After a long drive from New York, my brother and I debated whether or not we were seeing clouds or ice on the distant mountains. As we made our way west through the Powder River basin into Buffalo Wyoming, it became apparent. A beautiful backdrop of immense snow capped mountains surrounds me every day as I ride my bike to work. It may be 85 degrees in the basin, but after a short drive into the Bighorn Mountains, snow stacked twelve feet high lines each side of the road. I am constantly filled with awe as I explore the region and new environment.

Recently I have been getting a feel for the lay of the land, and learning to fly fish (have not caught anything yet!). My work at the BLM field office seems to be getting increasingly interesting every day. I have been learning a great deal about the general ecology of the area, ArcGIS, hydrology techniques, and the oil and gas industries and related environmental issues of the region.

My internship pertains to the coal-bed natural gas extraction which is taking place on a large scale throughout the Powder River Basin. In order to extract coal-bed natural gas, wells must be drilled and large quantities of water pumped from the ground to release pressure from the system and allow the gas to rise and be collected. The large volume of water which is removed from deep underground present a variety of environmental issues. Large pools called “impoundments” have been scattered throughout the basin to store this water. I will be analyzing the state of these impoundments by sampling the water and sediments, checking vegetation, and looking for flaws and seeps in the pools. After a detailed investigation of the impoundments it will be possible to assess their environmental impact. If the impact is significant we may be able to force the gas companies to reclaim the impoundment. By reclaiming the site the companies would have to restore the land to as close to natural conditions as possible.

It is vital to recognize the importance of the energy industry, and to understand the many benefits of natural gas. However with the strong presence of the gas industry and its immense effect on the landscape within the Powder River Basin, it feels good to be personally doing something which places the environment first.

For a rare plant enthusiast, the Ridgecrest Field Office in the Western Mojave desert is a dream come true. In our district, we have 33 different rare and endemic species, which constitutes about 5% of our flora. There are two kinds of rare plants we in the district; ones that are found in only one location, and those with a wider distribution. For the former, there are cases where we can go and count the exact number of individuals in the known population.

Astragalus ertterae

Such is the case with Astragalus ertterae,for which the whole known population is found on a single hillside, and is composed of roughly 14 plants. The other end of the spectrum falls onto Cymopteris deserticola, which has a large distribution over many miles, but is limited to very specific habitats within that distribution. One of our most extreme cases of this is Astragalus geyeri var. geyeri, which is on our list, despite being found across 9 of the western states. Again, what makes it rare is that it is found only in small, isolated pocket populations, which are disjunct from each other by a significant distance and physical impediments, much like being on small islands in the ocean. Yes, they are widely distributed, and yes, they are the same species, but they are still very limited in their distribution.

When monitoring these plants, we make extensive use of GPS/GIS technology. Our standard sampling method is to travel to the site in question, usually one with a historic record of the species. When we begin the inventory or monitoring, we set up the tracker on the unit, which will trace our path as we search.

Cymopteris deserticola

When we locate a rare plant, we mark one waypoint for each plant found. After returning from the field, the data is projected onto a GIS system, with ARCmap being the default. The purpose of this method is to not only provide a detailed inventory of the species, but allows us to monitor not only where the plants are found, but where they are not found, which can be just as valuable for interpreting where the species is tied to. By using satellite photos of sites, we can project the known occurrences, and extrapolate where other populations might be found.

Among our rare plants, there a some where the differences between the rare and common species are easily discernible, while in others they are not so easy. One of my jobs has been to help assess the status of a plant, and whether or not it is one of the rare ones. It can be a difficult job, but it is ultimately very rewarding.

This internship has definitely put me into a position to meet lot of people that work in the conservation and land management field. Out here in the west there are so many offices that work in these areas; be it the BLM, Park Service or Forest Service. In work week 2, our crew got to meet a manager from the Lake Mead Recreation Area to talk to us about desert tortoise and the unique plant genetics of her management area. I have also gotten some great opportunities to visit the BLM office in Ely, NV. This week off I decided to travel up and do some volunteer work for them. It has been a great way to see what the BLM is all about and some of the work and issues they deal with. It has been very informative to some one from the East Coast where we don’t get much exposure to that administration.

The skills I have gained from working with the very knowledgeable people involved in this program have been great. My mentor is an encyclopedia of knowledge on plant species in Nevada and very knowledgeable about the ecosystems as well. I’ve learned so much about the major species in the Mojave Desert which will be invaluable as the eyes of conservation begin to focus in on this region. Even the vast number of things I’ve learned, barely scratches the surface of information to be learned about this region.

Moving a long way from home has also definitely taken me out of my comfort zone. After having established myself in my college town for a few years and having a great base of friends, it has been hard to reorient myself in this new place; especially with such a strange work schedule and not having a solid base office to work from.

It has been a challenge to suppress my desire for that safe and yet stagnant place of comfort and keep perspective on the great opportunities this internship is providing for me. I’ve had the chance to meet people from all over the country and learn from their differing perspectives and experiences.

The first weeks on the job have been felt overwhelming and disorienting at times. The Bureau of Land Management Anchorage Field Office (BLM – AFO) is a huge maze of offices complete with emergency response supplies, a helipad, and a warehouse full of a seemingly endless variety of tools, gear, and other odds and ends. I have been splitting time between the Field Office and a small University of Alaska office called the Alaska Natural Heritage Program (AKNHP).

The two locations couldn’t be more different! It seems like an exaggeration, but the field office has over two-hundred employees and is located in the middle of the seven-hundred acre Campbell Tract (CT). The CT is an urban forest managed by the BLM, that is used mainly for recreation and environmental education. Based on the location, employees at the AFO like to jog and mountain bike on CT trails during their lunch break. On the other hand the AKNHP office calls a small office building in downtown Anchorage home. There are about ten employees, and instead of a huge warehouse there is a small room used for gear storage and to house the growing herbarium collection.

You may have noticed that I’ve thrown quite a few acronyms into this blog entry. I’m taking the opportunity to practice because working in a government office seems to require fluency in acronyms. Here is a list of some of the ones I’ve heard so far: AFO, AKNHP, BLM, CT, CWMA, CNIPM, MOA, DOI and DOT.

Fortunately, I haven’t spent all of my time trying to decipher strange combinations of capitalized letters. During my second week I was able to get out with the first weed pull of the summer with a group from the Forest Service (USFS). We met at Cuddy Park near the Anchorage public library and pulled Canada Thistle, an unpleasant prickly plant that members of the Anchorage CWMA (Cooperative Weed Management Area) want to eradicate.

Getting the chance to pull weeds with some really die-hard invasive plant haters has gotten me excited about the work I am doing to help put together an weed management plan for the CT. Residents of Alaska are proud of the natural resources their state has to offer and they are genuinely worried about the effects invasive plants could have on these resources.

Now that some of the acronyms are starting to come naturally I know that I’m settling into my new role here in what some residents call “the city closest to Alaska” or “a suburb of Seattle”. The long summer days are beautiful, especially when a nasty weed infestation has just been assaulted!

Carl Norlen
Anchorage, Alaska
Bureau of Land Management

Weed pullers diligently controling a Canada Thistle infestation

The hated adversary!

This summer I’m working as a GIS Intern for the Bureau of Land Management in Rock Springs, Wyoming. The week before last was my first week of work and I spent it in Rawlins, WY at an orientation training for seasonal employees of the High Desert District of Wyoming BLM. The mandatory training sessions gave us a good overview of what the BLM does and addressed federal policies and procedures, district communications, safe driving practices, vehicle maintenance and First Aid/CPR. It was a very informative week!

Last week was my first week working from the Rock Springs field office. My supervisor sat down with me to discuss some projects I’ll be involved with this summer. Among other things, I will be working on readying data layers for the agency’s upcoming revision of the Green River Resource Management Plan. While waiting for computer access, I read through the latest edition of the Resource Management Plan, plus a few reports on wind energy development to familiarize myself with the typical management practices and challenges of the surrounding area.

I also got to “tag along” with some field crews last week to get a sense of what they do on a daily basis. I spent time with the outdoor recreation crew on several occasions: planting tree saplings for the upcoming National Public Lands Day, checking a fence line near ancient petroglyphs (fascinating!), and documenting illegal “trespass” roads into Wilderness Study Areas. Bouncing along a bumpy two track in 4-Wheel-Drive was a great way to get acquainted with this part of the district!

Me potting tree saplings for National Public Lands Day

Helping the recreation crew check fencing around a petroglyphs site

Me standing beside the White Mountain Petroglyphs

An especially interesting petroglyph of a horse

Surveying trespass roads in Wilderness Study Areas with the recreation crew

I also went out with the wildlife crew to survey a fence line for evidence of sage grouse “strikes” and mortalities. I learned that the BLM uses fence markers to enhance the visibility of fencing for sage grouse.

White markers along barbed wire fence increase fence visibility for sage grouse

I also headed out with my supervisor last week to go “ground truthing,” which meant collecting geographic data on location with a hand-held Trimble GPS device. We were trying to determine which real-world features corresponded to which line features in aerial imagery and classify them as old two track roads, power lines, gas pipelines, or other features. It was a rewarding experience!

Ground truthing in situ using a Trimble GPS device

I am looking forward to growing personally and professionally during the next four months. Judging by my caring coworkers, my friendly roommates, the outdoor recreational opportunities of Wyoming and the challenging nature of my position, I’m sure it will be a great summer.

I can’t wait to see everyone at the Training Workshop in the Grand Canyon next week!

Melissa Buchmann
Rock Springs, WY
Bureau of Land Managment

I have just begun my internship in Grand Junction Colorado. The area around Grand Junction is incredibly varied and I look forward to exploring it as we do Land Health Assessments. I find, as we spend our days hiking through the terrain, that as usual the first glances do not do justice to the incredible amount of diversity and connectedness that comes from closer looks. I have just begin tuning my eyes to how to look in order to see what is right in front of me. The area is one that at first glance seems to be sparse. But, in the short time I have been here I am already beginning to recognize the richness. I look forward to the new patterns I am sure to see as I spend more time.

Jason Reynolds
Grand Junction, CO
BLM

Hello all! I am writing from a town of roughly 3,000 people in Kemmerer, WY. Kemmerer is settled in south western Wyoming about 7,000 ft above sea level and less than a half hour from the borders of Utah and Idaho. It is known as the “Fossil Fish Capitol of the World.” I have only been here for about a week and a half and I have been through a decent amount of culture shock due to the different environment (this is coming from someone from outside of Philadelphia, PA and had never been past Cleveland, OH). I came during an “unusual” wet period which included an inch of snow in June and 4-5 storms that produced decent sized hail! Luckily, it seems to have moved on from this unusual weather and gone back to the normal dry, 70 degree temperatures.

My first week at the BLM started out on Monday meeting everyone, filling out paperwork, and important safety information. Tuesday included a full day of CPR and First Aid training. I finally got my first taste of the field on Wednesday. It was a long day filled with riparian studies in a small portion of the allotments for the ranchers. A rather large crew had gotten together to start to tackle some of the many streams located in the Kemmerer field office range. These streams had not been assessed since 1997. The riparian studies had included taking multiple GPS points, recording green line inventories, many pictures for future references, and finally, proper functioning conditions (rating the overall health of the streams). I really didn’t know why all of this information was important until the last stream of the day. This stream was in the worst condition. It had been affected by rail road tracks, a new bridge, and the highway that was down stream. It had horrible formation and no riparian vegetation growing on the banks. This was a perfect example of a poorly functioning stream. Thursday was supposed to be a continuation of Wednesday. This was not the case due to rain followed by an inch of snow on the ground in the morning. Instead, I had gone to a seminar and learned about the GPS unit I will be using throughout my internship. Once the seminar was over, my mentor handed me 3 maps, names of certain landmarks and towns, and told me to find them. When I found them on the map, he handed me the keys to his truck and told me, “Now, use the maps and go find them in person.” This gave me a chance to use my map reading skills and to get used to the area covered by the field office. After a day of the trails drying out, I was on my way back out in the field on Friday to locate some of the green line areas. I was aiding one of the range management specialists with the GPS unit to take points so we could come back at a future day. It was almost like finding a needle in a haystack due to massive growth of vegetation around the posts. Eventually, we had found all but two of the green line posts-which is pretty good considering they hadn’t been checked in 13 years!

This is one of the streams we assessed.

Wheat Creek Meadows, BLM Land-One of the places I was sent out to find.

Me at the top of Fossil Butte National Monument, the Fossil Fish Capitol of the world.

Although I have only been working for one week, I have a feeling I will be enjoying my 5 month stay with the BLM. Once I adjust to the high altitude and the time change, I might not want to go back home! For now though, I will take it day by day.

Larry Ashton
Kemmerer, WY
BLM

In the past three weeks, we have been in the office only three times. Instead, the majority of our time has been spent in the great outdoors. On our first camping trip we spent the night at Pyramid Lake on the Paiute Tribes’ Reservation; we spent our days with other BLM staff performing range assessments of public lands. We had the opportunity to observe BLM staff in assessing grazing impacts and disturbances on native wildlife for future land management goals. We assisted in this effort by creating species lists of flora at each site, especially noting noxious weeds and other disturbances. Additionally, we also scouted for flowering and seeding native plants for future seed collections. For these trips, we were able to both assist in range assessments and scout for future collections in remote mountainous areas.

Two weeks ago, we were able to visit Anaho Island in Pyramid Lake, thanks to U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. Anaho Island is a place of dwarf rattlesnakes, giant bull snakes and a nesting place for many of the birds that call Pyramid Lake home, including pelicans and gulls. The isolation of Anaho Island has sparked recent research on its unique snake and rodent populations. We were able to make three seed collections there and hope to return for more!

As the plant life in Nevada is finally starting to produce seed in quantity, our team has been hard at work in the field over the last several weeks. Although our winter lasted longer than usual, the moisture associated with the cooler temperatures has been a great boon to the vegetation here in the sagebrush. Our collections are getting bigger and we’re able to camp out more often. It feels good to be outside and accomplish so much. The field work, while focused on seed collection, allows us to see so much wildlife. We regularly see several species of lizards in addition to quail and a variety of songbirds. Our team members are beginning to recognize a few of Nevada’s birds by both call and sight.

All but one of our CLM team members are from east of the Mississippi and getting acquainted with the foreign landscape certainly took some time. However, with each passing day in the field, our knowledge of the region grows, and with it, a surprising love for the wildness of the landscape. A terrain ‘unfit’ for agriculture, it has been largely left undeveloped. It is truly amazing to go out into the field see so much open space.

We are looking forward to further exploration of the untenable Nevada wilderness.

Brian Josey
Maggie Chan
Sasha Broadstone