Get reliable rangeland science

Data are the infrastructure of science and sound data are the foundation for good adaptive management decisions and improved conservation outcomes. As broad-scale conservation issues like sage-grouse drive land management to become more data intensive and collaborative, coordinated data collection and data sharing become even more important. Individuals and organizations outside the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) can support landscape monitoring through the BLM Assessment, Inventory, and Monitoring (AIM) Strategy in several ways. First, BLM implements standard data storage so that information is readily accessed, aggregated, shared, and used to evaluate and improve land management outcomes by BLM'ers and others. This is accomplished through electronic on-site data capture and centralized data management through BLM's national geospatial infrastructure. The AIM Strategy is enabling collaborative use of national monitoring data on rangelands by developing a national database (TerrADat) and analytical tools to provide easier data interpretation and assist in adaptive management decisions. Current and future use of these data include assisting in statewide sage grouse habitat mapping across political boundaries, developing ecological site descriptions, and using it as part of a national web data visualization and analysis tool. Second, non-BLM'ers can coordinate monitoring design, methods, data collection, and reporting with BLM AIM monitoring efforts, such that a consistent set of data is being collected across the landscape. The Forest Service, ranchers, and state environmental and wildlife agencies are working with BLM in this way at different locations and scales across the US. Through collaborative monitoring implementation and data sharing, you can help BLM achieve the AIM Strategy's goal of reaching across programs, jurisdictions, stakeholders, and agencies to provide key information for decision makers that can be collected once and used many times.