Get reliable rangeland science

Grass-Cast indicates for ranchers and other grassland managers whether plant productivity (in pounds per acre) is likely to be above-normal, near-normal, or below-normal in the upcoming growing season relative to the 30+ year history of their local area (individual 6-mile x 6-mile grid cells). Grass-Cast bases this estimate on climate data including daily weather, evapotranspiration, NDVI (a remotely sensed greenness index), and above-ground net primary productivity (ANPP, a measure of peak plant biomass). Grass-Cast does not differentiate between forage and non-forgae plants, or take into account local details about soil, land use, and other factors managers need to assess to get an accurate picture of potential productivity on a pasture-scale. Details of the Grass-Cast model are published in journal articles, which are listed on the Grass-Cast website (https://grasscast.unl.edu/) under the “FAQ” tab.Tutorials for Grass Cast are available here: https://drought.unl.edu/Education/Tutorials/Grass-Cast.aspx See CCAST Case Study about the use of Grass Cast here: https://arcg.is/1zaaz81 and webinar about the project here: https://youtu.be/nIGerxDY4ms?t=974

Fuelcast is a map-based resource that leverages Google Earth Engine and Tensorflow to process near real-time weather and remote sensing data, providing in season forecast estimates of the magnitude and timing of annual production and fuel across coterminous U.S. rangelands. Users can access several cutting-edge information products, with detailed reports in development. The tool provides free, near real-time information to rangeland managers, fire specialists, and producers to act on in a timely manner. See CCAST Case Study about the use of Grass Cast here: https://arcg.is/1zaaz81 and webinar about the project here: https://youtu.be/nIGerxDY4ms?t=974

The Fire Effects Information System (FEIS) is an online collection of peer-reviewed syntheses on fire effects and fire regimes in the United States designed to meet the needs of resource managers & specialists. Search for Species Reviews, Fire Regimes, or Fire Studies. Species Reviews that include information about plant and animal species' biology, habitats, regeneration or reproductive processes, relationships with fire, and management considerations. Fire Regime publications include information about how often and how severely fires burned in specific ecosystems. Fire Studies are summaries of one or more fire research publications. FEIS also contains information about invasive species, has species distribution maps, and contains syntheses for the Southwest region.

The National Fire Situational Awareness map contains relevant information about current fires including fire outlines, size, perimiter and more that is updated frequently.

The National Wildfire Coordinating Group (NWCG) Standards for Prescribed Fire Planning and Implementation establishes national interagency standards for the planning and implementation of prescribed fire. This PDF document provides information about relevant authorities for prescribed fire implementation, documents required for planning and authorizing prescribed burns, lessons learned, and outline of responsibiltiies during prescribed burns.

The Fish and Wildlife Service's on-line mapper contains data for active, proposed, and final critical habitat for threatened and endangered wildlife and plant species. In addition to information about individual wildlife and plant species, shape files are available for download with polygons of critical habitat areas.

Collaborative Mapper lets multiple users interactively create and edit geospatial data. No more sending multiple files back and forth. Start a map, invite collaborators, and seamlessly edit the data together.

The Land Treatment Exploration Tool (LTET) is designed to assist land managers with the rangeland restoration and/or rehabilitation planning process. The tool assembles information about a site, including past treatments from the Land Treatment Digital Library, and wildfires recorded within the site. You can also extract data from multiple GIS layers to give you a comprehensive overview of your site. Using statistical similarity indices you can find past treatments that most closely match your planned treatment area based on climate and topography indices. Similar past treatments can be explored and compared to your planned treatment and help you identify not only the best path forward, but also justification for the methods used in your own treatment. See CCAST webinar about LTET seasonal forecast of ecological drought: https://youtu.be/nIGerxDY4ms?t=255