A Recent Sound Science Project:

Sound Science was the principle technical support provider to the U.S. Army Environmental Command's Range and Training Lands Assessment (RTLA) program (2007-2010) and Land Rehabilitation and Management (LRAM) program (2009-2010).

RTLA and LRAM are two of the programs that manage sustainable land use in the military's training lands. Our support included the design of monitoring projects, strategic advice on program goals and planning, creation of land management tools, teaching, and the coordination of various program activities.

Prescribed fire (Photo by Michael Batcher)

Land Management, Green Space, and Adaptive Management:
Matching goals to results

Sound Science staff has broad experience in a variety of land management planning activities, and can help organizations plan and implement land management and conservation action in natural areas or green space ecosystems within human communities. A core area of Sound Science expertise related to this is conceptual modeling. Understanding the system under management is key to any planning effort, especially with ecological systems that are under constant pressure and in a persistent state of change. For example, conceptual modeling is key to plans for adaptation to climate change.

Our staff has expertise in conservation planning, ecological integrity measures, climate change planning, urban ecology, conceptual modeling, siting of wind power projects, creation of monitoring programs, fire management planning, prescribed burning, water resources management, arid lands and rangeland management, remote sensing, geospatial data analysis, exotic species management, biocontol, ecosystem restoration, and NEPA analysis. See our staff list for specific information.

Here are just a few of the publications and reports that illustrate the kind of work Sound Science staff do in these areas (Sound Science staff in bold):

Modeling
Maddox, G.D., K.E. Poiani, and R.E. Unnasch 1999. Evaluating Management Success: Using ecological models to ask the right monitoring questions. IN N. Johnson (Ed.) The Ecological Stewardship Project: A common reference for Ecosystem Management (3 Volumes)
Elsvier Science: Oxford.

Conservation Planning
Parrish, J.D., D.P. Braun & R.S. Unnasch 2003. Are we conserving what we say we are? Measuring ecological integrity within protected areas. Bioscience 53(9): 851.

Ecological Integrity
Unnasch, R.S., D. P. Braun, P. J. Comer, G. E. Eckert. 2008. The Ecological Integrity Assessment
Framework: A Framework for Assessing the Ecological Integrity of Biological and Ecological Resources of
the National Park System. Report to the National Park Service.

Urban Ecology and Green Infrastructure
Jacqueline W.T. Lu, Megan Shane, Erika Svendsen, Lindsay Campbell, Cristiana Fragola, Marianne Krasny, Gina Lovasi, G. David Maddox, Simon McDonnell, P. Timon McPhearson, Franco Montalto, Andrew Newman, Ellen Pehek, Ruth A. Rae, Richard Stedman, Keith G. Tidball, Lynne Westphal, Tom Whitlow 2009. MillionTreesNYC, Green Infrastructure, and Urban Ecology: Building a Research Agenda. 48pp.

Monitoring Programs
Ottke, C., P. Kristensen, G. David Maddox and E. Rodenburg 2000. Monitoring for Impact: A Handbook on Natural Resources Monitoring based on Lessons from 13 NGOs, Volume 1. World Resources Institute, 90pp.

Ottke, C., P. Kristensen, G. David Maddox and E. Rodenburg 2000. Monitoring for Impact: A Handbook on Natural Resources Monitoring based on Lessons from 13 NGOs, Volume 2. World Resources Institute, 70pp.

Climate Change
Morse, L.E, L.S. Kutner, G. David Maddox, L.L. Honey and C.M. Thurman 1993. The potential effects of climate change on the native vascular flora of North America: A preliminary climate envelope analysis. Report to the Electric Power Research Institute, 90pp.

Maddox, G. David and L.E. Morse 1990. Plant conservation and global climate change. The Nature Conservancy Magazine. July/August 1990.

Water Resources
Braun, D.P. 2006. Measuring Freshwater Biodiversity Conservation Success. In N. Silk and K. Ciruna, editors, A Practitioner’s Guide to Freshwater Biodiversity Conservation. Island Press and The Nature Conservancy: Washington, D.C.

Remote Sensing and Invasive Species
Karl, J.W., and M. Porter. 2006. Digital aerial sketch-mapping for early detection and mapping of invasive species. In Invasive Plant Inventory Methods. Center for Invasive Plant Management, Montana State University, Bozeman, MT.

Prescribed Fire
Batcher, M. 2008. Site fire management plan for Maple Hill Savanna. Prepared for The Nature Conservancy, North Carolina Chapter, Durham, NC.

Batcher, M. 2006. Ecological management plan for Ossipee Pine Barrens. Report prepared for The Nature Conservancy, New Hampshire Chapter, Concord, NH.

Arid Lands
Salo, L.F., G.R. McPherson, and D.G. Williams. 2005. Sonoran Desert winter annuals affected by density of red brome and soil nitrogen. The American Midland Naturalist 153:102-116.

 
David Maddox discusses range research in Ganzu, China.
(Photo by Marta Tellado)