Achterman also authored a chapter on the Governor's Global Warming Initiative in The Oregon Forest Resources Institute's (OFRI) book, Forests, Carbon and Climate Change: A Synthesis of Science Findings (2006). She now serves on the Governor’s Climate Change Integration Group, co-chaired by Dean Mark Abbott of OSU’s College of Oceanic and Atmospheric Sciences.
Coastal Community Water Supply -- Economic development and diversification on the Oregon Coast frequently are constrained by municipal and industrial water supply limitations. Without comprehensive information, economic development officials find it difficult to match prospects with specific communities. At the same time, cities and other water suppliers are required by the Oregon Water Resources Department to prepare Water Management and Conservation Plans. Yet, coastal communities are hard pressed to prepare these plans because many lack even basic information about their systems, their customers and the environmental concerns they will face as they attempt to meet their future water needs. Working with Sea Grant funding, the Institute gathered information about water suppliers, rights and availability and research and analysis needed to help coastal communities address future water supply needs. This project began to fill information gaps and lay a foundation for a comprehensive assessment.
Coastal Community Water Supply Final Report, June 2005
Oregon Fire Program Review -- The wildfire situation in Oregon is changing. Fuel buildups and climatic shifts produce larger, more frequent and severe fires and longer fire seasons. Residential development in forests, recreation growth, budget limitations and rural firefighting capacity reductions are compounding these challenges. Fire readiness and suppression costs are rising dramatically. Following Oregon’s recent devastating fire seasons, ODF asked the Institute to assist in a comprehensive review of the Department’s Fire Program. The Institute has assisted in the design of the program review process and is utilizing Oregon State University (OSU) faculty in scoping the work plans. OSU faculty from the Colleges of Forestry, Business and Liberal Arts, along with University of Oregon planning faculty, are reviewing the work to assure the best available science, legal or policy analysis.
Oregon Fire Program Review Reports
Oregon Fire Program News Release 
(pdf 14 kb)
Marine Science Advisory Panel -- The U.S. Commission on Ocean Policy has undertaken the first congressionally authorized review of national ocean policies in 35 years. The Commission recently released a preliminary report and invited all Governors to comment on its recommendations. At the request of the Development Ocean-Coastal Management Program of the Oregon Department of Land Conservation, INR organized a Marine Science Advisory Panel with eight Oregon University System scientists to prepare the comprehensive scientific report Governor Kulongoski used to inform his review. The Governor included the full scientific report in the State’s formal comments to the U.S. Commission.
Marine Science Advisory Panel Reports
Regional Biodiversity Monitoring Partnership Workshop -- The Biodiversity Monitoring Workgroup—which consists of federal, state, university, NGO’s, and private landowner stakeholders who are involved in aspects of monitoring biodiversity in the states of Oregon and Washington—conceived of the idea of exploring the possibilities of creating a Regional Biodiversity Monitoring Partnership and INR was retained to facilitate a such a workshop. While participants spoke well on behalf of a partnership, this document focuses on the issues that individual participants and break-out groups thought needed to be addressed to create a viable, accessible, and sustainable regional biodiversity monitoring partnership. The issues and recommendations listed throughout the document reflect the range of views of individuals and break-out groups and do not reflect a consensus by all participants.
Regional Biodiversity Monitoring Partnership Workshop Reports
Salmon Anchor Habitat Project -- Managing Northwest Oregon state forests for diverse values has proved contentious. Some groups argue that timber production should be the primary purpose of these forests and that forest plans restrict timber harvesting too much. Others contend that forest plans do not adequately protect the best remaining coastal salmon habitats. Ultimately, the 2003 Oregon Legislature directed the Oregon Department of Forestry (ODF) to review its Salmon Anchor Habitat strategy for Northwest Oregon state forests, focusing on its scientific basis, effectiveness, and revenue implications. ODF asked the Institute to convene a Work Group mandated by the Legislature to assure an unbiased approach to the review. INR staff designed a process based on the “consensus conference” model to engage the stakeholders directly with 14 scientific experts, provided research and report writing and moderated a series of meetings, culminating with a final report to the Legislature.
Salmon Anchor Habitat Project Reports
Systematic Review Pilot Project - INR was asked by Oregon Dept of Forestry at the urging of Governor John Kitzhaber to complete a pilot project on the application of systematic review to natural resource management. Systematic review is a rigorous, transparent technique widely used in medicine to assess science regarding the efficacy of medical interventions. INR assembled and managed a team that used systematic review to locate and synthesize scientific evidence regarding the effectiveness of placing large wood into streams to benefit salmonids.
Systematic Review Reports
Walla Walla Basin Habitat Conservation Plan -- In an approach founded on sustainability principles, the Walla Walla Watershed Alliance is developing and implementing a comprehensive strategy for restoring the Walla Walla watershed in Washington and Oregon, one of the region’s richest agricultural areas and home to bull trout, salmon and steelhead. The Alliance, which has federal and state funding to prepare a Bi-State Habitat Conservation Plan, asked the Institute for help in several areas, including evaluating methods for protecting in-stream flows and assisting in developing a vision and strategy for long-term stewardship of groundwater resources across state lines.
Oregon Natural Heritage Information Center -- The Institute has completed agreements with the Oregon Department of State Lands and The Nature Conservancy to assume managerial responsibility for the Oregon Natural Heritage Information Center (ORNHIC).
Oregon Natural Heritage Plan and the Rare,Threatened, and Endangered Species of Oregon Guides -- Two guides published by ORNHIC describing the riparian and wetlands vegetation in eastern and northwestern Oregon will simplify the collection of riparian vegetation information and help identify species to be used in riparian restoration. The 2003 update to the Oregon Natural Heritage Plan outlines the operation of the state’s Natural Areas Program, including the adoption of new ecoregional boundaries and major revisions of the geology and species sections. The 2004 update of Rare,Threatened, and Endangered Species of Oregon describes the status of all species in Oregon. Published every three years, the information is the basis of the BLM and USFS Sensitive Species program.
Oregon Explorer -- Oregon Explorer is a natural resources digital library and web portal. The goal is to provide easy, rapid access to reliable, up-to-date information about natural resources, empowering citizens through information. INR is developing the Oregon Explorer in collaboration with Oregon State University Libraries and other partners including the University of Oregon's InfoGraphics Lab, Oregon Watershed Enhancement Board (OWEB), the Oregon Department of Administrative Services and other state agencies. The Oregon Explorer family of websites brings together several projects focused on different themes. Basin-level portals include the the Willamette Basin Explorer (part of the Willamette Basin Conservation Project), the North Coast Explorer, and the Umpqua Basin Explorer. The Wildfire Risk Explorer is the first topic portal in the Explorer family. The Oregon Explorer program is in the process of developing additional topic portals hosting information about imagery, land use, and wildlife. Read more about these component projects on INR's Oregon Explorer page.
Oregon Explorer Reports
ODFW Comprehensive Wildlife Conservation Strategy -- The Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife (ODFW) provided funds to ORNHIC to obtain data and provide technical assistance for the Comprehensive Wildlife Conservation Strategy. ODFW is developing this strategy to protect fish and wildlife in Oregon and be eligible to compete for federal and state wildlife grants.
Oregon Orthoimagery Portal Project -- INR and the OSU Libraries are collaborating with the The Oregon Department of Administrative Services (DAS) to develop an orthoimagery portal application to allow for the distribution of digital aerial imagery for the State of Oregon. The near-term objective of this project is to develop an Imagery Portal that serves the 2005 half-meter orthoimagery that the State has obtained from the National Agriculture Imagery Program (NAIP) and other aerial imagery datasets. The targeted primary users for the imagery portal are Federal, State, and local agencies and institutions of higher education. Secondary users include the general public.
Orthoimagery Portal Project Reports
OWEB Acquisition Prioritization -- ORNHIC completed a project for the Oregon Watershed Enhancement Board (OWEB) to develop priorities for evaluating acquisition projects. ORNHIC identified priority ecological systems, species and rare plant communities in each of 15 Oregon basins.
Pacific Northwest Regional Collaboratory -- OSU through INR is a member of the Pacific Northwest Regional Collaboratory, a regional group of universities and national laboratories dedicated to facilitating integration of geospatial technologies and data to serve the needs of resource managers and decision makers across the Pacific Northwest. Gail Achterman of INR serves on the Executive Committee. Dr. John Bolte of OSU’s Department of Bioengineering leads a key Collaboratory project, development of a Sustainability Atlas for the Northwest. The Atlas, comprised of remotely sensed and other data, will provide a basis for truly regional collaboration and decision-making on long term issues critical to regional sustainability.
SageMap -- The decision to list the western sage grouse as a threatened species is pending. ORNHIC received funding to expand the agreement with the U.S. Geological Survey’s Boise Lab to map sage grouse habitat in the Pacific Northwest, which will be essential for evaluating the grouse’s status.
Watershed Indicators -- A major problem faced in watershed restoration is determining the results achieved by various projects across a basin. OWEB turned to INR to develop standardized watershed indicators for Oregon. INR organized several workshops with experts on monitoring and the development of indicators and completed a comprehensive literature review in the process of developing a recommended set of indicators.
Watershed Indicators Reports
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