Call to Order
Minutes from the August 20th Meeting
Minutes for the August 20, 1999 STAT meeting were approved by all members present, with no revisions.Decision Support Model
Peter Stine gave a brief description of the decision support model which will be used to generate alternatives for conservation reserve designs for the Sonoran Desert Conservation Plan. The most important element in the model is the selection of species, which will be performed by members of the STAT. Mappable characteristics for each species will be provided by the biological consultant, as defined in the scope of work. Another key element to keep in mind is that the developers of the plan will need to determine the values of the model which are used to obtain the alternative designs.
Other elements of the scope of work that support the model include developing biological goals for species, gathering life history information, assessing data gaps in the GIS, collecting or mapping new GIS covers, and soliciting appropriate biological expertise to develop rules for habitat suitability analysis and patch-building.This project is scheduled to begin sometime in January of next year once the agreement is final. The lifetime of the project is two years. Members of the decision support model team may be available for presentations during future STAT meetings.
Status of Data Collection
Julia Fonseca displayed a series of maps which are currently being updated and revised by the Pima County Technical Services Department (GIS). The maps include native fish locations, soil types, barriers to wildlife movement (dams, canals and other diversions), ranch allotments and land ownership, agricultural lands, and existing reserves. In addition to these efforts, Pima County has contracted the Pima Association of Governments to work on mapping stream units and shallow groundwater locations for all of Pima County.
Future Meeting Dates
The next meeting is set for Thursday, October 21st from 9:00 a.m to 11:30 a.m at the Water Resources Research Center, 350 N. Campbell Avenue in Tucson, Arizona.Call to the Public
Trevor Hare asked if there had been a discussion on the decision support model; the answer was yes. Dale asked if the mapping of water features included the locations of stock ponds. Pima County is currently working on acquiring this information and mapping it using GIS.Natasha Kline inquired about the establishment of interim regulations during the development of the Sonoran Desert Conservation Plan. The Science and Technical Advisory Team's role in interim measures was discussed.
A question was raised regarding the recovery team for the Pima Pineapple Cactus. Mima Falk stated that the recovery team has been meeting regularly, but the implementation team has not been completely established yet. A suggestion was made to have the pygmy-owl and pineapple cactus recovery teams talk to the STAT in future meetings.
Request for Proposals and Scope of Work for the SDCP
A discussion session was held regarding the Request for Proposal and Scope of Work for the biological consultant. This session was closed to those who may have a conflict of interest related to the contract. Reed Noss and Laura Hood, independent scientific peer reviewers, commented on the scope of work. Selection criteria and interview questions have been drafted. We are awaiting the conclusion of the federal budget process before issuing the request for proposals.
STAT Members Present:
William Shaw School of Renewable Natural Resources, University of Arizona
Natasha Kline Saguaro National Park
Sherry Ruther Arizona Game and Fish Department
Doug Duncan U. S. Fish and Wildlife Service (Tucson)
Cecil Schwalbe School of Renewable Natural Resources, University of Arizona
Mima Falk Coronado National Forest
Robert Steidl School of Renewable Natural Resources, University of Arizona
Ed Kuklinski for Sonoran Arthropod Studies Institute
Steve Prchal
STAT Members Absent:
Gary Nabhan Arizona Sonora Desert Museum
Staff:
Julia Fonseca Pima County Flood Control District
David Scalero Pima County Flood Control District
Neva Connolly Pima County
Others:
Maeveen Behan County Administrator's Office
Gail Kobetich Department of the Interior
Peter Stine U. S. Geological Survey
Ross Gerrard ISERA Group, Inc.
Rick Church University of California Santa Barbara
Mike Gilpin University of California San Diego
Dr. Reed Noss Conservation Science, Inc.
Trevor Hare Tucson Herpetological Society
Thomas Helfrich Pima County Flood Control District
Linda Mayro Pima County
Dale Turner Sky Island Alliance
Russell Duncan Biological Consultant
Paul Fromer Recon Environmental Consultants
Candie Benn Recon Environmental Consultants
Ken Kingsley SWCA
Sue Chilton Citizen
Dave Hogan Citizen
Links Endangered Species in Pima County Species of Concern - A discussion paper for the Sonoran Desert Conservation Plan