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SECTION 9.0 MONITORING PROGRAM FOR BUCKEYE RANCH <br /> 9.1 Overview <br /> The Buckeye Ranch Resource plan is written to be responsive to dynamic processes and <br /> will be modified and changed over time. In order to make the appropriate modifications the <br /> plan must be evaluated or monitored. Through monitoring we will discover the effects of <br /> management activities and change them to better achieve our objectives. Monitoring is <br /> defined in Webster's as "to watch, observe, or check especially for a special purpose." In <br /> this case the monitoring will be conducted by trained personnel and the special purposes <br /> will be the management and restoration objectives as stated in the plan. <br /> Baseline data <br /> The first part of the monitoring program establishes baseline data which consists of written <br /> descriptions of the environmental features of the ranch. Baseline data includes but isn't <br /> limited to vegetation maps, species lists, number of trees per acre, forest age structure, <br /> annual grass production (pounds/acre/year), soil characteristics and water and air quality. A <br /> good deal of this information is already available, including lists of wildlife species, a <br /> partial plant list, and a preliminary population survey of the live oak forest. Other aspects <br /> of the ranch, such as lake water quality obviously cannot be evaluated until the lakes are <br /> filled. Management decisions about the existing live oak riparian forest are dependent upon <br /> gathering information regarding the stand age and structure. <br /> In general, baseline data is collected using the same types of methods as other types of <br /> monitoring: ground surveys, sampling, and photogrammetry. A clear and practical review <br /> of these methods is presented in Barnhardt and Swiecki's "Guidelines for developing and <br /> Buckeye Ranch Resource Plan (November, 1993) <br /> 234 <br />