The US Bureau of Land Management (BLM) is a Federal Land Management Agency with a Multiple Use Mission 1
Transcript
The US Bureau of Land Management (BLM) is a Federal Land Management Agency
with a Multiple Use Mission
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Presentation Notes
The BLM is a land and resource management agency with a mission that entails multiple use sustained yield. Oil and gas development must take into account the protection of many resource values when analyzing the effects of development both in a broad landscape and in developing site specific mitigation.
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• 261 million acres of BLM-managed surface and minerals.• 380 million acres of mineral estate where the surface lands are
managed by other federal agencies. (56 million subsurface Indian Mineral Estate)
• 58 million acres of split estate, which is Non-Federal Surface ownership overlying Federal Minerals.
Public Lands, Onshore Federal and Indian MineralsBLM Responsibilities
700 million acres sub-surface minerals =
30% of land in US!
Presenter
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This map represents the surface and mineral estate managed by the BLM. The BLM is responsible for managing not only its surface lands, shown in yellow, but all federal minerals which are also shown in gray. Federal mineral estate includes additional lands managed by the Forest Service, Military, State, and private surface owners where the U.S. owns the mineral rights. Out of the 700 million acres of Federal mineral estate, approximately 380 million acres have lands where the surface is managed by other federal agencies. BLM manages 58 million acres of split estate Federal minerals, this includes Non-Federal Surface which is managed by the State, local governments, or private surface ownership overlying Federal minerals.
U. S. Department of the InteriorBureau of Land Management
Division of Fluid Minerals
Oil and Gasis a temporary
use of the land.
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3 years after plugging
17 years later
Drilling and Production
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Oil and gas development is a temporary use of the land. A well may be productive for many decades or may be a dry hole immediately. From this example you can see that only 3 years after plugging the vegetation is starting to grow back and within 17 years the native plants have fully returned. When we are done, there should be no scars. The landscape and habitat should be restored.
Interim Reclamation
Tear-drop Truck Pull around for Tanker Trucks
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If the oil or gas is PIPED out, & there are NO tanks,
& NO tanker truck needed,
then EVEN MORE can be reclaimed7
Improvements in Interim Reclamation
• On plats• Developing I & E certification program &
hold Construction Reclamation Class• Long-term vs Short-term % in our NEPA
documents, which is applied to the APD or COAs.
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Minimizing Disturbance
Directional Drilling:– Many wells on a pad. – A mile or two is common, depends on geology
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Soil Managment• Proper management of topsoil – windrow
instead of steep piles• Recountering• Soil Amendments
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The process of successful reclamation begins long before the bulldozer to construct a pad moves any dirt.
Natives
• Use a mixture of seeds that are native and adapted to the local climate and soil type.
Crested wheatgrassNot GrouseHabitat
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In my experience, if you plant native grasses and forbs during final reclamation, over time the local natives will move into and colonize the site. Over time, the site will reach equilibrium. To speed this process, in some locations there are also sources where you an purchase locally-collected seed. If, however, you plant introduced, non-native species (such as the Crested wheatgrass in this photo), they may grow quickly and provide quick stabilization, but they can also block the natives from returning to the site. This is problematic when we are trying to restore habitat for important wildlife species.
When to Seed
• Late fall planting, • Seed after the first frost, and before
Spring rains (October – April) for best germination and survival. (For the Rocky Mtn. Region) (Exception: prior to monsoon seasons)
• Do not broadcast on soil that has crusted over (hardened).
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The time of year to plant is critical, and may vary by geographic area. In the Rocky Mountains, for example, the best time of year to plant is in the Fall. Those who wait until Spring tend to get bogged down in mud and then delay planting until it is too late, having missed the spring rains. In traveling to Roswell, New Mexico, however, I discovered that their local planting season is in the summer, prior to the summer monsoon rains. Try planting in summer in Wyoming and you\ would have the same success as tossing your seed on a parking lot.
Weed-free – Seed Tag
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Seed planted on the public lands must be free of weed seed. I always asked the operator to provide me with one seed tag for the case file. That way I could confirm the right seed was planted, it was weed-free, and there was a record in the case file for follow-up reclamation monitoring.
For those who are interested, here is how to calculate seed purity also known as “Pure Live Seed” or PLS We want specify the density of live seed that is planted, not total seed, some of which may be dead.
Broadcast vs. Drill SeedingDrill seeding• Plant seed ¼” to ½” deep (or less) • On the contour• 12-15 pls or 30-50 seeds per sq ft
Broadcast• Double the amount: 20-30 pls or 50-75 seeds per sq ftUse 1/2 rates if inter-seeding shrubs
Seed to soil contact.But do not drill too deep.
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Here are some examples showing a drill seeding rate vs a broadcast seeding rate. The broadcast rate is double the drill seeding rate. In seeding, the basic concept is that you want good soil contact, but you do not want the seed buried too deeply.
Use a broadcast Seeder
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Avoid the hand-in-bag method of broadcast seeding. Be sure to use a broadcast seeder, either one mounted on an All Terrain Vehicle (ATV), or a hand-held seeder.
Drill Seeding is for Semi-Flat Areas
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Drill seeding is for fairly flat and smooth areas. Drill seeding does not stand up to the erosive forces of wind and rain on steeper and longer slopes unless protected with a mulch.
Drill Seeding is Not for Steep Slopes, and Certainly Not To Be Done Up and Down the Slope
Should have been done ACROSS the contour
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Why is this seeding going to fail? Not only did they drill seed on steep, long slopes, they also seeded up and down the hill creating water flow channels. If you are a raindrop, this is like being offered a challenge you just can’t refuse. Those waddles represent no challenge at all as you and your raindrop friends easily duck under them. Tiny little drill seed rows also do not slow down Off Highway Vehicles, which leads to compaction and more erosion. We’ve learned that to stop soil and water movement (and vehicle movement), the solution is to leave the site rough and to broadcast seed.
Drill Seeding – Mixed Results
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Here are some side-by-side examples of drill seeding success and failure. The only vegetation that came up in the drill rows in the photo on the right is halogeton, as invasive weed. The drill rows were really good at trapping weed seed on this site. I can tell you why the drill seeding on the left, was successful. See those sagebrush skeletons? That means that topsoil was actually applied back onto the site.
Why Drill Seeding Often Fails
Nearby20
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Some locations are so sandy or silty that the wind blows across the site and buries seed in the drill rows too deeply to survive.
Why Drill Seeding Often Fails
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Other sites are left too smooth, drill seeded at the wrong time of year, or there was no topsoil returned to the site.
Imprinting
Drill Seeding vs. Imprinting
2007 2010
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Here are two photos of the same location. The photo on the left shows the results of drill seeding. You can see the drill rows on top of the rise. The photo on the right shows the same site, but the contractor came back in later with an “Imprinter”… remember those? The imprinter left pock marks in the soil and the seed was broadcast into those pock marks at double the drill seeding rate. The result is a terrific stand of grass. If first you don’t succeed, try try again, but do it differently the second time.
If at First You Don’t SucceedTry, Try Again
• If your seeding is not successful in 3 or more growing seasons, you may need to begin the process again.
But do it differently this time.
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So, if the seed does not grow, do we write off achieving successful reclamation? No. If the seeding failed, it means that we failed during at least one step in the process, or there was a drought. In either case, it means that additional action is warranted. If the cause was purely a drought, then we may need to replant with a more drought tolerant species and add a mulch to the site in order to retain soil moisture.
Caution with Hydromulching with seed
in Dry Climates
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Hydromulching with seed in the mix (not to be confused with hydroseeding) Hydromulching with seed typically fails in the arid west when there is poor seed contact with the soil. With hydromulching with seed, the seed is suspended in the mulch, which dries out in our hot, dry summers and pulls back away from the soil surface ripping the little seedling out of the ground by its tiny little roots. You want seed-to-soil contact. One way to get this is to broadcast directly onto the soil and then hydromulch on top of the seed.
Hoof-action Creating A Rough Site to Trap Seed and Water
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I mentioned surface roughening. One way to achieve that AND ADD ORGANIC MATERIAL AND NITROGEN TOO is through the very intense hoof action of goats or sheep in a penned area. It is important to feed the animals weed-free feed and to move the animals when you have optimal hoof action, but not too much compaction. This is a more costly reclamation tool, but can be very effective on difficult sites where adequate topsoil was not saved.
Match the Species to the SitePrecipitation? Saline/Sodic?
Match to the reference site27
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Matched to the precipitation level, soil characteristics, and chemistry. Be observant of what species are successful and what species are located at the reference sites.
It typically will take 3 or more years to obtain a successful stand of grass.
Patience.
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Proper Management of Topsoil Enables Natives to Recolonize
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Restoring Native VegetationHabitat and Forage
This.
NotThis. Crested wheatgrass
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As part of its multiple use mission, the agency is in the habitat business. Native species are critical for ensuring restoration of habitat. This is a real problem, since our mission is to manage habitat and provide for ecosystem stability.
Special Mixes
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There are even special native seed mixes that can benefit one wildlife species over another depending on your goals.
Shrubs for Habitat
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For shrub-dependent species of wildlife, it may be important to add shrubs into the mix. This can be accomplished through live hauling of topsoil, planting shrubs, or careful seeding of shrubs. To encourage shrubs, we need to reduce the competition of grasses, so we reduce the seeding rate for grasses.
• Small-seeded shrubs, such as sagebrush, should be sown separately on the surface (on top of snow) in low or sheltered areas that collect snow and have little wind.
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A lot of money has been spent unsuccessfully seeding shrubs… and a lot has been learned too. Before trying to reestablish shrubs, research what has worked well in your area.
NonNative Seed MixesAn Option for Private Surface
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It is important to keep in mind that land management agencies and private landowners may have different goals. When reclaiming on split estate where there is private surface, sometime the BLM has to go along with what the private surface owner wants.
SDARTT will define WHERE reclamation was conducted geospatial.• Track disturbance and density caps• Track polygons overtime.• Produce Reclamation Acres and % for any
Analysis Area.
New!
Super Cool!
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It will be required in GRSG PHMA habitat, but either be adopted by other office not in GRSG PHMA, or eventually become policy that everyone needs to use it. The FS also just received a demo. If anyone has been involved with our extensive NEPA documents, we analysis a certain # of acres and % of reclamation. This tool will enable us to better track this.
Greater Sage-grouse LUP Implementation
New!
• Focused on Restoration of Seasonal Habitat• Minimize development and leasing in habitat• Increased landscape monitoring and tracking
$$$ for GRSG efforts ~$41 million
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Compensatory Mitigation
• Off-site projects• A tool to address Residual Impacts• Mitigation Handbook coming soon• Unsure durability
