Inventory and Monitoring of Groundwater-Dependent Ecosystems on National Forests and Grasslands

Groundwater-dependent ecosystems (GDEs) are located across the landscape in every ecoregion of the United States. Although largely unrecognized, GDEs play an important role for both ecological and human communities. Groundwater-dependent ecosystems support a diversity of species, including a suite of rare biota and habitats, often serving as critical refugia during extreme climatic conditions. In addition to being ecologically important, GDEs provide key services to society, including high-quality water for human consumption, agriculture and industry, support for fisheries, and production of specialty commodities.

The Forest Service, in cooperation with The Nature Conservancy, has produced a set of Field Guides for inventory and monitoring of GDEs. These Field Guides will provide a consistent and scientifically sound approach to characterizing and monitoring groundwater-dependent resources. Rigorous field testing at several locations across the U.S. resulted in a user-friendly product and proved that the methodology is applicable in a wide range of different ecological and climatic locations.