[RWG] NOTES: Summary of Jan 11th 2006 PCA Meeting

[Olivia Kwong]

These notes (along with the Nov 2005 notes) will be added to the website 
when I can access it.

Olivia
CPC/PCA
http://www.nps.gov/plants/

----------------------------

Notes from PCA General Meeting
January 11, 2006
NatureServe, Rosslyn, Va.
(Notes taken by P. De Angelis)

PCA Chair, Peggy Olwell (BLM) opened the meeting with introductions. 
Sign-up sheet passed around.

New/returning participants

Anne Abbott - Herb Society of America; Volunteer Coordinator for MPWG 
Field Site in Pisgah (NC)
Ev Byington - USDA-ARS
Bob Escheman - USDA-NRCS
Rob Fiegner - Native Seed network
Liz Ley - Consultant
Bruce Stein - NatureServe
Ester Stein - Association for Women in Science
Damon Waitt - Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center
Sarah Wakamiya - NAPPC intern
Rickie White - NatureServe

Events

- Planting the Wild: Links between Cultivation and Conservation.  March 
11, 10-3:30, University of Richmond.  Richmond, VA.  Virginia Native Plant 
Society annual workshop.  Registration and coffee at 9:00.  Featuring 
William(Bill) Brumback, Conservation Director, New England Wildflower 
Society; Stanwyn G. Shetler, Ph.D., Curator of Botany Emeritus Botany, 
Smithsonian Institution; and Rick Myers, Stewardship Manager, The Virginia 
Natural Heritage Program.  Open to all. 
http://www.vnps.org/programs.html#meet

- Summit V Native Plants Meeting.  March 27.  Boise, ID.  Inter-mountain 
region meeting to focus on native plant material development and to 
exchange ideas between industry and agencies.  Open to anyone and free.

- Smithsonian Botanical Symposium:  Island Archipelagos: Cauldrons of 
Evolution.  April 21-22.  Washington, DC.  Smithsonian Institution, 
Natural history Museum.  Register online at: http://persoon.si.edu/sbs/.

- - - -

Announcements

- Chair of North American Plant Specialist Group, Peggy Olwell, recommends 
that NatureServe (<http://www.natureserve.org/>) be named the Red List 
Authority for North American Plants North of Mexico (Bruce Stein) - 
Background: NatureServe developed comprehensive assessment criteria for 
State and Global rankings and has over the past many years assessed a 
large number of North American plants.  These rankings compare similarly 
to the IUCN rankings.  NatureServe has collaborated with IUCN in the past, 
for example, on the IUCN Threatened Plants of the World.
   - This project would formally assess plants using IUCN criteria.  This 
will be an opportunity to update Natureserve's database, which will 
benefit organizations that use this information.  This will contribute to 
the Global Strategy for Plant Conservation goals and will also be an 
opportunity to carry out a preliminary worldwide conservation status 
assessment.  The agencies that depend on NatureServe data can also benefit 
by working together on this.
   - There are two steps to formalizing the appointment of NatureServe as 
the North American Plant Red List Authority.  First, the North American 
Plant Specialist Group (NAPSG) has to make a recommendation.  PCA is the 
NAPSG and has already sent a letter to the IUCN SSC to recommend this. 
Next, the Plants Subcommittee must concur with the appointment.  Once the 
appointment is finalized, NatureServe will then start fundraising.

DISCUSSION

Q: How different will the Red list differ from NatureServe's G rankings? 
Concern that common plants that are rare at the edge of range will get 
ranked rare.
A: Difference between NatureServe and IUCN criteria - Larry Master 
compared the criteria used in Florida (Journal of Conservation Biology). 
Found that, with the 1994 revisions to IUCN red listing, the two processes 
were brought closer together.  IUCN focuses more on trends; NatureServe 
has focused more on absolute rarity.  The GH-G2 ranks relate well to IUCN 
categories, G3 is the "swing" category.  Talking about global assessments 
- not national or regional.

Q: What is the process for entering more info into the database?
A: Generally, needs to be contracted.  With the growing citizen science 
efforts, exploring NSF funding opportunities.  Plants are a great 
opportunity and may team up on an NSF proposal for plants.  Would like to 
see PCA involved.

Q: Several plants in the NatureServe database that are being used on BLM 
and FS lands but don't have much information in the species account.  Is 
there a process for the government agencies to add/share info with 
NatureServe?
A: FS working on a database to make data exchange with Heritage programs 
work more easily.

- Peer-reviewed article:  "Roadside revegetation of forest highways: new 
applications for native plants."
Landis, T., K Wilkinson, et al.  2005.  Native Plants Journal - Volume 6, 
Number 3, Fall 2005, pp. 297-305. 
<http://muse.jhu.edu/cgi-bin/access.cgi?uri=/journals/native_plants_journal/v006/6.3landis.html>. 
Per Larry Stritch:  Peer-reviewed article about a federal highway 
restoration project using native species.  The more peer-reviewed 
literature we can get, the more credibility native plants get.

- BLM/FS Joint Meeting in Nevada. BLM/FS Botanists and FS Geneticists will 
meet concurrently in Nevada.  This will be great step toward coordination 
at a local level on native plant material.  Will report results back to 
PCA.

- Annotated bibliography of US natives and pollinators.  (Kim Winter) 
Sarah Wakamiya has joined NAPPC as an intern from the Chicago Botanic 
Garden intern program to work on developing this database.

- USDA-ARS is starting a new planning cycle.  (Ev Byington)
Developing the next five-year plan for research, with a commitment of 
about $225 million.  Half the effort will go into natives, with about 60 
plants total (primarily grasses).  Customer meeting January 24-25 (Denver, 
CO).  Even if can't make it to the meeting, can still have opportunity to 
comment on it.  Let Ev know you are interested.  Projects are broken into 
several units (poisonous, pollinator, sheep unit) which rarely get a 
chance to come together in one place.

- New NRCS Plant Material Center: The Great Basin Plant Materials Center 
is closer to reality.  The NRCS has signed an agreement with the 
University of Nevada, Reno, to locate the PMC at the University's Newlands 
Field Laboratory in Fallon, Nevada." 
http://www.nv.nrcs.usda.gov/Great_Basin_PMC.html

- NatureServe President and CEO departing.  (per Larry Morse) Mark 
Schaefer is leaving.  Mary Klein will be Acting President while searching 
for replacement.  An international executive search will be initiated 
soon.

- New Publication: Canadian Species Report (per Bruce Stein) October 2005. 
Examined the global conservation status of Canadian species.  Concluded 
that Canada's entire list of GX-G3 species represents approximately 5.9% 
of Canadian native flora.

- What is Science according to a judge?  (per Larry Morse) Washington Post 
- 12/21/05 - Article about the intelligent design court case.  Summary of 
the decision discusses "what is science."

- Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center is seeking to expand participation 
in Invaders Citizen Science Program - Citizens helping scientists combat 
invasive species. (per Damon Waitt)  Several PCA Cooperators, including 
LBJ Wildflower Center, Missouri Botanical Garden, and the Sonora Desert 
Museum, are participating in the effort to train citizens to help 
scientists combat invasive species.
"The Invaders Citizen Science Program was developed by a consortium of 
Botanic Gardens, Natural History Museums, Zoos, and Aquaria in partnership 
with Sea Studios Foundation, National Geographic and Vulcan Productions 
and launched on April 20 when National Geographic's Strange Days on Planet 
Earth TV series premiered its opening episode about invaders on PBS."
This program uses citizens to collect data, share the data with local 
authorities, and then send the data to the citizen science database. 
"Citizen scientists" are trained using a specially developed Invasive 
Species Early Detection and Reporting Kit. With this kit, volunteers can 
help detect invaders' arrival and dispersal in their own local areas. 
They deliver that information into a national database and to local 
regulatory agencies that can do something about it.  The premise is 
simple.  The more trained eyes watching for invasives, the better our 
chances of lessening or avoiding damage to our native landscape. The kit 
has been field tested by several of the Invaders consortium partners which 
include Arizona-Sonora Desert Museum, Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower, 
Missouri Botanical Garden, New England Aquarium, North Carolina Museum of 
Natural Sciences, and Woodland Park Zoo.  A summary report is available at 
<http://www.texasinvasives.org/Citizen_Science/citizen.html> and 
<http://www.desertmuseum.org/invaders/> for program specifics at the Lady 
Bird Johnson Wildflower Center and Arizona-Sonora Desert Museum.  .
The program partners are looking to expand consortium with IMLS funding. 
We are seeking to expand the consortium in 2006 to include 4-6 new 
partners who are interested in launching citizen-science based early 
detection and reporting programs at their institutions.  If you are 
interested in participating or want more info, contact:
Damon E. Waitt, Ph.D.
Senior Botanist
Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center
4801 La Crosse Ave. Austin, Texas 78739-1702
email: dwaitt at wildflower.org
web: http://www.wildflower.org
phone: 512.292.4200
fax: 512.292.4627

- Plant Wise: Seeking native alternatives for non-natives - (per Damon 
Waitt) LBJ Wildflower, National Park Service, Garden Club of America, and 
Center for Plant Conservation - national program to educate 
home-/landowners about invasives in the urban landscape as a source of 
invasives in the wild landscape.  This program is similar to "Fire Wise." 
If you have any suggestions, contact Damon Waitt (above).

- Building a Strong Strategy for Native Plants.  (per Peggy Olwell) PCA 
tri-fold brochure under development.  Passed around a draft.  Demonstrates 
how PCAs native plant strategy relates to the Global Strategy for Plant 
Conservation (See 12JAN05 PCA Meeting Summary 
<http://www.nps.gov/plants/summary.htm#jan05>).

- Finding Solutions for Native Plants.  (per Peggy Olwell)  Another PCA 
tri-fold under development.  Discusses working groups, etc.

DISCUSSION: Talking with Canada and Mexico about bringing them into the 
fold more.  Need to consider developing a showpiece brochure to attract 
new participants.

- USDA, BLM, and FS are sponsors of the Fourth Annual ASTA Meeting (per 
Bob Escheman)  American Seed Trade Association meeting that includes 
growers and federal agencies.  Will be held Feb. 28-Mar. 1.  Closed 
meeting (for ASTA members and federal partners).

- Roadside Summit.  (per Flo Oxley)  Friday, January 13. Reinstituting a 
program to encourage the use of natives on roadsides and ecologically 
sound roadside management practices, to achieve the goals of having more 
natives and also roadside goals (safety, fiscal responsibility, etc.). LBJ 
Wildflower Center has invited DOT, FWS, NGOs to discuss challenges to 
ecological maintenance and how to address those challenges while 
encouraging the use of natives.  Minutes from this meeting will be sent 
over the PCA listserves and put on website.  This info will be used to 
develop a 2007 national conference hosted at the center, which PCA will be 
involved in developing.

- Native Seed Network.  (per Rob Fiegner)
   - On the brink of launching a new website.
   - Summer internship programs for plant collection and monitoring.  Will 
send announcement over listserve.

- National Park Service National Botanist Position Still Vacant.  (per 
Greg Eckert) No job announcement yet, but will be opening it to folks 
outside the government.

- Farm Bill comments sought.  Public comment period on Farm Bill programs.

- - - -

Updates on Committee Activities

- Alien Plant (not present)

- Medicinal Plant (Patricia De Angelis)
   - 2006 Field Projects - Leaders are setting dates for this year's 
projects.  Thanks to Anne Abbott for her continued work and dedication on 
these projects.

- Native Plant Materials Development
   - Today's talk

- Outreach (Flo Oxley)
   - Gearing up and will be in touch to start the work!

- Restoration (Greg Eckert)
   - Trying to recruit more federal members and initiating contacts with 
folks in the field doing applied work.

- NFWF (Ellen Gabel)
   - Second round of projects were selected.  Announcements will be sent 
out in early February.
   - Pre-proposals were due Feb 17

- MOU (Peggy Olwell)
   - NRCS is on board

- - - - -

Speakers: Peggy Olwell and Larry Stritch
- - Native Plant Materials Development

Summary: Efforts to fulfill federal agency needs for native plant 
materials has focused on collecting the germplasm and growing the 
industry.  Native plants require different machinery than 
traditionally-used materials.  Germination protocols were needed. 
Locally-adapted genotypes mean smaller customer base.  These are just some 
of the issues that are being overcome.  Private industry is stepping up to 
work on the needs of their state and federal agency customers.