Page 23 - Sierra Meadows Strategy

The Sierra Meadows Partnership developed three overarching approaches to achieve desired conditions and associated goals (Section IV). The three approaches focus on (1) restoration of meadows to desired conditions; (2) enhancing regulatory and institutional funding capacity and coordination; and (3) increasing and diversifying institutional and partnership capacity. These pproaches are intended to be implemented simultaneously
and will need to be in order to achieve the stated goals of the Sierra Meadows Strategy. These approaches are also meant
to complement already existing efforts to advance meadow restoration and management within the Sierra Meadows Strategy Area. It is acknowledged that in some areas, actions identi ed in one or more of the approaches are already being implemented.
Approach 1
Restore and/or protect meadows to achieve desired conditions.
Focus on implementing the 8 steps of a successful meadow restoration project (See Figure 3 on the next page): pre-restoration monitoring; development of restoration needs
to bring meadows to desired conditions; development of measurable objectives; design based on objectives and
needs; compliance and permitting; on-the-ground restoration implementation; post-restoration monitoring; and adaptive management. Meadows in good functioning condition identi ed in pre-restoration monitoring would be monitored and adaptively managed in a manner consistent with restored meadows. A
key component of this approach is to use clear measureable objectives tied to effectiveness monitoring that can then trigger (require) adaptive management.
Approach 2
Enhance regulatory and institutional funding capacity and coordination.
Identify and alleviate regulatory bottlenecks and establish ef cient and respectful communication pathways. Field visits and knowledge gleaned from earlier restorations can be used to assist in building a good working relationship among regulators, restoration specialists and land managers. Ensure funding meadow restoration and monitoring is a priority at the state and federal levels.
Approach 3
Increase and diversify institutional and partnership capacity for meadow restoration and/or protection in the greater Sierra.
Institutional and public outreach, including schools, colleges, Integrated Regional Water Management groups, state and county agencies can broaden the base of support and understanding of the value of restored Sierra meadows. Assist in establishing priorities for restoration based on Species of Concern
or other priorities.
Approach 1 Overview
This approach focuses on actions taken on the ground
to improve meadow health, function and resilience.
This approach is designed to function at the Strategy Area scale and at smaller scales to allow watershed, Forest or site-speci c meadow characteristics and processes to come into focus. Thus, scales can range from a single meadow
to a series of meadows in a watershed.
This approach also addresses protecting meadows from conversion to urban development or other incompatible land uses (gravel mining, golf course, roads, other). Meadows are targeted for protection based on their value for biodiversity, threatened and endangered species, or rare species, ecosystem services, or restoration potential at a landscape scale. Threats, known as well as based of future assessments, to meadows in terms of land development pressure are considered in prioritizing locations for meadow protection to accomplish the desired outcomes below.
Steps for achieving restoration to desired conditions are outlined in Figure 3. These steps are meant as guidance rather than a required set of actions. Their primary intent
is to ensure that meadows are targeted for restoration and/ or protection based upon a landscape scale assessment of needs and opportunities to most ef ciently and directly achieve the Desired Outcomes described in Section
IV above.
As shown in Figure 3 (next page), identifying desired conditions and assessing current conditions relative to desired conditions serves as the basis for determining restoration needs. Once needs have been identi ed, identi cation of SMART objectives (Speci c, Measurable, Achievable, Realistic and Timely) serves as the foundation for developing a given restoration project/action and in doing so will help to identify which permits may be required and any associated compliance obligations.
Obtaining necessary permits then provides the trigger
for implementing actions and subsequently monitoring
the effects of such actions to determine if objectives
are being met and ultimately if desired outcomes are realized, or, whether further adaptive management actions are necessary. As an example, restoring hydrologically degraded meadows could yield the desired outcomes of expanding and protecting habitat connectivity for a listed meadow-dependent species such as the willow ycatcher. Meadows within the area would be assessed based on existing desired conditions for that hydro-geomorphic meadow type/ area/ watershed.
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